.380 for wife... not CCW

Another vote for the PK380.

If low felt-recoil is a must and being easy to rack and shoot are your top priorites you'll be hard pressed to find a better pistol in .380.

The PK is a lot easier to rack and softer shooting than any of the blowback style .380s like the Bersa or even the Berettas. I had a Browning BDA and the PK has noticeably less recoil and is much easier to rack the slide on.

Plus the styling seems to be especially appealing to most of the women I know. My PK is a favorite with my wife and daughter at the range. If you're serious about getting your wife a gun she will actually like and not just doing the getting mom a catchers mitt thing and getting her a gun you secretly want, then give the PK some serious consideration.

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I'm with you. The PK is cheap, reliable, super soft shooting, very comfortable in the hand, and the slide is super easy to rack. It should definitely be under consideration.

As a side note, I bought one for my wife, but I love it too at the range. Very fun to plink with.

That's one thing I will say about the 84. Its slide is not easy to rack....It takes a firm grip, over hand, sling shot technique to rack it.

I really don't have a problem with it. The wife (5'-7"...130lb) can do it but you can see it's difficult for her but she gets it done on her own.

http://gunblast.com/Ruger-LCP.htm

Again, bigger is not necessarily better.
Check out various velocities listed in the above link for the .380. This link is also about the Ruger LCP which I find quite attractive and reliable.
.380 ammo is improved and getting better. Something to look at.

CLARIFICATION- I checked and .380 +P NOT to be used in Ruger LCP. Repeat NOT to be used in Ruger LCP.

Still, modern new .380 ammo is much better since the demand of CCW concealable handguns increased in demand.

Buffalo Bore ammo (.380) mostly +P glad I checked after reading link.

alright the ruger LC9 is being released on the 1st of february.

its a LCP chambered in 9mm

Honestly, the OP sounds to me like the gun dealer who steers all of the women to the 'girl guns'. "Here, look at this tiny gun, it's less intimidating because it's small, and it even comes in pink!!"

If she's a full-size, fully functioning human, she can handle any defensive handgun, it's a matter of training. a compact .380 is NOT easier to shoot than a compact 9mm. Smaller guns have a smaller sight radius, making them harder to aim, and less mass, which means more felt recoil. If it is a house gun, there is no real reason to keep it so small.

+1 on the Bersa Thunder...wife loves hers....no problems to date

+1 on don't bother with a .380...I'm sure its been mentioned... my wife has a 9 and a .45...on rare occasions she'll shoot a 10mm

Imho, I would recommend her take a private class with an instructor...its fun...and shooting is more than just practice...its practicing sound fundamentals introduced by someone who knows...With a proper grip and a correct stance(s) you'll be surprised at what she can shoot...

I own a Beretta 84, a Beretta 86, a Bersa 95, and a Kahr P380. The Bersa has the softest felt recoil of the bunch. The Kahr is a locked breach design, which makes it much more comfortable than its extremely light weight would lead you to believe. The Beretta's are the best looking though... Since I reload, I don't have to worry about the cost of .380 Auto ammunition.

If you're not looking for concealed carry, then I'd recommend a Glock 19. Weighs 20oz empty, holds 15+1 rounds of inexpensive 9mm, and shoots pretty soft. But remember, a Glock 17 holds two more rounds, has a longer barrel, and only weighs 2 oz more. YMMV.

Walther PPK
Bersa Thunder 380
Walther PK380
CZ 83

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A 9mm of equal size will be just about as easy to shoot as these guns, but with much cheaper ammo so you can shoot more.

But if you must have a large .380 I'd go with either the Bersa (improved PPK) or the Walther pk380, I hear those are really nice to shoot with a notoriously easier to operate slide.

My wife sure likes my Sig 238...

I have been looking around and researching which caliber to get her and have decided the .380 provides the lowest recoil with a reasonable amount of stopping power.

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If you're really that worried about her defending herself let her pick her own gun and caliber and spend her money on what she wants.
If you just want her to come along and reload your mags for you, I can think of better ways to acomplish that.
This seems to be more a thread on your wants than her choice of firearm.

This seems to be more a thread on your wants than her choice of firearm.

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She could be the kind of gal that asked him to do the research and pick it out. My wife is just the opposite. Within about 10 minutes she had the S&W M&P9C picked out. That's the fastest I've ever seen her shop. She loves that gun, and I'm happy that she has a gun that she can shoot well, is reliable and uses a caliber I have complete confidence in.

