Gun for wife

[clfergus]

With all of the break ins happening around town I am really trying to get a gun my wife could easily use if needed.

She is not afraid of guns but I am realistic that she just wont go to the range and practice much at all past the initial time. So trying to get her use to racking and shooting something like a glock won't happen.

I don't think she can rack my full size pistols if the situation were to happen where she needed it. I read about the .38 spl but I see in youtube videos that the recoil from one if more than say a semi-auto 9mm.

Not sure what to get her. Are there any really easy to rack 9mm Semi-autos designed for women? Someone said there was a Sig that you could almost rack with 1 finger.

 

[airmotive]

Concealed carry=handgun.
Home defense=shotgun.

For a woman who's not familiar with guns, 20ga pump.

 

[Kirk Freeman]

Have you tried renting different pistols?

How about borrowing guns from a buddy?

Above all, let her pick.

 

[Liberty Sanders]

I'm a bit confused here.

Why does she have to rack it?

A pistol kept in combat readiness already has a round in the chamber. All she has to do is pick it up and shoot.

 

[jayhawk]

Sig P238 is what you're thinking of.

It's also been mentioned that the HK USP and Bersa Thunder are reasonably easy to rack. You could always try replacing the factory recoil spring in just about any pistol.

 

[mrortega]

Have you tried renting different pistols?

How about borrowing guns from a buddy?

Above all, let her pick.

A big +1. If she doesn't handle the weapon before you buy it she may have a problem. Case in point: I went shooting yesterday and my wife decided that she wanted to (finally) fire one of my pistols. The smallest was my Glock 27. She had trouble wrapping her hand/fingers around the grip. To comfortably reach the trigger she had to move her hand around a little so that her arm wasn't in line with the axis of the gun. She did okay with the one shot but she sure didn't have it lined up properly. Make sure your wife has a gun that she can correctly grip and hold. A .380 or smaller pistol might be better than a higher caliber that she can't shoot properly.

 

[w_ADAM_d88]

How about borrowing guns from a buddy?

Above all, let her pick.

Great advice! Had a similar situation with my wife, and asked around on INGO and found a member that was able to meet us at a range and let her shoot a few different options. He even made her a deal on the pistol she liked and sold it to her. She tried my LCP, XD40sc, and a few full size hg's then tired out his .38 snub nose and a few others. Out of all of them with size, recoil, loading, handling, safety, etc., she like the .38sp the best.

 

[lovemachine]

My wife shoots my Glock 19 and Glock 26 VERY well. She had problems racking the slide at first, but since she's figured out how to move the slide AND push on the frame, she's like a pro when it comes to racking the slide.

All your wife needs is practice. She'll get it.

 

[RBrianHarless]

New pistols will have tight springs making them difficult in pulling back. Practice helps build up the muscles to put a round inthe chamber.

Revolvers are wonderful firearms. I would suggest the Ruger LCR due to the cam assist on firing. Other revolvers have a heavy trigger pull and make it difficult to put rounds on target until she has devoloped muscle memory unless firing in single action. The lighter pistol will mean additional recoil.

Find a pistol that fits her hand well and she is able to operate it. Bersa's are really nice and have sold quite a few of them. Good luck.

 

[actaeon277]

I'm a bit confused here.

Why does she have to rack it?

A pistol kept in combat readiness already has a round in the chamber. All she has to do is pick it up and shoot.

How about reload/or clear a jam?
You should be able to operate a weapon, not just yank the trigger.

 

[dbrier]

Have you tried renting different pistols?

How about borrowing guns from a buddy?

Above all, let her pick.

This +1000
She has to want a firearm. If you're buying it for her and hoping she'll use you may be in trouble. Take her to a local gun shop and let her pick up and test a few.
I tend to recommend revolvers for my friends that aren't into guns as much as most of us. Revolvers are much simpler to fire, operate and take care of. For many people, revolvers are much less intimidating to operate, there aren't many levers or processes.
Drop the bullets in, close it, pull trigger.

 

[Magolin]

I wouldn't count Glocks out. I'm a tiny little girl who can very comfortably handle them. Yes, I have to push/pull to rack it, but it's very doable. Its obviously more difficult for me than a stronger guy, but its not hard once I figured out the motion. My favorite two are the 19 and 26. The 19 is on the big side for me to carry (hard to conceal if I want to), but is the easier of the two for me to shoot.

