I own a 4" 1957 pre-19 Combat Magnum and a 6" 19-3 both with checkered factory wood grips. I don't have any problem with recoil out of either Smith (big hands), but my 6" Ruger GP100 with full-length underlug barrel is the real recoil-tamer. I have been shooting a mix of 38 SP and .357 from the Smiths and mostly .357 from the Ruger. I also have some beefy Ruger .44's, a Super Redhawk and Super Blackhawk Bisley Hunter with a scope... now, those have some recoil! But still manageable.