For me, trying to shoot a Model 29 or 629 with checkered target stocks and full-power ammunition is a lot like trying to hang onto a flat ******* mill file while King Kong is trying to tear it from your hands. Seems counterintuitive to many, but I find smooth stocks, like S&W presentation stocks, or Culina's delightful smooth stocks, let me shoot with less skin-abrasion while still looking good.
If I'm going hunting and the going may get rough, I usually take the pretty wood off and screw on some tough older Pachmayrs, usually the Gripper models.