brentfoto
member
Why would anyone consider wood grips for a Airweight or Airlite J-frame? Assume that you would practice and shoot only .38 +P's. Would the felt recoil be more in comparison to rubber grips?
POLL: Wood grips for Airweight/Airlite J-frame shooting +P?
- Thread starter brentfoto
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yongxingfreesty
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lol, they loook freaking nice. its a self defense pistol, ill carry it more than i shoot it.
Arkady
Member
I went with wood grips on my J-frame because the slightly increased thickness made the pistol easier to shoot well, and much more comfortable during long range sessions.
I haven't noticed any difference in felt recoil.
I haven't noticed any difference in felt recoil.
brentfoto
member
Thanks for replies and votes thus far.
Some of the poll answers were obviously made in jest.
As to comments thus far, the one by jgo296 about the Dutch by was a pretty good comparison, in my view.
Another comment by Arkady mentioned no difference in felt recoil.
Another referenced carry it more than shoot it, so yong****** goes with wood. But ya gotta practice, and I subscribe to the notion that whatever grip you use for carry should be used for practice. And with the J you should practice a lot.
Keep votes and comments coming. Thanks.
I created this poll due to some frustration in finding rubber grips that are comfortable with +P AND conceal well, so I thought of considering wood. Still considering...
Some of the poll answers were obviously made in jest.
As to comments thus far, the one by jgo296 about the Dutch by was a pretty good comparison, in my view.
Another comment by Arkady mentioned no difference in felt recoil.
Another referenced carry it more than shoot it, so yong****** goes with wood. But ya gotta practice, and I subscribe to the notion that whatever grip you use for carry should be used for practice. And with the J you should practice a lot.
Keep votes and comments coming. Thanks.
I created this poll due to some frustration in finding rubber grips that are comfortable with +P AND conceal well, so I thought of considering wood. Still considering...
SAWBONES
Member
The options on your "Poll" don't include the only true choice, "I find rubber grips cushion recoil on J-frames better than wood grips".
Guitargod1985
Member
I've found that wood grips are better if you are using the gun for concealed carry. Wood is easier to slide off clothing, whereas rubber gets stuck on clothing.
On my concealed carry revolver I have wood grips for the above reason, while I have rubber grips on my range guns.
On my concealed carry revolver I have wood grips for the above reason, while I have rubber grips on my range guns.
the naked prophet
Member
Indeed.
The Bushmaster
Member
I also have a problem with the choices. I have two revolvers with wood grips that do a better job of lessening the felt recoil by being wider/bigger. And not only look better, but give much better control then rubber...
Starter52
Member
If I was a "Barney Miller" type of detective who walked around with an exposed revolver all day, I'd go with pretty wood stocks (and swap 'em when I had to qualify.)
I'm not a detective and I don't often CCW a revolver, so I voted for rubber.
I'm not a detective and I don't often CCW a revolver, so I voted for rubber.
chieftain
Member
My Crimson Trace does not come in wood grips.
Go figure.
Fred
Go figure.
Fred
jhco
Member
i use the lady smith grips from s&w and i cant feel much more recoil than normal plus they look great plus i paid 400 for the 642 and 50 for the grips vs 600 for a lady smith plus it dosnt have the words LADYSMITH stamped on it
The Lone Haranguer
Member
Any small lightweight gun with heavy recoil and small grips is going to kick and bite. That said, wood grips like the Eagle Secret Service can help your control without being overly large. This is not so much from the material itself as the different shape. If you choose the smooth rosewood there is no sharp checkering to gouge or abrade your hand. If you go too large you defeat the purpose of having a little gun and you might as well go to a medium-frame revolver.
brentfoto
member
Yes, I overlooked the obvious answer that rubber is better than wood. I guess I omitted it unconciously because at the time of the poll I was not happy with the rubber boot grips that came with the gun and subsequent purchase of the Hogue Bantam Grips also did not help with the discomfort of the recoil.
In lieu of omitting the direct reference, if rubber is better for comfort and recoil, then the third alternative would have been the closer choice.
BTW, I hereby offer my Hogue Bantam grips for the J-frame for sale. Anyone interested? If so, PM me.
In lieu of omitting the direct reference, if rubber is better for comfort and recoil, then the third alternative would have been the closer choice.
BTW, I hereby offer my Hogue Bantam grips for the J-frame for sale. Anyone interested? If so, PM me.
