Wooden grips and recoil?

[dyl]

Hey guys,

I'm just curious about whether or not you think wooden grips on a S&W.357 (27-2) would actually make felt recoil more manageable for those magnum loads. As soon as I got it I put on some Hogue grips and I have to say when I shoot magnums out of it, it seems like the rest of the grip just disappears and I only feel the backstrap. Not that it's going to kill me or anything but maybe softer grip doesn't always equal better. Any experience?

I realize I could just try those rosewood stocks it came with for a few sessions but they're so darn purdy.

 

[gwnorth]

I'd say it depends on the shape and fit of the grips. I've tried several sets of wood grips on my 3" 65-3 and 3" and 4" Ruger Service Sixes and finally have ones that fit my hand very well. Last outing I put some 158gr PMC Bronze JSP and some old 145gr Winchester silvertips through those guns with wood grips on them and it was very comfortable. Other wood grips I'd tried on those guns were not pleasant to shoot with, so you need to experiment a bit to find the right fit for your hand.

On my GP100s though, I have not found any wood grips nearly as comfortable as the stock hogue monogrips.

P. S. I've got a set of Ahrends tactical round butt on the 65, and Sile finger groove walnut grips on the Sixes.

 

[ScaryWoody]

I changed out the factory grips on my Ruger SP101 in .357 to nice wooden ones. For .38spl they were good. With the .357 I found them uncomfortable. I switched to the Hogue monogrip and haven't switched back.

 

[napg19]

wooden grips and recoil.

I agree about the wooden grips, used them for years. But these Hogue monogrips on my SP101 3" make shooting even magnums easy and comfortable to handle.

 

[nutty ned]

I used to think the wood grips made recoil bad in a .357 S&W, now not so much; however, Hogue mono grips should be best. At least they are in other calibers.

 

[WVfishguy]

These Herrett stocks work well on this 4" 28-2:

For best results with .357 magnum loads, I prefer S&W smooth target grips like the ones on this 6" 27-2. I have big hands and the added wood redistributes the impact so it's spread out over my hand, not just the web of my hand:

I buy the smooth targets on Gunbroker or on this forum.
I used to use Hogue grips, but I found the finger groove Hogues are too slender for magnums. The non-finger groove Hogues work well. This is a 19-5:

 

[stevieboy]

I love the look of wooden grips and most of my handguns are equipped with them. But, the reality is that rubber grips seem to absorb recoil better than wood. I presently have wooden grips that replicate the old "coke" Smith & Wesson grips on my three .357 magnums (S & W models 66, 686, and 27). They do an ok job of absorbing recoil although I tend to get somewhat sore at the base of my shooting hand thumb after about 50 rounds of magnums or so.

Hogue monogrips, frankly are more comfortable and I constantly debate with myself whether I ought to replace the pretty wooden grips on my guns with the rubbers. So far, I've only done so where I've determined that it was absolutely necessary for comfort purposes. Thus, my J-frame 36 and my Smith & Wesson 625 currently sport rubbers. They're ugly as hell, unfortunately

 

[GeauxTide]

Had the same issue with a 19, 66, and a 28 and Hogue Rubber. On the 19 and 66, I had Herret's Troopers fitted and Pachmayers on the 28. It'll take longer for the Herret's but the wait is worth it. Fitted to your hand.

 

[MoBart]

If you are a fan of "Impossible Shots" on the Outdoor channel then now and then you see Bob Munden shoot an 8 3/8" smith model 29 or 629 (Ican't tell if its nickel or stainless and polished) but he has a pair of white houge monogrips on it. Not a real solution but another option anyway. I haven't ever seen them but I have seen that clip on there several times (I love that show and DVR it so I don't have to deal with those pesky commercials) and I know they are a white soft rubber monogrip. If you can get a set out of Houge they might give a fair compromise between a lighter colored wood and the ugly black soft rubber.

I honestly think that the houge monogrip is a great recoil absorbing piece or gear. However I agree that they are ugly as an ex mother in law. I have had and used them a few times on different revolvers. The one I have real issue with are pachmyers, I don't think they do anything to help distribute or reduce recoil, they feel terrible to me, and are even uglier then the houges. They are the ones on Charter Arms new revolvers adn I can't stand them, I am salivating for one of the BUlldogs with the tiger stripe finish (my local shop guy says they are supposed to be on the street mid March) but those ugly pointless grips are **** can bound, maybe on the way out the door even.

 

[dyl]

HAha you all crack me up. Thanks for your input it's greatly appreciated. I forgot to mention that the first pair of synthetic stocks I tried on were the Pachmayr "decelerators" but I had actually wanted to order the "grippers". Those decelerators covered the backstrap but it felt like a mile from the web of my hand to the trigger. Yeah those wood grips are pretty (thanks for posting those pictures), I guess I almost made that common mistake with these Hogues - you don't know how good you've got it until it's gone. But I think I'll have to try the wood grips someday, just can't see myself leaving it be forever.

If I could characterize how I feel about nice looking wooden grips, the word dignified comes to mind. I ain't shootin with bullets, I'm shootin with culture baby!

 

[jad0110]

Fitment to hand is the most important factor, much more so than material IMO.

The Hogue monogrip flat doesn't work for me. The finger grooves are in the wrong place, forcing my to grip the gun lower on the frame than I normally would. Wood Ahrends or Eagle Classics feel MUCH better in my hands. Heck, S&W's magnas with Tyler-T Grips work great for me as well. Allow enable me to get a solid high hand hold on the gun. OTH, S&W's walnut target stocks are simply too big even for my hands (I'm 6'7"), especially in the butt area. They are just flared out way to agressively for me. After reading Bill Jordan's No Second Place Winner, even he had the same issues, despite his giant gorilla hands.

But to each his own. I left the rubber Uncle Mikes boot grips on my 642, simply because they work fine. And I don't mind the look of rubber on stainless so much. Blued guns, on the other hand :barf: .