grip question for the j-frame experts

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Ian's Dad

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I have a 442 that i carry about half of the time, depending on clothing...

Love carrying it.. shooting it? not so much...

Looking for insight into how best to grip the gun.. i have found that one-handed seems to work a little better for me. but am VERY open to ideas.. i added a tyler t-grip which i typically love and it kills my hand...thinking i'll be taking it back off..

the grips i have are from ajax and are slim and checkered.. i don't really want to change grips..

any advice appreciated on how to comfortably grip and shoot this gun?

toughen up may be your answer! :rolleyes: I'm prepared for that too.
 
The grip I use on my 340 is to put the top of the back strap in the web of my hand. It spreads the recoil over a much larger area. Thats works for me with 357 in a pistol that weight less than yours. And just so you know the first time I fired 357 in it I said never again. But then I read an article by a guy with the same pistol as mine and it worked great. I hope that helps.
 
As grunt said, I raise the web of my hand as high as it will go. In your case with the hammer less you can really raise your grip pretty high. Also I like the oem rubber grip they come with the best. I tried others including the longer crimson trace grip.
For practice I load light weight 148gr and it is a pleasure to shoot. If you don't load then just look for the 38spl Wad Cutter load and they are very easy on the hands.
Just remember, when it comes down to shooting the bad guy with a heavy +P load you never even notice recoil.
 
I think the best for most might be Uncle Mikes combat. I love them. But now I have Pacmayrs on my 442. A bit more to conceal but better for my long thin fingers. My daughter likes the Mikes. Boot grips just don't cut it for me.
 
Goofed there. I didn't give my answer to your question. On every grip style I've tried, hold your hand high . It minimizes the muzzle jump. More important with the smaller grips.
 
I have 3 j-frames at present and I prefer the set of Hogue Monogrips on my ancient Bodyguard model over the factory wood grips on an older Chief's Special or plastic on the current 642. The difference is slight, though. I need to lay out some coin and get grips with a closed back strap. I like the extra distance between the trigger and my hand. As I've gotten older I've become much more sensitive to recoil. lately I've been shooting almost exclusively 148 gr. wadcutter target loads and use hard cast 158gr SWC loaded to standard pressure for serious work.
 
thanks for a lot of good replies

wondering if i should lose the t-grip.. gonna shoot later this week with my hand higher and see how that goes.
 
I've found the very best grips for a J frame S&W IMO are made by Badger Custom. Even though they are made of wood they seem to soak up most of the felt recoil even when I'm firing my M640 with .357 Magnum ammo. Their "regular" grips or you might call them combat grips are only slightly larger than their boot grips. I have the combat grips on my M640 and the boot grips on my M642. If I did it over I would probably have bought the combat grips for both. (both are in Rosewood) The prices aren't bad either at $69.95.

twins-1.jpg
 
I think you will be helped

Buy going to the S&W website and there are some great videos of a real expert with some good answers. "Jerry Miculek streaming video".
 
grip question for the j-frame

The 442 came with a 2 finger rubber grip. S&W makes a 3 finger rubber grip for j frames that I like alot. More to hold onto = easier to control, more comfortable.
 
Get a Grip

My first choice for synthetics would be the Hogue Monogrip for IWB/OWB.
Hogue Bantam for pocket carry.

But my number one choice for any of the above is the Crimson Trace 405 Laser Grip. Small enough for pocket carry, grips well yet comes out clean, covers the backstrap with a cushioned pocket (reduced felt recoil), allows for a high grip, and of course the laser, which I am a fan of, but some would disagree.

And yes, get a grip strengthening device and use it when you are driving or bored.
 
148 wadcutters

Someone mentioned using 148 grain wadcutters. Haven't been able to find them locally for months(Massachusetts!). Can anyone tell me where I could get some onlne ? Great forum! I carry a S&W 442 .38 cal. Thanks Cheryl
 
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The 442 came with a 2 finger rubber grip. S&W makes a 3 finger rubber grip for j frames that I like alot. More to hold onto = easier to control, more comfortable.
Click to expand...
Have you checked the S&W site lately? Unfortunately those grips you are talking about are no longer available. They were Uncle Mike's grips which are no longer being made. They have been replaced but something that looks similar but the rubber is harder and the grips are nowhere near as good as the Uncle Mike's you and I both thing highly of.

