I need help, Ladies!

Merlin40 · 06-26-2012, 15:17

OK,OK, I know this is a womens site. I need useful opinions, user accounts, and anything else you can help me with. I have a 36 year old Daughter who is wanting a handgun for SD home use. She says she wants a .22 revolver because she cannot work the slide on a semi-auto, and doesn't want to load a mag. I've suggested a couple of models to her. Walther PK380 seems to be the best fit due to it's ease of slide operation. Give me some other suggestions. I'm not happy with her choice of a .22. In my opinion, it gives her a false sense of security, thinking that a .22 will stop an attacker, in a home invasion scenario. Thanks in advance.

kimbur · 06-26-2012, 18:37

i was loyal to revolvers until i got my own glock. They are simpler to understand and there was no mystery to them. Sometimes it just takes spending some time with a gun to get comfortable with it. If you can get her to reconsider a semi-auto here are some things that worked for me: to work the slide i cannot easily "pinch" the slide and pull back. I just don't have the hand strength. So i either grab the slide with my dominant hand over the slide or if i "pinch" rather than trying to pull back with my weak hand i use my strong hand to push the frame of the gun forward rather than pull the slide back. I hope i am explaining that right. I recently taught a friend to shoot who had never even held a gun. When she tried to pull the slide back she couldn't. But when i taught her to push with the strong hand rather than pull with the weak she was able to operate the slide.

As for loading mags the little tool from glock saves the fingers a lot. especially on that last round or with new mags.
I hope she goes for something more than a .22. I think she is kidding herself if she thinks she can stopped and amped up intruder with that. She will be, as you stated, giving herself a false sense of security. Choosing to get a gun for SD is great. But sometime it requires a little work and commitment to become comfortable with what will really get the job done.

My self defense weapon is G27. It's a handful and took some getting used to. But I am very happy i went that route now.
I wanted something i knew would drop the bad guy in one shot.

GlockColektr · 06-26-2012, 19:54

Im not one of the ladies but . . .

My wife is 5'3", 110#, small frame, slight build. She recently showed an interest in handguns. We started her out on a Ruger SR22 to get her used to handling a very manageable gun that will chew through nearly anything.

After a couple of trips to the range with her SR22, we stopped by the LGS just to look around. She handled several different semis in 9mm and had difficulty working the slide on most. She ended up walking out with a M&P 9c with factory laser sights. She absolutely loves it. She can get a really good grip on the slide and has no problems working it (particularly in comparison to the others she also tried).

I don't know whether starting her out on the SR22 played any role in her confidence approaching and working the 9mm, but I'm very happy we were able to find something suitable for her in a SD caliber.

Good luck to you and your daughter. I have two: one in middle school and one still in diapers. Can't imagine them in their mid 30s.

Mrs.Cicero · 06-27-2012, 20:01

If she really insists on a revolver, get her a .357 Ruger LCR. I hate revolvers for their stupid grips, but this one is actually tolerable to shoot.

If you just show her how to rack the slide on a semi-auto properly and get her to stop falling for that "your weak little woman hands can't do this" tripe, you can get her something that will hold more rounds. Tell her, "DO NOT PINCH THE D$%! SLIDE BETWEEN YOUR THUMB AND INDEX FINGER. Place support hand over top of slide. Squeeze slide between fingers and meat of the hand. With the OTHER hand (trigger hand) on the grip, shove the pistol forward, while holding the slide in place. You will rack the slide thru your fingers (let go when the pistol is shoved past your support hand). This way, you are using the strength of your entire primary hand to rack the slide, not the muscles of the thumb and index finger on your weak hand."

FWIW, I carry an M&P in 9mm when I'm not carrying the HK USPc in same. I've never had a problem racking either.

Mrs.Cicero

MARKDANIEL · 06-28-2012, 13:41

I am not a lady either My daughter had trouble with racking slides also but a glock 34 worked for her. I don't know for sure but I think it might have a lighter spring because of the heavier slide.

Emoore · 06-28-2012, 15:18

Every single female friend that I've introduced to firearms, I started out with my S&W .38 revolver (non snubbie). Every single one of them loved it. It doesn't kick, it's point and shoot, it's easy to be accurate with. IMHO, it's the perfect gun for getting into guns.

Winds-of-change · 06-29-2012, 04:54

GP100 or Sig P238.

