The wife wants a pistol. :)

J

Joe Klug

New member
Gina (my wife) and I went to the gun show today in McDonough, Ga. She wanted to get a new purse with a concealment compartment for a handgun. We've looked on the web but seeing something in person is a lot better than a photo. She found a nice one that she liked at a decent price. We then started looking for something good to put in that compartment.

I was thinking she might like a .38 special revolver for simplicity and reliability. After holding every .38 at the show she couldn't find anything that felt really good in her hand. She liked the Lady Smith (shudder) the best but still said it didn't feel quite right. (I'm not disappointed that she decided against the Lady Smith. That way I avoided the conversation about why I'm not going to buy it for her unless she finds a used one. :))

Just out of curiosity she picked up a Glock semi-auto 9mm and instantly fell in love with it. We made the rounds at the show again and let her hold about every 9mm semi-auto there was but she still said the Glock felt best to her.

I'm still not too sure about her carrying a semi-auto since she is not experienced with them, but I figure there will be plenty of trips to the range and instruction before she ever carries. I figure the Glock is not is bad choice since they have a good reputation for reliability.

We didn't buy one since she has never shot one before and holding one in a gun show is a lot different than firing one. I wanted her to experience the trigger pull, recoil and general "feel" before spending money on something she might not like after one trip to the range.

When we got home I offered, once again, to take her to the range. To my surprise she said yes (this hasn't happened in years) so I packed up a few of my 9mm pistols and my Beretta .45 auto. Once we were at Advanced Bullets (my local range) we noticed that
they had a Glock 19 (the same model she was drooling over at the gun show) for rent. We rented the Glock and went out to the 25 foot range (the closest one). She tried my Kel-Tec, the CZ-75 and the Glock. To my surprise, she was most comfortable with and shot best with the Glock. I let her shoot most of the 150 rounds I brought with me and she got more and more comfortable with it. The best she did was 8 out of 10 shots in one of those 5½ inch shoot-n-see targets but that's not bad at all for being the first time she has ever shot that pistol.

After we ran out of 9mm ammo I let her try my Beretta. She was not that comfortable with the increased recoil of the .45 auto but she shot pretty good with it. I told her that Beretta makes the Cougar in a 9mm but she still insisted that the Glock felt best in her hand.

She is going to go to the Carroll County Courthouse and start her application for a concealed carry permit soon. Looks like I'll be in the market for a Glock real soon. So much for me not buying any more striker fired pistols. :)

Joe/Ga
 
Greetings,

From over here in 1911-land, it looks like you have wandered over there into Glockville. Don't get lost. ;)

Regards,

Ledbetter
 
My wife carries a Glock 26 and loves it. 100% reliable. She turned her nose up at many .38 prospects. Galco makes the nicest purse holster ($$$).
 
I think it's best to just let them pick the pistol that feels good in their hands and is pleasing to their eyes. I tried to pick the right pistol for my wife but then I thought, hey, it's not for me! I told her to pick the pistol that she liked and that she would practice with. She chose a Taurus Total Ti in .38 special. She's good with it and I'm proud of her. She got her CCDW about a year ago.

Will
 
Agreed regarding choosing a pistol for someone else. A bad idea, IMO, even if the intentions are good. That's why I wanted her to come to the gun show with me. No place else in town where she can hold so many differnt pistols all in one place to see what fits her best.

Just because I'm not a fan of Glocks doesn't mean I wouldn't get one for the wife. I have known for some time now that we have differnt tastes in many things. :)

The only thing that would make me override her decision would be if she liked something like a High Point or Lorcin. Glock has a good reputation and I have no problem with her choice, even if it's not the one I would make.

Joe/Ga
 
Joe, that would be different and she'd probably understand. That's an issue of qualities that she's not really qualified to judge yet. Fit, feel and appearance, on the other hand, are completely subjective and up to her. You did good.
I don't think mine's going to show an interest in guns again until I stop talking about them all the time. I figure I'll just keep buying guns for myself and when she likes one, she'll take it.
 
Sounds to me like ya done good. She tried a bunch and selected something decent. Her choice will make it more likely that she will enjoy becoming more proficient with it.

Me no Glok fan but a well run Glok better n a fumbled whatever.

Sam...my favorite 9mm is the 9X32R
 
Joe,

That's the only way to do it right. Decide which one's you're gonna say NO to (due to quality, reliability) and the rest is up to them!
Might I just inquire if your wife also handled the Glock 26 at the show? How about the Kahr P9 or MK9? Since it's for concealed carry, I think your wife should at least see the 26. You might be missing out on a more suitable carry piece otherwise. Since she likes the 19, I would be surprised if the little baby Glock didn't tickle her fancy at least as much.
 
My wife just picked up shooting (wants a CCW) so we went to the range and shot a variety of calibers in a variety of types of handguns. 45ACP too violent, same with 38 or 9mm. Revolvers just feel and point better. 32 cal revolver too expensive to operate. 22 LR revolver feels and points just right. Bad news is 5 rounds is too few shots and too hard to reload. She did find a S&W 22 LR revolver with a 9 round capacity. Not too heavy, easy to point, easy to shoot, larger capacity. Only problem is its a S&W, but I'll not confuse the issue. Fine tune the ammunition and she'll be good to go. Point is she want to shoot for self-protection.
 
