What is the best handgun with the least kick?

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katiejwiggins

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I have never owned a handgun so I want one that easy to use but one that has safety features too. I don't want it to have a lot of kickback. My husband has a 9mm but it's too heavy for me. I want to be able to take it with me so I'm looking for something that's not too bulky.
 
Consider a .380ACP if 9mm kicks too much. Personally, recoil doesn't bother me. Some people just take time to get used to it.. that said, if you want to try a 9mm with less recoil, look at the Beretta Px4 Storm and Storm Compact (not the sub-compact model because it lacks this reature) Both have a rotating barrel design that reduces felt recoil, and both have external, manual safeties.
PS, pretty much every modern firearm has safety features, including a rolling pin that prevents the gun from discharging if dropped (have to have your finger on the trigger to shoot it) and quite often, a very heavy first trigger pull which acts as a safety too.. but the best safety feature on any gun is you. Learn the 4 basic rules of handgun safety, memorize them, and live by them, and you'll never have an unintended accident with a firearm that results in an injury.
 
Take a look at the Bersa thunder it has a lot of safety's it's 380 recoil is not bad my wife loves hers she has problems with her hands but can work it and shoot it fine it's light weight and she carries it a lot
 
Look at the Bersa 380cc. It's a lower priced weapon but my wife chose it over a lot of other higher priced. It's steel framed but not too heavy. Very easy to handle when shooting( my wife is very petite) has second strike capabilities and lots of safety features. It's patterned after a Walther and is highly underrated. My gunsmith talked me into buying it for her and was willing to spend whatever for her first gun.
 
You might try the Ruger SR 22. An outstanding .22 pistol. Medium sized. Very light. Almost no recoil. Very reliable. Very accurate. Easy to disassemble and clean. Sells for about $300. My wife loves this handgun. If she wants to, my wife can shoot a full-sized 9mm pistol pretty well, and doesn't mind the recoil, but she always comes back to her SR 22. She loads it with CCI Stingers for ammo. And with that ammo, it can serve as a self-defense weapon. At home or in the car. (Of course, shot placement is crucial in any caliber, but especially in the smaller calibers.) Read some reviews online, if you like. Everybody seems to admire this gun quite a lot. Maybe you will, too.
 
there's no recoil because there's no power. It's a .22LR

You may want to decide what you want this firearm for. If it's self defense, you may also want to consider going to a range and shooting a few thousand rounds in something like a compact service sized handgun in 9mm, like a Walther PPQ or S&W M&P for example, and see with some preactice if you just needed time to get used to recoil in a handgun.
 
1st- welcome!
2nd- Find a few classes or look up a NRA "Women on Target" event close to you. (You need some instruction before you go much farther.)

Unless you have some physical issues that prevent it, most problems associated with "recoil" are easily & readily overcome with proper instruction. You really don't want to buy an under powered weapon for SD, only to realize two months later you can easily handle a good quality SD handgun.

Again, get some training 1st. Then rent or borrow some different handguns to try. There really is no need to rush into buying a handgun before you are ready.


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The problem is you are asking for two mutually exclusive things. A small gun and small recoil. The weight of the pistol helps reduce the perceived recoil. The main safety feature on any and all guns is found between your ears. There are guns with manual safeties and guns without manual safeties but none that have been manufactured in the past 30 years or so will go off when dropped or anytime without the trigger being pulled. You need to go to a gun shop and handle all the guns that "look" good to you. Then when you find several you like you need to find a range that can rent you those guns so that you can shoot them.
 
Firearms for what? Defense, target shooting, plinking,

Do you have shooting friends that will take you out and let you try various firearms?

I find CZ pistols CZ-75/85 and CZP07 very comfortable to shoot as does my wife, fit is VERY important to comfortable shooting. The CZ75/85 also as a 22cal kadet adapter to shoot 22cal from the same trigger and grip.

One other tip, when racking a semiauto, don't pull on the slide. Hold the slide steady, and PUSH on the grip, much easier to rack that way.
 
For my first handgun I picked out a S&W 9mm. It is a little heavy, but has less kick than my boyfriend's 40mm. After breaking my arm twice this past year, my hands have lost some meat in them along with my arms, making it a little difficult to now hold my gun confidentally. (I am actually going back and forth of whether to keep it and just get a smaller one for CCW, or trade it in). While weight and size can vary by manufacturer and model, I would say the best thing to do would be to go to the gun store and try holding a few different ones. While mine is a little heavy, it made me feel more confident and comfortable rather than a lighter one. But each person is different. Best of luck.
 
This is strictly my opinion, and has worked in many years of firearms training, and for men and ladies alike.

Get some basic training FIRST. At this point you need fundamentals, not run and gun, or force on force. Reputable instructors will provide a host of handguns and holsters for you to experience in class. That will give you some idea of where your preferences might lead you in handgun selection. Then.....

