GUNS Magazine Fit versus Feel

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Hogue grips on a late model K-22 (top) fit most hands better than
“splinter” stocks on its 1930s predecessor (bottom).

Ever since there have been gun writers, there has been the advice, “Choose the handgun that feels the best.” I may have been guilty of it myself in my early years, to which I can only say, Mea culpa, mea maxima culpa.

If I want something to feel good in my hand, I’ll pet a kitten or find some Waterford crystal to run under my fingertips. What we should be looking for in a handgun, if we seek maximum performance, is fit as opposed to feel.

I learned early the S&W J-Frame or Colt D-Frame revolver with the factory “splinter” stocks of the day felt great in my hand but would twist in my grasp upon recoil and force me to re-grip every couple of shots. The same was true with larger-frame wheelguns. Grip adapters and better stocks solved the problem but even there I found subtle differences. Pachmayr grips felt better but I shot better with Hogues, so I started switching to the latter.

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“Splinter” grips (left) can squirm in the hand; Pachmayr
Compacs (right) change both grasp and trigger reach.

Determining Fit

Let’s define “fit.” Can we reach all the parts we need to manipulate without shifting our grasp? Can we get enough hand around the girth of the grip for a solid hold, but still have room for the support hand — without our hits or speed suffering when shooting one-hand-only? For good shooting, trigger control is the heart of the beast which makes trigger reach a key factor in fit. On the gun, it’s measured from the point at the center of the backstrap where the web of the hand rests, to the center of the face of the trigger.

On the hand, it’s measured from the center of the web of the hand in line with the long bones of the forearm to the chosen point of contact for the finger on the trigger. Depending on the gun and the shooter, it might be the “pad” of the finger (think, “the whorl of the fingerprint”) or the distal joint on the palmar surface the old-time double action revolver shooters call “the power crease.” I have learned to live with either (and have to, on GLOCKs or the first shot from a Beretta 92), but prefer the power crease because it gives me more leverage.

Grip angle

Grip-to-barrel angle is important too. As a young guy shooting .22 bulls-eye matches, I loved the exquisite workmanship of the Smith & Wesson Model 41 but it felt like a T-square in my hand. I had to deliberately cock my wrist to shoot it; the steeper angle of the High Standard Supermatic “pointed” more naturally for me so it’s what I went with. It’s probably one reason I’m comfortable with GLOCKs, which have a similar Luger-esque grip angle. It’s not just about point-shooting, either. For aimed fire, if the gun “comes to line of sight by itself” you’ll always be faster with it.

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Three generations of 1911 mainspring housing. From left: flat, arched
and Ed Brown Bobtail. Each fits the hand slightly differently.

You can adapt to a gun that doesn’t fit you well but you may never reach your peak performance level or comfort level. There was a period when the police department I served issued the Ruger P90. Now, the P90 was a rugged, reliable beast, a Kalashnikov of .45 autos. It was amazingly accurate and came with a surprisingly good pull. But it fit my hand like a brick with a trigger. I was reminded of something my mentor Bill Jordan once wrote: “The Border Patrol campaign hat never quite fit our heads, but eventually our heads came to fit the hat.” The P90 was like this for me. I managed to win a state shoot for cops with it one year when the rules required the issued weapon, but I had to really work at it and when I got permission to carry a 1911 .45 auto in uniform again, I jumped at the chance.

Speaking of 1911s, I started with the flat mainspring housing in 1960 and apparently habituated to it. The arched 1911-A1 housing never felt quite right but I didn’t shoot any worse with it. The round-butt 1911 pioneered by Ed Brown feels better yet to me but I can’t really see a performance difference between the three when shooting. It can get very subjective.

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Tyler-T grip adapter on J-Frame S&W (right) greatly improved “fit” over standard stocks (above, left).
This shooter finds trigger reach optimal on his Sarsilmaz SAR 9 (below).

Figuring fit

When you dry-fire the new gun you’re thinking of buying, snap it up to firing position and see if the sights are on target. Press the trigger back and see if the sights stay on target, but this is just the start. It may take hundreds of rounds, preferably timed and scored, before you can say decisively, “This shoots better for me!”

How amenable the gun feels just holding it can fool you. A gun that doesn’t feel so great may shoot better for you. This is the puppy you want to follow you home — and don’t worry about the feel, because shooting better feels good!

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