Revolver for Mom

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This...
getting her to practice the proper manual of arms, failure drills, as well as shooting the thing...its just not gonna happen.
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Which is why the whole question; everyone of us knows how things can go wrong and how IF you drill/are trained still bad things can happen in the split second it takes for a bad guy to cross a room.

PD should have been HD home defense. Can't carry in CA unless you personally know the sheriff/CofP.

The M1C is intriguing, but the semi auto thing is still troubling. Besides what if my brother steals it ;). OTOH it is small, deadly at HD distances, and if she does get practice could be a good plinking gun if she finds a hillside well away from town (sadly almost completely not kosher in CA) :(. And the ammo is outrageous in CA!

Thanks for the comments fellas.
Greg
 
This is a common question with the same old problem. You are asking men about a women's problem hence we see the old tired recommendations.

I will answer for my wife on what her perfect handgun is. Like many others she tryed many different handguns over the years without satisfactory results. She has carpal tunnel and weak hands and wrists. As a result she can not shoot most revolvers double action and rack the slide on a semi-auto.

Then a few years ago we found a used Colt Police Positive Special with a 4" barrel that she found she can fire double action easily. The V Spring action makes all the difference in the double action trigger pull. After I replaced the wood grips with a set of Hogue she pronounced it perfect. I have offered to buy her a Detective Special for conceal carry but her answer is always a quick no. She says her P.P.S. perfect.

I agree completely with Old Fuff. The Police Positive frame is slightly smaller and lighter than the K Frame S&W and the grip frame is smaller. 2" more in barrel length will change how the gun feels and points for her.

An alternate caliber is the 32-20 which is common in the Colt Police Positive model.
 
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327 magnum or 32 H&R magnum. My daughter is 11 and dislikes recoil. She can shoot 32 H&R with no problem.
 
I'm on board with the .22 magnum option. If you can find one, I recommend a KelTec PMR30. Thirty plus one. Easy to rack. Decent trigger. Noisy indoors though, and I understand your reluctance to give her a semi auto. Given KT's somewhat spotty QA/QC, I recommend you put a couple hundred rounds though it before you give it to her.

The revolver is frankly a better option if she can manipulate the trigger.

If she won't practice and learn clearance drills, that's an issue. Would she be better off with a non-firearm option? My first recommendation is to harden security at her house and do what you can to avoid the necessity for shots fired.
 
BSA1 said:
This is a common question with the same old problem. You are asking men about a women's problem hence we see the old tired recommendations.

I will answer for my wife on what her perfect handgun is. Like many others she tryed many different handguns over the years without satisfactory results. She has carpal tunnel and weak hands and wrists. As a result she can not shoot most revolvers double action and rack the slide on a semi-auto.

Then a few years ago we found a used Colt Police Positive Special with a 4" barrel that she found she can fire double action easily. The V Spring action makes all the difference in the double action trigger pull. After I replaced the wood grips with a set of Hogue she pronounced it perfect. I have offered to buy her a Detective Special for conceal carry but her answer is always a quick no. She says her P.P.S. perfect.

I agree completely with Old Fuff. The Police Positive frame is slightly smaller and lighter than the K Frame S&W and the grip frame is smaller. 2" more in barrel length will change how the gun feels and points for her.

An alternate caliber is the 32-20 which is common in the Colt Police Positive model.
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I agree re: Colt Police Positive 4" was as close as Colt came to J frame, and a 6th rd., compared to S&W's J frame's 5 rds., and with a longer barrel than 2" or 3".
 
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ExAgoradzo said:
The M1C is intriguing, but the semi auto thing is still troubling.
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For a small older lady, used in a home defense role, I still think its a wonderful idea. Provided the lady in question thinks so, too.

As far as getting her to train; is she going to practice reloading the revolver? My mom does, but halfheartedly, and only when I press her about it.
So im starting to lean towards the carbine more and more (in addition to the colt) The one my mom would be getting is in great shape and is as reliable as a hammer. Im not going to pester her about failure drills. So long as she knows how to load and reload, fire it and hit the target, store it safely, then make it ready again....Id feel pretty good about it.
Going to get some (reusable) reactive targets as well, to make practice more entertaining.
 
On far too many occasions we see a man selecting a handgun for a lady, with no input from her. That can be a big mistake.
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That is the BIGGEST mistake.

OP - if your mom is not going to put in the time it takes, then get her a dog and a can of bear spray; otherwise, she'll wind up as one of those stats where the perp kills someone with their own gun. If she IS going to practice, etc., then BOTH of you read Kathy Jackson's CorneredCat.com about guns, handling, etc.
 
Asked the LGS guy today. He liked the LCR idea and he specifically said Hornady makes .22 mag ammo specifically for a short defensive revolver: he liked what several of you said about the mag. Gonna see what's CA legal in that range...

The Charter gun looks good if your hand can take the .38 round in an ultra lite gun???

Thanks guys for your comments
 
Be sure to consider the Charter Arms 32 H&R mag Undercoverette. I have one and it has very little recoil. It is a current production model so you don't need to search for a secondhand gun.
 
Same answer I give to EVERY person that isnt comfortable or proficient with a handgun: Buy a good spray. Udap can be had in carry-able sizes and if its good enough to stop a brown bear, it will stop a criminal. If you cant see or breath, its hard to fight...
 
usfan said: I'd get her one of those used model 10s.
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That exactly what I was thinking.
They're plentiful, just remember there are sellers & there are ... I guess "jerks" is an apt description.
I recently saw on gunbroker a nice S&W Model 10-5, but the seller wanted $700. :eek:

A good site is J&G sales from Prescott, AZ.
No, I don't work for them, or know them personally.
Just had a couple of good buying experiences with them.
 
"As more senior citizens are getting into personal protection guns - ladies in particular - we are making some discoveries, one of which is that they have minds of their own, and don't like to be dictated to."

Thank you. :)

Seriously, to the OP, I would say first go to a gun store with her and let her try holding a bunch of different ones to narrow down the choices to ones that a) fit her hand and b) she perceives as comfortable. Then go to a range with rentals (might be the same place depending where you are) and let her try shooting all the ones that made the cut in the first exercise.
 
Have her hold a S&W Airweight in .38 special. You can get it in +P with a laser grip. My wife loves hers. She doesn't shoot +P through it, but it's nice to know you can if desired and the laser grip boosts her confidence level when shooting.
 
ExAgoradzo said:
Help me guys,
My mom wants a gun. I don't trust her to fire it enough to be effective with a semi auto, so revolver is on the menu.
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Honestly, if she isn't going to fire the gun often enough, I wouldn't trust her with any gun. Tell her she needs to practice with it.

But if you insist, many of the .38 special revolvers will be just fine.

Still, the "doesn't practice enough" thing to me is the point at which I would've stopped bothering with it. Maybe my family dynamic is different, but I would've just looked at her and said, "You need protection, you need a gun, and you need to practice with this gun often enough to know what you're doing."

Because accuracy is the most important part of using a gun in self defense.
 
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