Many shooters regard a shotgun stock as merely a handle. The same shooters are convinced the forend and hand grip are only something to hang onto when carrying or shooting the gun. In reality, a properly dimensioned grip and forend do a lot more. They compensate for the subtle but significant differences in alignment between the shooter’s anatomy and the shotgun in relation to the target. To better understand this complex relationship, you need only perform a simple exercise.

Extend your index finger and point to a distant object on the horizon. Now, without moving your arm or wrist, pay close attention to the position of your wrist. Notice the wrist isn’t exactly straight. Your hand/fingers will most likely be pointed downward approximately 17 degrees. Simultaneously, they will be pointed laterally approximately 12 degrees. This position is referred to by anatomists as the “neutral position” of the wrist. It not only allows for the greatest range of motion in any direction but is also the most comfortable position for the wrist. So, it should come as no surprise your wrist instinctively returns to this position.

All this explains why most successful autoloading pistols have their grips angled approximately 107 degrees (90 degrees + 17 degrees) in relation to the axis of their barrel. An angle of 90 degrees or less would improve the feeding/reliability of the pistol; however, such a pistol would be uncomfortable to hold and difficult, if not impossible, to point instinctively. The approximately 12 degrees of lateral deviation of the wrist in its neutral position also compensates for the lateral position of the shooter’s shoulder in relation to his eye. When shooting a shotgun or rifle, this approximately 12 degrees lateral deviation of the wrist compensates for the partial flexing of the elbow.

As I stated earlier, the angle of your wrist determines its range of motion. Then obviously, the position of your wrist, as defined by the shape of the forend and handgrip, will influence how well you shoot a gun.

The noticeable finger groove or flute on this older Beretta forearm helped ensure a consistent forehand grip each time.

When shooting a rifle, you want a rock-solid grip. To limit the motion of the wrist, the forend is grasped with the shooter’s thumb on one side of the forend grip and the remaining four fingers wrapped around the other side of the grip. This results in a significant deviation from the neutral angle of the wrist, limiting its range of motion. Practically put, this flexing of the wrist locks it into position. The rather tightly curved pistol grip of a rifle will similarly cause the shooter to flex his/her wrist, limiting its range of motion. Again, this has the effect of locking the wrist into a steady position. A tightly curved pistol grip will also aid the shooter in securing the butt of the gun into the pocket of his/her shoulder. All this helps steadily secure the gun on target.

This may partially explain why many trapshooters prefer a tightly curved pistol grip, rather than the straighter or more open grips preferred by hunters or sporting clays shooters. Perhaps this also explains why British side-by-side double rifles are invariably fitted with a pistol grip, while British side-by-side double shotguns are invariably fitted with a straight grip.

For most shotgun shooting, however, just the opposite is desirable. Although the gun needs to be firmly grasped, it needs to remain at least as mobile as the targets it pursues. So, when shooting a shotgun, both wrists should be maintained in their neutral position to allow the greatest range of motion when tracking a fast-moving target. To this end, the forend on a shotgun is grasped with both the index finger and thumb on the same side of the forend, opposed by the remaining three fingers wrapped around the opposite side of the forend. With the index finger extended vertically along the axis of the barrel, the shooter will also instinctively point the gun to the target. Remember the old adage: “You aim a rifle, but you point a shotgun.”

A double-triggered gun with straight grip and splinter-style forearm. Although many believed a straight grip aided in moving the rear hand to the desired trigger, I personally doubt many shooters actually used that technique.

A forend or handgrip that maintains the wrist in the neutral position will be the most comfortable for a shotgun shooter. This will help reduce fatigue and cramping, both of which can be detrimental. So, it’s obvious the forend and rear grip should maintain the wrist in its neutral position at all times. Wrong! It’s impossible.

When a gun is carried at the ready, the wrist and arms are in a different position than when the gun is mounted. When the shooter mounts the gun, he/she partially raises the dominant arm which, in turn, changes the angle of the wrist. A stock that is ideally suited for shooting may be uncomfortable to carry.

Since a hunting gun is carried more than it is shot, some compromises are in order. These compromises exist on target guns but to a lesser extent. Fortunately, a shooter can compromise on how he/she carries the gun as a partial alternative. A gun with a tighter curvature of the pistol grip will be more comfortable to carry with the muzzle pointing downward. Alternately, a gun with a straighter grip can be carried more comfortably with the muzzle pointing upward. As a compromise, some pistol grips are predominantly straight on their forward portion immediately behind the receiver of the gun with most of the curvature confined to the back part of the grip.

The mechanism of the gun will have a significant influence on the shape of the grip. Pump-action shotguns may need a tightly curved pistol grip in order to help the shooter maintain his/her grasp when the action is pumped. In addition, pump-action and autoloading shotguns have their bulky magazines and mechanisms located within the forend grip, so the grip needs to be thick enough to accommodate the mechanism and maintain adequate strength of the forend. Many shooters believe double-triggered guns should have a straight grip to facilitate movement of the hand when switching triggers. I’m personally skeptical if any shooter ever changes the position of their grip when selecting or switching triggers.