I like the fact that they don't have external safeties and extra stuff to worry about. Practice can only overcome so much. I know me. I want as little to fool around with as possible if I were to ever need it.

 

[SIGguy]

My wife hates guns but then one day she decided she wanted a gun and we went and looked at two different guns the s&w bodyguard .380 and the lc9 lol shes a smaller frame woman and she went withe the body gueard and loved it

 

[tdoom15]

My gf is 5'5" 100lbs and can run the slide on all my guns. It took her about a week of saying "I can't do it" to finally get used to it, she has no issue whatsoever.

I'd probably recommed an MP9 FS with tlr-4. Reasons being soft recoil, adj back straps, safety option, reliable, cheap. The laser really makes a difference for people who wont be practicing often.

 

[mrortega]

My gf is 5'5" 100lbs and can run the slide on all my guns. It took her about a week of saying "I can't do it" to finally get used to it, she has no issue whatsoever.

I'd probably recommed an MP9 FS with tlr-4. Reasons being soft recoil, adj back straps, safety option, reliable, cheap. The laser really makes a difference for people who wont be practicing often.

You went and messed up. Now she's so strong she'll whip you arm wrestling.

 

[Regionnus Rattis]

My wife used to carry an LCR, but when I bought myself a Beretta Nano, she really liked it...so much in fact that I had to go and buy another one...she kept mine. She can rack the slide fairly easily, but since one is in the chamber already, there is no need to rack it, just point and shoot. She says loading the magazines are harder than racking the slide, so we are working on that. It's quicker to reload a pistol that it is for a revolver.

 

[Miketodd]

Oh, i thought you were trading a gun to get a wife. I would have advised you to keep the gun.
But in all seriousness, whatever feels good to her and she can handle is what you need to get her.

 

[IndyGunSafety]

With all of the break ins happening around town I am really trying to get a gun my wife could easily use if needed.

She is not afraid of guns but I am realistic that she just wont go to the range and practice much at all past the initial time. So trying to get her use to racking and shooting something like a glock won't happen.

I don't think she can rack my full size pistols if the situation were to happen where she needed it. I read about the .38 spl but I see in youtube videos that the recoil from one if more than say a semi-auto 9mm.

Not sure what to get her. Are there any really easy to rack 9mm Semi-autos designed for women? Someone said there was a Sig that you could almost rack with 1 finger.

We offer FREE consultations at our gun shop. You can come in, sit down and she can handle all the firearms she wants and ask all the questions she wants. We can help you find the handgun that is just right for her. We also provide a wide vartiety of training courses even for someone who has little or no experience with handguns. Check out our web site at Indy Gun Safety Home and call us if we can help!

 

[IndyGunSafety]

My wife used to carry an LCR, but when I bought myself a Beretta Nano, she really liked it...so much in fact that I had to go and buy another one...she kept mine. She can rack the slide fairly easily, but since one is in the chamber already, there is no need to rack it, just point and shoot. She says loading the magazines are harder than racking the slide, so we are working on that. It's quicker to reload a pistol that it is for a revolver.

+1 for the NANO! Easiest racking slide of any 9mm I've handled. Yet it's a little heavier than most sub compact guns, so there will be a tad less recoil as well.

 

[the1kidd03]

1st of all, as others stated, LET HER CHOOSE. That being said, she really shouldn't choose a gun just by how it feels in a gun shop. They tend to like how it feels, but then find out they don't like how it feels when they shoot it. She should do the choosing based on experience with the weapon, not just holding it.

Also, I cannot tell you how many silly little .38 revolvers get to the range with beginning shooters and they end up hating the gun. It is simply a difficult gun to learn on and since you already know you're not going to get her to shoot it often, why pick one that you know takes more time to become accurate with? Also, many women don't like the heavy trigger pull on the revolvers (especially the small .38's). Just proving the point further that SHE needs to pick it and from the EXPERIENCE of shooting it, not handling it.

All in all, I think for defensive purposes it should remain loaded in case she needs it in a hurry. In which case she won't necessarily need to be well practiced at operating the slide, although she still SHOULD be she could get by with little effort should the occasion arise. The inherent problem with pistols for defense is that it takes much more time and target practice to get accurate with them. Since, you've already said she won't shoot much then it again puts pistols at the bottom, IMO. A good home defense shotgun sounds like the better choice for her. Won't require as much time practicing to get accurate and maintain accuracy. Also, they are proven to be much more effective threat stoppers in confined quarters when selecting the proper ammunition.