Wife Wants a Revolvers

[duckfoot]

Just moved out of the city and the wife wants a .22lr revolver for a house gun like she had at her mom’s house. Took her to the range and rented a 22 snubbie and put her through her paces (safety, marksmanship etc...) and is good to go in that arena. At the gun monger, she fondled every .22 revolver in the place, and she decided she wants a revolver that is DA/SA 4+ inch barrel and without a loading gate which the monger didn’t have. Looking around I found the Taurus M94 4â€, S&W 617 4â€, Ruger KSP-241x 4†that fit the bill but having never owned a revolver my self don't have much first hand experience with them.

Can any one suggests any thing else, or got any pros or cons on any one of the above.

Thanks for the help

 

[Atticus]

Can you talk her up in caliber...perhaps to .38 special? There are a lot of used DA .38 revolvers out there that would make good affordable home defense guns and they don't kick all that much.

 

[Augustwest]

Any chance of getting her to move up to .38 Spl?

.22's are fun, and better than nothing, but they're never what comes to mind when I think about having to defend me or my loved ones.

If it's gotta be a .22, it's hard to go wrong with Ruger. Or Smith.

 

[TallPine]

and she decided she wants a revolver that is DA/SA 4+ inch barrel and without a loading gate which the monger didn’t have.

Do you know what you mean by "DA/SA" ....

A single action has a loadiing gate.

A double action normally has a swing out cylinder. If the DA has a normal hammer with spur, you can also manually cock it and fire single action.

If you mean "DA/SA" as in some semi-auto pistols, there is no such animal in a revolver (at least to my knowledge).

For a DA 22, how about a 9 shot Taurus M-94 ??? (I think that is the correct model number).

 

[RustyHammer]

I'd suggest a 38 Special of some sort.

My 16 year old daughter prefers it over the .22 I had her using --> and she shoots the .38 it much better as well.

Now, as soon as she is old enough to own one, it's hers!

/Rusty

 

[Shane]

Another vote for a 4" .38 Special revolver. In a medium frame, the .38 special recoil is just a little more than a .22 LR. Its about the cheapest centerfire pistol ammo there is (tied with 9mm in my area), has better stopping power than a .22 LR, and is also accurate in good quality revolvers.

I see no reason to depend on a .22 LR revolver for home defense when a .38 special does everything much better with only a little increase in recoil, and moderate increase in price of ammo.

 

[10-Ring]

Best value is the Taurus 94. I've had one for MANY MANY years. It took awhile to break in, but now she shoots well.
I have no experience w/ the Ruger.
The S&W 617 is a nice revolver, tho a tad pricey. Available in 6 or 10 shot, I'd recommend the 10 shot.

 

[4v50 Gary]

S&W 617 or Ruger over the Taurus. Both are better made. BTW, if all she is comfortable with is a 22, let her start with that at home first. In time, you may be able to get her to go up a notch to a 38.

 

[t driver]

TallPine, I suspect what duckfoot means by DA/SA is a double action that can also be thumbcocked to fire single action.

duckfoot,
For what its worth, I also cast a vote for a .38. I have a Taurus 608, which is an 8 shot .357 Mag. that my girlfriend loves. She shoots it much better than my Ruger Mark II .22. She didn't like the Mag loads at first, but now prefers them.
I'm not really suggesting this particular gun, just the possibility.

 

[duckfoot]

Thanks gents,

I think that another trip to the range is in order to try out my friend's Taurus 82, Ruger Single Six in a 32 H&R mag, and S&W 648. So far she has been able to hit a pie plate at 10 yards with the little .22lr sunbbie we rented the other day and she is quit proud of herself, but I'm not going to push a pistol on her at she won't use if she doesn't like the bigger cal. So I'm going to try to keep it going by bumping up the caliber size: 22mag, 32 H&R, and then the 38 spl but letting her win at a little contest we have going with a bullseye tgts with numbered rings. (hey I'm taking one for the team here!!) With a little luck I might be able to have her get a CCW by the end of the day, or at least thinking about it.

Thanks




duck

 

[only1asterisk]

Sounds like a good oppurtuity to get a nice .32 or .38 revolver for "yourself" and let your wife "discover" that it isn't any less fun to shoot than a .22. I find letting my wife find out is much better than trying to tell her.

