MoNsTeR Posted February 17, 2004 Share Posted February 17, 2004 in this ZIP file there's an mpeg movie pitching the Speedsec5 holster: http://www.speedsec.biz/video/SpeedsecHQ.zip (dial-up warning: 10MB file) ...which is pretty neat, but what caught my eye was the translucent grip on the gun he used for the demonstration. Where the heck can a brother get one? Here's a pic captured from the movie: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ogiebb Posted February 17, 2004 Share Posted February 17, 2004 Monster, i believe those grips are SPS an STI/SV copy made in Spain .darn pretty huh?..im having my brother get me one when he goes to asia next week (if legal to).. and from the looks of the gun its in a modified divison set up (IPSC)..cheers Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcmgun Posted February 17, 2004 Share Posted February 17, 2004 Yes, that´s right. This grip is from SPS. They made a few of this translucent grips in the last years but as far as I know, they don´t manufacture them anymore. BTW: They have a very nice website which can be found at www.sps-dc.com You could write them an e-mail and ask if they have another one in stock.. regards, George www.speedsec.biz Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julien Boit Posted February 17, 2004 Share Posted February 17, 2004 I purchased mine through Amadini Custom in Italy. www.amadini.it The only drawback I see is that the are "harder" than regular grips. The others are more "elastic". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JasonK Posted February 19, 2004 Share Posted February 19, 2004 So will these grips fit an authentic STI/SVI ? If so I want one!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
L9X25 Posted February 19, 2004 Share Posted February 19, 2004 I asked around to see if they were available in the USA and learned that they are a "knock-off" of the STI/SV design and violate the US patent that they both hold. They are, therefore, contraband in the US and cannot be imported legally. Leo Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcmgun Posted February 20, 2004 Share Posted February 20, 2004 @Jason: yes, they´ll fit STI/SV @Leo: Well, might be right that a dealer cannot import them, but if you buy them as a privat person - so what? They have two distributors in Canada, should not be a big deal.. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheOtherErik Posted February 21, 2004 Share Posted February 21, 2004 you know, its a replacement part. I dont see how its any different if you bought brake pads at pep boys rather than buying them from the dealer. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
diehli Posted February 21, 2004 Share Posted February 21, 2004 Incidentally, from what I've seen of Ralph Arredondo's gun, it looks like he has an SPS grip on it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Julien Boit Posted February 24, 2004 Share Posted February 24, 2004 So does his ambi safety. They got a real particuliar shape. I still got some in my spare parts box. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MattBurkett Posted February 25, 2004 Share Posted February 25, 2004 theOtherErik, Its called patent infringment. Same issues would apply to someone else injection molding a C-more replacement body. Just because the grip is easier to remove doesn't change the infringment. Take care, Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mcmgun Posted February 25, 2004 Share Posted February 25, 2004 Its called patent infringment. Same issues would apply to someone else injection molding a C-more replacement body. Just because the grip is easier to remove doesn't change the infringment. Matt, you´re right. But the grip is slightly different on the magwell part because it has an internal magwell. Since STI/SV only hold US patents, everybody can copy it everywhere in the world outside US. Even if it cannot be sold in the US, how can it be prohibited to buy it from the Canadian distributor? BTW: OKO is harming C-More´s patents badly since several years and sells them also in the US. Who cares? Well, Ira cares - but nothing he can do... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheOtherErik Posted February 26, 2004 Share Posted February 26, 2004 I don't claim to be buisness savy, but I dont see if being any differen't. I can buy replacemnt brake pads made by Raybestos for my Ford. Why can't I buy a replacement grip made by SPS for my STI. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Flexmoney Posted February 26, 2004 Share Posted February 26, 2004 Raybestos likely isn't stepping on any of Ford's patents. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricW Posted February 26, 2004 Share Posted February 26, 2004 Think like a small business person for one moment. Then mortgage your house and put everything you own up as collateral to buy an injection mold that costs probably about $100-150K. You then get to sweat bullets for the next 5 to 10 years trying to recoup that cost in a market that totals maybe 10,000 shooters buying grips at $100 a whack. Then you'll understand why we have patent protection. Ford doesn't need it. The little guy does. The folks who risked it all to develop the 2011 platform deserve to recoup their investment. