I am wanting to find a pistol to keep around the house and carry with me occaisionally. We are going to be moving out in the country and I want my wife to have something to use if I am not at home and someone or something comes around that doesn't belong. I want something like a 25 or 32. I know they are awfully pricey now. My brother bought a 32 a few years ago. I was a clone of something and it was 500. Any ideas ?

 

I have a NICE glock model 23, it is a .49, but my wife shoots it easily. (she's about 5'6", 115...)

I paid around $415-ish, it was not too bad.

Check local gun shops, they genrally have nice used pistols that are not too $$$$.

 

S&W Ladysmith .38 and practice w/wadcutters.

 

If she is not real familiar with pistols, get her a revolver. If you're going to get her an auto, check out the Macarov (Mac) 380. More punch than a 25 or 32. It's not much for fancy looks, but it's inexpensive, light weight, accurate and has pretty good knock down when loaded with Hydro Shocks. I usually use my Mac instead of my Sig or S&W when re-qualifying for my concealed carry.

 

Go with a double action revolver, .38. When buying one for my wife, i would put snap caps randomly in my .45 mag, and see if she could clear in a timely fashion -NO. My single action, in a hurry, she wouldn't remember to **** sometimes, but she knows to pull the trigger. I brought her a stainless Rossi, she practices with wadcutters, but packs +Ps for protection.
Just my .02

 

Glock model 23 is a .40 caliber, im sure you just mistyped that but thought i would clear that up. I have a model 23 as well and i love it. My fiance only weighs about 110lbs and she shoots it, but its a little big for her.

I bought her a Kahr CW9 which is a great gun and fits her perfectly. Its a
9mm. we went to the local gun stores and had her hold all of the guns and see what fit her the best. Thats what she chose. The only downside to it is that before it got good and broke in it was hard for her to rack the slide.

 

I vote for a revolver in .357 Magnum. 357 has a lot of recoil but you can shoot 38 specials in it for practice.

My wife has a Colt Detective Special in .38 special and keeps +P hollowpoints in it.

 

I keep a Taurus 85CH (4th from the top) loaded with Corbon DPX (standard load) real close to me. It's a solid gun that fits my needs well and doesn't break the wallet.

 

For home defense nothing compares to shotgun designed for defense. Simple operation, you point it and don't have to worry about aim. And best of all it will scare the crap out of most crooks, whether it is fired or not!

For pistols, go big in caliber, .40 or .45. There is a reason most law enforcement agencies only carry these two calibers.

 

I agree with MSquare-get a shotgun. All you have to do is point is down a hall way and touch one off and whatever was there will no longer be there.

For most women though, a 20 gauge is best. I bought my wife a Remmington youth model, it's an overall shorter gun that is easy to maneuver and they can practice with it all day and never get a headache or sore shoulder. I've taken my wife shooting numerous times as we are both avid hunters, she is far more accurate with a shotgun than with a pistol, even in a quick shot situation.

 

I carry a kel-tec 9 mm. Reliable, low cost (260$) and if you carry alot they get banged up. Sweat from your body wil also rust them, so if you carry a costly gun, be prepared to constantly keep it up, and have its value go down just by carrying. If something happens to the kel-tec, big deal....if something happens to 600$ or 1200$ something or other....ouch.

Besides the kel-tec is small, they have a belt clip, trigger mods, etc...all real cheap.
I also have a 45, and carry it rarely anymore. I use to.

 

it all boils down to the willingness to pull the trigger. shotguns are the least aim sensitive weapons to use in close quarters but they are also the hardest to decide to use. just an .02 but worth a thought

 

here is my 2 cents on this...

for home protection a shotgun can be a bit large, hard to move around in a tight area and is easier for the bad guy to take away if they get a chance.. But on the upside you only have to point them in the general direction and they hit their target.. also Just the sound of "racking a round" usually scares most people off...

As far as handguns are concerned.. Get a revolver .. Usually home handguns are put in a drawer and forgotten.. I wheel gun can be stored and not maintained and they will still go Bang when you need them to...

Semi Auto's although they have their upsides.. the main Downside is they need to be regularly oiled and maintained or they will only go bang once and could jam. If you don't practice a failure drill then they may confuse you in a time when you don't need to be confused..

Ask any Law enforcement person what kind of gun they carry for a back up and most if not all will tell you a revolver because they always work...

 

i would go with a revolver in a .38 or .357. revolvers are a lot less maintenance than a semi-auto. only down side between the two is the revolver has less ammo capacity.

as for size, a .38 or .357 will be just fine, you dont need a big caliber gun.

if anyone gets into a situation where a gun is needed to defend themselves, it will be a shoot to kill situation, not a shoot to wound situation and hope for some luck.

im sure that other EMS, Fire, Police, personnel will agree. if you shoot for "Center Mass" or any where in the chest area, that person is down for the count.

 

A CZ-52 is a 8 round 7.62x25 with the punch about that of a .357 for about $150. they are war surplus. Or the CZ-82 which is a 12 round 9X18 markov with the punch of a 9mm for about $200 to $250 it is a smaller auto. I have both a little heavy but fine weapons.