Best SD gun for small, weak, arthritic hands?

[mole]

I agree that a .32 mag would be a good choice. My great-grandmother carried one for years. The ammo is harder to find though.

I also like the idea of a Ruger 10/22 like revolvergeek suggested. I believe that they now make a .22 magnum carbine. A bullpup stock (puts the receiver at the end of the gun and moves the trigger farther forward) could be used to shorten it. Some people report problems with the higher capacity magazines though. Other brands make models with tube magazines that hold more rounds.

You may have to make sure that you keep it cocked since the first time you pull back the bolt to chamber a round could be tough for someone whose hands are in bad condition.

I like the idea of a .22 carbine mostly because of the lesser noise produced. The though of having to shoot a 12 guage with #4 shot in a narrow hallway and the possible resulting hearing damage scares the fool out of me.

 

[gripper]

Look into one of the Beretta's in .380 with the tip up barrel; I'm not a Beretta type,m no am I even legal where I live at the moment. But, the tip- up barrel could facilitate loading the chamber for her( assuming she cannot pull back the slide). THe .380 in a pistol of this size should make the recoil a bit more manageable. And ;although I lean towards either larger or faster stepping calibers, a.380 hydrashock in the brisket will not improve digestion for a bad guy intent on harming your wife.
BTW, I concur with the choice of a dog as part of the layers of defense.

 

[mcole]

look for a s & w model 10 revolver. used, not new. there are several barrel lengths; choose what you liike. i prefer the 4" heavy barrel models.
i could never find a semi-auto my wife could operate the slide on. because of small hands, was difficult to cock the hammer.
we tried the ruger sp-101. couldn't cock the hammer, for single action and couldn't double action pull the trigger. put in the lighter springs and did a trigger job and at best was still marginal.
found this s & w model 10-10. my guess is it was someone's duty revolver (hell, even got a tooled, mock bros. hoster with it). typical s & w great trigger. lock up was tight. got it home, took off the side plate, washed it out with hoppes #9. dried it out; relubed with browning ultra light gun oil.
single action trigger pull dropped from about 3.5 lbs to 2.75 lbs and double action to 6.5 lbs. no push off.
my wife can handle this all just fine. the .38's are just fine. contacted s & w and they advised the later mod. 10's can easily handle +p's if desired.
stick with 158 grain jacketed soft points or lead semi wad cutters. it is all about eneergy transfer.
should be able to find a good mod. 10 for $200 or less. mcole

 

[Connecticut Yankee]

Also, Talk to Your Doctor about Physical Therapy

Charlie, I am assuming that your wife is seeing a physician on a regular basis, either an internist or, preferably, a rheumatologist. If she isn't, she needs to see one regularly to best treat her arthritis. Second, I appreciate that she is in her 70s and how very painful arthritis can be, especially on one's ability to grip items. But assuming that she is on optimal medication, discuss with him the possibiltity of regular Physical Therapy. A good physical therapist can make a real difference. A combination of forearm and grip exercises, heating pads, hydrotherapy, etc. - depending on your wife's actual diagnosis - might make a difference in what she can comfortably handle. Most arthritis is, alas, a chronic disease and I am not saying that there will be some 'miracle' or 'wondercure'. But a good PT program and exercises might make a difference in what she is able to comfortably train with and actually enjoy shooting.

Also, some more points. Make sure that you have her firearm fitted with Hogue or Pachymayr recoil absorbing grips. And make sure that she wears padded PAST or Uncle Henry's shooting gloves when she practises. Finally, also talk to her physician about what sort of a practice regimen she could comfortably handle. Depending on her exact disease status he may indicate that 50 wadcutters a month is the maximum she should use; maybe even only 50 or 100 wadcutters a year from a revolver. There is a small but important concern that you don't want to aggravate the arthritis by too much practise shooting. Again, in all of this, you have to listen to what her physician says he is the one who knows her status the best. Good luck.

 

[Charlie Oldphart]

Thanks, Connecticut Yankee

Thank you for your kind advice regarding my wife's arthritis. She is under a doctor's care and takes medication for pain, however there has been no therapy. That sounds like a good idea and I will look into it.

I have to take charge of her as she is one tough lady and will not admit to any pain until the last moment. She also has osteo. She has become less and less agile as the days go on. At one time she ran a riding school but can no longer ride our last remaining horse. (A 30 year old Arabian.)

Up until a year ago we flew our own home-built ultralight airplane, but had to give that up also. Her knee would lock up and when landing a taildragger, that is not good.

Thank you for your kind thoughts and advice.

God Bless You and Yours

Charlie

 

[ewb45acp]

connecticut yankee has it right..

