Handgun Advice

[CeeBee]

SIG SAUER P220 with .22 Rimfire Conversion Kit

.22 Rimfire is unreliable in a handgun. Hell even fails in rifles sometimes...
I have a .22 conversion kit for my G23, works fine most of the times but there is that instance once in 20 shots where you pull the trigger and nothing happens...

[3fingersalute]

.22 Rimfire is unreliable in a handgun. Hell even fails in rifles sometimes...
I have a .22 conversion kit for my G23, works fine most of the times but there is that instance once in 20 shots where you pull the trigger and nothing happens...

Agreed, and not really an effective choice for self defense for most people. It is great for learning with though. My wife actually just decided she was interested in learning to shoot so I took her out the other weekend and had her try both of my 9mm's and she didn't like the "kick" of them. I also had her try a few 38's out of my 357 and she didn't like shooting them either so I'm borrowing a buddy's .22 and going to let her get familiar with shooting using it and then maybe we can move her up to something a little bigger once she gets the hang of holding the gun correctly, etc.

[Semper Fi]

Glock 26 is a great gun. I would also recommend considering the Springfield XDS 9mm. Both great guns for their own reasons. Side by side, and do the research on holsters for the specific carry circumstances. If she's lefty, it get's harder to find options.

What I like about my 26, it uses any glock 9mm mag, so my glock 17 mags will fit. It's lightweight, holds 10+1 staggered, unlike the XDS which is a straight 7+1. Very easy to shoot accurately. Not a competition gun, but if you can get a manside target in the vitals at 25 yards consistently, that's all the gun you will ever need.

[Semper Fi]

My personal advice is a small revolver, most likely a 38.

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I must advise against the revolver. They are much harder to shoot accurately, harder to reload or carry spare amo like a mag fed pistol. Also, revolvers lack recoil relief though the slide, therefore your hand will take the brunt during practice, and that may cause flinching after regular use, which only makes them even harder to maintain accuracy. Every time I go into a gun store I hear the clerk suggesting revolvers to women, and that couldn't be farther from the right option. Women can handle the slide with ease, and can hold firmly during shooting. My sister shot my 45 first time and loved every minute of it. Her revolver sucked the life out of her, and she put it away after only about 20 rounds and a sore hand. But she kept on with my 45 until I had to cut her off after 100 rounds...sh!t's expensive when it's someone else shooting your ammo!

[Semper Fi]

I am partial to Glock because of their reliability. If this would be carried in the purse I'd say it's a no-no. She'd need to keep it chambered and a lipstick can get into the trigger guard.
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Yeah, that lack of a safety switch is a consideration without a holster that covers the trigger well. That's where the Springfield XDS is nice, has a palm and trigger safety that both must be engaged or the gun will not shot. Perhaps a better option for purse carry...

[3fingersalute]

Glock 26 is a great gun. I would also recommend considering the Springfield XDS 9mm. Both great guns for their own reasons. Side by side, and do the research on holsters for the specific carry circumstances. If she's lefty, it get's harder to find options.

What I like about my 26, it uses any glock 9mm mag, so my glock 17 mags will fit. It's lightweight, holds 10+1 staggered, unlike the XDS which is a straight 7+1. Very easy to shoot accurately. Not a competition gun, but if you can get a manside target in the vitals at 25 yards consistently, that's all the gun you will ever need.

I bought my Glock 26 back in January and took it right to the range and was amazed with how accurately it shot for such a small gun. Granted, it's not the most concealable gun out there, but it's still small enough to keep unnoticed under a shirt. I also love the interchangeability of magazines and you can't beat the reliability and they're pretty easy to tear down when needed.

[slgrieb]

Initially, I was pretty sure I'd buy her a SIG P220, but then I started leaning toward the Glock 26 because of it's size. I have to admit I have reservations about the lack of a mechanical safety on Glocks, even though EC isn't a novice shooter. She's used to firing the Browning, which is 9mm, and I'm not going with a lower caliber round. I'm totally unfamiliar with the Springfield XDS, but will definitely take a look. Any opinions on the Ruger 3226?

[3fingersalute]

I must advise against the revolver. They are much harder to shoot accurately, harder to reload or carry spare amo like a mag fed pistol. Also, revolvers lack recoil relief though the slide, therefore your hand will take the brunt during practice, and that may cause flinching after regular use, which only makes them even harder to maintain accuracy. Every time I go into a gun store I hear the clerk suggesting revolvers to women, and that couldn't be farther from the right option. Women can handle the slide with ease, and can hold firmly during shooting. My sister shot my 45 first time and loved every minute of it. Her revolver sucked the life out of her, and she put it away after only about 20 rounds and a sore hand. But she kept on with my 45 until I had to cut her off after 100 rounds...sh!t's expensive when it's someone else shooting your ammo!

I've heard this argument back and forth a lot and see advantages to both sides. For me personally I'm sticking with a revolver for now. Sure it's harder to carry extra ammo (I have 2 speedloaders but carrying them is not easy and definitely not concealable) but I doubt I'm ever going to need to use it, and if I do will I really need that many shots? I have a really nice apendix-carry holster for my 26 and will eventually carry it, but I'm still practicing a lot with it and don't feel confident enough with drawing it to carry it loaded and don't like the idea of carrying it with the chamber empty.

For my wife, she will never actively carry a gun but would like to have one in the house locked up in case something would happen when I'm not home. For her, I want a revolver so that it's basically "point and shoot". No need to worry about safeties, whether the magazine is in, whether there's one in the chamber, etc. I know they kick a little more, but again this isn't something she's going to be shooting constantly, just a little here and there to feel comfortable with it and then if god forbid the time ever comes she needs to use it, I'm sure she won't be worrying about her wrist being a little sore after the fact.

[slgrieb]

Thanks for the honest answer. I'm not looking for a fight, I'm genuinely interested why you'd arm your daughter. Obviously it's completely different over here and something that shocks me to hear is considered normal over there, hence my curiosity. Is it really that dangerous in Texas though to warrant a gun or knives?

Actually, my daughter goes to college at the safest campus I can imagine. They even have a phone app where you can log in to campus security, tell them your ETA back at the dorm, and if you don't report within 5 minutes of your expected arrival time, campus security will dispatch a couple of guys to the phone's GPS position.

Having the ability to defend yourself isn't really about how likely you are to need the skills, it's about having control over your life even in the unlikely event that things get really bad. I doubt either of my kids will ever need to shoot, stab, or even break someone's nose, but I'm happier knowing they have the option and ability.

[CeeBee]

[...] revolver. They are much harder to shoot accurately, harder to reload or carry spare amo like a mag fed pistol.

While that is entirely true, chances that one will have to fire more than 1 shot are small. Assailants usually stop after being shot once regardless of caliber and placement.
I would personally go with the smaller caliber for a woman due to the low recoil - no more than 9mm.
.32 happens to have a very high first-shot stopping rate and that combines with a low recoil. Again, it was (is) the preferred police caliber in many countries for a reason...