Choice of 3 pistols for aging person, least amount of recoil

Least amount of recoil for aging woman

  • CZ 83 (.380)

    Votes: 15 13.9%

  • CZ 75 (9mm)

    Votes: 65 60.2%

  • Glock 17 (9mm)

    Votes: 28 25.9%
  • Total voters
    108
  • Poll closed .
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Not open for further replies.
kokapelli said:
I have a 75B and in my opinion the Panova 380 has noticeably less felt recoil than the 75B even though it is a blowback and at ten yards which is the distance I shoot most the Panova is more accurate and shoots tighter groups. This might just be me, but that is my experience.
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Mr_Flintstone said:
OK, one more post and I'll shut up for a while. I don't have an actual CZ 75, but I do have a Tristar clone. While it does have mild recoil compared to some other 9mms, it is quite a bit more than my Bersa Thunder 380. Since the Pavona 380 weighs 10 oz more than the Thunder 380, I suspect that the recoil on it is very light indeed.
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I wish I had experience with the Pavona, but alas I've never seen one in person yet.

The only Bersa 380 I've had firing time with was the "Combat" version back in May that belongs to a friend. It was a nice shooter. Unfortunately, the only guns I had to compare to it on that outing was my 85UL snubby and my RM380. The RM380 felt real close to the Combat in the way it hits your hand.

I have a Bersa/Firestorm .22LR and what I like about it and the Combat is how the gun fits my hand. It's a small gun, but it fits pretty good.
 
Had a CZ 83 years ago and it was a very fun pistol. Accurate too.
 
I know this is a bit off topic but it is relevant to your question. I started dealing with this with my Dad when he rounded the 80 year old mark. He was concerned about not having the strength to hold up his handguns anymore. Not only was his strength severely diminished but the weight made him shake more than it used to.

Unfortunately, he hit the gun store several times when I was not with him and was sold on several small compacts that, while they sure were light and a small few had very light recoil, he had such heavy slide springs the he couldn't rack them comfortably. Within just a couple of years, he couldn't rack the slide on any handgun I had him try out.

He eventually settled on a Smith and Wesson Airweight in .357 and keeps it loaded with .38s. We had a trigger job done on it to lighted up the double action trigger and he shoots it quite well.

My take away was to have the person see if they can easily rack the slide on any gun before even looking at it seriously. If they can't easily rack the slide, it is a non-starter.
 
Interesting choice, not really sure I know the answer. Here's my experience, it might be helpful-

I don't own a Glock, can't help you there.

I do own a CZ 75, a CZ 82 (in 9x18), and a FEG PA 63 in 9x18. My brother owns, among others, a Bersa 380.

The significance: the FEG and the Bersa are about the same size, same general ergonomics, and both have aluminum frames. About the only difference is the caliber, 9x18 vs 9x17 (.380).
The FEG has a painful kick, where the Bersa is a lot milder and more pleasant.

My CZ 82 is a bigger pistol than these, and I don't find the recoil unpleasant. It has a steel frame, and seems to absorb the 9x18 recoil a lot better. I would suspect that an 83, being the same exact gun but in .380, would be even milder to shoot.

The CZ 75 is a bigger gun again, possibly a little too big for an older woman.

I know one woman who has a CZ 82, she's upper 40s, 5'2 and 100 lbs. She has problems with her wrist, sometimes wears a brace. She can handle the 82, finds the 75 a little bit too big for her.
 
Schwing said:
I know this is a bit off topic but it is relevant to your question. I started dealing with this with my Dad when he rounded the 80 year old mark. He was concerned about not having the strength to hold up his handguns anymore. Not only was his strength severely diminished but the weight made him shake more than it used to.

Unfortunately, he hit the gun store several times when I was not with him and was sold on several small compacts that, while they sure were light and a small few had very light recoil, he had such heavy slide springs the he couldn't rack them comfortably. Within just a couple of years, he couldn't rack the slide on any handgun I had him try out.
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That's why I think what CountZero mentioned in post #15 would be a good option and worth hands on trial. http://www.browning.com/products/fi.../current-production/black-label-1911-380.html

What has been mentioned about guns like the CZ75 having relatively little slide to grip onto is true. I find it much easier to grip onto the slide of say a Glock or 1911 due to the outside the frame slide having more area for the hand.

Put that larger slide grip area with a locked breech .380, which should have a relatively soft recoil spring, plus a single action trigger, it might be exactly what the doctor ordered.
 
.32 Long. Virtually no recoil.


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C0untZer0 said:
Another gun you might want to look at is the 1911-380 Black Label from Browning.
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My better half has one of those.

