Recommendation for novice woman's first gun

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comus3

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Any suggestions for arming wife for home defense? She is a complete novice and I'm going to have to do a little training with her. Options for home defence currently are 12 guage pump action, 20" barrel, 9mm glock, .380 colt mustang, ruger security six. Thanks, hopefully this is not sexist, just she is completely unfamiliar with guns and is also very petite.
 
Thanks, that's a good start. Now that I think about it, I suppose this is not the first time this topic has come up.
 
I suppose this is not the first time this topic has come up.
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HA!

Three things:
1 - search for the endless and redundant threads on the topic, they are pretty much constant and endless
2 - corneredcat
3 - get her a big pile of guns to try out over a few range sessions, you can't buy her a gun she likes without her trying it.

And a comment:
you have a shotgun, a little bitty auto-loading concealment pistol, a vague category including compact to service-size, and a revolver as options
Seriously, you and her need some range time if you haven't even narrowed the search down to a general category
 
I'll add this bit. Is she even interested in using a gun at all? If she doesn't feel comfortable using a gun at all, then don't force upon her the burden of responsibility for something she wants no part of...

If she is interested, then what is she interested in? I for example wanted a Shotgun first, for recreational clay-games and to serve double duty for home defense. But my wife was more interested in pistols, so that's the route we went. Had I been stubborn and got a shotgun first, she probably would have never touched the thing - talk about the ultimate disservice to her, should she ever need the thing...
 
She's interested, I'm on the road quite a bit and its a "just in case" sort of thing that she brought up. I guess the primary question would be which of the guns that are already on hand might be the best starting place. Thanks again, I won't belabor this thread if I can find the others on the search.
 
My gf likes her makarov. I'd prefer she carry a 9 but the makarov is compact and the weight of the steel frame allows for fairly easy recoil management. If it served Russian Spetznaz i'm confident it will enable her to defend herself if the need ever arises. Defensive round selection is far more limited than most other calibers but there a couple out there up to the task.
 
My wife has gone to the range with me a few times now (more if ya can't beat em join em i think) but shes leaning toward the revolver than the auto,at least till she gets more used to "all the buttons" (her words)
I have pointed her to the cornered cat and also the videos on Rugers web site.There is a pretty good series for beginning shooters on there and Il Ling does a very good job of showing the basics for the range.
Shes actually been eyeing the SP101, says my GP100 is a little to heavy.But the main point is it has to be something that fits her and shes comfortable shooting.
 
Having read and participated in many, many of these threads, I've come to a couple of conclusions:

1) It's better if YOU don't do the training, let someone else do it (I am an instructor and I won't instruct my wife)

2) Let THEM pick what THEY want. Set some guideliness, but they need to be simple...anything bigger than a .22, but past that...whatever THEY want.

3) Don't try to "reason" or "understand". You won't. Women think differently, and that's fine.

Again, the idea is that they find something that THEY like, are comfortable with and will shoot. You can't make that decision for them.

I have a very good girlfriend of mine who in a short few months has purchased a G19, a shotgun and a S&W Bodyguard. They all serve different purposes for her. She asked me what I thought and I simply smiled and said "You need to love it, not me!"

FWIW...
 
Rule one for handgun selection--get one that fits your hands, not your ego.

Other than that, people with little gun experience can master a revolver better than an auto.

For around the house I think a 20 ga. shotgun with buckshot is best.
 
First thought is don't get one of the woman model small frame revolvers. They are no fun to shoot (practice) and interest is soon lost.

Second thought, Dog I taught my wife to shoot and we enjoy our time together immensely on our range at home whether it is handguns, rifles or shotguns. She has become terrific with her rifles. Guess your comment relates to different strokes......
 
Of the guns you listed, assuming the Ruger is a .357, you can load that with .38 and it would make a comfortable gun for her, as far as firing goes, unless the frame is so large for her hands that she cannot hold it properly.

A revolver is simpler to operate than a semi-auto and therefore easier to learn.

Your second best choice on your current list would be the .380 of course.

I have seen women take to either a .38 revolver or a .380 auto with equal gusto for the first time. In one case, the woman went to a local indoor range that rents guns, and fell in love with the .38 whereas in the other case the woman's father gave her a .380 and she got lessons on how to shoot it. Of the two of them, the one with the .38 seemed to develop true proficiency the fastest.

The Cornered Cat's website is very nicely done. Great citation by Fred.
 
is there a range near you that has ladies nights?
Most ranges do.

