[Steve in Allentown]

Does anyone know of a reputable engraver who can put the Virigina Tech school logo onto a pair of grips?

[TimHecht]

There are several different ways to do that; one is laser etching - I've seen vendors at Michigan and Ohio Gun Shows with the machine at the show and if you have good art they'll do it during the show.

The more traditional way is by finding a Scrimshaw Artist, aka Scrimshander, who will do the work for you. My ex-wife used to do some beautiful work; I have a set of bonded ivory 1911 stocks (bonded ivory is the scraps of elephant ivory, ground to a powder and molded with a poly resin. Since it contains ivory powder it actually ages (yellows) over time. Depending upon the skill level of the artist you could pay in excess of $100 a square inch for scrimshaw. Here's what my stocks look like and some other of her work. Sadly I've lost her contact information and don't know if she is still scrimming.




The tarantula handle material is ivory micarta, a plastic made from phenol resins

[imghttp://iwantthatknife.com/Gallery/albums/Scrimshaw/knife_scrim.jpg][/img]

The top knife has a deer antler section that is scrimmed; the Red Dragon on elephant ivory, the eagle on casein, a milk by-product; and the nude is done on original Westinghouse Paper Micarta, hard to find today, according to some artists it is actually easier to scrim then ivory.

These are The Bears; a pair of knives by my good friend and knifemaker, Fred Rowe of Ohio. Fred used to be a cabinet maker and finish carpenter and his work is meticulous. The butt ends of the knives are large deer antler crowns and the bears are almost identical except for the facial expressions. I had only seen the work on the handles (scrimmed by my ex) and when I finally saw both knives together I had to buy them. The dagger blade is 9" long!



You may guess I am partial to scrimshaw, done the old fashioned way, with a needle in a pin vise and India Ink; but I've seen some good detailed laser etched stocks as well.

[Kwixdraw]

Google FEGA, Firearms Engravers Guild of America. They have lists of engravers and who are considered "masters" and contact information I believe. Many will do Scrimshaw or know someone who does.

[DavidR]

you might contact this guy on ebay, he offers hundreds of engraved grips Im sure he has the skill to do what you want, if he will.
http://www.ebay.com/itm/HORNED-TOAD-Ful ... 2ee3b6a006