Advice on pistol for my wife....

[The Goose]

My wife and I will be getting our LTC's in the next few weeks. Of course I am wrestling with what I want, but I talk to everyone, do research and shoot with friends. I will also end up owning several handguns as I over do most things. My wife just wants a pistol to shoot at the range and keep for personal protection. She does not want to carry (yet). She basically looks to me to research it for her. Oh yeah, she does not want a revolver (too ugly and clunky looking). I was considering a Sig P232 in .380. Opinions are welcome. Is this adequate for personal protection? What about the Sig? I have heard good things from several people. Also we are in MA and choices are limited. Undoubtedly we will handle and shoot several different handguns before buying, but this board is such a wealth of experience and information that I figured I would throw the question out there.

 

[stans]

.380 is about the minimum that most of the "experts" would rely upon for protection. I highly recommend that she try out as many different guns as possible to find the one that suits her best.

 

[armoredman]

My wife went through 4 revolvers before she tried my Witness, and now happily carries a Witness 40 compact wonderficish in an HBE IWB rig. pictured here.

 

[anapex]

.380 is what a lot of people here will consider the bare minimum for a personal defense gun. The Sig P232 is also considered by many here to be the cream of the crop for that style pistol but a good number also favor the Bersa Thunder. Same size, same caliber, good construction but a lot cheaper, not sure if they are available in MA though.
What you also might want to consider, depending on how much your wife already knows about pistol shooting, is to get her a .22 to practice with. Then once she is comfortable and has some skill built up have her pick out another pistol that she would use for home defense. Anyway good luck with your search, I know from experience that very soon you will have a ton of answers better then mine following.


Oh yeah forgot to add this too, Welcome to THR!

 

[WhoKnowsWho]

My wife went through a Beretta Tomcat. Too hard to shoot well.

A Taurus snub nose revolver... she doesn't like to dry fire practice so the DA pull was killing her aim and her finger.

Now, she carries her Bersa Thunder. She has the Stainless version of the SIG P230, so it's a tad bit heavier. But she likes the Bersa and can hit reliably with it.

 

[Ala Dan]

Main thing is, let your wife choose a weapon her-self!

That is most important; cuz what fits you might
not fit her; and what she likes, you may not like.

A quality .380 such as SIGARMS P230/P232, Walther
PPK/PPK-S, or even the less expensive Bersa Thunder is
about the "bottom line" in defensive weaponary. Sure,
a lot of us carry a "pocket" mousegun in .22 LR, .25 ACP,
or .22 magnum caliber; but its carried only as a last resort
firearm. With proper ammunition, the .380 should serve
you well.

Best Wishes,
Ala Dan, N.R.A. Life Member

 

[OF]

Advice on pistol for my wife....

Well, it depends. If she can work hard and doesn't talk back I'd try to get at least a semi-custom 1911 or maybe a good Sig in trade at the very least.

Oh wait...nevermind.

- Gabe

 

[David4516]

.380 should be fine. I carry a 9mm Makarov (aka 9X18 ) and it's just a souped-up .380...

I really like the Makarov, maybe your wife should try one? There are only 2 downsides: it's somewhat heavy, and it takes a bit of effort to rack the slide (it is a blowback afterall)...

But other than that, Maks are great. They are very accurate and reliable. They are also thin, thats good for people with smaller hands (like me). And best of all, they can be had for under $200...

 

[El Tejon]

The Goose is loose! Sorry, have been wanting to say that.

Anywho, how about taking her out to a rental range and as my good friend Ala Dan sez, let her pick out her fave. With training and experiene her favorite will change.

Get a gun she likes, then get another just like it. Lots of mags, ammo, range time and instruction.

You guys will do great.

 

[PCRCCW]

The BEST advice I can offer BOTH of you is go rent some guns...spend 200$ over a couple of weekends in rental fees and ammo.

What you will do is get an idea of what you want, feels good and you both can shoot well. And save yourselves 100's of $ and hours/days/weeks of frustration.

Posting a thread like this is a good idea for reference. But in no way are our words gospel. We can tell you what guns are reliable and accurate but beyond that.....its STRICTLY up to you.......

Rent.......Rent.........Shoot well.

