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Old May 23, 2012, 08:17 PM   #5
MLeake
Senior Member
 
Join Date: November 15, 2007
Location: Outside KC, MO
Posts: 10,128
If her hand is too small, she's likely to unconsciously rotate the pistol slightly to the outside (right if she's RH, left if she's LH) to enable her trigger finger to engage on pad or first joint. That will take the barrel offline with the bones of her forearm, and put more recoil into the base of her thumb instead of the web of her hand and her arm.

So, when I look for grip fit, or try to help a newbie find a good grip fit, that's one of the things I look for: Does the pistol allow the shooter to get good trigger engagement (at max trigger reach, EG decocked with a DA/SA) while keeping the pistol aligned with the forearm?

Additionally, the finger should reach the trigger, with the weapon aligned, while maintaining a high grip - which will reduce muzzle flip and make follow-up shots easier and faster. Ideally, there should be no space between the skin of the web of the hand and the curve where grip frame arcs into beavertail. (Note: high grip as a matter of practice will also provide a consistent grip with every draw.)

I have long fingers, and prefer guns that allow me to manipulate all primary controls with my shooting hand only - but that may not be a realistic goal for many shooters, especially those with small hands. However, I think the magazine release should be reachable without a major shift of the grip.

Bear in mind that some guns can be tailored to better fit the shooter. Narrower (or fatter) grip panels on metal framed guns; backstraps of varying sizes on many of the new polymers; extended or oversized controls; grip sleeves; complete replacement grips on revolvers; etc. Some of these changes are free (different sized backstraps included with many new polymer guns); and some are relatively inexpensive ($30ish for a Hogue or Pachmayr rubber grip set). Many can be done by the buyer, and won't require gunsmith intervention.
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