First handgun?

No, I don't intend to carry, except to transport it to the range. My understanding, although I need to verify it, is that I don't need a permit for that in PA, as long as it is inaccessible in the vehicle.
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So most of the things I said you need to spend on, you don't need. But you ought to get formal instruction.

Learning from message boards like this one will help a lot.
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Yeah, and there's a lot of crap on gunboards too. Time and experience will let you sort them out.
 
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I have shied away from the bigger handguns,
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Fear is the problem, and Understanding is the solution, I think.

Larger handguns, all else being equal, will recoil less- just physics- they have more inertia ("an object at rest will remain at rest, until acted on by an outside force") to resist being moved ......

Now take a large, all steel 6" heavy barrelled .357Magnum revolver, and shoot the same .38 Specials through that you shot in the Taurus Snubby ..... less recoil, less flash, less bang. Longer sight radius, too, so you'll be able to aim more precisely.
 
I agree, I am definitely intimidated by the larger handguns. Intellectually, I understand that bigger = easier to use. I just need to convince the rest of me. :) Having said that, I was looking at S&W model 66 today and a 686 plus, based on the advise I have gotten here. They just feel too big- not just the size and weight, but I feel like I am stretching to reach the hammer and trigger. One was much better than the other, but I don't remember which was which. Fortunately, I have found a very patient man at the local gun shop.
 
A medium framed 38 that fits your hand well is an excellent choice. If a 4" barrel makes it feel unbalanced, 3" barrels are another option. I have been shooting regularly for 35 years, and a 38 or 357 is still my preferred self defense handgun.

I just now got a text from my MiL. She is staying out in the country this week to help a relative recovering from surgery. Last time she did this she felt kind of nervous at night. Since then she has practiced with her handgun a lot. She said now that she is comfortable with her handgun and confident in her skills, she isn't the least bit nervous.
 
Regardless of whether you intend to carry or not, I would suggest, that if at all possible, get the permit. Personally, I'd prefer to keep the gun in my possession rather than lock it up in the trunk [and keeping the rounds separate] when going to the range. Having the permit does not require you to carry the gun at all times; it just means that you can if the situation changes or dictates it. It also means that if you happen to have the gun on you, you're covered from the legal standpoint, as long as you are following the laws..

Like the others have already stated, a larger, heavier gun will be a boon as they tend to be more comfortable to shoot. OTOH, I find my S&W Shield to be comfortable to shoot, at least for me, so it's possible to find smaller packages that shoot well. But when I go out to shoot, mostly it's 4 inch .357's, and 17 round semi-automatics. Those tend to be the most comfortable and fun to shoot. Smaller guns tend to translate to "uncomfortable to shoot" and "shot less just because"..
 
A few things to think about.

First, as a neophyte, accept that you know little to nothing about guns. Guns like the Glock 19, XD9, s&w revolver and s&w M&P are immensely popular. . .meaning they are great first guns...and, if you don't like them, they sell well.

9mm is ~1/2 the price of 38 spcl. Basically the same caliber...9mm - $14. 38 - $25

Reliability is the key to fun. Struggles, returns, repairs all suck...brands like Taurus have more. Brands like Springfield and Glock have less.
 
KAAAAAA-RAPPPPP!

I'm SLIPPIN"!

25 posts in and I have not directed the BRAND NEW SHOOTER to the single very best reference out there:

http://www.corneredcat.com/

Doubly so for the distaff side of the breed.....

There's more good stuff here:

http://www.agirlandhergun.org/

Mindset, Skills and Hardware ..... the hardware being the least important of the three ..... so long as it works, you are confident in and are proficient with it .....
 
my wife went through several semi-autos for her first firearms. after shooting the .38spl Taurus for the first time, she has never wanted to go back to a semi. we have an older Taurus 85 snub and she carries a Taurus poly protector 357. wish we would have just started with a revolver before buying several mini 9mm's that couldn't or at least we didn't shoot with a crap.

Taurus makes a 9mm, model 905, ammo would be cheap, but uses moon clips and probably slightly harder to handle
 
My father, uncle, and grandfather trained me on revolvers first. I have trained... I don't know, maybe a dozen new shooters the same way. To me it always seems more intuitive, maybe because you can see the ammo, maybe because it works kind of like a kid's cap gun that most of us owned a series of as kids?

I still to this day start every shooting session with a 22. It gets me "warmed up", kind of like stretching before the game. My dad's advice was to get a 38 revolver, and also a 22 that was fairly similar. It was good advice and has helped with my own training and in training others. Plus the 22 has come in handy on a rare occasion for putting down a rabid-acting opossum, a terribly injured cat (hit on country road by some creep who left it to die), and so forth.

OP, let us know what you get and how you enjoy shooting it. :)
 
You say you have a difficult time reaching the hammer or trigger. There is usually an easy solution. The S&W 686 and 66 were probably fitted with the target grips. Change them out for a set that fits you. You may want to try the standard magna grips with a grip adapter or a set of grips from any high quality grip maker. Pachmayr makes several good rubber composite grips. Hogue also makes several good high quality grips. The 66 and 686 have the same grip frame so the grips are interchangeable. The frame, cylinder, and barrel of the 686 is slightly larger than on the 66.
 
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