Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns S&W 642/442 "Airweight" Users/Owners.......

I thought about the CT package as well, but the overall grip/hold seems a bit wider/larger with that addition. My wife's hands are quite small which makes that addition a no-go.

Sounds like the balance and design (and obvious weight...or lack thereof) of the 42's lend themselves to more felt recoil than many other offerings.

If your wifes hands can't be THAT small....

Take her to the nearest big outdoor/gun store and let her fondle a few options.

She'll let you know what feels right, and from to the range with the chosen few, the decision gets easy.

FWIW, if you can find a 432PD, GRAB IT! It's a S&W Centennial in .32H&R Magnum. Scarce as hen's teeth, but a sweet set-up.

They are............

The problem with this whole deal is that I'm trying to make this a surprise as a Xmas present for her. Otherwise, I'd march her right into my favorite "candy" store and the guys would lay out a plethora of "likely suspects" for her perusal. Not the case, unfortunately.

I also doubt that she feels it necessary to add to our "collection" when our choices are now, more than a few. She'd say that she would just pack one of my guns rather than to have her own dedicated trail gun, but what's the fun in that?

There in lies one problem....and attempting to surprise her with the exact "fit" while still keeping it a surprise....even more of a problem.

Ruger SP101, .32H&R Magnum? If so, let me know..... I know where a used (but likely unfired) version can be found....

Thanks, but at 24-26 ounces, while not heavy for you and I, a bit much for her and especially on the trail.

But I do appreciate the help, suggestion and offer.

i bought my wife a 642 smith. the factory grips were 2 small for here so i got her a pair of pachmayrs. she carrys the 135 grain gold dot sb. they r wicked to shoot, but very effective. they shoot about 4 o'clock 3-4" offthe bullseye. she shoots the standard 158 grain round nose for practice, and they hit dead on.

she carrys her's in a purse and is in the process of getting a galco gun purse. overall she likes it, but likes her glock 19 better.
i carry a smith ti 342 as a duty gun back up. it's a hard piece to shoot, but i bought it for 1 purpose only, a backup.

hope this helps

I don't even like to shoot a lightweight J Frame much and I shoot farily hard recoiling handguns pretty well. I'd look hard at the Taurus 941 Ultra Light with 2'' barrel in .22 Mag. 8 rounds of .22 mag that she's comfortable shooting beats the heck out of 5 rounds of .38 that she can't hit with.

Taurus 941

I carry a S&W 342 daily as a BU gun and shoot it monthly. Changed out those bantam grips for a full size combat grip, didn't give up much at all regarding concelability, gained alot in control and comfort.

I read and appreciate the last 3 posts. I also looked up all the firearms referred to and linked.....thanks.

Along with your suggestions, as I was lookin' them up on the S&W and Taurus sites, I came away with a happy medium feeling for the #905 series (9mm) as well. Actually called my gunshop inquiring about them and the .32 Mag offerings.....neither in stock at the moment and the 905's have been discontinued (I guess the 9's didn't fare so well, but nice idea as backups to full-sized duty carry 9's).

I also took a hard look at the Smith Ultralight .22Mag as what jds44 said makes almost too much sense....I hate when that happens. They are 4 1/2 ozs. lighter than the 442/642 and hold 2 rounds more....not a bad trade-off considering the recoil would be a bunch lighter too. Problem with .22Mags out of short barrels.....they are exceedingly loud for what you get and short barrels don't enhance their abilities. For 2 "leggeds", it would likely suffice. For cougs or 'yotes (bear calibers being out of the question) intent on doin' the animal thing.....less able, me thinks........this is all IMHO.....not necessarily correct. The latter reasoning would seem to apply to the .32Mag as well, although less so in my opinion.

I'll give the 442/642 (not sure which one) a shot. Perhaps I'll end up with another pocket gun, but that is obviously not my intent. I'm in no need of yet another handgun at this point, but what the heck. If the .38 SPL. offering is just wrong for my wife, it is and I'll go from there.

I will report back as to what I discover as I've appreciated everyones comments and suggestions and closure is always nice.

Who knows, it might help someone else out in a similar situation.

Not closing the discussion as I'm more than willing and interested in any and all other suggestions, but for now......thanks.

Hello
One that would be an easier find is the 431 PD Revolver. This is a double action revolver in .32 H&R Magnum and they ceased production on them a couple of years ago, but there are plenty of them out there. On the subject of the 442 it is what it was Made for, a stick in someones Gut and keep squeezing the trigger last resort revolver. They are not a target gun and were never intended to be with Double action only. They are super Light and a great carry gun, but most will never fire one due to it's nasty recoil. They are an Up close and Personal gun not intended to be a comfortable super accurate Piece, unless a Lot of ammo is fired and you get used to the stiff double action Pull of a -J-Frame just as I said earlier stick it in a stomach of an assailant and keep pulling the trigger until it's empty ...Just my 2 Cents

My wife carries a 442 in a fanny pack. She is about 5'6" and weighs 140. She rides on her bicycle a lot and walks. Her hands are very strong. Originally we had some Badger fingered grooves on it and she was able to control it very well. She tried carrying a 640 in .357 J frame but it was too heavy for her. She went back to the 442 and I had it fitted with Crimson Trace 405s (these absorb recoil prety good). After I adjusted the laser on the CT she is very accurate with it. She only practices every so often with it to maintain confidence. Otherwise she practices and likes SIGs (226) and full size revolvers and some .22 Rugers.