About the hogue grips and past gloves.

My wife suffers from rheumatoid arthritis and lupus . She was diagnosed 7 years ago. Her personal sidearm is a Ruger SP101 2.25" The Hogue monogrips and gloves make it possible for her to practice at all with it. Usually about 50 VERY MILD handloaded wadcutters is all she can handle at a time. About once every 6 months.

As others have said, trigger pull is a big issue. Her Ruger is very well worn and has a fairly light DA trigger. Even so on a "bad day" she needs to use both index fingers to pull the trigger. Single action is OK, but she needs both thumbs to cock the hammer.

I feel for you Charlie. RA is a monster. My wife was very active pre RA. Now a good day is being able to make the kids lunches in the morning.

If you haven't already, inquire about hot wax therapy. It works great for pain management on the bad days. If her rheumatologist will prescribe it, most insurances will pay for the home unit.

 

[sigstroker]

Get a .38 Smith & Wesson revolver, like a Model 10. With wadcutters it will recoil just a bit more than a .22. As soon as you get it, send if off to a GOOD gunsmith that knows revolvers, like Cylinder & Slide. Tell him your story and make sure he knows what you need. Have him cut off the cocking spur on the hammer too. Cocking it is the last thing you want your wife to do. Having inconsistent strength and holding a trigger finger on a cocked revolver is a bad idea.

You might also discuss the possibility of using a titanium cylinder with him. That would make the trigger pull even lighter.

 

[Boss Spearman]

Speaking of .32 magnum ammo, someone mentioned it can be hard to find. I have yet to find any .32 magnum ammo anywhere in the Indianapolis area.

 

[drinks]

Charlie;
There are any number of possible handguns, my wife is totally blind, her nightstand gun is a .38sp. double action with shot caps with #6 shot, I just tell her if she ever needs it , hold it out at shoulder high, point toward the noise and pull the trigger until the gun stops going bang.
For the house gun, I have a .410 double, both barrels have loads with 3 , .36 cal. buckshot in them.
I would expect that to work well in the night.
A decent .410 double would be rather expensive, but there are cheap, but reliable, pumps at very reasonable prices.
My personal nightstand gun is a 1917 S&W with 220gr cast bullets at 1000+ fps, I do expect that to stop most anything, even a meth freak.
I really do not like anything that has to be racked or have a safety clicked off or a hammer pulled back for a midle of the night gun, the average brain is too fuzzy then.

 

[Spec ops Grunt]

I would get a .22 revolver or a .223.

High Standard Sentinals are good, cheap .22s. You could also get a Mini-14

 

[Grey54956]

Ruger makes a decent pistol calibre carbine that may be a fine alternative to the Beretta Storm. The Ruger PC4 and PC9 carbines may deserve a closer look. Ease of operatin, plus low recoil make these carbines fairly attractive.

 

[Connecticut Yankee]

Also Consdier Trying Weightlifters Gloves (Seriously)

Also consider using weightlifters gloves, I've posted a coupla URLs below. These seem to have even more palm and finger padding than do the PAST gloves which translates into more shock absorption and thus protection. They might have more restriction of movement but these would just be for practice, if it's really a problem a little judicious cutting should allow more freedom of movement.

http://www.fitbuy.com/cgi-bin/shop/find.cgi (Scroll down, lower right, Ocelot gloves)

http://www.sportsunlimitedinc.com/weiglifglov.html a selection of Harbringer gloves - also, the ones with the wrist support might be most useful for her

http://www.newgrip.com/

Again, best of luck.

 

[EmGeeGeorge]

mossberg cruiser

20 or 410...

pistol grip... bird shot...

 

[Shipwreck]

Look into one of the Beretta's in .380 with the tip up barrel; I'm not a Beretta type,m no am I even legal where I live at the moment. But, the tip- up barrel could facilitate loading the chamber for her( assuming she cannot pull back the slide). THe .380 in a pistol of this size should make the recoil a bit more manageable. And ;although I lean towards either larger or faster stepping calibers, a.380 hydrashock in the brisket will not improve digestion for a bad guy intent on harming your wife.
BTW, I concur with the choice of a dog as part of the layers of defense.

Unfortunately, they no longer make the Beretta 86 - I want one if I ever come across one...

 

[Limeyfellow]

My mother in law is in a similar state, except a tad smaller and she has no problem using a .38 special snub nosed S&W so it pretty much depends on the person and how it feels to them.

Crime hasn't really gotten worse, its just that with the current news we know about whats happening and its detected easier. Crime levels in the state of Vermont are alot better than they use to be 50 years ago for instance, where most crime was never reported due to the embarrassment especially associated with rape and so on.