Here is a picture of the new grips. I do see the Uncle Mike's grips are still available in a boot grip size even though the J frame Airweights are no longer being shipped with them. The current shipments are of the same "new" grip material. (I don't like them at all!!)
 
The absolute best way I have found to shoot a J-frame to reduce the effects of recoil is with the support hand thumb wrapped over the web of your strong hand. It is not intuitive at first, but you really start to appreciate it after a full box of .357 mags.

My wife uses this method for her Ruger LCR. She can shoot for hours at the range without any complaints.

The best guy to show you this grip method is Jerry Miculek. Watch his video on revolver grips and pay special attention to the J-frame section in the middle of the video.
http://www.myoutdoortv.com/pdk/web/smith.html?feedPID=00zG15zm84msK0GbWemanhJ0KNWQYqM4
 
These used to be made by Safariland/Rogers
for J, K & N frame Smiths. They are a composite
and weigh next to nothing. They came in black
and in a wood color and extended below the frame
for a 3 finger grip with an open back strap.
I had my 2 black J's cut just below the frame (closed bottom)
and the wood color cut flush with the bottom
of the frame (open bottom). The work was done by the gunsmith
at King's Gun Works in Glendale, CA.
You can still find them at gun shows every now and then.
My 2 black ones are on my 340 PD and my 640 (38),
so they fit my hand exactly the same regardless of which
gun I choose to carry. The shorter ones were on the PD for a while,
but the slight increase in length on the black ones hide pretty much the same
and give me a more secure grip (ring finger too).
And before you ask if they're for sale,
the smaller ones are on my nickel 442.
I wish I'd have bought more way back when.
 

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Grips

On my 642, started with the factory ones, went to Eagle SS grips (nice for concealability/presentation - not so much for shooting) finally went with the
Pachmayr Compacs which I also have on my SP 101 and M85.

Improves the range experience/accuracy ALOT! I've never found them to be too intrusive for either belt or pocket carry either. But I'm one of those guys who believe if you carry a gun alot, it should get shot alot. Since its my 642 that gets carried all the time , at least until "winter" (kinda subjective here in SE Texas), my 642 gets carried to the range every time for a session be it 50 or 100 rds. Having tha Pach's on it just makes it more enjoyable as a range gun.
 
swapped the wood grips from my 351pd. smooth wood does not rub or snag on clothing like houge may. though for expended practice i often put the factory grips back on. and for IDPA BUG shoots.
 
P1010003-3.jpg

Hogue Monogrips on a J Frame.

Jerry2-6-1.gif

Jerry Miculek on how to grip a J Frame.

"This is a j-frame. The j-frame revolver is different because of the size limitations of the stock. So what we do to correct that is we’re going to change the placement of the thumb on the non-firing hand. We’re going to come up and grab the backstrap of the firing hand. Notice that these two fingers are pinching the revolver down into the grip of the firing hand and it gives a lot better consistency from shot-to-shot this way. "
 
The advice to grip high is good. There is ONE grip maker (and only one, SFAIK) who understands this and goes to the lengths to produce a grip specifically designed for hammerless j-frames like yours, a.k.a. 'Centennial' j-frames. He is Craig Spegel, and the main distributors for his grips are Lightning Arms:

http://www.lightningarms.com/products.htm

His grips come ALL the way up the hump of a Centennial. They are made of beautiful wood; they are beautifully made and beautifully finished; they are the best, IMO, that money can buy for your gun. Unfortunately, it does require money--a significant amount--to buy them. But if your j-frame is going to be a constant companion, they are absolutely worth it.
 
they are the best, IMO, that money can buy for your gun. Unfortunately, it does require money--a significant amount--to buy them.
Click to expand...

I went to the website:

Please call or e-mail for availability and pricing.
Click to expand...

Ok, I'll bite, ballpark price would be??

Kobi Beef on the menu with no prices. ;)
 
here's what i'm using now

I haven't had a chance to go back to the range since the "high grip" advice, but have been doing some dry firing and see that that could help me a ton.

here's how mine is set up right now. ajax checkered boot grips with t-grip from Tyler..

442.jpg
 
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