Thanks everyone for the replies. Good to know I seem to have done the right thing for once. :)

Don, I was hoping my wife would like something out of my collection. I gave her run of the safe and nothing "felt just right". Can't really complain though, gives me a good excuse to buy another pistol. And this time she won't complain about me spending the money. :)

Onslaught, Yes, she tried the sub-compact Glock but did not like it as well. I think the grip is a bit fatter and she didn't like the fact that her little finger did not have anything to hold on to. Both the dealer at the table and I told her about the replacement magazine base plates that provide a finger rest but she didn't seem to think that would make enough of a difference. If she was going to carry this in a holster on her person I would have more strongly suggested something smaller than the G19 but since the 19 fits real well in the concealment purse I think it will do good for her.

Waitone, My wife briefly looked at a Walther .380 and it didn't feel too bad to her but I suggested that 9mm should probably be the minimum for defensive use. I know opinions on this subject vary greatly and a hit with a .380 or a .25 is better than a miss with a 9mm or .45 but I figure some range time will get her plenty used to the 9mm she decided on.

Ak9, I'm pretty sure she tried a Kahr. She picked up almost everything at the show. :) I get the feeling that once she held the Glock her mind was pretty much made up. Nothing else really got her excited. A couple felt "OK" but she kept coming back to the Glock table. After the trip to the range yesterday there is no turning back. She wants that G19. :)

Joe/Ga
 
Hi Joe

Sorta went through the same thing with my wife. She was never into pistols like I was and hardly ever went to the range. But when we adopted our neice due to deaths in the family. I saw a change, now that she knew she was also responsible for our little girls safety also.

She asked about what I thought and we discussed what she wanted in a pistol. She said she definetly wanted manual safeties on the pistol. That was about the only requirement she said she couldn't do without.

We looked at catalogs and went to shops and purchased two different pistols. Both .380s which I was hoping I could get her used to them and help her move up to at least a 9mm.

One was the Beretta 85 single stack 380. The other was a Colt Govt. Model 380. I sent the Colt away to SM&A for the PCP package and had her dry fire some of them. Unfortunately she found out the hard way that the Beretta wasn't what she wanted. Sold it.

She went to a Handgun class with me and I brought All of my handguns with me for her to try out. Low and behold she liked and shot the best with a Glock Model 19.

So I let her have it.

Good luck and safe shooting,
Ross T.
 
Well done! :D

I keep wondering when my wife is going to get bitten by this particular "bug". I need to take her to the range with me just so I can feel comfortable with leaving her at home with the kids if I have to go out of town. I want her to be proficient with both a shotgun and one handgun. Time for me to get to work!

And as someone who carries a Glock 19, I will heartily second her choice!
 
Bob Locke,

Just get a strange-looking friend of yours (preferably one she hasn't met yet) to appraoch her one day and start talking to her about his collection of hair in a jar.

She might come around a little more quickly that way ;),
I know that was wrong... sorry :eek: lol
Ben

BTW: Congradulations Joe... now you need to get her out there during the clay-shoots.

------------------
Almost Online IM: BenK911
ICQ # 53788523
"Gun Control Is Being Able To Hit Your Target" http://ben.gunsnet.net

[This message has been edited by Ben (edited September 25, 2000).]
 
Collection of hair in a jar??

Now there's something I never would have thought of. :)

Oh, regarding getting her out for sporting clays.......one step at a time. :D

Joe/Ga
 
Hey Joe.. whatever floats her boat.

My girlfriend turns her nose at any kind of auto.. but will pick up any revolver she can get her hands on. :confused: Who am I to complain right? :D

------------------
God, Guns and Guts made this country a great country!

oberkommando sez:
"We lost the first and third and now they are after the Second!(no pun intended)"
 
Sounds like she made a good choice and that is the key, her own choice. If she is going to perhaps need to defend herself one day she better feel very comfortable with the weapon.

My wife wants the NAA mini .22 revolver (because it's cute) and she has informed me that she wants another handgun for self protection. So we're going to the gun show in October and see what we can find.

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The best weapon for self defense is the one you have when the need arises!
 
You gotta admit Joe, that it might just do the trick for some of the fence-sitting ladies ;) Gotta speed up the process somehow. Hell, most GUYS would probably be disturbed if somebody did that to them.

Ben

------------------
Almost Online IM: BenK911
ICQ # 53788523
"Gun Control Is Being Able To Hit Your Target" http://ben.gunsnet.net

[This message has been edited by Ben (edited September 26, 2000).]
 
My wife carries a Pre agreement S&W model 60 .357 mag loaded with +P Nyclads. She has a belt, ankle and pocket holster for it. She is not real fast with follow up shots but she is accurate!! She picked it out and traded a Republic Arms Patriot in .45ACP I had bought for her.

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"Every normal man must be tempted, at times, to spit on his hands, hoist the black flag and begin slitting throats." H.L. Mencken
 
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