Merlin40 · 06-30-2012, 07:06

Thanks, Kimber. I've talked to her husband as well. He has NEVER taken her to a range, nor has she ever fired a weapon. Hubby wants a weapon that can have available ammo handy in case SHTF. Not sure how to educate him. My wife can rack my Glock 23 using the "push-pull" method, and knows how to deploy my Bushmaster Carbon-15. I've offered my daughter a trip to the range. Not much else I can do. Thanks everyone for the tips and recommendations.

Quote:

Originally Posted by kimbur

i was loyal to revolvers until i got my own glock. They are simpler to understand and there was no mystery to them. Sometimes it just takes spending some time with a gun to get comfortable with it. If you can get her to reconsider a semi-auto here are some things that worked for me: to work the slide i cannot easily "pinch" the slide and pull back. I just don't have the hand strength. So i either grab the slide with my dominant hand over the slide or if i "pinch" rather than trying to pull back with my weak hand i use my strong hand to push the frame of the gun forward rather than pull the slide back. I hope i am explaining that right. I recently taught a friend to shoot who had never even held a gun. When she tried to pull the slide back she couldn't. But when i taught her to push with the strong hand rather than pull with the weak she was able to operate the slide.

As for loading mags the little tool from glock saves the fingers a lot. especially on that last round or with new mags.
I hope she goes for something more than a .22. I think she is kidding herself if she thinks she can stopped and amped up intruder with that. She will be, as you stated, giving herself a false sense of security. Choosing to get a gun for SD is great. But sometime it requires a little work and commitment to become comfortable with what will really get the job done.

My self defense weapon is G27. It's a handful and took some getting used to. But I am very happy i went that route now.
I wanted something i knew would drop the bad guy in one shot.

wjv · 07-03-2012, 10:08

Let her start with the .22. .

Then for her birthday, buy her a nice steel frame .38 (or .357) and a couple boxes of some soft shooting ammo.

GlockPaperScissors · 07-03-2012, 23:29

Quote:

Originally Posted by Merlin40

OK,OK, I know this is a womens site. I need useful opinions, user accounts, and anything else you can help me with. I have a 36 year old Daughter who is wanting a handgun for SD home use. She says she wants a .22 revolver because she cannot work the slide on a semi-auto, and doesn't want to load a mag. I've suggested a couple of models to her. Walther PK380 seems to be the best fit due to it's ease of slide operation. Give me some other suggestions. I'm not happy with her choice of a .22. In my opinion, it gives her a false sense of security, thinking that a .22 will stop an attacker, in a home invasion scenario. Thanks in advance.

She wants a .22 revolver so get her one in .22 mag. Don't belabor the point with her. Wait till she's comfortable with it and then wants something else. Telling her she "chose wrong" will turn her off faster than you can whistle dixie.

Bushflyr · 07-04-2012, 11:38

"Momma ain't happy, ain't nobody happy." Get her what she wants. She'll want something else eventually, but everyone needs a good .22 in their arsenal anyway. May as well start out with one.

Kamo · 07-04-2012, 16:53

Quote:

Originally Posted by Emoore

Every single female friend that I've introduced to firearms, I started out with my S&W .38 revolver (non snubbie). Every single one of them loved it. It doesn't kick, it's point and shoot, it's easy to be accurate with. IMHO, it's the perfect gun for getting into guns.

That was my first handgun (a Model 10) and I'm glad I went with it. I learned a lot from shooting that gun but I'm told that a .22 is a must-have. That's next on my wish list but for home defense I'm going with my Glock, for now. One day I'll invest in a pump-action shotgun; the sound alone should be enough to send him running (I hope!)

**mad.gunsmith** · 07-04-2012, 19:53

the Kel-Tec PMR-30 pistol in 22 magnum can be excellent the slide is not to hard and
with 30 rounds of 22 mag is an excellent option

