Theoretical Question With Practical Applications

[Jeepster]

Jasper (Mankato) here-- I shoot IDPA revolvers and have been going back and forth on wood grips versus Hogue rubber ones. I have also been doing a LOT of practice this winter at the indoor range in New Ulm, ("Hunter's Den", GREAT facility run by very nice people, by the way). It seems to me that, theoretically speaking, it makes sense that the rubber Hogue grips would be a lot less stressful on one's body (hand and forearm primarily) than the wooden grips. Theoretically, the rubber absorbs the recoil forces, and spreads them around the hand more evenly than wood, which would result in less hand and forearm fatigue. Practically speaking, it really does seem to me that the rubber grips create less fatigue. I know JM uses wooden grips but I am about to decide to switch to Hogues for competitions next spring and summer. I'm just curious if any of you have thought about and had practical experience on this issue.

[Pat Cannon]

I have a video of Jerry wherein he mentions that the wood grips are good up to a certain power factor, and I wasn't able to quite make out what he said. Maybe when I get home tonight I'll try again.

As I believe you know, I have the rubber Hogues on both my revolvers and I like them, but that's mainly because I often shoot .357 Magnum. If you're shooting .38 Special in SSR, I don't think the wear & tear on your body's going to be much. Same goes for .45 ACP out of a S&W 625, it's a heavy gun and it soaks up the recoil pretty well. Though I should say I haven't fired many rounds with wood grips; both my Rugers came with the Ruger rubber grips, which are harder than the Hogues but not nearly as hard as wood.

The main reason Jerry likes smooth wood grips is so his hand can slide around a little and adjust to the perfect hold if he doesn't grab the gun exactly right on the draw. And indeed, I have had the experience of getting my grip wrong and almost needing to let go of the gun to adjust my grip on the Hogue.

In any case the Hogue grips are only about $25, so it's pretty painless to try them out and just switch back if you don't like 'em.

Are you going to shoot SSR or ESR this year?

[Jeepster]

Heh, great to hear from you! In reply to your question, my plan right now is to stick with SSR at Leo's next summer. I may switch to Hogue grips for that. I started shooting at the Minnetonka Club shoots this past fall and really enjoyed that, even though it is kinda a long drive from Mankato. But the bigger issue is this: how do we get more people to shoot REVOLVERS (SSR or ESR) at the IDPA shoots? Stay warm! -Jasper

[Pat Cannon]

Personally I'm secretly working with the Joyce Foundation to get semiautomatic weapons outlawed. (Don't tell anybody.)

[Jeepster]

Yeah, I'm thinking the Glocks should be banned because they are so frickin' UGLY! But, then, I may be subject to the same accusation if I swap out my BEAUTIFUL wooden grips for UGLY Hogue rubber grips!!! ...Sigh!... We live in a complicated world, indeed. But, the Hogues sure feel good!....

[ironfoot]

Pat - You are a lot better looking then your picture on this site.
Jeepster - A 57 Chevy looks a lot better then a Honda CRV, but which would you rather drivew in a snow storm?

[Stradawhovious]

There is one thing that intrigues me...... It would seem that you can have recoil ereduction, or you can have total control but you can't have both. The nature of the rubber grips would lead me to believe that in order to absorb some of the recoil, the gun has to move around a bit regardless of what kind of grip you have. Now this may not matter in control when shot by a shooter like me since my idea of control is nothing more than hitting a 36" target at 21 yards after aiming for an hour and a half..... But for a shooter like Miculek who can put 12 holes in a playing card with a 6 shot revolver in under 4 seconds...... I would think it makes a huge difference.

Just guessing here.

[Jeepster]

Ironfoot- Point well taken! Honda CRV's do dang'ed well in the deep snow! I guess Hogues rock!
Strad- JM lives in a different realm of reality than the rest of us.

[Pat Cannon]

The nature of the rubber grips would lead me to believe that in order to absorb some of the recoil, the gun has to move around a bit regardless of what kind of grip you have.

That must be true, it's the only possible explanation of why JM is faster than me.

[Stradawhovious]

Strad- JM lives in a different realm of reality than the rest of us.

No ****. I was just thinking out loud. Sorry. It won't happen again.


ETA And FTR, JM IS mortal. Legend has it that our very own Keith beat him in a string once........

[Belgiboy]

If Chuck Norris was a pistolero, he would look like JM. How dare you suggest that his initial grip on the 625 after drawing could be anything but perfect.

[Dawn]

Glad to hear your shooting a revolver in IDPA. Last summer one of the IDPA matches at beaverbrook we had about 9 ESR and SSR shooters in one match. We took a group picture. I just started shooting a 586 with wood grips and now a 625 with wood grips. I felt the Pachmeyr wrap around rubber grips and they felt nice and comfy but I was not able to acquire a good grip for my hand size. I really like the wood grips and find it's not to tough on the hands or wrist. I haven't shot 357's -only 38s and 45.
Dawn

[Seismic Sam]

Don't know about whether the Hogue rubber grips actually have enough give to provide any cushioning. It may be that because they are pebbly rubber, you don't have to grip down on them as hard to keep the same grip, thus resulting in less fatigue. Now the grips on the Smith 500 DO provide cushioning, and there's no doubt about that. So as far as cushioning, I doubt there is any real difference between smooth wood and Hogue grips. Between smooth wood or Hogue grips and highly checkered grips, there is a HUGE difference in abrasion. My Springfield V-16 in 45 Super came with a beautiful but highly checkered and very SHARP set of grips, and those came off almost immediately, and got changed to a set of really nice rosewood grips with finger grooves that wrap around the front of the frame. And that's another thing - finger grooves make the gun easier to hang onto, which also means less fatigue.

So that's my $.02