Background: I travel some in my work and since we moved down near the Mexico border last year my wife has been having concerns. We are out in the country and so I could understand her fears. I offered to get a dog and her comment was "no, you have to feed a dog. Get me a gun, it will do the same job and you don't have to feed it or clean up after it." 
We went to a gunshop and I picked a S&W 637 snub nose in .38 Cal+p. I also picked up a couple other "steel" framed revolvers but she liked the small S&W "Airweight" and even though I told her it would kick harder than the steel models she liked the light weight. I took the gun home that day (Arizona assumes you are not a criminal) and showed her the few bits and pieces of the weapon, loaded it and told her to just empty it into anyone who came into the house unannounced and left early the next morning for a trip.
While I was away I told myself that when I got back I would take her to the pistol range and let her get used to her new "friends", Mr. Smith and Wesson. I put up a silouette target and some 3" patches on the corner and set it out about 20 feet. I told her that this was not going to be easy and helped her get a good grip on the gun, keep it pointed down range, aim etc. The range master came over and I explained that it was a new gun to her and that she had never even shot anything, rifle or pistol; that I had sold all my guns when the kids were little eons ago.
Anyhow, she picked up the snubby and put one round into the second ring at about 3:00 O'clock in the mid-section of the target.
Wow! I exclaimed, that's great shooting. Why don't you try another shot. She put the next one in the third ring and so forth until she clicked the empty cylinder. I was shocked and a bit embarrassed.
The range master walked over and said "I think you have the idea, lady." She put ten more rounds all in the "kill" area of the target. Amazing!
I couldn't believe it so I moved the target out to 30 feet at the next "cease fire" and after the range went "hot" told her to reload the pistol and do it again. This time she put them in a wider pattern and except for a few strays just outside the rings she put them in better than I sure as heck could have.
After telling her how great a shot she was with the 637 and the 1-7/8" barrel she said that it hurt her hand. I explained that it wasn't the type of weapon that you would use for target practive but that I would sure call her when I was coming home from the airport from now on.
We went to a gunshop and I picked a S&W 637 snub nose in .38 Cal+p. I also picked up a couple other "steel" framed revolvers but she liked the small S&W "Airweight" and even though I told her it would kick harder than the steel models she liked the light weight. I took the gun home that day (Arizona assumes you are not a criminal) and showed her the few bits and pieces of the weapon, loaded it and told her to just empty it into anyone who came into the house unannounced and left early the next morning for a trip.
While I was away I told myself that when I got back I would take her to the pistol range and let her get used to her new "friends", Mr. Smith and Wesson. I put up a silouette target and some 3" patches on the corner and set it out about 20 feet. I told her that this was not going to be easy and helped her get a good grip on the gun, keep it pointed down range, aim etc. The range master came over and I explained that it was a new gun to her and that she had never even shot anything, rifle or pistol; that I had sold all my guns when the kids were little eons ago.
Anyhow, she picked up the snubby and put one round into the second ring at about 3:00 O'clock in the mid-section of the target.
Wow! I exclaimed, that's great shooting. Why don't you try another shot. She put the next one in the third ring and so forth until she clicked the empty cylinder. I was shocked and a bit embarrassed. The range master walked over and said "I think you have the idea, lady." She put ten more rounds all in the "kill" area of the target. Amazing!
I couldn't believe it so I moved the target out to 30 feet at the next "cease fire" and after the range went "hot" told her to reload the pistol and do it again. This time she put them in a wider pattern and except for a few strays just outside the rings she put them in better than I sure as heck could have.
After telling her how great a shot she was with the 637 and the 1-7/8" barrel she said that it hurt her hand. I explained that it wasn't the type of weapon that you would use for target practive but that I would sure call her when I was coming home from the airport from now on.
