Ladies, need advice for revolver purchase

[XDSConcealer]

Well my wife and I finished up at the range with Charles Cotton not too long ago and it was an awesome experience. First, Charles, thank you again. I know that we are going to take you up on your offer again to come shoot as my wife had a great time and really felt empowered by the whole experience. She had fun and talked about it the whole way home.

Now to the shooting... Through some helpful techniques that Charles taught, my wife was racking and locking the slides back on every gun Charles had including his 1911 .45ACP. Heck, I even picked up on a few pointers that I'm going to try the next time I hit the range. What's funny about the 1911 .45 is that my wife was a better shot on that than any other gun he brought with him. We have some more shooting to do to see what fits best to her but .45ACP is absolutely on the table (and a future purchase for sure).

I wanted her to go to this meet-up today to feel more comfortable around guns and on the car ride home my wife was talking about how she would conceal a .45 and would it be better to go with something smaller to wear as her conceal carry. I can't say enough about Charles' teaching and if you have the chance absolutely attend some of his classes. I have a feeling that my wife is going to sign up with him for her CHL once we get a few more rounds down range and we find a gun that suits her.

What a day! I was hoping that my wife would at least gain the confidence to hold and shoot a gun and feel comfortable with them in the house and we leave one 2 hour session with Charles and my wife is talking about what gun she can conceal carry and what type she should get!

Thanks, Charles! We will be in touch to try out that other 1911 .45ACP you mentioned before we make any final decisions on what .45 to get her. I have a feeling that at the gun show this weekend I'll be leaving with at least one purchase if not 2 or 3.

[Charles L. Cotton]

I'm glad it was helpful for her. She did great, so she has every reason to feel confident in her ability.

I have a case set for trial a week from Monday, but it may be continued. If it is reset, I can meet you at the Club sometime prior to Friday so she can try the other gun(s) before the gun show. If it isn't reset, I'll be preparing for trial all week. I can't do it on Friday or this weekend.

Chas.

[RHenriksen]

I'm so glad you took Charles up on his offer, and your wife had such a good experience!

Another data point for the women-who-can't-rack-a-semiauto:

My ex went shopping yesterday for a pistol to replace the ones stolen Friday morning. She liked the M&P Shield, but was struggling w. racking the slide on a new pistol fresh out of the box at the store counter. Was getting really frustrated, but persevered. Now she's racking it like a pro w. some practice.

[XDSConcealer]

Selfishly, the best part of this whole experience is that I finally get to purchase a 1911. In the past my wife has always fussed at me for the amount of money I spend on guns and really threw a fit when she saw the cost of a good 1911. Now that my wife shot Charles' 1911 so well and we spent yesterday looking at several I have the green light to get one.

SWEET!

[RobinK]

[quote="BigGuy"]My wife has the same problem. We finally found the gun we were looking for. It's a Walther PK380.



FYI Safety Recall on some Walther PK380s...


http://www.ammoland.com/2012/10/05/walt ... z2A5rcb9zi

[tarbe]

I'm not a lady, but I am married to one!

And that lady just went through the process of buying her first pistol (I have been offering to help her get started shooting for 30 years....took Obama/Biden/Pelosi/Reid to get her off the X).

She could buy anything she wanted...nothing was "off the table". But after handling dozens, she decided on the LCR. Truth be told, I was hoping she'd pick the LCR...and would have vetoed any "improper" choice.

Light weight and oversized, soft grips did her in. Well, and the nice DA pull.

She has dry-fired it about 150 times in the past 4 days. We'll spend another 15 minutes tonight with it.

Next weekend we hope to be ready for the first live-fire exercise. I will load up some 125 gr Berry's plated at about 750 fps for that first experience. Nice and gentle.

She enjoys handling and dry-firing it. I swear it even put a smile on her face!

My $0.02

Edit: Realize this is an older thread, but anyone searching might benefit from another opinion.


Tim

[MamaK]

I can't tell if I'm necroposting or if its an acceptable timefram =( because the dates on every post is wonky (one is 2013, one is 2009) so my deepest apologies if this is a necropost.

