Author Topic: Best Pistol for A woman (Read 2156 times)

aglass1987 · « **on:** January 31, 2009, 02:18:47 PM »

Fellers, Im gonna buy my wife a pistol for her to carry in her purse. Ive thought about a kel tec 380 and a S&W 38 Airweight. Just two i seen recently at the gun store. But i want something thats gonna be reliable when she needs it. And something with the horsepower enough to defend of a attacker. I know with the S&W is 5 shots and with the kel tec i believe its 6+1. And i know you cant go wrong with the s&w. But ive heard wishywashy stories about the kel tec. Im a beretta fan, so i thought of the tomcat 32. She wants something about the size of the kel tec or s&w. What do yall think? Any opinions would help. What would yall recommend for a woman?

highwayman · « **Reply #1 on:** January 31, 2009, 02:25:58 PM »

how about the ppk.

Cottonwood · « **Reply #2 on:** January 31, 2009, 02:55:41 PM »

Take her to the gun counter and see what she likes and what fits her hand.

Next step is what she can shoot accurately.

aglass1987 · « **Reply #3 on:** January 31, 2009, 03:06:14 PM »

shes felt all three and liked them all. she favored the feel of the beretta better though. which one is easier to shoot as a far as function.

jeep08ham · « **Reply #4 on:** January 31, 2009, 03:43:10 PM »

I would go with what feels best in her hand. The function of the Beretta is good but the most important thing is for her to be totally comfortable with not only shooting, but changing clips, working the action. Only she can make those determinations. Glad she likes the idea of protecting herself.

Brett · « **Reply #5 on:** January 31, 2009, 04:23:39 PM »

The Kel-Tecs are good dependable guns with the right ammo and proper maintenance. However, the little .380s have a pretty nasty kick due to their small size and very light weight. Many women find them to be more than a handful to shoot. Also, in order for the little gun to function properly the recoil spring has to be pretty stiff, your wife may not have the hand strength to grip and work the slide.

The Beretta tomcat uses a tip up barrel design so there is no stiff slide to have to rack. The only draw back I see with the Tomcat is that the .32 caliber is a little weak in MHO. And forget about the .25s, a .22lr would give better penetration.

That leaves you with the .38 S&W Airweight. Like you said you cant go wrong with a S&W. For ease of loading and operation the revolver wins hands down. Even standard .38s are as effective as the .380s and with a good set of rubber grips that fit your wife's hands well recoil is quite manageable. I believe statistics show that something like 95% of social situation are ended with 3 shots or less being fired so I wouldn't worry about having only five shots. The only con I see with the revolver is that it is a little bulkier than a slab sided semi-automatic.

If at all possible, let your wife shoot whatever guns she thinks she might like before making her final decision and buying something that she can't shoot or wont carry.

VARMONTER · « **Reply #6 on:** January 31, 2009, 05:10:52 PM »

http://www.smith-wesson.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=11101&storeId=10001&productId=77469&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=15704&isFirearm=Y

They also make the Ladysmith.

.
http://www.smith-wesson.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?catalogId=11101&storeId=10001&productId=14753&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=15704&isFirearm=Y

aglass1987 · « **Reply #7 on:** February 01, 2009, 11:09:41 AM »

thanks for the info. i believe i will probaly go with the Smith.

eod20 · « **Reply #8 on:** February 01, 2009, 01:27:18 PM »

DONT FORGET THE SLIGHTLY LARGER KELTEC 9'S I AM NOT A 9MM FAN BUT THE P9 & P11 ARE GOOD GUNS I GOT THE P9 FOR MY WIFE IN AN ATTEMPT TO GET MY SPRINGFIELD CHAMP BACK FROM HER NO LUCK SHE KEPT THE 45 AND NOW I AM STUCK WITH THE P9 AS A SECOND BACK UP

rockbilly · « **Reply #9 on:** February 03, 2009, 06:42:13 AM »

Buying a firearm for your wife is kinda like selecting a wife for your best friend...........most often it doesn't work out.

Take her to a shop with a good selection and let her pick one out that she likes. Advise her on what is good and what is trash, but let her make the final selection. She will be more likely to accept it and learn to handle it if she does the picking.

bulletstuffer · « **Reply #10 on:** February 03, 2009, 12:20:30 PM »

Now that's good advice! Wish I was that smart

Bulletstuffer

slim rem 7 · « **Reply #11 on:** February 06, 2009, 04:12:41 PM »

id go with the 38 myself.. now if shes willing to master the light auto loaders
fine.. but in my opinion they take some time in use before they get my go ahead as protection gun..even with the 38 she needs to get use to first shot recovery for second shot.. this assuming shes gonna use a hot load protection rnd..

shooter57 · « **Reply #12 on:** February 08, 2009, 06:55:39 AM »

Find a place or someone with the guns she likes and fire a few. I've seen some women that like the 1911 version . find some women that shoot an let her talk with them. Better to wait a couple weeks and get what she wants/like than hear about how YOU made a bad choice.

