It sure seems to be working out that way, doesn't it? There are a pair of S&W Hand Ejectors I rehabilitated that still sport their original barrel-length (4 & 6-1/2") but for the most part I do shorten them. Partly that's because I just love the look of a short-barreled revolver; it just seems to balance better visually on the particular guns I have been working on. The other thing is these days I'm finding my eyes just work better with a short sight radius. I need to switch to bifocals this year, then we'll see how things go.
This is a monster of a gun- weighed about 4-1/2 pounds with the stock barrel length. That's a lot of weight to hang out there at the end of your arms. I was going to go 5-1/2" but couldn't make myself love the looks. I did some math and figured out that with the loads I plan to use I won't lose an unacceptable amount of grunt by shaving the extra two inches. The gun lost 3/4 of a pound by shortening the barrel, which helps. What helps more is the gun's moment arm is reduced, making it feel a lot handier and quicker in the hand. That seemed important in a gun that will likely be going into the pucker-brush with me this fall (I've got the opening weekend of deer season locked down on a friend's property near Chehalis) and a shorter, handier gun is called for in some of the terrain.
What I won't be doing on this gun is modifying the shape of the grips. Walker and Colt got this one right; it's a perfect shape for hanging a heavy gun out at the end of your arm. I've been mulling over a future project that would involve, among other things, putting this shape and size of grip-frame on a Blackhawk with a longer barrel.
