Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns Smith 63 or bearcat

Bearcat has a pretty small grip, too.

What TimZ just wrote. I traded my K22 for a blued M34 because that K frame was too heavy for my .22 handgun needs. Early on I replaced the little stock grips with a full size custom walnut set and have since tried a finger groove rubber set, but the larger walnut ones are back on it again for better accuracy. I bought an original Bearcat back in '67 and being all alloy, it was too light and I couldn't hit anything with it. I sold it to a kid in the dorm for $35.00 and was pleased that it had only depreciated $5.00. The 34 and 63 are better pieces than any Bearcat and in your place I sure wouldn't trade it. I'd also leave a handgun home when you go elk hunting or you might just get a rabbit instead of an elk. You can rabbit hunt back home the rest of the year.

The epiphany for me when I went to CO. elk hunting is that I was hunting 9,500 feet higher in elevation than I was back home and there wasn't enough air to breathe. Every day I'd look in my pack and see what I could take out to save a little weight going up those mountains. A handgun would have been totally superfluous and probably the first thing to go.

The Hogue wood grips do it for me......

I'll check that out. I shoot my 686 very very well.

I just ordered a set of these. See how they work for me.

As others have already noted, the Bearcat is going to be just as tiny in your hands as the 63, in fact it will probably feel tinier, and the trigger pull won't be as good. I've always wanted to like the Bearcat and had one briefly a few decades ago but just couldn't get around the small grip and short reach to the trigger. Plus there aren't a ton of aftermarket grips available that would radically change the shape.

Have you thought of a 4" Ruger SP101? The stock grip still feels kind of short to my hand but aftermarket Hogues or Pachmayrs are readily available to lengthen it without adding a lot of girth. At 30 ounces the weight is about halfway between the Smith J and K frame revolvers. DA trigger isn't anything to write home about but then neither is the Bearcat's. SA trigger on the ones I've tried seems okay and IME Ruger triggers generally wear in to be better than they are out of the box.

I prefer the Model 63 to the Bearcat. I would keep the 63. I like the swing out cylinder. .

Mine has Pacmyr grips as does my 651. Those helped me quite a bit. Oddly, my 651 is much more succesful on sage rats than the 63. Despite them shooting very similar groups from a rest. I attribute it to the .22 Mags slightly lighter trigger pull.

Yessir I thought about an sp101 as well.

I just wanted to ask ya'll's opinion as I figured many of you had shot both. Ive read of cult followings of both revolvers. I honestly didn't know they made those hogue grips for the j frame. All i'd ever seen were the bantam type. For some reason, any handgun that my pinky hangs off the bottom I cant seem to shoot well. I do really well with bisleys and hogue and pachmayrs. I put a set of pachmayrs on my super Blackhawk and it was a game changer for me. I wish someone would make me a set of wood copies so it didn't look so ugly. Big hands are good for palming basketballs and scaring away daughter's potential boyfriends, but I think in general, most handguns are made for average size hands.

Thanks for ya'lls help. Hopefully those hogues will fix the problem.

"I put Pachmayers on my SBH & it was a game changer, wish someone would make wood copies"

Herrett grips. Not sure if they still make them, be see them on Ebay quite often, sometimes really cheap. No exactly the same but have a look.

Hunts, we can always count on you to bring out the good stuff. You have a fine collection.

Aim small is where it's at.

"I put Pachmayers on my SBH & it was a game changer, wish someone would make wood copies"

Herrett grips. Not sure if they still make them, be see them on Ebay quite often, sometimes really cheap. No exactly the same but have a look.

I have settled on Herrett's grips for my M63. I have rubber Pachmayer grips, a Tyler T used with the stock factory grip and the Herrett grips. The rubber Pachmayer is bulbous and heavy. The Tyler T is a huge improvement over the stock factory grip but still seems a bit small. The Herrett grip fills the hand while remaining trim and looks good on the gun. The Herrett is a tad shorter than Hunts22's Hogue. The Hogue uses that stirrup attachment which adds length.

My only complaint with the M63 is the front sight. The front sight is too thick and the red ramp insert isn't good with my eyes. I really dislike that glowing blob of plastic. A black .100" thick Patridge front sight would be killer on a M63. Someone on this forum has a 63 set up like that and I'm jealous every time they post a picture of it.

It made a difference for me.

Dang you!

^^^^^^^
NICE!
The 63, not the comment that beat me to the post. But I agree on the "Dang you!" too.

Dave Clements. Don't remember the price but I'm cheap so it could't have been real high.

Apples and oranges comparison. Bearcat is not the same league as 63 for accuracy for most people.

I have one done much like that also but the Patridge is 90* and has a white dot along with two white dots in the rear blade...

Makes a BIG difference in a clear sight picture....

Bob

I'm always amazed by the number of people that need customization to their DA revolver but instinctively shoot a 1911 just fine.

The Bearcat is a cute little gun. The M63 is THE Kit Gun, in stainless, making it even better. Really no comparison.