Palms hanging off the grip, how big of deal?

[SoupieAZ]

Looking for some thoughts. One part I am having a hard time understanding, never hear much discussion on this specific part, regards the importance of contact through the bottom of your palms. I believe I am filling the available grip space very well with meat/skin, but not sure how much of a disservice I am doing having so much of my lower palms hanging off vs against the grip. I am only a few matches in and started with the "shoot what you got" approach (using my MR920L, which I carry), but now that I am wanting to get more serious into the competitive side, trying to determine if I should be looking at another gun sooner rather than later and considering this is a gun I will be shooting pretty much 7 days a week between practice and matches, its worth it to me to have the most "ideal" setup. I know there are people who will say you can get to an A-class shooter regardless of gun and people turn GM with a glock 43, but hopefully, it's understood that's not what I am asking, which is why I felt the technique section might have been the best place to post. 

 

[ShredderTactical]

Generally speaking, the more skin contact the more you can control pistol movement during and after each shot.  Having said that, there are other factors that can influence your specific improvement in this area by switching to another platform.  Judging by the size of your hands for instance, it could be that with your body weight and grip you might not see that much difference.  Best rule of thumb is to shoot a gun that fits your hand well, is comfortable to shoot, and one that you enjoy shooting.  Don't rush switching to another platform, as most top shooters will tell you it's the nut behind the gun that determines success more than the particular gun.  Have fun and enjoy your journey!

[SoupieAZ]

Thanks for the response Shredder. 

[pete627]

I would worry more about reloading and the hand interfering. 

[WFargo]

Yeah, because my hands were a bit too big for my CZ Shadow, I had to 'dremel' my basepads so my hand wouldn't get pinched with reloads....

But okay, that wasn't your question. Actually, Shredder already gave a great answer, but it looks like you would benefit from pistols with magwells so you have some more 'real estate' for your hands. 

For me personally, pistols with magwells really feel much better..... but that limits you to Open / Limited / Classic division.

Edited August 22, 2022 by WFargo

[SoupieAZ]

I am running G17 mags with extensions so I am not really dealing with any pinching issues but also don't gain any real estate for my grip. @WFargo funny you mention the magwell. I originally had the factory magwell extension on the pistol and never really thought about this issue, once I had to remove it to shoot CO thats when it started to get my attention a lot more. 

[obsessiveshooter]

I have the same thing with XL hands.  I just hate a grip where my palm hangs off.  Magwells make everything so much better!