 

[MyRoad]

A friend of mine, who happens to live in MA, has a girlfriend who shoots. He has both a stainless P230(or 232, not sure) and a Beretta Cheetah -- both are .380's. His GF strongly prefers the Beretta. I haven't fired it, just passing along what I've heard, might be worth looking into.

 

[Brian Williams]

If you could find one a Colt pocketlite or mustang are quite nice.

I lived in Burlington a long time ago, 68-70 during my Jr Hi years and I lived at 71 Center St. My father was the pastor of the big white church up on the top of the hill.

 

[akanotken]

why a 380?

Only 2 reasons that I'm aware of are size and the theory that they "kick less" . Has to be right? I mean the bullets are smaller? Not in my experience.

I've shot a few, as well as a makarov and a .32

I think the recoil is harsher than most 9mm's. This is because of the blowback operation of the pistol. The ONLY exception in my experience was a colt .380 (as mentioned above). The come in 3 sizes and are no longer made. pony = smallest and has a DAO trigger. Mustang and govt get bigger and bigger. I'd get the gov't or the mustang in a +2 configuration (same grip as a gov't)

But I'd really recommend a 9mm. Lotsof choices here, and lotsof previous threads.

Need to know a bit more about your wife to really help more .... I mean about her experience or inexperience in shooting.

 

[Pilot]

I second the Beretta Cheetah

I love Makarovs, but my wife did not. She felt it was too big and heavy. Same for my HK P7M8. She then shot my friends Berretta Cheetah (single stack .380) and loved it. The alloy frame is lighter and the gun is smaller in general, but still holds 8 +1 rounds. As soon as I find one around here, I am going to buy it for her.

 

[ksnecktieman]

I suggest you at least look at the keltec autos. very small, very light, reliable, and choices of 9mm .380, or .32. any of them should be under 250$, maybe even under 200$. I have one friend wearing the P32 with the belt clip on a bra strap. I can clip one on the front seam of a dress shirt, and hide it under a wide tie.

I agree, fondle all you can before you decide.

 

[kimbernut]

Gun for Wife

IMHO the only reason to go with a .380 is for a small size to conceal easily. The Sig 230/232 is a top quality gun for sure but there are 9mms that are the same size and a few smaller. The recoil of the .380 is no less than the 9mm and in many instances because of gun size is more than the 9mm. After trying several handguns from .380 to .45 ACP my wife chose the 9mm Browning Hi-Power as her housegun. Body size, hand size, and mindset are all factors but the deciding factor will be which one she hits best with.
If she's just starting out be sure and go over the safety rules with her beforehand and start at 5-7 yards. Hits at close range beat misses at 15-
25 yards for enthusiasm everytime. Hits will keep her interest and you can change the distance to the targets as she progresses. Good Shootin'!

 

[Coronach]

Two words:

She picks.

I would encourage her to select a decent caliber (.380 on up preferred, but a .22 will kill you) and a reliable, quality gun, but let her pick it. Do you want someone else picking your carry gun? Didn't think so.

Mike

 

[sm]

She Picks

Another one in the camp of:
Try various guns, preferably with another qualified instructor ( Husbands, BF's not always best). Pick one and continue with outside instruction and practice for a bit, especially good is with a group of ladies.

Support her, buy her ammo, and if she finds through the instructors,and ladies group a holster , belt and the like... poney up and let her get what she wants. Yeah you get buy lunch and the after sessions coffee/soda/ de-brief snacks as well.

You will gain back a lot more this way.

 

[antsi]

Just agreeing/amplifying two points others have made:

1. The .380's and Makarovs look small and cute and they do have a less powerful cartridge, but that doesn't mean they don't kick. Very small, light guns can have much MORE felt recoil than a big heavy gun. For me, the only reason to have a smaller lighter gun is if you intend to carry it concealed. If it is just for home and the range, I say get the biggest heaviest gun that you can still comfortably handle.

2. Rent a bunch of pistols, shoot 'em, compare. Then she can decide which one she likes. If she's going to shoot it and practice with it and enjoy it, it has to be her gun and that means she chooses.

