I know that some of you rarely, if ever, shoot magnum loads from your magnum rated guns, but I am only interested in hearing from the guys and gals who regularly fire off dozens of magnum loads from your revolvers. Do you shoot them with wood, or with rubber grips?

I use both.Wood is fine if it fits your hand properly,but rubber gets the nod if I'm shooting a lot of hot rounds.

Hi:
Sissy Guy Jimmy uses Pachmayr Grips (The type/model that covers the backstrap) when shooting magnum ammo.
Jimmy (former whimp, current sissy)

I rarely shoot real magnums anymore,since there are good performing .38 loads available.If I do I may throw on a set of rubbers with a covered backstrap,but it's rare.
On my K frame snubs,my favorites are the Uncle Mikes rubber.The short ones with the two finger grooves and open backstrap. Woods are great and look beautiful,but my K's get carried and are shooters,so these work best for me for my own use.

Are you talking .357 Magnum or .44 Magnum? I prefer the rubber backstrap with the .44 Magnum. With the .357 Mag wood is just fine because it looks better and its comfortable to shoot anyway.

if i am shooting my 357 i use a good set of wood stocks that fit my hand, for my 44 i like the rubber pachmayr stocks

I shoot magnums all the time out of my 619, don't mind the recoil at all. I took those ugly goodyears off right away and slipped a nice set of Ahrend's on and never looked back. Those Ahrend's make such a snug fit there just isn't an issue, but some are more recoil sensitive than others it seems.

44mags and rubber grips with the backstrap covered.

Attached Images

629-6 5inch.jpg (68.4 KB, 272 views)

__________________
44 Garrett Defender Ammo 4 me.

I have .357s equipped with both, and it doesn't matter to me. I've never felt that the recoil was an issue.

Both my .44s have wood, and the recoil doesn't bother me with those either. I hope I don't sound arrogant -I'm merely stating a fact. Maybe when I get older things will change, but I'm 53 now -we'll see.

Andy

Rubber grips always wore a blister into my palm, especially with single action handguns. I like wood or hard nylon.

__________________
S&W M642-2,
ATI 1911a1, 4.25"

Most of the time, rubber gets the nod. It's not so much a question of recoil, but of control. If I'm shooting two handed, rubber or wood seem to work equally well. Shooting one handed or weak handed, rubber seems to work better. Also, if I testing loads and not using the machine rest, rubber with an enclosed backstrap doesn't beat me up quite so bad.

Rubber of any sort is ugly. Nothing looks better than good wood. And yes, for most of this crowd, including me, looks count.

My 44 and both of my 41's wear rubber Hogue grips and I shoot "magnum loads".

Rubber tames the recoil, but...

WOOD LOOKS GOOD!

__________________
SV,14,17,21,28,29,39,66,586

Anything above .357 needs rubber grips for extended shooting IMO. The S&W 500's and Tamers are both great.

If it recoils hard it wears rubber grips for an old man like me.

Wood grips on my 357s and 44s, but my 500s wear their original rubbers.

Wood. Especially after I discovered Ahrends stocks.
The only rubbers I ever cared for are the NLA Uncle Mikes. And AFAIK, these were never made for the N-Frames.
As for the rest of 'em, its junkbox time:

__________________
-jwk-
US Army '72-'95

Wood looks nice, but the factory Magnas or Targets both suck for me as for as shooting. I leave the wood on them until I go to the range, then rubber pachmayr's get put on. Can't deal with Hogue's.

wood...personally I don't think 357 magnum is all that when it comes to recoil - especially with a N frame. Its pure fun and a pleasure to shoot for long sessions...but the wood must fit the hand. IMO, shooting 38 spcl. +p out of a airweight jframe is way less enjoyable no matter what grips...so again, magnums out of a heavy frame like a N is a pleasure with wood.

__________________
God Bless Our Troops.

I have wood on everything from 357 to the 460[oversized Nill model].
S&W target or Hogue's on all but the 460 as noted.

