Best gun for girlfriend's CCW?

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grizz

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Would most of you agree that a small, lightweight .38 special revolver would be the best bet for a petite, 20 year old girl to carry?

My girlfriend can't even pull back the slide on my XD, so I'm pretty sure all autos are out. She's tall (5'10'') but thin as a rail -115 lbs and not at all strong.

What brand and model would you think would be good for her to try? She will be receiving handgun training first. Ruger SP101?

Thanks,
Grizz
 
642. Anyone can shoot it. My only concern would be +P being manageable by a petite female. Regular .38spl loads should be ok as a defensive round. She'll lose some accuracy over the SP101, but I reckon she would be more likely to carry it more often..... lightweight, no visible hammer... easy to stick in a purse at the very least. Far from ideal, but better than nothing. At least she would probably carry it more often than not.

That or a P3AT or something... but I still think the wheelgun is the way to go...yep... 642 or another lightweight variant... for sure.
 
I don't make specific recomendations on make and model handgun any more for anyone. Instead I strongly suggest the individual that is going to be carrying the gun make the choice and the choice first be made based on what points naturally for them. If it fits it hits.

Since that is due to the grip/barrel angle matching their natural fist/forearm angle it's best to handle a bunch of guns. See what they pick up and point without having to adjust the wrist up/down/left/right to align the sights. That's the gun "family" that fits them. If it's a 1911 or a Sig or an N frame S&W or a Ruger then they can usually find some specific make and model within that family that works for them.

If it's a semi it may take a little gunsmithing to reduce the recoil spring pressure so she can operate it. If she's recoil sensitive then go with a 9mm instead of a .45 or practice with .38 special light loads and carry .357.

A buddy of mine decided she wanted to start shooting pistol and get her CCW. Her husband did also. We laid everything out and she pointed a 1911 naturally and he pointed a CZ 75. Neither had to change their wrist angle or grip when they brought the guns to bear. We put 3 rounds in everything on the table and she shot best with a 1911 and he with the CZ. He got a 9mm CZ and she got a Kimber ProCarry II in 9mm. She's working her way up to .45 and after Brownie's course this weekend firing 1,500 rounds out of the 9mm she'll be ready for the heavier recoil (even though she won't need it).

The most important thing is to find out if it fits so that they can just point it at the target and be in good sight alignment.
 
Whatever she likes the feel of and can shoot well. She doesn't pick out your gun, don't pick hers out. It seems like the boyfriend is always trying to tell the g/f how a snub or something is best, they hate it, boyfriend doesn't understand why she doesn't like shooting, etc.

Personally I think that snubs are about the hardest guns to shoot well and I have no idea why people seem to want to start people with them, especially light weight ones. More recoil, higher bore axis... My friend's favorite is her sig 239. I bet your g/f can rack the slide too if she tries to hold the slide with her left hand (clamping) and pushes the frame away from her with her right hand.

Good luck!
 
small, lightweight .38 special revolver would be the best bet for a petite, 20 year old girl to carry?
Click to expand...

No. It would be a great gun for a 21 year old girl to carry. Unless you live in VT or AK where permits are not required, you must be 21 to obtain a CCW permit.
 
I'd suggest two guns. Get a snub .22 lr pistol for practice and a Smith Centennial 642/442/640 .38 for her carry gun. She will need LOTS of practice to master DA shooting and the .22 is just for that. Take her to the range often with those two guns. The snub can be a Charter Arms Pathfinder, or Smith 63, or even a Taurus if they make a 2 inch .22 revolver with a round butt that looks much like the Smith snub.

Skill is paramount. Far more important that the weapon's action or cartridge it fires.
 
I can't believe I overlooked this:

No. It would be a great gun for a 21 year old girl to carry. Unless you live in VT or AK where permits are not required, you must be 21 to obtain a CCW permit.
Click to expand...

Well, no CCW for her for a year or so. She JUST turned 20. Well, at least she will have a good long time to choose her CCW.

Thanks anyway folks!
 
A revolver or semi auto can work under certain conditions. Beretta makes several semi autos that have tip up barrels. This means one can load a magazine and then load a single bullet into the chamber, then close the barrel with the bullet already in place. No racking the slide is needed. Beretta models 86 in .380ACP, Model 3032 in .32ACP, and model 21A Bobcat in .22 lon rifle. .380 ACP Cheetah would be my recommendation of the three with the other models as a backup if desired. Model 86 Cheetah is .380. This is the size of compact or semi compact size pistols without the recoil of major cartridges, yet offers decent fight stopping qualities. 8 rounds per magazine. if a revolver is to be looked at a .32 magnum or .38 special would suffice. Less detail to rember or to train with. No safeties or levers to worry about. Recommend that it have a three inch barrel. Better sighting plain and better ballistics, even if the gain is slight. Less muzzle blast and flip too. Mas Ayoob had his daughter start out with a S&W snubbie with 3 inch barrel and graduate up to bigger and different pitols later. S&W has Ladysmith models in 5 and 6 shot configuration. These have smoother and lighter trigger pulls than the same models their regular revolvers. Ruger has the SP 101 in three or two iinch models in .32 magnum or .38 special. .32magnum can also shoot .32S&W Longs for practice over the magnum ammo if desired. .32mag. projectiles weigh as much as most .380ACP bullets. .32mag has very little in the way of recoil and 3 or 4inch models are available. Womens holsters are made by Kramer Leather, Galco, or Don Hume Leather. So good luck on her choice. Let her try as many different models of revolver and pistol as she can. Recommend 9 millimeter as a minimumn if going to more powerful cartridge than the .380s. Pistols in this category should at least have a barrel of 3.5 inches. Kahr and S&W Ladysmith 3913 pistols would be good choices. Less recoil,better sighting plain, less muzzle blast. 9mm. slides usually are easier to rack than larger calibers.
 
