I also have wood for making grips (walnut is most prevalent but have some nice hickory, oak and maple) that has been drying for a minimum of 2 years now and I've cut some to size recently to get started. I have had numerous conversations with Cary and he gladly gave me all kind of hints, tips and advice on how to get started. In my case, I'm going to start with grips for the low back Six series DA's as they seem (to me) to probably be the easiest to start with (design and shaping wise). I'm slowly getting out of the gun business (but I'll probably keep renewing my FFL for the next 10 years or so for my own use) so I can have some "me" time to do my life long hobby of working with wood.