Handgun for Wife?

[justinrad]

Recently my wife has mentioned going to the shooting range with me. I am excited about this but I want to start her off with a smaller handgun and work her up to a bigger gun. I have looked at the new Walther p22 but if anyone could suggest other guns to look at i would appreciate it.

 

[Jay]

I'm glad to see your wife has an interest in shooting. I'd suggest you have her shop for a handgun just like she shops for shoes. Go to the gun shop/gunshow and have her handle (try on) all of the handguns she can get her hands on. Most she won't comment on, but a few, will feel "just right". Pursue those. Make sure she can work the action. Many manufacturers make different calibers on the same, or similar frames. Starting with a .22 is a sound idea, but the same holds true.... she needs to try it on. A person can be taught to shoot many calibers, in different actions, but it's extremely difficult in my experience, to teach someone to be comfortable with a handgun that doesn't feel right in their hands. If it doesn't feel right, they won't shoot it enough to become proficient with it. If they're not proficient with it, they should carry a ball bat. :no:

Besides, gun shopping is fun....... just my two cents......

 

[mrsandman224455]

Recently my wife has mentioned going to the shooting range with me. I am excited about this but I want to start her off with a smaller handgun and work her up to a bigger gun. I have looked at the new Walther p22 but if anyone could suggest other guns to look at i would appreciate it.

I want to start my girl off with something as well. Not too sure what to start her off with. I was also thinking the P22.

 

[gdcleanfun]

Jay, what you said, +1.

Justin, what feels good in her hand. How much recoil/kick/action can she handle/be comfortable with. I love my colt .45. She may only feel comfortable with a .22. Take her to the range, to a gun store with a range. She'll tell you what she likes.

 

[justinrad]

My wife is very "girly" which is what concerns me about her ability to keep the gun under control.

Jay- thanks for the advice- my only concern is that if she shops for a gun like she shops for shoes we will end up spending a weekend shopping and then end up with 10 guns and she will only use 2 of them.....haha

 

[Jay]

Justinrad....

...teach your wife stance, grip, and trigger control, and she "can" shoot most anything out there. She has to be the one to say whether or not it's comfortable for her. I taught a 71 year-old widow last month, and she wasn't too comfortable with the .38 revolver her husband bought her. After shooting several models, and calibers she finished up the last couple of hours shooting one of my 1911's. The local gun shop let me know that two days later she traded her .38 in on a used 1911. A few days later, she called and wanted to shoot. She put 200 rounds thru her 1911, and was grinnin' the whole time. Get your wife's confidence up. She's comfortable with girly.... now get her comfortable with shooting small stuff first.

Dang, wish I could get my wife to buy 10 guns and leave 8 of them for me to shoot. If that's the worst problem you've got, you're in great shape. :wink:

 

[mom of 3 angels]

Fully agree with letting her handle every gun she can get her hands on. I'd rather shoot a .45 that fits well than a .22 that I can't reach the trigger on or get my hands comfortably around the grip. That's how I purchased my first handgun--picked up every one I could find and there was only one that I really liked the feel of.

And weight is a consideration also--you have to find a happy medium. A gun that is too heavy will be harder to hold, but one that is super light weight (think Kel Tec, LCP) usually have a nasty kick which can lead to her not wanting to shoot/carry/practice with it. Good luck!

 

[RoperJ109]

I started my wife with .....

a .380 and she quickly worked her way up from there. She recently pulled the trigger on my Colt Anaconda (.44 Mag), full factory loads. Smiling from ear-to-ear.

She buys what fits her hands, feels comfortable, and yes, looks good. Take her to an indoor range that rents pitols. Many of the ones around me have lots of choices and will walk you through unique operating characteristics.

Just my $0.02 worth.

John

 

[HK4U]

I agree with the others that the best thing is if she can go to a range that have guns to rent and try out as many as she can. That is good advice for anyone male or female. For most people I would tend to worry more about the gun being to big or heavy more than the recoil. As already said with proper training, stance grip etc most people can handle a fair amount of recoil. If the gun is to big or heavy though it may end up being left at home rather than carried.

 

[rrc1962]

My wife started on my Taurus PT92 9mm, now has her own Kahr CW9 and has no problem with my Glock 30. She tried a small .380 but the recoil was more than the 9mm. I would recommend getting her something that you would want her to carry for protection. That way, if she ends up with carry permit you won't have to gun shopping again. I also agree with trying different guns. My guess is that she can probably handle a lot more gun that what you may think.

 

[AZSATT]

Inquiring minds want to know...

