Congrats on getting a good one. Just curious, is it an NM serial number, or just an N number?GunStudent said:. . . . . the web area of my right hand between thumb and first finger really hurts. Am I holding the pistol wrong, or do I need a differently shaped beaver tail safety?
As for your hand, are you holding the gun with your thumb under or on top of the thumb safety when you shoot? The original design such as the Milspec/GI was meant to be fired with your thumb under the safety, wrapped around the grip. A few years ago it became popular among competition shooters (which spread to amateurs) to shoot with the thumb on top of the safety to add a bit of leverage to help control muzzle rise. Holding the thumb on top of the safety often resulted in the web of the hand being pinched between the hammer and the tang - the famous hammer bite. Thus, the beavertail grip safety was born.
Hold the gun with your thumb below the thumb safety and you should be okay, unless your hands are particularly large or beefy. If you're already holding the gun this way and you're just getting a bit sore then you may just need to build up a bit of muscle in the web area. If you're actually getting bitten by the hammer then you probably need to go to a beavertail grip safety.