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Carry Mods

Likewise, all the sharp edges should be removed from the outside of the gun, a task for which I used a combination of a narrow pillar file and needle files. In my opinion, this should be done to any custom gun. To finish off the roughness left by the file, I use either sandpaper backed by a hard object such as the file used to cut the bevel (repeat after me: never use sandpaper without a hard backer) or a 3M Scotchbrite wheel, which gives an added softness to the bevel. Places I couldn’t reach with the wheel I finished with backed sandpaper.

The Scotchbrite wheel is like any other rotary tool: It’s not a magic wand, and just like a grinding wheel, you can easily remove too much material or get uneven, wandering lines. It takes a firm, experienced hand to maintain consistent angle and pressure while you’re moving the part against the wheel.

I matted the frontstrap and back of the frame for texture, using a proprietary technique I was taught at Novak’s. Stippling is another texture often found on Hi-Powers since checkering is likely to break through the thin frontstrap.

After all this hammering and cutting, the gun needed to be refinished. In a world of more exotic spray-on finishes, a simple bead-blast-and-blue can lend a very nice, understated air to a carry pistol, both when new and as it ages. Especially in a gun that’s been matted, wear gives the gun an appearance of greater depth of texture. Brand new, it looks great. With a couple of years’ holster wear, it looks unquestionably tough.

Grips were the crowning touch. I never quite understood the deal with Hi-Powers until I handled one with a pair of Craig Spegel grips. Something about the slight palmswell and the narrowing toward the front accentuates the pistol’s already excellent ergonomics, giving it a comfortable feel like no other. While my full-house Novak Hi-Power has a set of Delrin Spegels on it — the same grips used on Hi-Powers Novak built for the FBI HRT — I added a fully checkered pair made of Brazilian rosewood for the Girsan. Though there is a slight difference in contour between the grip and the frame, Silket expertly fitted the grips to the pistol. Freshly blued and with the striking straight grain in the Spegels, the Girsan looks like a proper Hi-Power ready to take its place in my Milt Sparks Summer Special. And it’ll look even better in a few years.

For more info: EAACorp.com, NovaksInc.com, MiltSparks.com, CraigSpegel.com