Pros:
- Lightweight
- Easy to rack (if pre-cocked)
- Looks fantastic at first glance
- I like the design of magazines, the slide catch is activated by a coil of the magazine spring that protrudes outside
- Low recoil but fires a reasonably potent round

Cons:
- Jams if ejecting an unfired round, because the ejector is too close to the barrel and the tip of the bullet cannot clear the edge of the chamber. Someone at Youtube suggested that he filed the ejector back by a few hundredths, and that fixed the problem. I didn't want to take a file to a gun like that. The extractor is held in place by something like 2 roll pins. It ejects empties fine, because they are shorter, so as long it's only a range toy the problem is not acute.
- Jams with some of self-defense rounds
- Wobbly slide on plastic rails
- Locks into the ejection port; there's no link - uses a cam slot instead
- Which would be perhaps fine, but action is not smooth.
- Aftermarket support is basically non-existent. Holsters from 1911-22 fit, but that's about it. No decent sights for aging eyes, forget about night sights or even fiber optics
- Plastic frame requires a metal insert for serial number, and it's fugly.
- Takes a very long time for the trigger to settle - 300..500 rounds or so

Ambivalent:
- 8 rounds capacity is okay, but not great.
- Magazine disconnect (defeatable by pressing the mag latch)
- Plastic guide rod

Overall the gun is clearly designed and made for looks, but corners are cut anywhere that's not obvious at first glance (e.g. the breech lock-up mechanism). So it makes one feel deceived after a while. The owner since moved on to a Walther Q5, which is smooth like butter and shoots 9mm with low recoil. It is a much larger gun though.
 
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On the CZ 75s, changing the hammer spring to lighter ones make a very noticeable difference in the power required to rack the slide. I have the Cajun Gun Works 12 pound spring with their Ultra Lite Kit in my 85 Combat and it is amazing to me how easy it is to actuate the slide and/or hammer. However, if you go with the 12# spring and plan to use the gun for self defense, you'll want to do some testing with your ammo to make sure the primers aren't overly hard, which might cause light strikes. I've tested mine with several brands of ammo including Speer Gold Dot for SD and the strikes are strong and I've had no FTFs at all. If you are still concerned or don't want to do the testing you can use the 13# spring and not have to worry about it. The 13# spring allows a noticeably lighter slide rack (I have those in some of my other CZs), but not as low as the 12#. The 12# makes you think you're racking the slide on a 22 LR. :)
 
If my mother were still alive and wanted an easy to use pistol, that is, easy to load, easy to rack, low recoil, effective and with good visible sights, I'd get her a FN 5.7. All of the mentioned guns have much more recoil and are harder to rack.

Of those mentioned, Maybe I'd get the CZ83 in .32acp, but the CZ 75 probably has the least recoil. Any full sized duty type 9mm would suffice for recoil but might be harder to use overall if she has strength or health problems.
 
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I own all three of the guns in the survey question.
I find the CZ75 with standard velocity 9mm P (I like Federal 9BP hollowpoints.) to have the least felt recoil. It has the liability of less slide area to grasp for loading and a long reach to the DA trigger position. With the base model you have the choice of easing the hammer down for a DA start or going Cocked and Locked. There is a CZ75 BD with mechanical decocker.
Glock 17 is not bad, has more slide to grab and rack, and a shorter trigger reach.
CZ83 has a sharp recoil not fully described by Newton computation, small slide grasping area, a very stout recoil spring, and a pretty long trigger reach. Shares the same manual of arms as the standard CZ75, hammer has to be manually lowered if you want a DA start but the safety is good, maybe better located.

I don't know why those are the three choices, there are other guns on the market that might be more suitable. S&W Plastic M&P would be at least as good as Glock.

I might be considered an "aging person." At 71 I am down to 9mm and midrange .45 in my 1911oids; my house gun is a Sig-Sauer P226. My CZ83 is not fun to shoot for very long. The .32 version would be much easier to handle.
 
zaitcev said:
My better half has one of those.

Pros:
- Lightweight
- Easy to rack (if pre-cocked)
- Looks fantastic at first glance
- I like the design of magazines, the slide catch is activated by a coil of the magazine spring that protrudes outside
- Low recoil but fires a reasonably potent round

Cons:
- Jams if ejecting an unfired round, because the ejector is too close to the barrel and the tip of the bullet cannot clear the edge of the chamber. Someone at Youtube suggested that he filed the ejector back by a few hundredths, and that fixed the problem. I didn't want to take a file to a gun like that. The extractor is held in place by something like 2 roll pins. It ejects empties fine, because they are shorter, so as long it's only a range toy the problem is not acute.
- Jams with some of self-defense rounds
- Wobbly slide on plastic rails
- Locks into the ejection port; there's no link - uses a cam slot instead
- Which would be perhaps fine, but action is not smooth.
- Aftermarket support is basically non-existent. Holsters from 1911-22 fit, but that's about it. No decent sights for aging eyes, forget about night sights or even fiber optics
- Plastic frame requires a metal insert for serial number, and it's fugly.
- Takes a very long time for the trigger to settle - 300..500 rounds or so

Ambivalent:
- 8 rounds capacity is okay, but not great.
- Magazine disconnect (defeatable by pressing the mag latch)
- Plastic guide rod

Overall the gun is clearly designed and made for looks, but corners are cut anywhere that's not obvious at first glance (e.g. the breech lock-up mechanism). So it makes one feel deceived after a while. The owner since moved on to a Walther Q5, which is smooth like butter and shoots 9mm with low recoil. It is a much larger gun though.
Click to expand...