SFF900 · 07-05-2012, 23:23

While I agree the .22 is not ideal it is still better than nothing. Start with that if she is dead set on it. Sounds like she needs training more than anything else. I agree with whoever said her "i'm too weak" attitude is b.s. racking the slide is about 99% technique but on the flip side getting stronger arms/grip is in her best interest as well so that should be an option. Don't doubt my love for glocks but I suggest trying an HK P30 (9mm or .40sw) accurate, reliable, easy to use, lots of room to grip the slide, out of my whole collection my GF chooses the P30 for her side of the bed

bruzer · 07-12-2012, 08:27

Being a guy and thinking I have all the answers, here are some thoughts of mine.
Buy her a G22/17 and get the .22 conversion kit. Put it together and let her try out the gun as a .22. Let her get a feel for dropping and swapping mags, racking the slide, chambering rounds. Shoot the stuffing out of it. Might stay that was for years. Once she is comfortable let her know that her gun can be stepped up to an actual defensive caliber round if she likes. Now you have introduced her into a defensive handgun and ALL the practice and trigger time carries over and she is not having to start over again.
Good luck and stay safe,
Mike

Keri_TX · 07-12-2012, 15:40

I can completely relate to your daughter's reluctance to deal with the slides. Same here, at first. In fact, I insisted on a revolver initially because I felt I could not handle the SA slide at all. It took about 8 months but I've done a complete 180 on that and feel the most comfortable with full size and compact SA's, and generally the bigger the better. I'm also a small person with small hands, and can't do the over-the-forearm weak arm rack movement easily. I have to do the full hand-pinch, if that makes sense, but it's perfectly fine, especially once you've shot a few hundred rounds out of a particular gun and broken it in. And keeping it well-lubricated, of course. I say bruzer's idea above about the conversion kit is great. That's how we will start both of our grandkids when the time comes in a few years. Good luck and let her know that she can easily handle an SA; it just takes time and practice... and good turtlenecks!

MKEgal · 08-13-2012, 21:34

I like the idea of starting with a 17 & conversion kit.
Also definitely point her to www.corneredcat.com

Aside from that, I'll tell you the same thing I tell anyone who asks "what gun should I buy?"...
Go to a store (take her to a store) & have her handle everything they'll let her handle.

First concern is to find things that will fit her hand so she can hold it. One reason I love my Glocks is because they fit my hand & arm anatomy so well, they're almost aiming themselves. Felt like the grip was made for me.

Once you have that list, next concerns are 2) can she operate it & 3) can she control it while shooting. If it doesn't fit her hand, & she can't control it, it's not safe. If she can't reload, it'll be useless after a few shots.

**DustyJacket** · 08-14-2012, 05:18

Taurus makes a nice .380ACP snub-nosed revolver - very little recoil and arguably better than a .22LR

**DustyJacket** · 08-14-2012, 05:19

[edit]never mind - I'll do a search and a new thread......

BonnieB · 08-20-2012, 14:38

Under no circumstances let her get a .22 ! It won't stop a stoked BG unless she gets him right through the eye.

Properly trained, she can rack a Glock. I have kind of " girlie " hands and wasn't sure either. So I took myself down to the LGS when I knew it would be quiet. I went alone, no helpful fathers or boyfriends around around, and worked with the nice salesman. He let me handle all sorts of handguns, until we found a model that fit best. Then I rented one on the range and shot it. Still liked it.

Once I was shown how to rack it properly, I had no trouble. Once I learned how to use a mag loader I had no real trouble. So, now I'm shooting my first gun, a .40 cal. (I do have trouble getting the last .40 round into the mag, but so does everybody else, and that's another thread...)

I did get an Advantage Arms .22 conversion for cheap plinking and I like it. Maybe that's a good solution for you, is let her plink 22's with the AA kit in a decent size gun and graduate to a larger calibre once she gets comfortable.

And LET HER BUY HER OWN DANG GUN. SHE'S AN ADULT.

Glock&KimberLady · 08-20-2012, 16:36

Rather than have her pick a gun because she thinks it's small and she can handle it, haul her ass to the range and rent a variety of guns, both revolver and semi-auto, small and medium caliber.

I didn't think I could handle a CRF450R race bike until I actually rode one.

FTR, I have big hands and long fingers, so my pistol of choice is full-sized 1911. However, I've also managed to shoot a .44 magnum and a .50 Desert Eagle. When you know how to use it, the size isn't quite so intimidating.

Again, familiarity stamps out timidity. However, if she is *dead set* against anything with a slide, then a .38/.357 (S&W Model 19 type for short barrel, Model 66 for longer) would be a good compromise. Two calibers, one with more *pop* and relatively small (altho uncomfortable) grips.

rjinaz85308 · 08-20-2012, 16:56

Our camping gun (that my wife shoots) is a Glock G29 with hot 10mm

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