A Guide to Choosing the Best Handgun Size For Your Needs

Handgun sizes can have a big impact on how your custom firearm performs. The wrong size can be uncomfortable to carry, more so to shoot, and may even be dangerous if its size makes it unwieldy to control. Whether you’re considering a commercially produced firearm or thinking about making your own legal homemade gun in the comfort of your garage or workshop, knowing what size you need is vital to ensuring it both meets your needs and gives you the best possible shooting experience. Let’s take a look at what pistol sizes mean and how to choose the right one for you.

The “Wild West” of Handun Sizes

The first thing you should know is we’re going to be talking about how to judge for yourself whether a given handgun’s size is right for you. This is vital because there is no standardization when it comes to labeling pistol sizes. Full-size, compact, sub-compact, pocket pistol, Long Slide, and any other designation a manufacturer may put on a gun is completely at the whim of their marketing department. Even for printed or homemade guns, the labeled size is often based on the most closely related commercial model. One manufacturer’s compact may be approximately the same size as another’s full-size or sub-compact, making relative size to your needs and anatomy the best gauge of whether a gun is right for you.

Hands-On Shooting

Your hands have to hold, stabilize, aim, and manipulate the pistol to load, ready, aim, and fire the weapon safely and efficiently. That’s why they play such a big role in choosing the right handgun size. The frame and handgun grip need to nest firmly against the meat of your palm, secured by your thumb and fingers–so not so large as to be cumbersome. There needs to be enough purchase on contact surfaces for you to control recoil, which means not choosing a gun so small it gets lost in your hand. It’s a delicate balancing act that has to then be balanced with the other tactical considerations we’ll be looking at.

In general, choose a handgun sized to allow your fingers to wrap entirely around the front strap of the frame with a tall enough grip for all four fingers to sit comfortably. The top of your hand, including the webbing between your thumb and trigger finger, should still sit low enough to avoid being hit or pinched by the slide or hammer as the weapon cycles. Magazine extensions can give additional space for larger hands on smaller pistols, but if you have smaller hands, you may need to choose a smaller caliber or single-stack pistol size to ensure you can control the weapon.

Scale for Skill Level

You may also need to consider your skill level when choosing your handgun size. Larger pistols are easier to control for most shooters. There are more control surfaces to work with and more weight to help you fight recoil. That doesn’t mean a skilled shooter has to choose a smaller pistol, but they might want to depending on their other weapon needs.

If you’re new to shooting or struggle with your fundamentals, opt for handgun sizes that are as large as possible while still fitting your hand properly. This can be especially good if you want to start customizing your weapons. Larger weapons generally mean larger components and more space to work in while learning the fine manipulation and tool-handling skills used in making or customizing firearms.

Understand Your Use Case

At this point, you may be starting to get a general picture of what range of handgun sizes are going to work best for you, and that means we can start to fine-tune those selections. Consider what you need your handgun to do, when you’ll be shooting or carrying it the most, and under what conditions. Firearms are excellent tools for protection and self-defense, but just as different hammers are used for different tasks, one firearm may be better than another based on the pistol size.

Long Barrels for Longer Ranges

If you’re going to be shooting competitively, using your pistol while hunting, or need a weapon that may be called on for mid-to-longer range shooting, then you should consider handgun sizes that allow for a longer barrel. As the hot expanding gasses from a fired cartridge push the bullet down the barrel, the rifling twists apply spin to the bullet to stabilize it in flight. The longer the barrel, the more stability that can be imparted by the rifling. The longer barrel also usually comes with a longer slide that gives you a longer aiming axis when lining up your shot if you’re using iron sights.

Compact for Concealability

No, we’re not talking about the completely made-up designation but rather choosing handgun sizes that offer a smaller footprint for easier concealed carry. Decide how and where you want to conceal the gun, and then work backward from there. Shorter grips or magazine wells can keep the base plate from sticking out under clothes or “printing”. Likewise, smaller, thinner slides are easier to fit discretely under clothes. For purse or pouch carry, you might choose to go even smaller, choosing something like a pocket-sized pistol, derringer, or ultra-light revolver. If you’re a large individual who likes to wear baggy clothes anyway, the sky may be the limit for concealment, but you may need to adjust its positioning for an easier draw.

Accessory Acceptance

Do you like bells and whistles? One of the joys of building out a custom gun is making sure it has the full capabilities you need. Flashlights, red dots, lasers, and more can all be added to firearms to help you tailor your shooting experience, but those accessories take up real estate on the frame. If you know you want a gun that has precision optics, tac lights, and more, make sure you’re looking at handgun sizes with enough slide or rail space to accommodate them. 

Putting It All Together

Now that you’ve got a good idea of what pistol size you’re looking at, head down to your local gun range or shop and take a look around. Try the hand feel of prospective guns to see how they sit. Even if you’re planning on making your own gun at home, you can try out similar models to make sure the frame you’re buying or plans you’re downloading are the right choice for your shooting needs. 

All Your Custom Gun Parts and Accessories

We offer parts and accessories to help you build, customize, or finish all handgun sizes. Each one is made by a manufacturer you can count on to deliver superior performance and is priced fairly so you can enjoy your Second Amendment rights without breaking the bank. For the best deals, sign up for our email newsletter that’s filled with special promotions, hot prices, and new product notifications. Order your custom gun parts from JSD Supply today.