Hank08 · « **Reply #13 on:** February 08, 2009, 09:37:12 AM »

The hands down winner is the 5 shot S&W. No safety to push off, no slide to rack, no ramp
to jam the cartridge, no magazine to not feed, no stovepipes. Just put factory ammo with any bullet configuration in the chambers and pull the trigger. This for the average woman not, probably, for the National IPSC ladies champion. I taught CCW classes for about 15 yrs. and was asked that question a lot, still think it's the 5 shot snubbie.
H08

Redtail1949 · « **Reply #14 on:** February 09, 2009, 02:07:14 PM »

First it should really depend on how familiar she is with a semi auto pistol. If she is not does she plan to train with it to be able to load unload take apart and shoot it?

If it is her first gun and plans to shoot it more than just the first week of ownership and plans to learn it, the semi auto is fine. If she will not shoot it much a double action revolver is the only way to go. They are straightforward and she has seen enough movies to understand the basic operation.

Under stress no safety to forget, just pull the trigger. Easy to learn to load and unload as well as understand that when the hammer is cocked it is ready to fire and that their is no need to do that just pull the trigger.

Whichever you choose make certain that she can load and unload safely and that she practices with it frequently to gain confidence in her ability to defend herself.

Most women can master the function and firing of any caliber up to .45 Auto no need to have full power loads in it. The .40 in semi auto is a dandy gun for defense. The smallest I would give her is .380 Auto, they come in slick little guns and will do the job but of course bigger is better. .38 in standard loads and 9MM in Hardball are not real good where the .45 Auto in Hardball is a proven manstopper.

rockbilly · « **Reply #15 on:** February 09, 2009, 05:23:55 PM »

If you go with the five shot revolver buy the .357. She can always shoot .38 in it and if she ever decides she wants something more, just buy her a box of .357 ammo.

LouisianaMan · « **Reply #16 on:** February 15, 2009, 10:12:48 AM »

Aglass,
I agree HIGHLY with the advice to let her shoot one first, if at all possible. I got two Airweights for my wife & daughters--they loved the fit, feel and simplicity, until they fired the guns & the recoil, blast, flash, muzzle flip etc. were too much for them. Those guns are somewhat famous for their recoil, and even the 110g "Low Recoil" loads have a flash & muzzle flip that ruined practice for all of them.
My $.02 is to consider a steel-framed revolver, all else being equal. Heavier to carry, but easier to shoot in practice. My wife likes her Detective Special a lot and shoots it well. I used to have a Beretta 84 that I bought "for her," but the grip was too thick and the muzzle flip too unpleasant--not to mention the hand strength issues associated with racking the slide.
Bottom line: after years of guessing wrong, I let my wife choose both gun & load now. Best of luck finding an option that works for your wife! I'm getting my girls to shoot some again now, using .32 revolvers that fit their hand & don't hurt in recoil. It took my older daughter a while to steel herself even to pull the trigger on the .32, after the above-noted Airweight experience, but she quickly started to regain the form she had learned with .22s. Of course, more powerful is better, if your wife can handle it.

SHOOTALL · « **Reply #17 on:** February 15, 2009, 10:55:15 AM »

Let her hold and shoot as many as possible then let her pick . If that won't work and you have to pick its hard to beat a small revolver with a 3 - 2 inch bbl.
Lets face it if she won't pick she most likely won't want to learn the manual of arms for a simi auto . But i could be wrong

Westbound · « **Reply #18 on:** February 18, 2009, 07:43:28 AM »

I just bought a handgun for my wife.
She decided on the Kel-Tec P11 9mm. The only problem she has with it is the slide. It take a good amount of force to rack it. The guys over at the Keltec Owners Group (www.ktog.org) said they are stiff when new, but they wear in nicely. Its got a 10 +1 capacity, so there are plenty of follow up shots if neccessary. When I shot it at the range I was impressed. When it comes to recoil, this gun seems to think it weight 5 pounds. It was very easy to shoot, even for my wife.

funshooter2 · « **Reply #19 on:** February 21, 2009, 04:40:25 AM »

I have to agree with Rockabilly on this one. One thing, though, (& I know I'll get toasted for this) the .380 has a slight edge on regular load .38's in the 110-135 gr area, if the .380 is loaded with hot loads (like cor-bon) My KT .380 DOES NOT kick any more than my friends S&W Airweight. I also had a Berreta in .22 and like the tip up barrel. Right now, it would be the only auto I could use easily with my one good arm.
Basicly, if it is going to be her gun, take her to the range and shoot as many as she can & let her make the decision. She'll get better results if the gun fits her and she enjoys shooting it. I'd prefer the revolver for ease of use in a panic situation & the .357 for a wide ammo range. IMHO. Glad she chooses to take her own defense seriously.