David

 

[Standing Wolf]

A .22 caliber revolver is an unbeatable first gun. I'm assuming the lady's going to buy a second, then a third, then... like the rest of us.

 

[Mastrogiacomo]

I'm a lady shooter myself -- I'd suggest a step up from the .22 to a 686 4" and fire .38's through it. Also: m60 3," m65 Lady Smith 3," m66 F comp 3" -- all S&W. I'm VERY recoil sensitve but none of these guns would give me cause to fear. I love shooting my 686 4" so any one of these guns should be very comfortable for her to shoot as well.

 

[7.62FullMetalJacket]

Only1asterisk has it right. My wife was always asking why I needed another gun. Then I convinced her to go CCW. Now the tide has turned. She has a .380 10 oz pocket pistol, a lightweight .38 spcl revolver, and a Kimber carry in .45...and she isn't done yet. I guess they are "accessories" for either her outfit or her mood!

 

[Bruce H]

If your wife wants a .22 revolver try several and what fits and handles best for her, buy it. Don't try to push off something bigger if she doesn't want it. Given time she will probably move to another caliber naturally. Ginny started with a .22 and now has her own 610 classic. She also shoots our BFR45/70, S&W 57, Witness 10mm, and sons DE.50ae. Don't think for them and be pushy. You wouldn't like it either.

 

[only1asterisk]

The wholesale prices for the 22lr revolvers you mentioned are $321.67 for the Ruger, $219.78 for the Taurus and $420.50 for the Smith. A good deal would be a $375 price tag on the Ruger; $100 more or less for the others. By the way, in each case the .357 on the same frame is the same money (or less).


David

 

[Stainz]

My wife started with a .25 Berretta her dad gave her. She would take it to the range - and marvel at how 'wimpy'it was (The rounds often wouldn't exit a 2 or 3 L pop bottle full of water.). She wanted something more - but didn't like my .45's (I had a G21 and two AMT DA Backups in .45ACP) - or my then-new revolver craze. I rented several 9mm (I don't like that round!) pistols from a now-defunct indoor range. She liked the P99 - especially the new green one. She absolutely loved the CZ-75B, despite it's greater all-metal mass. I bought her a CZ-75B and several spare 15rd mags - thank goodness for Academy Sports $3.99/box CCI Blazers - she has fired thousands through that thing.

The key is to let it be her choice - especially if it is for plinking. If you just want a great home defense piece, the 2" S&W M10 I just bought new for $280 from CDNN would be ideal. It is the latest version of the old M&P .38 Special, this one rated for +P, that police used for many years - and many rookies still do. The 4" version is still cataloged by S&W. My wife rated this revolver 'easy', although she wanted different grips (I love the Uncle Mike's that come on them - go figure!). If you really want a great .22 plinker that you can use forever - and keeps it's value should you want to sell it - get the S&W 617. Let her choose...

Stainz

 

[duckfoot]

Well as luck would have it the wife is now the proud owner of a blue 4" Colt Diamondback. Took her to the range and all I got to say is WOW. At 15 yds she can put ALL her shots into an 8" circle, anywhere she wants to. I think that the bug has bitten and I’ve created a monster, because now she likes shooting me little USPC 9. Thanks everyone for you input and advise in helping another shooter into the light.



Duck

 

[10-Ring]

I’ve created a monster, because now she likes shooting me little USPC 9.

Cool His & her's USPs! What's so monsterous about that? Did you expect her to buy more guns???

 

[Chuck from arkansaw]

Get a Ruger sp101 in 357 get her some hearing protection and some very light 38 special loads. When she learns to shoot it, load it with hot .357 loads and let her keep it in the house in that condition. If she ever needs to use it she won't feel any recoil or hear the report.

 

[sm]

Model 18 sweet gun and great trainer if can find one.
She'll bump up in caliber in time...Rule 1: have a gun.
Universal Rule: let her make the final choice...if a person don't like -won't shoot, will get resentments, and give up all together...one may advise , especially on gun fit, reliable brand name, etc. but the shooter need to make the final decison.