Gripping a 1911 with small hands

S

Shmackey

New member
I realized the other day that there are two ways that I can grip my 1911 for bullseye shooting (I have small hands).

I can grip it "naturally," which for me means that my thumb and some web is on the backstrap. This allows me to pull the trigger with my index finger as it "should" be. I can also consciously rotate my hand clockwise (I'm a righty) so that the backstrap sits more *in* my hand, as I assume is ideal for stability. This allows me to manipulate the trigger with the very end of my index finger, which is odd but I like the stability.

This new grip doesn't point quite as well (hold your right arm straight out, fully extended, and then turn your hand to the right so that your palm faces out--you'll see what I mean). But I can get used to it quickly if it makes sense. Are there some ground rules for this?
 
Whatever you do: be consistant. That being said, the fewer contortions needed to obtain a sight picture the better. The closer your position is to "neutral" the less likely you are to fatigue or fidgit during a match. Keep your sights level and good bone alignment (shoulder, elbow and wrist should be one piece).

You may consider modifications to your 1911 for a customized fit. Things to consider a high ride beaver tail grip safety (i.e. Ed Brown), flat mainspring housing, different length trigger and reducing the grip radius by contouring the front strap under your trigger guard. Try shooting other peoples 1911 that have some of these mods. You'd be surpirsed how little it may take.

Keep 'em tight and have fun.
 
There are several things you can do to improve the situation, the easiest one is to have the gun fitted with a short trigger. There are several sizes of triggers for the 1911, and the short trigger will normally allow someone with the problem you describe to handle the gun better. FWIW, the 1911 is already a good gun for folks with small hands, since the grip is significantly smaller than most double-stack guns...
 
Good advice, everyone. Sounds like "natural" is the way to go.

My Kimber Classic already has a flat mainspring housing, which I think is great. A shorter trigger is the only gunsmith-requiring modification I'd been considering, actually. I like how the trigger breaks right now, and I consider crispness to be much more important than weight; I wonder if I'd have to get a full trigger job just to install the shorter trigger.

Match grips (probably Randall Fung) and the shorter trigger are all I'd do to this gun...although this idea of contouring the front strap is intriguing. I wouldn't think there's a lot of extra metal there to remove.
 
Shmackey,

You should be able to swap out the trigger without affecting your trigger pull. Most of the work in a trigger job involves hammer/sear engagement and potentially the main and leaf springs.

You mentioned gripss, I totally forgot about grips. Watch the thickness of the pannels. This will increase the overall grip radius.

Contouring the front strap involved extending the line of the trigger guard (bottom) back into the front strap. Also contouring the radius edges for about a 1.5 finger widths below the trigger guard. It allows your middle finger to wrap a little farther around the frame. May not make a huge metric difference but it can change the angle the pistol sits in your hand.

For less hand slipping, look into a checkered or stipled front strap and main spring housing.
 
I just read a couple of books by "experts" and I can tell you what they say: Grip the right hand so the backstrap is centered in the web 1/2 way between the thumb and index finger. The right hand grips the handle of the gun with pressure on the front and rear backstraps. The index (trigger) finger should be away from the gun with the trigger centered on the first pad (not the joint) of the index finger. If possible, the pad of the finger tip should be at a right angle to the trigger so it pulls directly rear ward. The left hand wraps the right with primary (and equal) pressure on either side of the gun. The thumbs should point forward and not be resting against the gun. Pressure should come only from the fingers. Hands should be on the gun as high as possible and still have proper grip. Trigger pull should be by first staging the trigger (bring it to the break point) and then accelerate the trigger rearward in a smooth continuous motion. That said, try it and use whatever works best for you.;)
 
My wife has small hands as well. It was not until we got her Chip McCormick thin grips that she was able to properly grasp the gun and ride the thumb safety while shooting. Now she can and her shooting has improved.

If you don't have an ambi safety on the gun, the thinnest thin grips I have seen are those by Wilson Combat. I have them on one gun. They are smooth sided and very thin, thinner than CMC's. The thinnest CMC grips are those that are checkered. CMC's thin and smooth grips are not as thin as their checkered grips.

Personally, I like smooth grips since you really don't grip with the wood anyway, but front and back straps, so the checkering is not functionally necessary on the grips. I mention this as some grips have wonderful checkering that is actually a little sharp and can actually take a toll on clothing if the gun is for concealed carry. The guy who runs the dry cleaning business where I take my dress clothes asked me one day what type of gun I carried. This shocked me and I asked why he thought I carried a gun and he showed me where the lining in my sports coat had started to pill from being abraided by the grips.

If you go with thin grips, you will have to change out the bushings and screws. New ones will come with the grips. Put in the new bushings and use loctite. When you put on the grips and tighten the screws, snug down the screws but not too tightly. The thinner wood is more apt to break from over tightening than normal thickness grips. Now insert each of your mags into the gun to be sure that you have not tightened down the screws so far that they protrude into the mag well and bind on the magazine. Empty mags should drop free via pressing the mag release and gravity. If one doesn't drop free, ascertain which screw(s) are too deep, take it out, and shorten it by grinding or sandpaper. Repeat until you are satisfied that none are binding. Then use loctite to hold the screws securely once they are snugged down (but not too tight).
 
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