Lots of good advice already given, so I'm curious to learn what she decides on - let us know!

 

[astute]

Everyone I know that bought a Walther P22 has been unhappy with it. I owned a Sig Mosquito and had nothing but trouble. For a dependable 22, Ruger is next to impossible to beat. If price is not a real factor take a look at the Berreta Cheetah 22. Same size as a 380 or small 9mm and top of the line. Once she gets to enjoy shooting and is ready to move up, THINK 9mm or larger if she can handle it. Most women can handle a 45 with no problem once the get past the initial fear of recoil. If revolver is what she is thinking, Taurus makes a small carry size 22. From there the step up would be "J" frame 38 or 357. Just make sure you shoot at common self defense distance, so she won't get discouraged about hitting the target. 20' or closer with carry type guns.

Good Luck!!!

 

[Scarecrow]

I started my wife with my tz-75 9mm compact.. she had nothing to compare it to so she said it was ok.. then she shot my full size EAA Witness .45. she said she liked that one much better because there was more of a grip to hang on to. after shooting my .40 full size baby eagle she wanted to steel it from me! so again, it's just a matter of handling everything she can and getting to shoot them as well. she might surprize you and like a bigger caliber as my wife did.. she prefers the .40 and .45 over the 9mm. good luck!

 

[DarrellM5]

My wife started shooting with a Ruger Mark II .22 target pistol. It was a great start, due to almost zero recoil. She also likes the Ruger SP101 loaded with .38 SP and she's completely taken over my XDm-9.

 

[LVLouisCyphre]

It's been said already and I'll reaffirm it; take her to a range and rent everything available. The key is fit. I don't like Glocks because they don't fit in my hand well, I don't like the grip angle so it doesn't point naturally in my hand. I do like 1911s (particular double stacked Paras), third generation S&W, SIG-Sauer and Taurus (Beretta clones).

Also keep in mind that if it's going to be a CCW and not strictly a home defense handgun it also needs to be comfortable and feasible to conceal. If it's not comfortable to CCW, she won't carry it. Ladies have an additional challenge when it comes to CCW with holster selection and carry mode. Not all ladies can effectively conceal a full sized 1911 on their body. In which case it may be time to consider a Commander sized or Officer's ACP.

If your spouse ends up being a firearms version of Imelda Marcos that's not necessarily a bad thing. :wink: The only bad thing that might happen is she may want to join you at the range all the time, want to make her guns look more girly and harass you for a pink AR-15. Make sure your range has a ladies' night where you stay home and you send her there with her guns and ammo. Guys, other than a good range officer, don't need to be there on ladies' night to screw up a good thing.

If she's set on .380 ACP, a Bersa Thunder .380 makes an excellent choice; not as expensive as Walther or SIG and is very pleasant to shoot and accurate out of the box. I also prefer the Bersa over the Walther and SIG because it has a slide stop. The magazine disconnect is debatable. I like them being a 3rd generation S&W aficionado, others don't.

 

[CMS23]

Yeah, I let my wife shoot a lot of pistols thinking she would want a .380 or 9mm. She decided she wanted my Glock 23. I guess giving options has its pros and cons.

 

[mike5757]

I seen a real cool pistol that should be fairly easy to control and very effective.Its a 410-45 hammerless revolver easy to use and does the job,One is called the Judge it shoots 2 1/2 inch 410 then there is the Prosicuter,my spelling is bad so please excuse it,it shoots 3i inch 410. Taurus and Smith and Wesson also makes it.But beware there are some really cheep models out there and they are scarry.

 

[Mainsail]

You should find a wife that is capable of independent thought and doesn’t rely on you to do all her thinking for her. If she is capable of thinking for herself, why not let her find the gun she likes? After all, she’s much more likely to carry and practice with something she’s comfortable with as opposed to something you have chosen for her.

 

[dadoo]

Old line

I just got a handgun for my wife.......It was a good deal!:sarcastic:

Seriously though, my wife has Rheumatoid Arthritis and has trouble loading magazines and pulling a slide, so she keeps a Rossi .38spl by her side of the bed.:man_in_love:

 

[m&pcarrier]

My wife bought a Smith and Wesson 22a pistol for herself back in December or January. She likes it but didn't feel like she was really shooting a real gun. so a couple months ago we rented several guns from a local gun store. She shot a Kahr CW9, a Glock 26, and a M&P9c. She loved the M&P and found one at a gun show with Crimson trace grips for 660. She loves her 9mm and we have a matching set now.