Alternative Headline: : Texas Shop Griffworx Builds Pistol From Meteorite Iron
Many high-end custom pistols, especially of the 1911 style, are made from exotic materials-titanium, along with Damascus Steel, scandium, beryllium copper, tungsten, columbium/niobium, platinum and others. How about from out of this world? A rarity, yes, it's been done before, but not in a garage shop. And probably not on a drill/mill machine. The material is a meteorite, specifically Gibeon meteorite.
The Gibeon meteorites are IVA iron meteorites composed primarily of iron-nickel alloy, with minor cobalt and trace phosphorus; when cut, polished, and etched, their crystalline kamacite-taenite structure reveals the characteristic interwoven Widmanstätten pattern. The Gibeon meteorites are named for Gibeon, Namibia, Africa, the town nearest the historic recovery area of this prehistoric iron-meteorite fall. The raw material is very expensive. The FFL serialized (for compliance purposes) solid blank for this firearm was around $45,000, before any machining was done.
Blake Griffith, owner of Griffworx LLC, a DFW area, Texas, based shop is making this custom Gibeon meteorite 1911 .45 ACP for a customer that commissioned it. As mentioned, this is a home based, garage shop - his machine barely made it in his garage, he had to clearance the garage roof to make it fit. Griffworx has a new Haas DM-2 VMC compact, high-speed CNC machine designed for drilling, tapping, and milling.
Working with this meteorite is unlike other material. "It is much like working with cast-iron in that it's both gummy, soft, sometimes hard and also abrasive," said Griffith. "It really eats up your cutting tools, you cannot use them on any other material, you use it on titanium and it doesn't work." He's currently using carbide tools with his preferred coolant: Blaser Swisslube Synergy 735 Full-synthetic, water-miscible oil-free metalworking fluid.
The majority of the components on this custom 1911 pistol are Gibeon meteorite with the exception of the stainless steel barrel, firing pin, extractor and springs.
Griffworx does contract manufacturing for the firearms and related industries, currently the company produces custom Damascus steel knives, cigar cutters, brass knuckles, firearms accessories and related items. The company is planning to expand in the near future with the addition of another VMC.
For more information contact:
Blake Griffith
Griffworx LLC
DFW Area, TX
413-309-8026
www.griffworxllc.com
@griffworx