girl friend's first handgun

[the1kidd03]

I have been going through the same with my wife. Start out by letting her hold as many guns as possible and seeing what she likes the feel of and what is comfortable with her. A lot of women seem to be fond of 1911's and I would suggest you start her out with a 9mm as it is not too much of a gun for the majority of women. Some will not like it, but it's not too much for them to handle to see what they think. From there you can increase or decrease caliber as necessary. Something is better than nothing, but from a ballistics and field experience stand point I would suggest that if you must go smaller than 9mm a .38 revolver is going to be more effective with the right ammo than 380. I too have been going through a list of compact 1911's in 9mm and introducing them to my wife and between the options the best one for the price IMO is the Colt New Agent. Another one which seems to be popular with women is the Sig 238. The best thing you can do is introduce her to a huge variety and let her shoot as much/many as possible because holding it may feel comfortable to a woman, but shooting it is going to be a whole other story.

 

[Silverado]

You know, unless she's really only used to handling VERY. SMALL. THINGS.

Why do you think guys like girls with small hands? It's all about scale, you know.



As far as picking a handgun, Jay hit the nail on the head with his post. New shooters should avoid large calibers or small, hard to shoot pocket pistols. A .22 LR revolver with a 4" barrel is perfect for someone to learn to shoot, or alternately, a 4" .38 special with target loads. These guns don't recoil a lot, and are good for teaching aim and trigger control without worrying about developing a flinch.

As far as semi autos go, one pistol that I used to own that was comfortable to shoot, and still a reliable concealment weapon, was a Bersa .380 Thunder CC. The S&W 9mm M&P or M&P Compact are very soft shooting 9mm options, and fit small hands very well. The Kahr CW9 is also very good for small hands, but the trigger may be harder for a new shooter to master.

The best advice is to take her to the 1500 and let her handle a variety of guns, to see what fits HER.

 

[diamonddav]

I got a new gun for my wife..... BEST TRADE I EVER MADE. (stolen from drainsurgen's t-shirt)

 

[sbatten]

My wife and I went through this last year when she got her lifetime LTCH. I agree with others and go to the 1500 and handle everything you can. We went to the October 2010 show and spent about 4 hrs handling different 9mm handguns. It came down to the Springfield XDm 9 and the Springfield EMP 9mm 1911. She really liked the EMP and didn't want to spend the money and wanted to compromise for the XDm. I told her no and to go with what she liked and was comfortable to handle, so we got her the EMP. Yes, I spent 1k+ but my wife loves it and so do I. It is easy for her to handle and the recoil is not bad at all.

I also purchased a SIG P238 in .380 this past spring for a pocket carry summer gun and my wife and I really like that gun as well. Both guns are accurate and have been reliable. Hope this helps.

 

[tgallmey]

I took all my Handguns out to shoot some steel and she pointed at the S&W N frame 357 4 inch and for her it was love at first sight she was afraid of the kick but she giggled and wanted more when she shot 38s out of it so she went to 357s and thats all she wants now lol Same with my friends wife except a K frame 4 inch

 

[Fordtough25]

My girlfriend fell in love with a S&W M&P 9mm full size, I kid you not! She has shot most of my handguns and knew she wanted a 9mm for sure. She also liked a Kimber Ultra 9mm Commander sized 1911 but it was $1100! So she played with both and decided on the M&P, she loves it!

 

[sgreen3]

My GF likes shooting the P22, But she shoots my DH40 also, Main thing is get her something that she likes.

 

[45fan]

I'd say take a look at the Springfield Armory 9mm EMP, fantastic looking 1911's in 9mm. I don't have one but I'm eyeballing something like this for my wife as well.....

Id have to second this. I checked one out at the last 1500. The manual of arm is identical to a 1911, but the pistol itself is completely different in hand. Unlike the officers model, it is undeniably a true compact, not a cut down full size. If the EMP is too pricey, you may want to have her look into the 3-31/2" 1911s too. still a little big, but not nearly as large as a full size.

 

[jeep911]

doesnt look like ill be making the next gun show due to me shippin out on the 22nd. and there is soo many things i need to respond to and off handed comments i cant even quote all of them haha. thanks for the ideas everyone posted. ill make a new tread when we get her a handgun.

 

[GBuck]

If nothing else, get hold of me and we'll arrange an outing for you and your lady to "try on" a few different platforms. I'm an hour north of Indy. Many ladies only get scared off once. Everyone is different, just try not to let the initial experience be an intimidating one.

Thanks for the offer! She lives up in Lafayette for school from august to may. I don't think that's too far from you is it?

 

[USMC_0311]

I got the berm enlarged a bit, just waiting for you and "short round" to come up and try it out. I got a way to cool off after as well....

Gotta watch JetGirl, she tends to leave fingerprints on shiny guns...

Next weekend is looking good.

 

[Jay]

Next weekend is looking good.

I have a family coming in for a class on Saturday, so it'll have to be Sunday. If that suits you folks, it suits me.

 

[heffe3434]

look for a larger framed .380 like a walther ppk/s or a sig p232

 

[Rey B]

Cornered Cat

 

[crispy]

look for a larger framed .380 like a walther ppk/s or a sig p232

This.

Or the much cheaper and just as reliable Bersa Thunder 380.

The kick from a heavier gun shooting .380 is much less than the LCP or P3AT. Not even as bad as my Kel Tec PF-9.

I bought my daughter a BT 380 CC and I like it so much I haven't given it to her yet...

 

[Mosinowner]

Walther p38, or a p64 radom