Owen Meany
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I'm very surprised that only one of the responses so far mentioned what I consider to be the only important reason to go with wood - and it took seven responses before someone brought it up! Guitargod1985 nailed it:
Considering that the OP correctly pointed out the below,
well, there you go. Most methods of concealed carry all but require wood grips if clothing is not to hang up at inopportune times, so that translates into practicing with those same wood grips on the gun. Even with +P loads in the AirLites, I find Eagles and Craig Spegels to be only moderately uncomfortable (the Eagles somewhat moreso), certainly not punishing. Hogue Bantams (the wood versions) are downright comfy because they are a lot thicker - but also less concealable, of course.
But, for any carry method that doesn't rely upon gravity to keep the covering garment over the gun, by all means, go with rubber grips. Purely from a shooting perspective, they are FAR more comfortable than wood due to the resiliency of the rubber. No reason not to give yourself every advantage possible, and if you can make practice that much easier, you'll shoot more often and gain proficiency.
Brentfoto said:
I found this interesting. With the Airweights and AirLites, as I said above, +P recoil with wood boot grips is mildly unpleasant but not unbearable. That's with wood, which is far harsher than absorptive rubber; with rubber boot grips such as the (rubber) Hogue Bantams and Uncle Mike's rubber boot grip, which is a copy of Craig Spegel's wood grips, I should think you'd be approaching the "very tolerable" range, if not downright comfort.
Of course, individuals vary, so I'm not sure exactly what your Holy Grail is when you said you wanted rubber grips that were "comfortable" with +P and also concealed well. If you hadn't mentioned dissatisfaction with the Hogues, they would have been one of only two grips that I would recommend. Having eliminated those from the equation, however, my only remaining suggestion is the Uncle Mike's rubber boot grip that I mentioned above. They are standard equipment on the Airweight revolvers and are a tad larger than the rubber Bantams front-to-back; the palm swell might be about the same overall, though the contours are rather different than the Hogues. Ergonomically, I prefer the Spegel/Uncle Mike's shape.
There are, of course, many more rubber grip options that can make the J-frame - any J-frame, even the Airlites - a pussycat to shoot, but these hand-filling grips are going to be so big that you will neutralize any concealability advantage that you've gained by choosing so small a revolver.
Considering that the OP correctly pointed out the below,
well, there you go. Most methods of concealed carry all but require wood grips if clothing is not to hang up at inopportune times, so that translates into practicing with those same wood grips on the gun. Even with +P loads in the AirLites, I find Eagles and Craig Spegels to be only moderately uncomfortable (the Eagles somewhat moreso), certainly not punishing. Hogue Bantams (the wood versions) are downright comfy because they are a lot thicker - but also less concealable, of course.
But, for any carry method that doesn't rely upon gravity to keep the covering garment over the gun, by all means, go with rubber grips. Purely from a shooting perspective, they are FAR more comfortable than wood due to the resiliency of the rubber. No reason not to give yourself every advantage possible, and if you can make practice that much easier, you'll shoot more often and gain proficiency.
Brentfoto said:
I found this interesting. With the Airweights and AirLites, as I said above, +P recoil with wood boot grips is mildly unpleasant but not unbearable. That's with wood, which is far harsher than absorptive rubber; with rubber boot grips such as the (rubber) Hogue Bantams and Uncle Mike's rubber boot grip, which is a copy of Craig Spegel's wood grips, I should think you'd be approaching the "very tolerable" range, if not downright comfort.
Of course, individuals vary, so I'm not sure exactly what your Holy Grail is when you said you wanted rubber grips that were "comfortable" with +P and also concealed well. If you hadn't mentioned dissatisfaction with the Hogues, they would have been one of only two grips that I would recommend. Having eliminated those from the equation, however, my only remaining suggestion is the Uncle Mike's rubber boot grip that I mentioned above. They are standard equipment on the Airweight revolvers and are a tad larger than the rubber Bantams front-to-back; the palm swell might be about the same overall, though the contours are rather different than the Hogues. Ergonomically, I prefer the Spegel/Uncle Mike's shape.
There are, of course, many more rubber grip options that can make the J-frame - any J-frame, even the Airlites - a pussycat to shoot, but these hand-filling grips are going to be so big that you will neutralize any concealability advantage that you've gained by choosing so small a revolver.
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