The build differences from a real 1911 don't bother me, but what you mention about the ejection with unfired rounds is concerning. It sounds like a shooter should stick to truncated cone FMJ or shorter JHP ammo.
 
Racking the slide on the CZ83 is going to be more difficult than on the 75 or the Glock.
I have a CZ82, three CZ75 clones, and a Ruger SR9.
I prefer shooting the SR9, due to how soft-shooting it is.
 
i would look at a beretta px storm with a DPM recoil reduction system. already a soft shooter and it comes with 3 back straps for smaller hands.
 
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chicharrones said:
I hear that often, but if my grip strength diminishes with age I'm thinking a double action trigger isn't going to be my preference anymore.
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I would definitely agree with you!.....I'm 81 and my grip strength has definitely diminished. I have a 9mm Glock 19, 9mm Glock 43, .380 Glock 42 and a .38 Special S & W model 36. The .38 Special had a trigger job. The .38 Special is most difficult and least fun to shoot even with a trigger job. And therefore, I rarely shoot it. I can rack the slide of the Glock's although the .380 is the most difficult to rack. I would strongly suggest a trip to a range or gun shop to handle, and shoot if possible, several guns before making a decision. I returned one semi-auto because I just couldn't rack the slide. I still shoot a couple of times a month and plan on continuing as long as possible.
 
You also have to think....can this person work the slide....arthritis could limit this....so you might not go for an automatic at all.

Then I always hate "picking out a gun for someone else"....it usually does not work.

If this is for defense a revolver is claw hammer reliable, if recoil is an issue a 357 loaded with 38's usually is pretty tame. A 357 has more mass and really calms things down.

People poo poo smaller cartridges, 32, 25, even 22. However if you can put 7 32's where you want them in a quick order....I think that might slow down Mr. bad guy.....and then if it is for fun, why not a low recoil 22.
 
Since I own and shoot all three guns, I can say with some authority that the full sized CZ-75 has the least felt recoil of the three guns listed. The fixed barrel blowback CZ-82/cz-83 actually has more felt recoil despite using a smaller caliber. The Glock 17 comes close to the full sized CZ-75 but will feel slightly more spirited.
 
Smaller and lighter the gun, the more recoil, the more overpreassure the load, the more recoil. Stick with a low preassure round like a 9 in a steel gun, and you should be great. Or forget all those and get a 22 mag revolver with 7 rounds if recoil is really an issue, you won't feel anything and it is about as deadly as a 380 close up.
 
george burns said:
Smaller and lighter the gun, the more recoil, the more overpreassure the load, the more recoil. Stick with a low preassure round like a 9 in a steel gun, and you should be great. Or forget all those and get a 22 mag revolver with 7 rounds if recoil is really an issue, you won't feel anything and it is about as deadly as a 380 close up.
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380 out of a G42 has very mild recoil, almost twice the diameter, twice the energy, twice the weight of the 22WMR, is a more reliable center fire cartridge and with the Galloway mag modifier my G42 holds 7+1 and fits nicely in my pocket.
 
Its not just "all about recoil". Its also about ease of operation, reliability, and being able to fire it and hit in the first place. 380's are lacking in power, and smaller guns are hard to use effectively, in general. double-action can be a real pain for people with compromised strength, not to mention training on the transitional trigger (DA/SA). The Glock would be the best IMO for reliability, ease of use/simplicity, power, and the potential to easily mount a light (gen 3 or later) or install night sights. I would consider a glock 19, or possibly cutting down the frame in a glock 17 to smaller dimensions so that it will take either a G-19 mag or even down to G-26 size for those mags.
 
Another choice, glock g34? Full size plus another inch.
As I get older I gravitate to the lighter pistols. I do love my all steel ones however they do get heavy.
I have shot cz75s nice ahooters. Problem is the lack of real estate to rack the slide. One really needs to check them at a gun shop.
A glock 34 shoots like a 22. Very soft, easy to rack, and we'll it's a glock. Triggers can be worked on if u don't like the airsoft feeling triggers. Imho a gen4 g34 is hard to beat.
Ymmv.
 
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