Small hand advice for the 45

What have small handed shooters found to be good setups with the 45?  Short triggers, thin grip panels, etc?

My wife is a regular competitor and she has very small hands.  Some attributes that are helpful:

A flat mainspring housing 

Ultra thin grips, the type that require special grip bushings.

Shot triggers

Checkered front strap

Also, frames that have a sharp angle under the trigger guard, such as caspian, seem to allow a better grip than the radius found on traditional GI frames.

Please check fit for the differences between small hands and finger length.  Most female students I have worked with have fingers that are relatively longer than the hand dimensions (versus men).  Therefore you might focus more on getting a beavertail grip (versus standard) and working with a good gunsmith to get that portion of the grip area shorter relative to the trigger face (reducing the grip distance from the back of the gun to the trigger face.  This along with the other suggesions may help.  

Personally I would suggest starting from the grip safety changes and then working forwared (grip safety change, try flat mainspring (but don't be surprised that an arched feels better for control) checkering, thinner grips, then trigger) if it is a hand versus finger lenth issue.

Depending on the need, it might even be less expensive to go to custom orthopedic grips by any of the good makers. 

Hope this helps.

Not much can be removed from the front but it can be shortened. More is available on the back side. When my son Adam started shooting (he was 10 years old when he shot at Camp Perry) I had to trim a 45. I used a one piece back strap with no grip safety. As I mentioned in another post it was allowed in my gun at Camp Perry. I was able to trim that entire piece along with the frame. I then purchased a solid trigger and shortened it as much as possible. However I've found that most orthopedic grips increase the grip size.

CR10X wrote:Please check fit for the differences between small hands and finger length.  Most female students I have worked with have fingers that are relatively longer than the hand dimensions (versus men).  Therefore you might focus more on getting a beavertail grip (versus standard) and working with a good gunsmith to get that portion of the grip area shorter relative to the trigger face (reducing the grip distance from the back of the gun to the trigger face.  This along with the other suggesions may help.  

Personally I would suggest starting from the grip safety changes and then working forwared (grip safety change, try flat mainspring (but don't be surprised that an arched feels better for control) checkering, thinner grips, then trigger) if it is a hand versus finger lenth issue.

Depending on the need, it might even be less expensive to go to custom orthopedic grips by any of the good makers. 

Hope this helps.

Cecil is 100% on this.
These guns are for a small hand, short fingered woman. I removed the left side grip panels, (she shoots left hand) and replaced them with a .060 aluminum panel. The opposite side of t he 45 has the ultra thin grip panel. The grip safety areas are heavily reduced in all areas. The frames are like wise heavily scalloped in the trigger are to extend her reach. The triggers are contoured and shortened to accommodate  her finger. The 52 was easier to fit than the 45.
Her Pardini is not a problem, with the multi adjustable trigger and custom Dick Horton grips.

My hands are considered medium-large based on criterion used by grip manufacturers such as Rink but my fingers are short.  The only gun I have a problem with is a 1911.  It feels fine but my finger position on the trigger is less than ideal and I often find myself wanting to rotate my hand to correct it.  I have the shortest commercially available trigger installed and have tried the thin grips. The later made matters worse because it created an uncomfortable gap between my palm and the grip.  I now use standard width grips.  I decided to stay with this arrangement for a while hoping that I would get use to it.  So far that has not happened.  If it continues to be a problem I'll search for other solutions.  My Pardini SPBE and S&W revolvers are an absolute pleasure to shoot I think mainly because of my finger position on the trigger.

I should add that this is for a EIC pistol, so no removing of safeties or orthopedic grips.

KevinB wrote:I should add that this is for a EIC pistol, so no removing of safeties or orthopedic grips.

A lot of solutions for small hands have already been discussed but it might help if you could identify or define small hands as it relates to your situation.  Do you have a generally small hand, just short fingers, small hand but long fingers, etc?

Hi Kevin; Posted this on the trigger shoe topic, it's possible to get a trigger very short, this one is 10mm wide.

I think my issue is short fingers that make it hard to maintain a grip that is secure while pressing the trigger straight to the rear.  I had a High Standard 107 Military years ago that I shot well and felt comfortable with and that seems to have the equivalent of a very short trigger on a 1911.

I don't have mine any more but if I recall the High Standard Military was made to some what duplicate the 1911. It has a pivoting trigger that was replaceable with different pull lengths. I have the longest one sent to me by a customer that wants a shoe to add length. So I'm thinking you can shorten the trigger on a 1911 and get the results you want. Also they have changed the rules and allow other pistols in the EIC match, maybe check one of those out.