Semi Automatic with least amount of Recoil
- Thread starter stobrien
- Start date
I'm finding my Grand Power handguns to be much softer shooting than my CZ SP01 Shadow, Glock G17, and 1911 in 9mm. My S&W 929 is actually softer, but it's also a very heavy handgun. The nice thing with the GP handguns is they are pretty light at 28oz compared to 41oz for the Shadow, but the recoil is softer because it uses a rotating barrel lockup.
Here's my 13 year old daughter on her first range outing with my Grand Power X-Caliber. You could probably pick up a used K100 for ~$500
For reference, here she is with my Ruger 22/45. This was what I started her out with.
Here's my 13 year old daughter on her first range outing with my Grand Power X-Caliber. You could probably pick up a used K100 for ~$500
For reference, here she is with my Ruger 22/45. This was what I started her out with.
From my experience a lot too depends on the type and size of grips. A narrow grip similar to the metal thin grips I have on my CZ 75 Shadowline makes the recoil feel heavier than say my Sig 226 with wider grip but lighter gun. This is also true to some extent with the Glock and M&P. The recoil has to be more given the guns are lighter, that is just simple physics, but the wider grip plant in the hand may well make the recoil feel a bit lighter if you are comparing the felt recoil to a gun with thin grips. There is also the fact the polymer frames do flex under recoil, or so I have been told, which may account for some felt reduction. My, much wider rubber grips on my CZ 85 Combat makes the recoil feel less than my Shadowline, though the actual recoil has to be identical for all practical purposes because the guns are near identical. Neither amount of felt recoil is unpleasant to me but may well be for someone else.
Recoil and felt recoil are not exactly the same thing and perception for most shooters is their reality. A larger, stronger shooter is going to have a much different view of recoil than say a much smaller shooter. I find full power defensive loads in a 40 cal unpleasant to shoot in my FS M&P, while I have seen Conservation Officers wail away completely oblivious of the, what I would call, a very snappy round.
To the OP we all have our thresholds for recoil. Whatever gun you choose will be a compromise. While larger wider grips may spread the recoil over a wider area of your hand if you have smaller hands the reduced recoil will come at the cost of not being able to reach the trigger comfortably. If you go for a heavier gun, you may find the model does not fit the style of shooting you want to do. Try to remember you cannot avoid the Laws of Physics. What goes one way causes something to go the other with the same amount of force.
Take Care
Bob
hafetysazard
CGN Regular
- Location
- Northwestern Ontario
I know it is not a 9mm, but have you considered one of those Browning Black Label 380 ACP 1911's. From what I know they are 80% of the size, and have a composite frame, so they are both easy for somebody with smaller hands, and somebody who might find it discouraging to handle a heavy pistol. .380 doesn't seem like it would break the bank either.
A hot .380 out of a 4-1/2" barrel, or whatever it is, can pack a neat little punch. It is what I would get for my girlfriend when she decides to get her license. Would be great for teaching young and new shooters also.
A hot .380 out of a 4-1/2" barrel, or whatever it is, can pack a neat little punch. It is what I would get for my girlfriend when she decides to get her license. Would be great for teaching young and new shooters also.
- Location
- West Quebec
Started my wife with a Ruger Blackhawk in 38 spc wadcutters for a year and now into 9mm CZ Shadow no problem with the transition at all.
Unfortunately the revolver idea is not semi auto which is what the OP was asking about. The 38spl can be had in a few semis. Smith made a target semi auto using the 38spl and custom smiths have made 1911`s with a 38spl barrel. Neither are practical alternatives IMHO though. While the 38Super is around the 38ACP is on it`s last legs. I am not aware of any gun manufacturer making guns for the round anymore. The .380 or 9MM short is pretty snappy in most guns and would be rather expensive to shoot, again not a real option I would not think.
Take Care
Bob
.380 is and remains popular in the US. But we don't see that up here as most of the guns chambered for .380 are smaller and thus in our Prohibited category so they don't get imported.
To set the stage a little more when I lived in Burnaby I helped out now and then for Ladies night at DVC. So I got to see a lot of low and first time girls shooting handguns. I quickly found that there are three things that really affect them that are not significant for most guys.
First off is that if they can be sensitive to hard recoil and the loudness of the report. They typically get past that pretty quickly.... unless someone sets off a .500S&W in the lane next to them...