I have been shooting a M37 (Chiefs Special Airweight 38 spl.) for a very long time. Mine has the small grips which while easier to conceal than the newer ones I see might be even less comfortable to shoot.

The gun kicks pretty hard even with wadcutters. I would not get +P loads for a gal unless she has hands like my sister who can shoot a 500 S&W.

The cylinder opening latch cuts into my thumb when I shoot it. I ground part of it away.

I read these topics as I am trying to pick a small handgun for my daughter in law. She is petite and cannot pull back the slide easily on a Seecamp, Beretta 21A or others. I am leaning towards a Beretta 21A or Tomcat for her as with the tip up barrel its easy to load and unload. If you select an auto make sure she can load the magazine.



Handguns can have violent recoil. Men are used to using hammers and other rough work and most woman are not.

Got rid of a PPK/S for that exact reason.

My brother is all over the "tip-ups" for his wife......she can't charge a semi any other way. Not unusual....for sure.

Tough choices to make Savage_99, but nice to see that you're concerned for her in this fashion.....I wish you luck with your final choice/gift as well. I'm sure she very much appreciates you as her father-in-law....as she should.

Thanks again for your comments and let me know what you ended up with for your daughter-in-law.

I used to carry a 642 as a backup. The practice for the 642 was mostly done with a steel framed 640. Both had the Pachmayr boot grips. I carried 110 non-+P Silvertips in the 642. It takes a lot of practice to stay in shape at any kind of distance. My wife does a lot of hiking in the woods and used to trail run a lot as well. She wouldn�t carry anything that she considers to be too bulky or inconvenient. She used to carry a Glock 27 in a double water bottle fanny pack, but the chamber was not hot. I don�t like the trigger on Glocks for non-belt carry, preferring, instead, the longer, heavier trigger of a true DAO semi-auto. I got her a Sig 239 SAS which she really likes, but it is heavier and bigger than the Glock. But, she likes the gun for hiking, and went to belt carry in a Blade Tech for it. In addition, she now carries the 642 as a backup gun when she is hunting with a rifle. She likes the inexpensive Uncle Mike�s plastic holster with the belt clip for that purpose.

Because the subject has turned to the Beretta 21A, that gun spits .22 Stingers like crazy (I�ve read bad stuff about lower velocity ammo) and gives split times that are very fast, with head shot accuracy to 50 feet. It is so light that it�s easy to carry a spare magazine as well. Anyone who can�t shoot or carry one of those just doesn�t want to carry a gun.

A bit more encouraging.....thanks Greek.

My wife is height/weight appropriate as well and her hands are as strong as her frame allows.....if that makes any sense. It's such a crap shoot at this point, but yours and others thoughts have been great at giving me some suggestions and ideas about how this might play out.

Grips.....I have no problem trying a few out if the stock version doesn't suite her. A bit like having someone else install a rifle scope for me when my eye relief and theirs are much likely to be different. Grip "fit" (size, shape, material) are no less important than most aspects of good or proper handgunning and certainly no less personal.....IMHO.

Thanks for your comments....

Thanks general - I was hopin' "Mr. Smith" himself would find a moment to comment.

I fully agree and understand the concept of "belly gun", which, as you suggest, is exactly what we're dealing with here. No more, certainly no less.

I'll keep both your 431 and VA's 432 suggestions in mind as this 442/642 thing has yet to play out and who knows if I'll be in the market for another firearm shortly after Xmas or not.

Question - dry firing? An issue with these or not. Snap caps suggested or you feel they are totally necessary/unnecessary?.....I'm open to suggestions. I plan on dry firing it to assist in break-in, which may encompass much more than a few minutes.

Thanks in advance and I appreciate your comments and suggestions.

Cheyenne - thanks for the comments. I'm interested in the Uncle Mike's holster you referred to. I looked at a master list of Uncle Mike's holsters the other day and, at least on that list (might be an older master list, I don't know)), it stated that only a model #40 holster as their only option. It was called a "Super Slide" or some such thing.

Does that name or # ring a bell....thanks.

I looked it up and it's the Kydex Paddle Holster. Midway sells it at http://www.midwayusa.com/eproductpage.exe/showproduct?saleitemid=868215&t=11082005 It is made for a J frame with a slightly longer barrel but it doesn't matter. My wife had the same holster for her Model 27 and she liked it, so I got one for the 642.

if your set on the 442/642 look into bladetech holsters out of lakewood wa. when i had my 442 i had both the iwb and owb and both were great holsters, very secure look good, great fit and great guys to deal with.

Thanks MA, I'll definitely do that.

Tinkerin' time around here as area 7 up here is closed to salmon until Feb. 1st. Suppose you guys are wettin' some lines?

If so.......good luck. Thanks again.