 

[ARperson]

Well, you can't get the Glock in .380 (at least not in the U.S. that I'm aware of), but the 9mm is available and despite the epithets of "combat tupperware" Glocks are good, reliable firearms. Ease of use (point and shoot) is also a big plus. Accurate out of the box and very, very reliable.

I don't like the Sig firearms but only because they don't fit my hand well. The grip is too large for my shorty fingers (small female fingers :banghead: ). And the bore axis is too high for me. However, those are just my personal issues with its fit. I've heard nothing but good things about their accuracy and reliability, so if it fits her well, then it's a good choice.

Most important is to make sure she can fire it easily. And 10 or 20 rounds aren't enough. She's going to have to practice and practicing means at least 50 to 100 rounds once a month (preferably more). If it's going to start beating her hands after a couple dozen rounds, she won't want to practice. And that's not a good thing.

 

[alwims]

I just go out and buy myself a nice NIB Bersa Firestorm 380 so I can replace the Bersa Thunder 380 the wife stole from me. When I get home and show it to her, she decides she likes it better than the Thunder and takes it from me. That's how we pick out guns for my wife around here.

But I still wear the pants in this family

 

[ksnecktieman]

I was married two times, and have had a number of live in girl friends, and I have always been the boss, and they have all told me I could say so I think I have been good at selecting passive mates?

 

[raz-0]

well here we go:

something .380 or larger.

something that fits her frame so she can conceal it if she so desires.

something that fits her well.


But the formula is basically, to take her shooting and find where she is comfortable caliber wise. THen take her to the store with the THR list of guns we like (tm) and let her fondle some of them to decide how the grips, balance, and trigger reach work for her.

viola... there you have your short list. THe wallet, aesthetics, and availability of accessories can take you from there.

For a compact gun, I'd check out the sig p239 for those with small hands.

If she's more partial to full size guns, but maybe kinda will think about carrying, the walther p99 is decent, and is fairly compact for a full size.

They aint the end all be all, but you should probably check them out on the fondling part of the shopping adventure.

 

[JohnKSa]

Yeehaw!!!

This is the first such thread where no one recommended a small .38 revolver!

Kind of a pet peeve of mine. I've just finished helping a friend select a revolver for his wife and him to use in home defense. She picked out a model 60 S&W in the store and I warned him she wouldn't think it was so cute once she took it to the range.

I rounded up 5 revolvers for them to shoot and sure enough, she picked the biggest .38special I brought. As has already been said, in a given caliber, the bigger it is, the less it kicks. The model 60 turned out to be her LEAST favorite to shoot. She shot it once and then put it down and wouldn't fire it again.

In a similar vein, my sister has a model 60 S&W that she is trying to get rid of. After some cancer surgeries, she no longer feels that she has the upper body strength to control it.

The small locked breech .380s and the larger blowback .380s like the CZ (83?) , the Browning BDA, and the big Beretta .380s are some of the most comfortable guns to shoot on the market. Just make sure she racks the slide--the blowback guns tend to have stiff springs. If she can handle a DA trigger pull and a little weight, a big .38Special (like the GP100) is also a very comfortable gun to shoot.

 

[mmay1]

I agree that SHE has to pick it. I took my 21-year old daughter in law to the range the other day for her first time to shoot (she says she wants a CHL, so I wanted to find out if she was serious about wanting to shoot). Started her out firing a S&W 38 snubbie - is was "OK," she said. Then a 9mm Jericho - "don't like it. " The Ruger MK II - "is that it?" she says. So I gave her the .45 Baby Eagle, and the first time she fired it she got a big grin and said "that's more like it!" After 150 rounds of .22, 50 of 38 Special, 50 of 9 mm and 100 of .45, her only question was "got any more of that .45?" I was out, so she fired my last box of 38. I told my son he better hang on to this lady.

Then we went to the show room to handle some other pistols. I was sure she would love the Sig 232 and it would be perfect for her - too small, she says. Glock - "yuck" was her only comment. After trying several others, she settles on the Sig 239 in .40 as "just perfect." Fooled me. I have also tried to pick handguns for my wife and the only lesson I have learned is to not bring home anything I don't want to keep for myself (not all that bad - "darlin', I was just thinking of you, after all").