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheOtherErik Posted February 26, 2004 Share Posted February 26, 2004 Raybestos likely isn't stepping on any of Ford's patents. they still have to copy the dimesions of the origonal to make a replacement. Is it still any different than Grams or Arredondo making followers and base pads to replace the factory STI versions. "The folks who risked it all to develop the 2011 platform deserve to recoup their investment." I'm pretty sure they have, I have seen the gold chains that Dave Skinner wears. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mpolans Posted February 26, 2004 Share Posted February 26, 2004 Its called patent infringment. Same issues would apply to someone else injection molding a C-more replacement body. Just because the grip is easier to remove doesn't change the infringment. Matt, you´re right. But the grip is slightly different on the magwell part because it has an internal magwell. Since STI/SV only hold US patents, everybody can copy it everywhere in the world outside US. Even if it cannot be sold in the US, how can it be prohibited to buy it from the Canadian distributor? BTW: OKO is harming C-More´s patents badly since several years and sells them also in the US. Who cares? Well, Ira cares - but nothing he can do... We have treaties to enforce and recognize patents from countries all over the world. For the person who mentioned Raybestos, they probably have licensing agreement with Ford. If SPS wants to deal legitimately, it would seek a licensing agreement from STI/SVI. If there's enough demand for a translucent grip, STI/SVI would make one or give/sell SPS a license to do so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blkbrd Posted February 26, 2004 Share Posted February 26, 2004 It is a patent infringement no matter where it is produced, its just a matter if the country in question has enough honer to abide by other countries patents. And who cares, its butt ugly and given the material used its not as strong as an S-I. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shred Posted February 26, 2004 Share Posted February 26, 2004 Well, there's a bunch of issues here.. Ford most likely does not have a patent on their brake shoes. Even if they did once, it's long expired, so no violation there. They could re-patent the exact shape and size of new pads, but one tiny variation by Raybestos and they're free of infringement. Such is the way of "Design" or "Exact Shape and Size" patents in laymans terms. The other, and more valuable US patent is the "Utility" patent which covers how something works, not exactly what it looks like. Patents are generally not valid internationally-- you have to file for one in each and every country you want one in. Europe is working on Europe-wide patents, but it's slow going. On the STI patent (which is a utility patent), the patent doesn't explicitly cover the exact shape and size of the grips. There's no point doing a design patent-- anybody could tweak it a bit and get around it. What the patent covers is the modular frame-and-grip concept for a 1911. They didn't re-up the STI patent in Europe, and it expired. SPS was able to make frames using the STI concept and sell them in Europe-- no patent, no infringement. But in the US there's a legit US patent-- so SPS could be "Cease-and-Desisted" by STI if they came here and tried to sell frames. If you've got an SPS personally, you're OK-- you didn't infringe by making it, and unless you imported it illegally, there's nothing they can hit you with. "Possessing a knockoff of somebody else's patented idea" isn't something they prosecute. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
TheOtherErik Posted February 27, 2004 Share Posted February 27, 2004 thanks shread...that clears everything up. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scooter Posted February 27, 2004 Share Posted February 27, 2004 It wouldn't be all that hard for STI/SVI to do a batch in clear. All they would have to do is order some clear pellets when they run the next batch through the injection molding machine. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
shred Posted February 27, 2004 Share Posted February 27, 2004 I'll let the real molding experts answer that, but I'm pretty sure STI and SPS use different molding techniques for their grips (the SPS method being somewhat cheaper and cruder). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
EricW Posted February 27, 2004 Share Posted February 27, 2004 Molding in clear with the same mold isn't that simple. S_I grips are nylon. Unless they have clear nylon now, the only material that has the mojo to work in clear is Polycarbonate or a PC blend. The shrink rates are similar, but not the same. PC shrinks less than nylon if I recall correctly - so the grip will be larger. Not good for mating parts that are supposed to be an line to line fit. The chemical compatibility of PC is not what nylon is either. Personally, I'll take durable over cool. Unless your gun sits in a safe, that clear grip will look like s*** in a month anyway. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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