Real steel grip on an AEG

[proffrink]

Does anyone know if there's a product that'll allow one to do this? I know Silent Custom did one a while back that would allow fitting of a real grip onto an AEG, but their page has been dead for a long time and aren't accepting orders as far as I'm aware. I can't really find anything else and have very little experience on changing them myself beyond knowing that they're not compatible due to the hole usually reserved for the motor.

 

[M_P]

WIll depend on the gun, on an AR-15 as you say it's not going to happen due to the motor needing to be in the grip etc, if you can think of another rifle where the motor is elsewhere then there maybe a chance.

Pretty sure a PTW will take real grips if you have the money to drop  :lol:

 

[proffrink]

I should have noted in the OP: I'm ware of the motor limitations. This is for HPA. I only mention the hole for the motor as that's where usually a grip on a real AR or GBBR would be fixed to. I assume any adapter has to somehow overcome this problem.

There have been 3D printed adapters made in the past by Silent Custom, but I'm not sure if these were a one size fits all deal or something more bespoke.

 

[jcheeseright]

wont work; different dimensions, AEG receivers are wider than real ones by a few millimetres. 

 

[proffrink]

And yet it's been done before quite a few times.

Looks like it reaches up into the lower itself to provide space for threads? I wish I knew more details on how it's done, but I can't find much.

 

[M_P]

Looks like it reaches up into the lower itself to provide space for threads? I wish I knew more details on how it's done, but I can't find much.

Click to shrink...

No it will sit on the inside of the receiver and then the pistol grip screws into that holding lower receiver between the two. You'll need either this adapter or to make one similar to do so

An aeg grip is screwed into the gearbox shell via two of the 4 small holes in the grip as seen in the image below

A real steel grip is held on through the center of the grip into the lower receiver itself as seen here, which shows the amound of material that needs to be fashioned that does not exist in a standard aeg receiver

so while yes it is technically possible, without finding an existing adapter or making your own I don't think you're going to get it done, also as Jcheesewright said, the receiver is a different thickness so would likely be uncomfortable to hold anyway, I'd say you're better off just finding an aeg grip you find comfier and going with that instead.

 

[proffrink]

I'm not sure what you chaps are actually offering here beyond stating the obvious. I've provided links to Silent Custom and how they've done it - cutting into the gearbox and replacing it with a threaded insert. What I'm asking is if anyone knows of another way this is done. Clearly the answer in both of your cases is 'no', but it absolutely can and has been done by someone who now - for whatever reason - doesn't sell the adapters any longer/has dropped off the face of the earth. This is something only possible for HPA because there's spare room in the gearbox shell, so I expect that's why it's not so prevalent but give me some credit in knowing why this is a topic worth bringing up in the first place.

Thanks for the effort though. I'm assuming both of you have used GBBRs and can notice the difference in width between what I consider the wider and less comfortable AEG-compatible grips. Not to mention the lack of some of the variety in the real ones that one can freely use on near 1:1 receivers like the GBBRs do. That's why I want to do this, but I'm not sure why that matters because it's not what I'm asking.

 

[proffrink]

Samurai printed an adapter and it's really quite nice. Grip lines up very well with the receiver too, but it's G&P so perhaps they add material to make the outside a bit more real spec.? Can't notice a difference between this an a Prime or G&P WOC receiver for sure.

 

[skillfulmmd]

Without trying to sound like a dick or being Naive what is the benefit of a RealSteel grip I'm assuming they are slimmer due to not need the large motor space?

 

[proffrink]

Slimmer and a lot more choice. Also cheaper (at least in the case of Magpul) because the PTS stuff went out of manufacture years ago. I wanted an MOE+, which you can't get as an AEG grip unfortunately I'm also used to the slightly slimmer grips because I've not owned an AEG in probably 5+ years now and GBBRs almost universally accept real ones.

 

[skillfulmmd]

Interesting. I thought they would be more expensive in most cases.

Every day is a school day!

 

[proffrink]

Certainly in most cases it is. Magpul is a bit of an outlier in this area because they've not licensed airsoft parts since 2014(?) so all that stuff goes for a lot of money if you can even find it. Just look up how much people will pay for a PTS Magpul Pmag these days.

Also the vast majority of companies don't bother with the airsoft market and I've found grip choices in particular to be very limited compared with what I was used to with GBBRs so yeh