You won't believe how the discussion evolves when it comes to guns and there's no men around.
And they all share.

AFS
 
A "novice" woman? LOL, every woman I've ever known was pretty-well experienced at being one.

Okay seriously, be careful about going too "airweight" because she's petite. The lighter the gun the heavier the recoil. Start her with rimfires and let her grow at her OWN pace. Better yet, let someone ELSE train her. She'll get more professional instruction, become a better shooter (possibly better than YOU/ME!) and watch her confidence soar. After all, she's YOUR backup. I want MY wife to be an ACE defensive shooter 'cause my survival may depend on ONLY THAT. I had an experienced female trainer (shooting friend of mine) handle all her instruction. You should now see my wife run her G19. It's a treat to watch her shoot. ;)
 
Other than that, people with little gun experience can master a revolver better than an auto
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A revolver is simpler to operate than a semi-auto and therefore easier to learn.
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I still don't understand why people recommend revolvers as the perfect SD gun for new shooters, and especially new female shooters citing that they're "simpler" to learn/use. When compared to a Glock, revolvers have the same number of controls:
mag release, cylinder release
slide release/cycling the slide, extractor/ejector plunger
And both have no manual safety, just a simple "pull the trigger" operation

Depending on how you interpret the SA notch when you cock the hammer on a revolver, it could be argued that the revolver has MORE controls than a Glock :what:
The only reason a revolver could be termed as simpler than an auto in use would be if someone can't conceptually figure out how to load cartridges in a magazine.

If a new shooter likes revolvers, great! Let them use one! But don't tell then that they SHOULD use one based on the idea that it's "simpler" than an auto.

Ok, rant off :eek:

In my experience, the women I've taken shooting/tought to shoot seem to prefer my Sig 228 to my Glocks. And it's about 50:50 for preferring my Bersa .380 to my Sig which I think has a lot to do with hand size and beig able to hold the gun better.
Like others have said, I woul recommend having someone else to teach her how to shoot. There's a lot of baggage when you are in a relationship and teachig someone to shoot that sometimes gets in the way. It is possible to teach your SO to shoot though, just remember that you are there to be with her, don't get tied to the act of shooting and ALWAYS stay positive.

FWIW, I've completely destroyed relationships teaching girls to shoot and I've greatly strengthened relationships with other girls doing the same. It really depends on how much you focus on her verses how much you focus on the gun.
 
The thread cited above was a world of good info. Curious though about the comment that teaching a girlfriend/wife to shoot can ruin relationship or create problems. Because of frustrations in learning process or something else?
 
Curious though about the comment that teaching a girlfriend/wife to shoot can ruin relationship or create problems. Because of frustrations in learning process or something else?
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comus3, you've got a PM with a more in-depth explanation.

The short version is that is wasn't really the cause, but more of a contributing factor. She came to me asking if I'd teach her to shoot, and I gave her all the wrong incentives, was pretty rigid in "you must shoot this way" kind of teaching, and let myself focus on "shooting" instead of "her shooting". Overall, it started as a fun time and quickly fell off a cliff and burst into a huge fireball destroying nearly everything in its path :D

Its ok though, I'm kinda glad I didn't do well cause that was a bad relationship to begin with.

And for those of you who are thinking "well, I really don't want this TK guy teaching ANYONE how to shoot," rest assured, I have gotten much better at it. Through teaching new shooters, I have almost my entire fraternity fighting each other over who gets to schedule times to go shooting and about half of them now have CCW permits. And my first date with my current gf was actually teaching her how to shoot and it's spiraled horribly out of control... we're seriously thinking about making joint bulk ammo purchases and I'm looking at replacing recoil springs before the end of the year! :D
 
Any suggestions for arming wife for home defense?
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I'd recommend your Ruger Security Six, loaded with 38spl FBI loads. Revolvers have no safeties to fumble with, no slides to rack, and misfires are handled by simply another squeeze on the trigger.
 
I think the best course of action when a new shooter of any stripe (woman or not) wants to shoot is to say "Wanna go shooting when you bought your first gun? Who are you gonna take classes from?"

Considering she has to be 18 years of age she'll figure out soon enough what works for her. She is a fully functional adult, right? Awesome. She'll be fine. 8)
 
I agree with consulting the Cornered Cat.

The pump is the best quick option because it can be taught with the least training and be used the most easily under stress.
 
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