But if they don't then they tend to be nervous and flinch a lot. I've seen a few of those come back to shoot in quieter times and with less noise around them they did a lot better. They'll get used to it but if the noise and recoil bothers them at first it might take a few sessions to get past it. It seems like stobrien's wife is at that point where .22 is fine but the 9 has a bit too much kick to be comfortable with shooting.
The smaller and slighter ladies often don't have the muscle development to hold a handgun out at arm's length for the time it takes for a full magazine. Part of this is the relative size and weight of the gun and part of it is that if they are smaller than average then consider that for them it's like a regular guy holding out a Desert Eagle for a full magazine. So in such cases we need to cut them a bit of slack and understand that they might want to take a break. It's not that they CAN'T hold the gun long enough. But that their muscles will lose the steadiness needed for accurate shooting. There's no shame in clicking on the safety and lowering the gun to the bench and resting one's arms.
Finally if we expect our ladies to shoot well we need to fit the gun to their hand sizes. A small hand might be physically able to hold a Beretta 92 or an old Gen 3 Glock but they don't fit well and allow them to have a proper amount of finger wrap around and support the gun correctly positioned in their grip. So the deck is stacked against them being able to shoot such a gun well.
The full size 9mm guns that I found fit in small hands well and which are more commonly available were single stack 1911's, Ruger SR9, CZ75 (Stock grip is OK but it's better with the thin aluminium grip scales) and the S&W M&P with the smaller grip back. In the case of the CZ it's got a pretty fat grip area but the thing that makes it fit small hands well is the egg like cross section to the grip with the point of the egg shaped cross section running along the back strap. Being narrow and roughly the same shape as a 1911 along the backstrap is what seems to make it work.
Take this for what you wish but it's what I observed and the feedback from the ladies that tried a bunch of different guns over a number of visits that is the basis for what is in this post. It also matches what I heard from the girls we had working there as RO's.
To set the stage a little more when I lived in Burnaby I helped out now and then for Ladies night at DVC. So I got to see a lot of low and first time girls shooting handguns. I quickly found that there are three things that really affect them that are not significant for most guys.
First off is that if they can be sensitive to hard recoil and the loudness of the report. They typically get past that pretty quickly.... unless someone sets off a .500S&W in the lane next to them...
But if they don't then they tend to be nervous and flinch a lot. I've seen a few of those come back to shoot in quieter times and with less noise around them they did a lot better. They'll get used to it but if the noise and recoil bothers them at first it might take a few sessions to get past it. It seems like stobrien's wife is at that point where .22 is fine but the 9 has a bit too much kick to be comfortable with shooting. The smaller and slighter ladies often don't have the muscle development to hold a handgun out at arm's length for the time it takes for a full magazine. Part of this is the relative size and weight of the gun and part of it is that if they are smaller than average then consider that for them it's like a regular guy holding out a Desert Eagle for a full magazine. So in such cases we need to cut them a bit of slack and understand that they might want to take a break. It's not that they CAN'T hold the gun long enough. But that their muscles will lose the steadiness needed for accurate shooting. There's no shame in clicking on the safety and lowering the gun to the bench and resting one's arms.
Finally if we expect our ladies to shoot well we need to fit the gun to their hand sizes. A small hand might be physically able to hold a Beretta 92 or an old Gen 3 Glock but they don't fit well and allow them to have a proper amount of finger wrap around and support the gun correctly positioned in their grip. So the deck is stacked against them being able to shoot such a gun well.
The full size 9mm guns that I found fit in small hands well and which are more commonly available were single stack 1911's, Ruger SR9, CZ75 (Stock grip is OK but it's better with the thin aluminium grip scales) and the S&W M&P with the smaller grip back. In the case of the CZ it's got a pretty fat grip area but the thing that makes it fit small hands well is the egg like cross section to the grip with the point of the egg shaped cross section running along the back strap. Being narrow and roughly the same shape as a 1911 along the backstrap is what seems to make it work.
Take this for what you wish but it's what I observed and the feedback from the ladies that tried a bunch of different guns over a number of visits that is the basis for what is in this post. It also matches what I heard from the girls we had working there as RO's.
GunsNotPuns
CGN frequent flyer
Jericho 941/Baby Eagle. You can get a range kit for about $550 if you shop around -- picked mine up this week for $580 all in.
