My wife wants some advice on first pistol?

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goldidig

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Hi fellas, My wife is going to start shooting handguns (YIPEEEEEE! Another lady shooter to spite Wendy KOOKier!) and she asked me what she should buy for a 22 pistol for at the range? Should she bother with a used gun or buy new? This is her first handgun so I don't expect it needs to be anything spectacular, but it should be tough and able to digest a lot of rounds without flying apart. I am not into handguns anymore and never really was into target shooting when I was a handgun owner, so I don't know what to tell her. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks!
Al
 
goldidig said:
Hi fellas, My wife is going to start shooting handguns (YIPEEEEEE! Another lady shooter to spite Wendy KOOKier!) and she asked me what she should buy for a 22 pistol for at the range? Should she bother with a used gun or buy new? This is her first handgun so I don't expect it needs to be anything spectacular, but it should be tough and able to digest a lot of rounds without flying apart. I am not into handguns anymore and never really was into target shooting when I was a handgun owner, so I don't know what to tell her. Any advice would be greatly appreciated!
Thanks!
Al
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The first thing she should do is find a handgun that she likes. After that the rest is easy. I would recommend looking at the Rugers, Brownings and Berettas, see how they fit in her grip and how they point for her.
 
Any .22; 9mm and .45 ACP are good for women. some will say the kick of .45 is too heavy but infact I saw some women shoot just as good as man. One thing is woman buy the look first, If the gun that she doesn't like, chance is she won't interesting anymore. So as my girls.

Trigun
 
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Handguns are like shoes. You don't know what fits until you try a few. The only way to know what she likes is to take her to a gun store and start shopping! (And chisel that day on the wall of the gun room.)

My sister in law shot 9mm and 40S&W in IPSC. Her choice with hubby buying equipment for her. Be prepared to turn over guns a few times until she finds one she likes.
 
My wife has small hands and her gun of choice is her STI Trojan SS in 9MM. She shot My STI Trojan in 45acp till her 9mm came in. She likes my STI TargetMaster in 45, because its so accurate. Now when we run out of ammo for her 9, she shoots my 45 still, but notices it has a bit more bark than her 9.
She has shot a CZ 75B in 9mm, a CZ97 in 45, a S&W 686 revolver in 357 and a Browning Buck Mark 22.
Her Favorites are the STI Trojan SS 9mm and then the Browning Buck Mark 22.
 
Where in the H-E-double hockey sticks do you find these women :D

I assume you want to start her off with a .22 to teach the basics. What is the long-term plan? If its practice for a centre fire, then a .22 conversion or a gun similar to the centre fire is a good idea. If its for target shooting, a target .22 makes more sense IMO.

I'm normally prefer used guns but Ruger doesn't sell so many Mk III guns these days for nothing. I'd say check out the Rugers and Browning Buckmarks as a start, maybe the Beretta Neos as well. Used, there's some great stuff out there if your budget allows $500-750 - High Standards, S&W41, S&W17 series (K-22 revolver), Browning Challenger, many others.

I went with the S&W41 and have never looked back.
 
I'll thorw in a vote for Ruger MkI, MkII or MkIII. These are inexpensive, very accruate and will last a lifetime. There are more "pros" than cons to starting off with a .22 caliber.

Starting off on a larger caliber such as 9mm could cause bad habits (flinching) resulting in poorer results and the new shooter getting discouraged.

I have just about ever caliber handgun there is and I still love to plink with a .22. Matter of fact, I just picked up another .22 revolver. One can never have too many guns. :)
 
My wife shoots a Ruger MkII .22 pretty well & also knows her way around the Glock 22 .40 cal.

Start her on a .22 and she how she likes it from there.... ;) :cool:
 
I've been trying to get my wife to come up shooting or even show her how to ensure that a firearm is safe in the rare circumstance I may leave one out on the work bench (her response was no and if I ever left one laying about that would be the end of having firearms in the home). Anyhow, congrats on the wife taking an interest. If my wife were to take an interest I'd definitely start her out on a .22lr. From my stable I'd be the Beretta 87T or S&W 617. I have a Ruger but the grips are for a right handed shooter (she's a leftie). If she were interested in buying one I'd follow the advice given here and take her to some gun stores and let her fondle them. The way I see it is I can give advice but, in the end, it'd be her firearm and she'd be the best to decide on what she likes or dislikes.....I find that if someone likes their firearm they tend to shoot them more......YMMV
 
My Sig 9mm has a high bore axis. This results in a stronger recoil, forcing the muzzle higher. My Glock, with its lower bore axis, and its "plastic", which cushions the recoil somewhat, tends to stay on target. This is important only if she wants to shoot competition, with its rapid fire.

A 1911 has a sweeter recoil--straight back.

Also consider maintenance. If you will be cleaning her handgun and you don't mind it, any handgun will do. If she will be cleaning her own handgun, a Glock is easy. Although it's a great shooting gun, a Ruger .22 is a pain to field strip. A 1911 is surprisingly easy to field strip, if she can deal with the barrel bushing.
 
Good to start on a .22lr. Good habits (ie not flinching), cheap to run and buy, a ton of fun too.

Maybe a Sig Mosquito? Fit is pretty important
 
Griffoneur said:
I'll throw in a vote for Ruger MkI, MkII or MkIII. These are inexpensive, very accruate and will last a lifetime. There are more "pros" than cons to starting off with a .22 caliber.
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I'll second that :) For practice, my girlfriend started with a Ruger MkIII 22-45, but also tried a MkIII, which she preferred, and so we've since bought one. I really like it too!

For a 'real' gun, she likes Glocks, and had a couple of G17s over the last couple of years. She's since moved from the G17 to a G19. She was happy with the G17, but I found a deal on the 19, so... :D

She doesn't like my 1911s; finds them too heavy...

.
 
Thanks for all the advice guys and taking the time to post. I know she'll appreciate it. I'll get here to read all your input here and then she can go shopping!
Al
 
I've had a Ruger 22/45 Mk III...it fed and ejected great, and was very accurate with pretty much any ammo available. I would NOT recommend the 22/45 personally, since I think the contour of the grip is very strange. BUT, I would enthusiastically recommend any of the metal framed pistols with the bull barrels and target adjustable rear sights.

I recently purchased a Browning Buck Mark Camper, and while it shoots great and feels awesome in the hand, I have had frequent failures to eject with it. I'm waiting to see if this is just because it's a new pistol and everything is still super tight, and if it gets better after I shoot a couple of bricks through it or not before I would recommend it to anybody.
 
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