Who Has a Wife Who Likes to Shoot?

[Guyon]

No, not at you personally, you smartazzes... at the range.

My wife is finally going to take the TN Permit Class, and the shooting portion is about four hours long. She'll have to shoot approximately 100 rounds, and I think 48 rounds are for the actual qualification.

She's a pretty good shot, having fired a variety of pistols in various trips with me to the range. Mainly, we want to be sure that her pistol is one she can heft for a long period and one that she can handle as far as repeated trigger pull. I recall, when I took the class, there was one girl who, by the end of the day, could barely pull the trigger on her DA-only S&W .38. Her hand simply gave out, and she squeaked by with the minimum number of hits on paper. While I don't think this would happen with my wife, I'd rather she have a pistol & trigger pull that makes the experience more enjoyable.

I think my wife could easily handle one of my Makarovs, which are fairly lightweight, accurate, reliable, and which are double/single action. However, if she carries (purse carry), she's expressed interest in something like a Kel-Tec .380 or one of the new Ruger LCP .380s. Maybe she should take the class with the gun she plans to carry, but then these guns are DA only, and they offer an even smaller sight radius than the Mak.

Just fishing for suggestions. Some range trips are in the works to see what she can handle for a couple boxes of ammo.

 

[Tyrkon Lawson]

That is cool. My wife wants to start going with me as well. Now I can start buying more firearms to go with the INFI!

 

[kdstrick]

Most of the triggers nowdays are horrible due to liability issues.

 

[Guyon]

Go to www.gunsprings.com. You can purchase lighter weight springs for most revolvers and pistols which lighten the trigger pressure requirement. It makes for a very cheap trigger job, and may help her build some confidence in shooting and help her to qualify.

Amen to that. The girl I mention in the first post was in a subsequent Advanced Handgun course that I also took. Between the Carry class and the Advanced class, her husband had taken the .38 to a smith, who adjusted the trigger pull. She had no problems firing about 500 rounds in the second class.

 

[Guyon]

Requisite Busse content added. Here's the Mak to which I refer above.

It may be a good choice since my wife has shot it successfully and since many of the trigger pulls would be single action.

Safety functions as a decocker which is also a nice feature.

I already have a lightweight Fobus paddle holster for it. Just would need something for the magazines.

 

[MORIMOTOM]

the two small autos you mention are da only, but the trigger pulls are likely nothing compared to a revolver.

is she planning on buying a gun prior to the class? or is she planning on using one you already have?

a glock 26 might be a good option. even shooters with small hands can typically shoot glocks well, despite the boxy grips, because of the short trigger pull.

i am against changing out any springs in any gun except with factory recommended weights. but the trigger pull on most revolvers can be smoothed and lightened a bit with some minor deburring of the internal parts. i would recommend a certified armorer do any work.

 

[Guyon]

the two small autos you mention are da only, but the trigger pulls are likely nothing compared to a revolver.

is she planning on buying a gun prior to the class? or is she planning on using one you already have?

Those are the main questions right now. The two pistols I own that are more her size are a Kel-Tec .380 and the Makarov pictured above.

A main reason I posted this thread was to see if there were any handgun suggestions for petite hands. Will definitely give the Glock 26 a look. Thanks.

 

[MORIMOTOM]

Those are the main questions right now. The two pistols I own that are more her size are a Kel-Tec .380 and the Makarov pictured above.

A main reason I posted this thread was to see if there were any pistol suggestions for petite hands. Will definitely give the Glock 26 a look. Thanks.

depending on what you want to spend, the old colt .380's are great to shoot (mustang or pony series).

i have someone looking for a ruger lcp for me, but a good friend already has one and loves it. ive read mixed reviews on line. the prevailing attitude seems to be if the gun is spotless clean, it works great. once it starts to gunk up, there are reliability issues (after 100-150 rounds or so). recoil is almost non existent, and it is sure to be a very durable gun.

but she must be comfortable shooting a three finger gun.

the kahr pm series, 9mm or .40, are pretty darn little and light. but they are no fun to shoot. i wouldn't want to go through an entire firearms class shooting only a kahr.

the glock 26 is about the easiest "small" gun to shoot. enough weight that felt recoil and muzzle rise is minimal, but it is much larger than the kahr, and is probably double the gun compared to the ruger or kel tec.

 

[Guyon]

What about a S&W (or similar) lightweight if we had time for a trigger job? A lot more recoil than, say, the Glock?

I've only shot a snubnose revolver once or twice, and that was a long time ago.