Fit is FAR more important than material. That said, rubber may have a SLIGHT advantage, particularly if the grips don't fit your hand all that well, anyway. What confuses the issue a bit, at least for me, is that most of the best-fitting grips are made by Pachmayr and Hogue, and the ones I have are made of rubber. However, my very best set of grips, which I use on my 3" double-Magnaported 629, are a set of Fishpaw near-copies of Pachmayr Compac Pro grips, only in French walnut. Fairly close second are Pachmayr Presentations, which, as you know, are not in French walnut.

As well as rubber grips work in reducing recoil IMO they are butt ugly. I have wood or stag magnas on all my .357 Magnum revolvers and with the exception of my M-19 I have no problems with recoil. I should note I seldom shoot more than 150 rounds during a range trip.

i like what originally came on the gun best...which is usually wood...exceptions being my 460 and 500 mag.

__________________
SWCA#2208
KK4EMO

I have a set of closed-back wood Nill grips on my .44 Mountain Gun. They are very broad at the back and tame the recoil much better than the rubber grips that came with the gun.

Closed back wood grips. Either nill or bill Jordan style.


Combats arnt too bad, the flat sided type from the early 90's actually fit my hand well, especially compared to the rounded combats from the 80's

It's just me, but I like Hogue's rubber. I have them on all my revolvers, and wood on the autos that have removable type grips.

I have two .357 revolvers and a .500 revolver. I wouldnt care to shoot many rounds with the .500 without its Houge rubber grip. However, magnum rounds in .357 are so mild now-a-days and especially compared to the 500S&W Magnum I cant tell a difference between my 686 with rubber and my M-19 with wood. I like shooting both and there is so no recoil compared to what I am used to its just a non issue.

a couple hundred rounds from .44Magnum......maybe Id need the Houge as well, but not for just .357

For some eason, if the wood on a S&W revolver doen't have S&W medallions on it, I can't deal with them. I've heard Ahrends are nice, but I need the medallions on wood. S&W could make a pretty penny if they continued to manufacture Combats and real Target grips (the targets they have on their website look nothing like the targets on my revolvers).

I use the grips that came from the factory. I use magnum loads in magnum handguns, that's why they are magnums! I am not afraid of recoil, it is part of the magnum experience. I shot .264, .300, and .338 win. mag. and 350 rem. mag. in a tee shirt. If recoil scares you, shoot BB guns.

I AM A COWBOY!!!! HAHAHAHAHA!!!!!

Pacs full coverage for my .41's loaded hot. Less felt recoil and better grip than wood if they're wet from getting rained on, like every othe day in Alaska. Wood for .357 and below and preferable Ahrends.

__________________
V/R
Roger / SG

Smooth Herrett Jordan Troopers on 629- S&W 500 on 329

__________________
T. Johnson

wood is good but not on the 329's, at least not for me

On a heavy recoiling revolver, I prefer Pachmayr Presentation grips. For anything else, I much prefer nice pretty S&W wood grips. I simply like the way they look. But, in hot weather when my hands are sweaty, bad weather when it's raining, when the loads are hot and slam my had hard... give me the Pachmayr's.

__________________
<><

I have short fingers so an enclosed blackstrap doesnot work well for me. I use the standar wood grips and add a grip adapter. I can do a full 60 round qualification course with .357 magnum 110 grain JHP which is what my old dept used.

Wood is better looking but when I am shooting the 44 mag I like rubber.

My three .357s have wooden grips - models 65 & 66 are original magnas with Tyler adapters added, and the 586 has a set of Ahrends round to square retro combat stocks. The 586 shoots only magnum rounds with very little recoil sensation. This 6" full underlugged model with a set of great grips is a favorite shooter. The 65 & 66 are shot mostly with .38, but handle the 158 grain .357 rounds w/o discomfort. The 65 is a 3" HB & the 66 is a 4" barrel.

What ^^he said^^.

I like all wood all the time.
The Ahrends are my most comfortable out of the three examples below.
I would be lying if I said I didn't have some discomfort after 250 rounds of .44 Mags split between a 3'' and 4'' barrel along with another 125 or so .357 mags out of a 2 5/8'' barrel on the same outing.
But 200 or so of either in an hour at the range isn't a problem at all.

We haven't defined context here, but in the case of a cc .357, I like to practice with what goes on the belt under the jacket. For me that's a Model 60-14 with 2.25 in. barrel and the skinny little Ivorylites that are not easy to hold onto but do a good job of not printing. They do have S&W medallions, however.