A more tightly curved pistol grip will allow the shooter greater control of the gun during recoil. Not surprisingly, Americans, with our preference for heavy loads, also prefer pistol grips. Europeans, with their preference for lighter loads, prefer straighter or straight grips. If the curvature of the pistol grip is too tight, however, the shooter’s middle finger may be bruised by the rear of the trigger guard during recoil. When determining the curvature of the pistol grip, it’s best to err a little on the open side.

Most American semiauto and pump-action shotguns house the operating mechanism and/or magazine tube in the forearm. The result is a deeper forearm design with more bulk as well.

Another factor in human anatomy and neurology influences the design of grips and forends on shotguns. Although it’s quite complex, it can be easily understood with a simple exercise. Extend both arms and index fingers, then close your eyes. With your eyes closed, rapidly bring your arms together until your index fingers touch in mid air. To achieve this successfully requires some complex nerve and muscle interaction and processing of information to determine where each finger is in relation to the other. One of the things that helps this is the tendency of our body to want to keep both hands and extremities on the same level. It’s an innate reflex.

That is why the forend and handgrip should be on approximately the same level. Ideally, they should be as close to the horizontal axis of the barrel (or barrels) as possible. Any deviation could impede instinctive pointing. This explains why English side-by-sides, with their narrow splinter forends, are usually fitted with straight grips. Alternately, guns with deep forends, like American pump-action and autoloading shotguns, seem to work better with pistol grips, which keep both hands low but on the same level. Many deep-frame over & unders with thick forearms are fitted with pistol grips. As an alternative, some European/Germanic over & unders with deep frames are fitted with very narrow, often three-piece, forends and a rather straight pistol grip. This not only maintains both hands on the same level but keeps both hands in line with the axis of the bore. To maintain the strength of the narrow forends, the wood is divided into three pieces, with the right as well as the left side of the grip permanently screwed to the sides of the barrel, with the bottom half removed in conventional fashion. This three-piece arrangement, however, is considerably more difficult to inlet and, unfortunately, is often considered unattractive according to American taste.

Since it’s desirable to keep the alignment of the hands as close as possible to the axis of the bore, some deep-frame over & unders replace the straight configuration of the bottom tang with a subtle concavity. This subtly raises the position of the shooter’s dominant hand in relation to the axis of the bore. Such subtleties may seem insignificant, but, like most things, in aggregate they can add up to a significant difference.

Other factors of human anatomy can and should influence the shape of a grip. If you partially clench your fist and look at the opening, you’ll notice it isn’t round, it’s partially oval or diamond-shaped. So, the handgrip should also be oval in cross-section. You occasionally also encounter grips somewhat diamond-shaped in cross-section; these are, however, distinctly uncomfortable in my experience.

A German over & under with a deep receiver and thin forearm. Notice the three-piece forearm construction.

It’s also worth noting when you partially clench your fist as if holding a shotgun, the tunnel formed is not cylindrical but actually cone-shaped, with the narrow portion facing the base of the thumb. For this reason, many pistol grips are slightly narrower on the forward portion. While this may provide a more comfortable grip when holding the gun, it can make the gun more difficult to control during recoil. To expedite recovery from recoil for a second shot, many guns have pistol grips with a greater diameter on the forward portion so the grip will wedge tighter into the shooter’s hand under recoil. This same reversed tapering is occasionally used for the forend, again driving the stock tighter into the shooter’s grip during recoil. It can, however, result in a rather bulbous configuration that adds a little weight and can affect the balance of the gun.

Now that you’re starting to notice more about your hands, you may have noticed there is a subtle concavity of the central portion of the palm of your hand. The forend, and particularly the rear grip, should have a matching corresponding convexity. These “palm swells,” as they are known, are sometimes referred to as a “Wundhammer swell” and were a feature on many older German guns. They not only make the gun more comfortable to the hand, they help secure the shooter’s grip during recoil. They also help assure the shooter consistently grasps the stock in the same location. This may be the most significant advantage of palm swells. Subtle differences in location when grasping the stock will affect the perceived balance of the gun. While the point of balance is determined by the center of mass of the gun, the shooter’s perception of the point of balance is defined by where the hands are placed on the stock. Ensuring the exact location of the dominant and nondominant hand will help assure consistent balance and swing. Some forends on shotguns and rifles have subtle finger grooves which function similarly and assure consistency of where the stock is grasped.

To have a thorough knowledge of gun-stock design, you need some knowledge of human anatomy. To get a true grip on a gun stock, you need to know some of the subtleties of the corresponding human anatomy. After all, they’re intertwined and should work together.

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