 

[Raden]

If you have a good 22lr pistol let her use that. Since you can qualify with any pistol you choose I have seen alot of ppl doing their qual with a .22

Personally I'd take her to the range with what she will carry and get her to put a few hundred downrange... then let her do the qual class with that weapon

I just realized you say she wants to carry a keltec or a ruger lcp.... don't let her qual with one of those... Odds are she wouldn't pass... there are alot that wouldn't

 

[G19G26]

Gee! Where do you think my logo came from?
My EDC is a Glock 26. The wife carries a S&W LadySmith 60 in .38. The trigger pull is way better than standard 60.

Good luck

 

[Guyon]

If you have a good 22lr pistol let her use that. Since you can qualify with any pistol you choose I have seen alot of ppl doing their qual with a .22

That's a thought. I do own a Ruger 22/45. For some reason, I discounted the .22 as a possibility.

 

[Lil' Foo]

My girlfriend has been pushing me to take her to the range.

I should really do something about that.

She would make a great shootin' partner. :thumbup:

Maybe I should see her shoot before I say that.
.

 

[Badmovies]

I taught my wife to shoot. She didn't like firearms before that. She is an acceptable shot, a bit out of practice at the moment because we've been "making the family" for the past 5 years (3 children, we're done) and didn't want any exposure to lead or such.

She is funny about handguns, because she prefers revolvers. Doesn't like the feel of semi-autos at all.

 

[flatlander]

My wife used to have an M9 that she liked but she REALLY likes my HK45 V1 I just bought. She went through over 150 rounds the other day with no problems. I figure she can carry whatever she's comfortable with as long as she practices with it. I rather be missed by a 44mag than hit by a .22 In Indiana you don't have to qualify or any of that so it's kinda nice.

Bob Mills

 

[BOILER]

Took my wife to the range a few months ago. She hadn't been shooting since before she became pregnant with our first (he is almost 10 now!). She shot a Glock 19 like she had been doing it all of her life. That's my girl!

 

[General Specific]

Help me out here if I'm wrong guys, but I believe it to be the Sig P230 in .380 that I just loved from the first shot. Post and dot sight picture just seemed very natural. Shot a single ragged hole at 7 yards with little operator help. Damn buddy traded that one 'cause his wife shot better with the compact .45 Kimber. I would have bought it from him in a heartbeat if I'd had the cash back then. May have to look into it again.

Likewise, no shooting test here in Virginia when I got my CCW, just a 4 hour lecture and then they pass around a few guns. Great to see the ignoramus's pointing them all over the place after 4 hours of "don't point at anything you don't intend to shoot..."

I wouldn't necessarily worry about her qualifying with a .22 if she has not decided on a carry gun yet. As long as she spends some time maintaining her proficiency with what she ends up getting who cares? Have fun!

Dave

 

[lunde]

My wife, who is Japanese, likes to shoot, but doesn't shoot often because of work. She owns her own pistol, which is a Glock 19 that was purchased in 2001. Overall, it is a great pistol for her. She told me that she didn't want to use one of my (many) pistols, but to have her own. Who was I to argue with that reasoning? After all, one more gun in the house is never a bad thing. Here is my G19 with an OD frame:

Oops! Sorry, wrong photo. Here we go:

Crap! WTF? Wait a minute. Okay, here it is:

She spent the last two days in mandatory training, and told me just last night that she needs to release some of the frustration at the range. :thumbup::thumbup:

In retrospect, another excellent pistol is the Kahr K9. I have the Elite 2003 version, and absolutely love it. Superb trigger, excellent ergonomics, and very thin. In fact, when my wife and I go to the range, which will be very soon, probably before my Prairie Dog Safari that starts a week from today, and involves driving to South Dakota, I will bring along my K9 for her to try, which is shown below:

 

[Ken44]

Sig 232, Alloy at 17oz:thumbup:

My wife had a snub .38 for a while and couldn't hit a thing with it, and I can't shoot a snub much better.
Got her the 232 and she shoot's it great. The only drawback is the blowback action which makes the slide hard to rack.

My stainless 232 (23oz)will outshoot my 229 and Glock 27. The 232 triggers are one half pound lighter than Sigs larger guns. 3.5 lb's vs 4

The Makarovs I have had also shoot very well, not like the Sig, but very good.

If you have a rimfire with a great trigger let her qualify with that.

 

[azshaman]

Well, guys, as a woman who carries, has a permit, and has done lots of shooting, I will only comment that I like my Glock 26 for EDC as it is concealable, offers me 10 rounds with a compact spare clip, and easy on my smaller hands. I really prefer, however, my Randall .45. The frame was groomed and thinner grips applied to make it fit my hand. As you know, however, extended firing of a .45 can be a little rough, particularly for a novice shooter. My S&W Airweight in .38 might be another choice for all-day shooting. Generally I recertify for my permit with both my Glock and the Randall to keep my confidence levels up. Hope some of this helps!