I have a Bersa Thunder .380, and I like it quite a bit. Even though it is a blowback design recoil is less than a .38 SPL Airweight or a compact polymer 9mm. I have had several ladies take our NRA Basic Pistol course who were dead set on a .380 LCP and went home with a completely different opinion.

In the recoil department and for range time and home defense I would MUCH rather have a 9mm in a Springfield XD, or Glock 19, or Ruger SR9, or a S&W M&P, or a ...

Second hand S&W or Ruger 4-inch .357......great at range with .38's.......great SD with .357's.......

i have a lcp, my wife absoloutly HATES IT! it has way to much muzzle flip for her, basicly, is scares her. hse owns and shoots a full size 40 s&w, but i do download them for her. honestly, i think you would be better off with a full size, or almost full size 9mm. the shells will be cheaper, and easier to find also. the little bit of extra powder in the 9mm will never really be noticed in a larger gun. the big thing is takeing her to a GOOD REPUTABLE DEALER, THAT WILL HELP HER FIND A GUN THAT FITS HER HAND. one other consideration, my wife has developed fibromyalgia, she now has trouble pulling the slide back on her 40, so that is one thing to make sure of if your wife is a little on the weak side, make sure she can cycle the slide on whatever you are looking at buying. if she has trouble doing it, you may want to think about a 22 semi-auto (although this is not much of a h-d gun), or maybe a small revolver. which is what i bought my wife for Christmas last year.

Of the pistols on your list, the PK380 is definatly the softest shooting (it has a locked breach design) My wife has shot several of the pistols listed durring the same afternoon, and hands down the PK380 is the easiest to control.
If your wife likes them, the 9mm 1911 idea would be worth looking into. More power, more rounds in the mag, and recoil should be comprable between that and the .380 choices you listed. That, and ammo will be easier to find and less expensive.

Honestly, the OP sounds to me like the gun dealer who steers all of the women to the 'girl guns'. "Here, look at this tiny gun, it's less intimidating because it's small, and it even comes in pink!!"

If she's a full-size, fully functioning human, she can handle any defensive handgun, it's a matter of training. a compact .380 is NOT easier to shoot than a compact 9mm. Smaller guns have a smaller sight radius, making them harder to aim, and less mass, which means more felt recoil. If it is a house gun, there is no real reason to keep it so small.

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+1

Forget the .380.
It's just not that great of a self defense caliber.
The .380 is practically at the bottom-of-the-barrel when it comes to defensive handgun calibers.
At least get her a 9mm para pistol.
I wouldn't want my wife's life entrusted to a .380 pistol.

The 9mm para from a compact to full-sized handgun has rather soft recoil and is easily controlled by even folks of slight stature.
Female soldiers and female police shoot 9mm, and more powerful calibers, everyday.

Here are a few I recommend...

Glock 19
S&W M&P9c
XD9 compact

And my latest favorite 9mm pistol (and my wife's favorite as well), the Ruger SR9c....



With its 17-round magazine it makes a fine house gun.

And with its 10-round magazine it makes a good CC gun as well....




A few things my wife likes about the SR9c...

She likes the loaded chamber indicator.
I think that it's a bit ugly, but it is undeniably easy to tell when there is a round chambered, especially with the hi-viz orange on the sides.

She likes the trigger, which has very little travel before firing, no creep or slack whatsoever, and a light trigger-pull.
Very accurate.

She also likes the sights...especially the large front sight.

And she likes that the grip is a bit more slender than our Glocks, and fits her small hands better.


A word about the manual safety:
Since my wife and I are used to shooting Glocks, we keep the SR9c in a holster with the safety off.
Just point and shoot, like a Glock.
Still, the option is there if you like a manual safety.



Good luck,
Easy

I wonder if the loaded chamber indicator presents any issues for drawing from CC? I'd assume holsters made for the gun would take it into account, but I'm kind of curious.

Check out the 9x18 pistols, very similar round and about half as cheap to shoot.

I wonder if the loaded chamber indicator presents any issues for drawing from CC? I'd assume holsters made for the gun would take it into account, but I'm kind of curious.

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No issues at all....it's lower than the sights.
It doesn't interfer with the sight-picture either.

easyg said:

No issues at all....it's lower than the sights.
It doesn't interfer with the sight-picture either.

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Uh, it does from my monitor.

lol

I have a couple of 380s (the only semiauto caliber allowed here) - a Makarov and a Glock 25 - and I find them snappy. Pretty manageable, but not particularly light on recoil.

The only 9mm I've ever shot was a 1911 - not here - and it was certainly no snappier.

Presumably because it was not a blow back design.

I'd go with 9mm if I were you.

I only wish I could own one myself.