My wife's first gun purchase.

satman858

Should I get her a Semi-Automatic Handgun or a Service Revolver for protection?

plinked

what ever you decide just make sure she's not afraid to shoot it. I bought my wife a taurus PT58 ( semi .380cal) she loved it and shot 2" groups at 25' which scared the heck out of me as we have a long driveway and I figured I'd never stand a chance of escape if she ever got really ticked at me!!! I sold it and bought a taurus CH85 (.38cal) revolver because a revolver is always ready to shoot and needs minimal care, well she does not like the feel or the recoil,Sooo I went out and got a Bersa .380 and now shes back to being happy and I'm back to being nervous [^]

team roper ozzy

semi auto...make sure the fit is good and that she gets plenty of practice with it...no sense in limiting your ammo supply with a revolver.easier to drop a clip and feed in another. i recommend nothing less than 9mm and if she can handle the recoil..step it up a notch ,,semi auto is ready to shoot as well...keep one in the tube! too many people load a clip and not feed the chamber then when the time is needed to react they have to rack one up time is lost ,life safety depends on speed and acccuracy//para has a nice looking nine that may fit your/her needs..not a large frame either[:D]

Tombstonejim

My wife wanted a pistol she went to the gunshop and handled and felt almost everyone they had in the store. The one she liked the best was a glock 19. Fits her hand nice, is super simple to operate. Basically a load it and shoot weapon.

TooBig

With the Price of 380 ammo you could be shooting a 45, 380s ammo has hit the ceiling. Bersa or Firestorm 380s are great shooters but like stated above you can shoot 9mm, 40,45 cheaper or as cheap[V][xx(]

Hawk Carse

All YOU should get HER is education so she can pick her own gun.
"Here, Honey, it's a pistol." is not a good approach.
Do you have friends with guns or a rental range nearby?
Suggest you help her get professional training. He might know a thing or two and it would also avoid emotional scenes and family disputes.

Hawkshaw

Hawk nailed it---Don't buy her anything. IT'S NOT YOUR GUN!!!!!!! Let her handle , and shoot as many as possible, while you go get a haircut. Give her your input and then leave. If she doesn't like it, she won't shoot it. If she want's to change , or get another gun later, that's fine too.

beantownshootah

I'm not saying its impossible, but I have yet to see the store where the price of .380s exceeds that of .45s (or .40s). In any case, ammo cost is a relatively minor factor here, unless your wife intends to burn many boxes of ammo practicing If that's the case, you should be happy to pay the extra cost for .45s!

Apart from that, I agree with the above, and would add the following:

If she's never shot a gun before, you're wasting your time trying to pick a gun for her, or even letting her choose one for herself.

She's got to get a little experience shooting before she can get a sense of what she likes, and what works for her.

Best thing is a trip to the range and have her try out several different models and calibers. Start with a .22. . .work your way up. The .22 she likes is still far better than the 9mm (or bigger) she hates.

After doing that, it can go this way:

Once she has some experience, *IF* she 'likes' guns and shooting in general, then she can pick any gun she wants, with important characteristics being that it fits her hand, she's comfortable with the caliber, and she can operate the controls. Used is fine, but I'd stick to a "name" brand, and avoid low-end guns for reliability reasons.

As a consideration, some women simply lack the physical grip and upper body strength to rack the slide on automatic pistols, *particularly* the compact auto pistols that people prefer for carry. Some women are put off by the more complex controls on autos, by external safeties, etc.

If she does NOT like shooting much, and isn't particularly "into" guns, or if she has difficulty with automatics (either physically in operating them, or in the effort necessary to master the controls), then pick for her a .38 special revolver. These are utterly reliable, and simple to operate. A 2-3" bbl for carry, a 3-6" bbl if its a pure house or car gun.

Lastly, as a point worth consideration, it doesn't hurt if you and your wife have similar guns. They don't necessarily have to be identical, but that way in case of an emergency, she can always be comfortable using yours, and having swappable ammo isn't a bad thing either.

clb024

For a first gun, I would suggest to her that simplicity(revolver) shoud be the goal. If she ever has to use it in self defense she won't have to think about safeties and "Is there 1 in the chamber?" A revolver will never jam, no magazines to load, if a round misfires no need to clear the chamber just pull the trigger again, can be reloaded just as fast with a speed-loader. You never hear of an accidental discharge with a revolver. My wife shoots a Taurus 85, its a 5 shot .38 and is in her bedside drawer with 2 speed loaders. The next thing is practice, practice, practice. Placement of each shot is the key. I could empty my glock, but if I don't hit you, what does it matter. Of course, if a revolver doesn't feel right to her, she will never be accurate with it. And to plinked, has your wife shot that Bersa? I carry one in an ankle holster, but I hate the way it feels when I take the shot.I love the size and I did shoot it regularly when I first purchased it to increase my accuracy, but now I wouldn't bother shooting it if YOU were paying for the ammo. Good luck to your wife satman. Hopes she finds a gun that she is comfortable with.