With that being said, I am deeply in love with my 38 Rossi. It feels good to hold and typically I am loaning it on the range to ladies whose husbands have pulled them out "to get comfortable" with firearms. (btw guys, don't bring a Taurus judge with .410 to "break in" your sweetheart.).

I think that because the op is letting his lady choose what feels good to her, is the best method to follow and really he should be given kudos for that. (also, its kind of romantic....)

[CHLLady]

OK--here's the deal----does she WANT a revolver??? I will be the first to admit that I'm not a revolver girl!! To me, it is more complicated than my semi-automatics. I have a couple of them for training purposes--but they are NOT in my carry arsenal.

In order for her to be consistent with practicing-and eventually carrying, it needs to be something that she is comfortable with. Some of the revolvers & the smaller semis litterally hurt (for me) to shoot. I shoot them often enough to stay proficient--but they are always the last in the line up--when I finish shooting them-I'm done!

So many people think a woman needs a revolver because it is "easier" to learn. but, my Kitchenaide mixer has more moving parts than my semi automatics!

My saying is that guns are like shoes & underwear--if they don't fit right, they will make you miserable! And by "fit", I'm talking about more than just size

I know you didn't want a lecture--so I tried to stay nice!!

I appreciate the feedback but she just doesn't have the hand strength to rack the slide. I agree with you that I like the feel of the semi-auto's a lot better but if she can't chamber a round then what's the point? I figured starting her off with a 380 revolver so something like that she will gain some confidence. Further, loading, unloading and pulling the hammer back to shoot should be easier for her. I bought a 32 auto for her thinking that would be a great starter gun for her (Kel-Tec) and she can't pull the slide at all.

She's tried my XD-40 and my XDS and she just doesn't have the strength. Aside from starting a workout program that consists of adding semi-auto racking I'm hoping to get some thoughts on firearms to at least get her started.

Thanks!

I also have trouble racking my 32 the way my instructor and hubby want me to, but I can't do it quickly enough. So, I use my thumb and index finger to grasp and pull from the end, with my left hand. My right hand is gripping the gun, index finger straight out along side the gun, not on the trigger of course. It's kind of a pull - push effect. Make sense? My instructor who is also an active officer, told me to just keep doing that way because it works for me.

[MeMelYup]

OK--here's the deal----does she WANT a revolver??? I will be the first to admit that I'm not a revolver girl!! To me, it is more complicated than my semi-automatics. I have a couple of them for training purposes--but they are NOT in my carry arsenal.

In order for her to be consistent with practicing-and eventually carrying, it needs to be something that she is comfortable with. Some of the revolvers & the smaller semis litterally hurt (for me) to shoot. I shoot them often enough to stay proficient--but they are always the last in the line up--when I finish shooting them-I'm done!

So many people think a woman needs a revolver because it is "easier" to learn. but, my Kitchenaide mixer has more moving parts than my semi automatics!

My saying is that guns are like shoes & underwear--if they don't fit right, they will make you miserable! And by "fit", I'm talking about more than just size

I know you didn't want a lecture--so I tried to stay nice!!

I appreciate the feedback but she just doesn't have the hand strength to rack the slide. I agree with you that I like the feel of the semi-auto's a lot better but if she can't chamber a round then what's the point? I figured starting her off with a 380 revolver so something like that she will gain some confidence. Further, loading, unloading and pulling the hammer back to shoot should be easier for her. I bought a 32 auto for her thinking that would be a great starter gun for her (Kel-Tec) and she can't pull the slide at all.

She's tried my XD-40 and my XDS and she just doesn't have the strength. Aside from starting a workout program that consists of adding semi-auto racking I'm hoping to get some thoughts on firearms to at least get her started.

Thanks!

I also have trouble racking my 32 the way my instructor and hubby want me to, but I can't do it quickly enough. So, I use my thumb and index finger to grasp and pull from the end, with my left hand. My right hand is gripping the gun, index finger straight out along side the gun, not on the trigger of course. It's kind of a pull - push effect. Make sense? My instructor who is also an active officer, told me to just keep doing that way because it works for me.

Try holding the slide with your left hand and push the grip with the right.

[SewTexas]

this ^

[CHLLady]

Try holding the slide with your left hand and push the grip with the right.[/quote]

Great tip! I will try it!