THe best advice I can give you is stop reading and go to a gun shop or bass pro and handle a few and see what you like best. After that you can check some reviews and pick from the ones that fit you. I was in the same situation as you for a while and I checked every shop in town till I found the one I wanted. It was a Magnum Research Baby Eagle I too didn't like the plastic grips so I bought the Hogue rubber grips and its perfect now.