Taking wife shooting for the first time--which guns?

A couple of years ago I took my wife shooting for the first time.
After a day of shooting my 1911's and other 45's she said she liked it but wasn't really her thing.It took me about a year to get her back to the range but by then I had learned from my mistake.This time it was 3-22's-2 with optics and a 9mm that stayed in my gun bag.wouldn't you know it she's with me at the range twice a month from then on and even has her own guns now.The first time I didn't do it on purpose she invited herself as i was walking out the door and already had my range bag packed.
My point start her off small and let her work her own self up at her own pace.
 
I went through all this with my wife. She does not like .45s or revolvers. Her favorite is my Beretta 92, and the gun she chose as a carry gun is a fat SCCY 9mm, but I think she may move down to a S&W Bodyguard at the gun show tomorrow.

She likes the bigger grips, because of her initial fear that the gun would jump out of her hand. She liked 9mm because the recoil was a little less. Now, she has overcome a lot of her initial fears, and developed her own preferences beyond what they were initially.

I would try and rent a full size 9mm and run the 147 grain rounds through it. You could take some of the other guns, and as she gets more comfortable, let her pick which ones to try out.
 
Full sizes.38 or 9mm. If she'sn going to shoot a semi, make sure she's not wearing a low cut top. Nothing like a piece of hot brass in the cleavage.
 
Had that happen to a gf one time; I had advised her to wear a t-shirt and closed shoes. She insisted on a v-neck camisole and slingbacks.

Brass in the cleavage, and brass on the instep.... but she kept the muzzle safely down range, and took her finger off the trigger, as she hopped around and fished it out.
 
My niece got a hot piece of brass down the shirt last time out ..... she's been shooting for several years now, and should have known better.
 
To be fair, I did it to myself once. Not the shirt, but I wore some Reef sandals one day, and got a hot 9mm casing between my toes.

Ear plugs and muffs, eye protection, and sensible clothing and shoes may matter more than your choice of handguns (within reason).
 
Of those, the AR would be the easiest for her to shot comfortably. All the other ones can be "uncomfortable" for regular shooters.
 
My wife had no troubles at all shooting my Ruger p95, so I'd say go with the 9mm. A handgun that can shoot .22 long rifle might be a good one to start out with, if you have one or can rent/barrow one??:D
 
First handgun my wife fired was my Smith 586 loaded with .38's. Once she got a feel for it, she tried a few of my semi autos. Hated my Glock 23 but loved my Sig 220. She now carries a Sig P238.
 
My wife has tried most of my guns, but always prefers to shoot my Smith 22a ... she's not a fan of recoil ... since she's not a real shooting enthusiast, I don't argue with her (wouldn't anyhow, since I prefer to sleep in our bed rather than the sofa) and she's an excellent shot with that gun ... I figure the idea is to make sure she enjoys what she's doing and maybe she'll want to shoot something larger in the future ...
 
My ex-wife said the slide coming back on semi-autos freaked her out and that was why she preferred revolvers.
 
Dear Mike Goob,

Since you have a "38/357 snubby", this is my suggestion.

Load it with 148 grain .38 Special full wadcutters. Why?
1. It's the least load employed by the 1st Gen. Air Marshals and the old Civil Defense department, as well as most plainclothes police from the 50's, forward.
2. It is a viable SD load, without any argument of a hollow point, with low flash, and won't hurt her ears, in the middle of the night.
3. If she likes that, THEN, move to 158-grain semiwadcutters, without the hollowpoint. Just a little bit more, just as functional, and accurate.
4. Both loads will NOT bust your wallet!!
 
Get a .22 such as a Ruger auto or a S&W K22 for starters. And a .22 rifle. Leave the big bore stuff til after you teach her to shoot.
 
This is an older thread... I wonder how it turned out?

As far as some recommending revolvers because they are simpler, and those that complain that a woman can understand complex things just like a man...

It has nothing to do with the woman's ability to understand complex things, its more about intimidation. If you are already nervous, knowing that mishandled a firearm is dangerous/deadly, adding in all these rules about safety and range regulations, instruction on how to aim and sight picture, proper trigger pull... then on top of that, you throw in the added complexities of semi-auto manipulation, and you get a recipe to overwhelm and lock up the mind. It doesn't help that when talking about things we are passionate about, people have a tendency to talk faster and throw out info too quickly before what was said before has time to sink in, adding yet another difficulty.

The same applies to men who are new to shooting as well.

My fiance loves shooting, but it took a while for her to learn things like single vs dual action, action types, and other things like that.

Just like in school, learning any subject, like math, you start simple with the basics and work your way up to more advanced things. At each step you take what you learned before and use it as a base for what comes next. The same formula works when teaching someone to shoot.
 
Starting a NEW shooter with anything other than a .22 - both rifle and/or handgun - is a HUGE mistake. Between the shock of the noise, the recoil of your current guns, you will do more to turn her off than anything. Snub nose guns are some of the hardest to shoot period, let alone with any degree of accuracy; 9mm can be snappy to a new shooter; forget the others as well.
Once she gets used to shooting the .22, THEN move up the ladder with the biggest guns she can handle shooting the lightest, least recoiling loads that work the gun.
JMO, YMMV
 
It looks like most of your collection is CCW stuff. The Sig calibers may be a little snappy but what size is it? In my experience, you want:

- lighter rounds;
- a smooth trigger that's not too tough to pull;
- the largest gun she can comfortably grip;
- the longest sight radius she can keep stable;

Basically, you want her to have fun. That means reliably hitting targets and not being blown away by more recoil than she can handle. Get a good balance for her and let her explore the experience. Once she seems to have the hang of it, then you can change it up a little. Once some comfort and confidence is built with a .22, .32, or .38; it can be a lot of fun to playfully introduce a full-power magnum. Whatever the case, if she enjoys the experience and wants to do it again for her, instead of just to make you happy, this will be the start of something beautiful.
 
Teach her the following at home first:

1) Firearms safety. Make sure she knows the rules and can demonstrate them.
2) Handling. Make sure she knows how to use either a revolver, pistol or both. This should be done with empty guns at home. She can build her confidence and competence in handling them so when she does go to the range, she's familiar with them.

At the range:

3) Let her choose which one to take to the range. What feels good to her hand? Which one does she feel more confident and comfortable in handling.
4) Don't forget to have her clean them when she's done. It's part of the training.
 
I would recommend a .22lr of some sorts for her first time out. ammo is cheap enough for plenty of practice on the basics such as grip, trigger control and sight usage. recoil wont distract her nor intimidate her.

once she has learned the basics of gun handling safety and marksmanship she can move on to other guns and shooting drills.
 
If it were me....

Id tote the .38spl snub with the CT grip & the Kahr 9x19mm.
Use mild, low recoil target rounds with low muzzle flash. Let her build up into the more powerful & larger caliber pistols.
You want her range trip to be fun & educational. Loud noises & flashes can turn some people off. They develop a flinch or become leery of the noise, blast & recoil.
I can literally shoot all day long but many of my friends & relatives who carry guns or hunt just shoot 100-300rds then stop.

Clyde
PS; teach her how to field strip & clean a gun too. It takes the "power" & "mystique" away when you tear it into pieces. She'll be more confident and have better shooting skills.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top