Thanks for sharing your thoughts and points of view!

Right now my .357 magnum sports Ahrends boot grips. I have no trouble with recoil, but I'm going to try Pachmayr rubber grips and also CT rubber laser grips. I'm also looking for a full wooden grip as the boot grip is a tad too short for my liking. - My .44 Magnum (Ruger Alaskan) wears Hogue Tamer grips.

Rubber grips are not springy enough to mitigate recoil. Even the softest, stickiest Hogue wraparounds can barely be dented with your thumbnail. What they do offer is a high-traction grip which helps keep the gun from shifting in your hand for a better followup shot.

That same friction works against you when you draw from an holster. It's much harder to adjust your grip in the presentation than with wood grips. I find that the rubber grips that come on Smith&Wesson magnum pistols stick so well it can wear blisters in your hand after 50 rounds or so, or rub the skin raw.

Wood is a little slippery, allowing the gun to move a bit in recoil. You maintain control by the shape of well-designed grips, which tend to be fairly uniform front to back, unlike old-style grips which were much wider at the base. Consequently, you don't have to readjust your grip for each shot. You don't need checkering for control either, but it looks nice if you have it. I prefer finger grooves, but Jordan or Mikulek style grips have neither grooves nor checkering, and work just fine for competition.

The net result is I can shoot 100 rounds through a .357 Man, or even a .44 Mag Mountain Gun, equipped with Ahrends tactical grips, without making the skin tender.

My big N-frame 627, Model of 1989 has worn wood grips ever since I purchased it and shoots heavy magnums without any discomfort. I have two model 60's, one with a 2 1/8-inch barrel (rubber) and the other a 3-inch Pro Series with a set of Altamont wood grips. They're both fine, but definitely telegraph more recoil than the N-frame. Wood is more comfortable to me, if it fits my hand well. Rubber has a tendency to grab and tear skin after a couple of hundred rounds.

I just gotta' add a plug. For those of you that say you like wood but use rubber for recoil, you really need to look at Ahrends. Since I put those finger groove combats on my 619, I will never go back to goodyear, full house magnums or otherwise.

As far as .44s and the .500's and big recoilers go, I understand your position and like of those revovlers, but for me, that's why they make high power rifles. If I need that kind of power, then 7x57 or .30.06 do it better and farther and more comfortably. YMMV. And of course, all of my rifles have wood stocks too (some are even laminated)!

That is a beautiful gun. But wait a minute. Do I see a rubber recoil pad on it?

It's funny how two people can partake in the same situation and each one walk away with entirely different experiences.

I love wood grips. But I do find rubber grips absorb more recoil. But to be fair, I understand the importance of "fit," and I have never had custom made wood grips. But then again, I have banged out hundreds of rounds of .357 magnums and 30 - 40 rounds of .44 magnums at a clip and I have never had rubber grips that even remotely bruised my skin. My palm began to hurt... but the skin was just fine.

I gotta get me some full size wood grips. I see S&W has some nice offers... don't recall seeing them before. Did they just add to their inventory and drop the larger Eagle grips?

You guys are the best! Lots of food for thought...

I shoot 357 magnums through my K-frame magnums and only use rubber grips to do so.

I don't care what the grips look like. I only care about control and comfort. Regards 18DAI

I have rubber on my Model 13-3,

mostly because they didn't make a "Bodyguard" version of the K-frame.

I've been considering commissioning a grip maker to duplicate these in wood or fake ivory.

ECS

__________________
CPT, Armor (Ret)
Luke 22:36

Wood, of course. Shoot 'em as they were made. Hardwood and steel: it's traditional.

Dammit, you got me

I prefer the look of wood grips. The recoil of .357 magnum w/ wood is negligible to me whereas the .44 magnum becomes tiresome very quickly. I use the Hogue monogrips on both because, for me the rubber grips provide a consistent grip. This then gives me more consistent shots.

I am finding that although I prefer wood for looking, I definitely prefer rubber for shooting. All my revolvers that once wore wooden grips now have rubber (except for the cowboy guns).