I HATE to admit it, but hso is right....

Put a few good candidates infront of the the "significant other", and let them have some input......

I assembled all of the "Convential Wisdon" CCW guns infront of my SO, and she went throught them all.....Glock, Sig, wheelgun, XD, ect. She kept picking up my 1911's and shooting decent groups with them:cool:

Seems she is smarter than I thought......Darby is a champion shotgunner, and VERY performance oriented. She is accustomed to a crisp, light trigger pull....like on here custom Beretta O/U. She gravitated toward the light, crisp 1911 trigger......plus the slme grip frame of the 1911 and the positive manual safety won her over.

She is now shooting a STI Trojan 9mm......and I'm putting together a custom FN Hi-power for her now.

Let them shoot what they want to!
 
I don't know if there's one right answer, but I can tell you for sure what the wrong one is. For me to give you a specific model and say, "Go buy it right now," would be the wrong one. Not to say that suggestions are bad, however. FTF is perfectly right about the 642 Smith. My brother loves his, and we'll put a bunch of rounds through it when I go to Memphis for the holidays this year.

I can tell you what worked for me. Go to a friend in the business of gun sales. If you don't have one, make one. I find the guys at Sportsman's Warehouse will spend a GREAT deal of time with you, even if you tell them you are "just looking" without the intent to make an immediate purchase. The guys there are mostly retired LEO's, and they love guns, so they are in the know. When I took my wife over there, I told the gentleman behind the counter that we were looking for a CCW for her. He handed me a nice shiny new Mil-Spec and told me to play with that for awhile while he talked (exclusively) with my wife. He was amazing. He showed her several different potential CCW's (and suggestions for the method of carry for each), ranging from guns as small as a Kahr P-9 all the way to a Hi-Power (which she LOVED, so there should be no question why I married her:), all the while keeping me entertained with the latest and greatest in the pistol world.:cool:

I think you oughta let her try everything she can wrap her hands around. Like HSO said, if it fits it hits. Help her make an INFORMED decision, but let her decide. She'll appreciate the gun alot more, and she'll appreciate you alot more, too.:p

Wow. Gun advice and relationship counselling all in the same place. The internet is grand:neener:
 
Agreed.

I just have to echo the general consensus here and say that she's the one who will need to decide. Give her some options - she may surprise you. No one expected me to like the 1911 as much as I did...I just happened to try it because a friend owns one.

Jen
 
642 for ladies? Not in my experience

I have a 642, for CCW. My wife was itching to try it out, she even thought I had bought it for her. One shot later, that literally went into the roof of range, she handed it back and has never shot it again. It's a great, concealable pistol, but just too much of a handful. My Mom has a Taurus equivalent, same problem - roof of the range and virtually unmanageable.

This was with Winchester white box .38 special, I don't recall if it was +P, it seemed to me that it was all +P. I haven't tried it with my hydra-shok.

I don't have any experience with alternatives, but I can't recommend the 642 to either of these women, it's just too harsh to shoot.
 
My wife and her CCW

My wife had never fired a pistol. She wanted a pistol for when she was alone (we live in the country close to the border). I took her into a gun store and the owner placed about 8 handguns in front of her. She picked all of them up and dry fired them. She kept coming back to a S&W 637 Airweight in 38 cal. I told her that the lightweight snubby would kick more than the steel framed model but she like the alloy frame so we bought it. Of course in a real break-in situation the "kick" wouldn't be noticed.

In another post I remarked what a "natural" she was with the S&W and was able to put a tight group in at 10 yards. Anyhow I agree with the idea that the person should get what they feel is the "right" pistol for them. It sure worked for my wife.:)
 
What every she can shoot well and small enough for her to carry.

So, take her to the range and shoot all your guns, your friends guns and rent some. If she likes one buy it or the same type.

My take a J or K frame revolver would be a good choice. :)
 
One shot later, that literally went into the roof of range, she handed it back and has never shot it again.
Click to expand...
I don't see how the recoil could do that. The bullet is pretty well gone before a gun is anywhere near the maximum recoil position. Other wise, you could never hit anything you aimed at. Was she firing single- or double-action? Sounds to me, like maybe she's fighting the double-action trigger. My wife can barely pull the trigger on my Taurus snubbie, AFTER I sent it back to the factory.
 
First go to ...

www.corneredcat.com. Read. Then have her choose her own gun. My GF stole my SIG 229 from me:mad: , and I haven't seen if in weeks. The Beretta 84 (i think) has a tip-up barrell that would be easy because she would not have to rack the slide. The sig 239 would be good too.
 
Unless she has medical issues, if she's 20 years old and can't rack the slide on an XD, I'd suggest she work on her gripth strength.
 
Barbara ~

Yes, you're right, but ...

Racking the slide is not about strength. It is all about technique.

I have never met a healthy adult woman who could not be taught to rack the slide of a semi-auto handgun. I have met many, many who had never been taught the easy way to rack a slide, and who were discouraged because their husbands, boyfriends, or guy friends told them they were too weak to learn how.

pax

Strength is the capacity to break a chocolate bar into four pieces with your bare hands - and then eat just one of the pieces. -- Judith Viorst
 
What's the "easy" way to rack a slide? I had her try several different grips on the slide, but her hand would slip off any way she tried.
 
I can't view that link at work (my company has Websense filtration software :fire: ).

But, if I'm invisioning what you're describing correctly, you grab the slide, then push forward with the opposite hand (the hand that's around the grip)???

I'll have her try it. Thanks.
 
Grizz ~

That's about it. Tell her to punch the grip hand forward, while holding the slide hand still. Make sure she understands that it's a quick, explosive movement, and that she doesn't need to baby it.

:)

pax
 
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