Graybeard · « **Reply #20 on:** February 21, 2009, 05:28:58 AM »

What's the best pistol for a man?

It's the same either way and makes as much sense to ask as the other. What's best is best not because someone is a man or a woman and it must be determined by the buyer holding and shooting it. No one else can make that determination for them.

williamlayton · « **Reply #21 on:** February 21, 2009, 11:43:41 PM »

Here is what I am going too do with my daughter.
She has shown interest in learning to shoot.
I am going to give her the proper instruction and break her into shooting.
If she shows an inclination to owning a gun I will take her to a good shop and let her handle whatever she sees that strikes her fancy.
By the time we get too this point she will have shot a .380, .38 snubby, a .38super and a .45 perhaps a .357sig though this round may be a little snappy for a woman.
This shooting experience should give her some idea of her ability and prefrences.
I think I will try and move her towards a 9mm or the .38 super in a mid frame auto.
My prefrence for her would be a Sig----SHE chooses.
Blessings

Victor3 · « **Reply #22 on:** February 22, 2009, 02:18:23 AM »

I think the idea of having the Wife handle and shoot different guns to find out what fits her is a good idea. You should make sure that whatever she chooses is something she will be able to easily operate under stress though (this goes for us Husbands' self-defense guns too, of course

).

My Wife isn't one to spend much time learning how to operate anything complicated. She won't spend a lot of time at the range either. To her it's just another chore she needs to tend to occasionally. Her interest in a gun is similar to her interest in a car; she just wants it to do its job with a minimum of hassle.

I got her a S&W 640 (hammerless 38 snubbie) with a Pachmayer grip. She's learned how to hold, aim and fire it to hit a man-sized target at 5 yards. I bring her to the range about once a year to make sure she remembers where the trigger and front sight are. That's about all she's willing to invest in training. I guess I should be happy; that's more than most women will do...

45LCshoooter · « **Reply #23 on:** March 25, 2009, 08:24:51 PM »

Kudos to Greybeard!

If this has been mentioned before, please forgive me; but how big is her purse? Once your local upholsterer sews a holster into it, it is very likely that she can carry a medium frame revolver or a Commander-sized auto. I knew a girl who absolutely loved Taurus' PT111 and I used to own a Colt Trooper III 6-shot snubby that made absolutely no sense to me until i saw a woman carrying a purse. I think the weight is less a concern for a purse gun as some women seem to be able to load pounds of un-needed ballast in their purses. Might not be the case with your wife, but I once dated a girl who could carry an uzi in her purse...she didn't, but it was huge.

I would just ask how much of an issue weight is...i would rather send her out with something all-steel than to punish her by asking her to shoot a feather-weight.

BBF · « **Reply #24 on:** March 26, 2009, 08:04:27 AM »

I'm scratching my head over storing that firearm in a purse. If the woman is in need to defend herself, do you want her to mess with a purse which in all likelihood will give the attacker enough time to get close and personal? $:-\$

S.S. · « **Reply #25 on:** March 27, 2009, 02:35:31 PM »

My wife is 5ft.3 , she shoots my 4in barrel model 29 pretty well.
Also a S&W 1076 in 10 mm. I agree with Graybeard.

Autorim · « **Reply #26 on:** March 27, 2009, 06:46:33 PM »

I vote for the 5 shot .38 or .357. The Smiths are all good, but don't overlook the Ruger SP101 3 inch - heavier, but it has a small grip and is easy to learn to shoot well.

BBF · « **Reply #27 on:** March 28, 2009, 06:15:49 AM »

I like a Derringer, simple, foolproof,small and you don't usually have a whole horde attacking the wife.

rockbilly · « **Reply #28 on:** March 29, 2009, 08:14:18 AM »

As I said, let the lady pick the gun.

I was at a gun show yesterday, at one table there was a 6'6" 270 pound cowboy fondling a large frame auto pistol. Next to him was a 5'2" (Guess) 120 pound lady. He told the dealer "the gun is for her," she is about to get her CCW, I am just picking it out. She spoke up and said she wanted a "little" gun, a .22. I couldn't help but interupt, I told her a .22 was a poor choice, that yes the .22 would kill someone but it would likely be from infection several days after being shot. I suggested a small frame .380 or 9mm something small yet having the stopping power to stop a person, and handed her a Kel-Tek P9 and a PPK, she fell in love with the P9. The cowboy didn't seem to be please with her choice until she told him she liked the small gun because it would fit in her jeans pocket and she would'nt mind carrying it.

Point is, she made the choice.