Buy a handgun just like you would buy a pair of shoes. If Ol' Joe over here says he likes Charlie China tennis shoes, and you're looking for a new pair of shoes, do you run out and buy Joe's pick, just because HE likes 'em? Probably not. If a new shooter is asking what to buy for a carry gun, it doesn't matter what works for me, or anyone else. I suggest telling that new shooter to go to many gun shops, and/or gun shows, and handle all the guns they can get hold of. Just like they would try on shoes. Before long they'll be able to make a list of guns that feel ok, pretty good, real good, and "that really feels great in my hands". The last two are the ones to pursue, and here's why I say that....If a given handgun doesn't feel "right" in your hands, you'll not shoot it enough to become proficient with it, because it's not comfortable, and you won't like shooting it. Just like you rarely wear shoes that are UNcomfortable. If you're not gonna become proficient with it, save your money, and buy a ball bat to carry. With proper fundamentals, he/she can learn to shoot almost any handgun, or any caliber. Very few folks can re-train their hands to make just any handgun feel comfortable. The last suggestion... again....get some training......proper shooting techniques, practiced slowly, but proficiently, will breed speed. Do it slowly, and do it the right way, every time.......If you practice speed first, and introduce less efficient techniques into your training, you'll have to do it all over again to get it right. Most gun shops have a box of used holsters that you can experiment with after you've chosen what gun works best for you. There are many options for concealed/open carry.

By the way..... anyone who introduces a new shooter to our pastime by having them start with a large-caliber handgun, makes a very poor decision. Yes, some folks do ok starting out with large calibers, but the vast majority will not continue to shoot if their very 1st experience is with .50 S&W. Start with a .22 caliber something, and as your technique/accuracy improves, work up from there. Caliber doesn't count until after you can consistently hit your target.

If you're buying a handgun for home protection, and you choose to NOT have it on your person, you should consider where in your home you might be if someone kicks the door in. I don't see a person in a position to be able to ask an intruder to "hang on a sec, while I get my gun"

There always will be a trade-off..... light weight, more recoil...... shorter barrel, more recoil...I've known more than a few gents who didn't care for the recoil of what's often called a "ladies gun"... just sayin....

Again, just my ramblings.... but they work for me...

Shoot Safely....
 
Already you've set yourself up for failure by calling it "kick". Nobody gets kicked without getting hurt, so you're equating "recoil" (which is what it's really called) with pain.

First, you're not going to find a weapon with zero recoil. The lightest recoil is going to be a heavy gun loaded with .22 Short. However, you aren't going to be likely to save your life with one.

Second, the caliber / weapon you need is the one which can do two things. 1) You need the largest caliber you can shoot successfully in the 2) smallest handgun you can successfully shoot.

Though you DO need to shoot on a regular basis to keep your skills honed, realize that if you can put 8 out of 10 on the black at 7 yards and your hand is sore later - so what? If you get into a real-life defensive situation and the worst that happens is you have a sore hand - count yourself lucky.

That being said, here are some guns women I know swear by:
Woman A is 5'6" and shoots a Ruger LCP in .380ACP.
Woman B is 5'7" and shoots a Glock 30SF in .45ACP with a Ruger LCP as a backup weapon.
Woman C is 5'3" and goes back and forth between a Ruger LCP and a Phoenix Arms HP22A in .22LR (She likes the tough look of the gun.)

The best advice I have is: Spend some money at a shooting range which allows you to rent guns. You're looking at a $300 day, easily, but you'll know for sure what you like. Start with .380, then 9mm, then .45ACP (maybe .40ACP mixed in there) and finally .38SPL. Then choose your favorite. After you do that, choose a high-quality nickel-plated ammunition with a proven track-record... but that's another discussion.

Have fun with it.
 
It appears Mrs. Wiggins may have left the building. I just hope she pays attention to some of the wisdom & advice she received.

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The Walther PPK in .380 has reduced recoil because if its all steel frame. Makes it a touch heavier to carry than the polymer frame semis, but that is the tradeoff, basic physics 101 - more mass equals less felt recoil. The Springfield XD-S in 9mm is also a very nice one to shoot; recoil is very manageable for a polymer frame compact.
 
Thank you everyone for your advice. I am going to take a gun safety training course and then start looking into which one to buy. This has really helped me so thank you to everyone who has posted:)
 
JaegerMann said:
One other tip, when racking a semiauto, don't pull on the slide. Hold the slide steady, and PUSH on the grip, much easier to rack that way.
Click to expand...

It's never a good idea to train by doing something incorrectly. This particular suggestion is extra bad seeing as how people new to guns have issues keeping their finger off the trigger, it's asking for issues. If somebody doesn't have the strength or grip to correctly operate a semi, then their's nothing wrong with revolvers.
 
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