New MDT vertical grip (big photos)

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jadam

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I pre-ordered the new MDT vertical grip a few weeks back and they came in yesterday. Haven't had any range time, so this will be a quick and dirty on first impressions for now. I ordered two and have one on my precision bolt gun and one on my precision AR.

First up is my Tikka CTR in an MDT HS3 chassis:

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You can see the grip has a bit of adjustability fore and aft to accommodate different hand sizes. I have pretty medium hands and my second knuckle is aligned with the trigger pretty well with the grip pushed fully forward.

The grip is composed of three pieces - an aluminum inverted "L" that the two plastic side pieces clamshell over. There is no adjustability up or down.

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The location of the grip on the HS3 seems lower than it should be. Looking at the photo of the ACC chassis on the MDT website, this grip integrates better with that chassis. The edges are kid of sharp, and the gap is not comfortable on the hand.

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As you can see here, the grip really is a little low for this chassis.

Next up is an AR-10 platform.

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The grip does not have any provision for the safety lever detent spring, so I chopped one very short and it more or less works. I'd prefer a better solution.

Vertically, the grip is positioned better.

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There will be issues with pretty much all safety levers. I had to use short length BAD ASS levers to clear the grip. This grip is probably not a good choice for an AR.

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Again, there is the uncomfortable gap between the grip and chassis.

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Looks better than the HS3.

So, overall, initial impressions are mixed. I like the overall idea and vertical orientation, but I think this grip is really intended for the ACC chassis and perhaps won't be suitable for most others. The plastic material of the grip panels is hard and tapered slightly from top to bottom, which feels a bit odd to me. I will try wrapping the grip with some tape or something.
 
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I've been running the vertical grip for about a week now on my trainer (which is in an ACC) and I've got on on my match rifle (also in ACC) but have yet to run it. So far, I really like it. I've played around a bit with where I like it (for and aft) and so far I'm kind of torn between full forward and in the middle and I have medium hands. That being said, it's not ideal for every application. It's really designed for use on a precision rifle where you're "floating the thumb" ie using a thumb rest instead of wrapping your thumb around the grip. I don't think I'd like it on an AR as I wrap my thumb up high. For what it's worth, if it were me, I'd just Dremel off that bit where it overlaps under the trigger guard on your HS3. Also, something to think about trying is a flat trigger. I really prefer a flat trigger on a precision rifle when using a pistol grip, especially the more vertical it is.
 
An alternative is to tap and thread the safety lever detent pin hole and replace the detent pin and spring with an appropriately sized ball bearing, short spring and grub screw. It’s described pretty clearly HERE if you aren’t familiar with it. I will likely give that a go as I am not happy with the MacGuyvered solution I tried first.

As for the safety lever, shorter versions (even full 90 degree throw) work and I would imagine many short throw ones do too.
 
Vigilant said:
I maybe completely wrong but that does not look comfortable on either guns. I like the BCM grip for its angle too.
Click to expand...

Going to try at the range tomorrow. So far jury is out. This is not a hold-on-for-dear-life grip. Loose grip with the thumb floated is what you're meant to do, at least that's what it seems to me.
 
So I got around to shooting the new grips on my Tikka and my AR-10 on the weekend. I liked the shape but wasn't completely blown away if that makes any sense. I think I will grow to appreciate it more.

When I got home I did the captured safety detent mod described above and linked to again HERE. Worked like a charm. Also tweaked the position of the grip on the AR a bit. I do think that perhaps a slightly larger radius on the grip might help. Will try that next.
 
I have the MDT one as well on an HS3. I found moving the grip back a bit and slanting away from the shoulder (as with the 3 screws down each side with adjustment fore and aft it allows for a backwards or forwards tilt) takes most of that uncomfortable sharp edge away and it feels good in my hand. However your experience may vary.
 
MDT was kind enough to let me try out an ACC with their new vertical grip.

I like it a lot and find that a full wrap or using the thumb shelf is equally comfortable.

The fore/aft adjustment is quite smart. I have shoved all the way forward and it give me a perfect 90 degree bend in my trigger finger.
 
Ryan.M.Anderson said:
MDT was kind enough to let me try out an ACC with their new vertical grip.

I like it a lot and find that a full wrap or using the thumb shelf is equally comfortable.

The fore/aft adjustment is quite smart. I have shoved all the way forward and it give me a perfect 90 degree bend in my trigger finger.
Click to expand...

Full forward is what I've settled on as well. I'll be running my ACC with the vertical grip down at Blue Ridge this weekend.
 
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