Help me find a pistol for a friends mother.

[P.B.Walsh]

One of my friends mothers asked me what kind of good concelable pistol she should get for snakes and possibly intruders.

This is what I got (her specifications) :
Light, concelable, low maitenence, cheap (under $250), low recoil, and powerful.

I recomended a Taurus Judge, a Beretta M9, 9mm 1911, .357 Magnum (she freaked when I said that one), (I know these are over the price).

I also recomended that she go to the next gun show around here for a used revolver.

She said that she has shot a 30-06 and a 20ga., but from my knowledge has VERY little experience with firearms when she was younger, she's about medium build BTW.

Please help me out, and thank you in advance,
P.B. Walsh

 

[Avenger29]

Whatever feels good in her hand and she shoots the best.

She needs to find a gunstore to handle guns and hopefully there is a range in the area that rents guns.

Trying to pick a gun out for someone else often does not end well. They could take your advice, go to a gunstore, barely handle the gun you suggested, buy it, and hate it when they shoot it for the first time.

I'm very particular about handguns and how they fit in my hands, plus how accessible the controls are.

This is what I got (her specifications) :
Light, concelable, low maitenence, cheap (under $250), low recoil, and powerful.

I recomended a Taurus Judge, a Beretta M9, 9mm 1911, .357 Magnum (she freaked when I said that one), (I know these are over the price).

The Beretta is a huge grip handgun. 9mm 1911s are expensive and finicky...the 1911 is a handgun for the enthusiast. The Taurus Judge, is IMHO, overrated.

And the last thing she needs to do is go buy a lightweight .357 snubbie.

It's hard to do those requirements of light, concealable, and cheap. Low recoil, powerful, and lightweight often do not go in the same sentence.


She needs to go straight to www.corneredcat.com and read everything there. Twice.

 

[P.B.Walsh]

You make all the points I thought about, great minds think alike!!

I did heavily suggest that she go and find out what suits HER best.

Thanks

 

[Mike J]

Maybe you could talk her into ya'all going together. Sometimes it's helpful to have another person with us when we're out of our comfort zone.

 

[P.B.Walsh]

My only pistol is a S&W .38, I'm a rifle person, and don't know anything about pistols.

What about a .38? How are they?

 

[onlymeself]

My mom is wanting a handgun for protection. She lives in Texas, I live in Wyoming. She was asking me what to get. I told her I can tell you what I have and what I like, but I can't tell you what to get. I told her if you're going to shoot often and keep in clean then a semi-auto like mine "might" work for you. If it's just going to lay around then a revolver "might" be the better choice for you.
I told her go to the gun store hold the handguns, ask all the question you are asking me to them. Tell them what you want in a handgun. She says well I'll wait for your dad to get back from overseas and have him get me one. I said mom you can not do that. He doesn't even know what your hand will fit. He doesn't own a handgun himself. You need to go. She says well I'll go with him, but he needs to tell me what caliber I can handle. I said MOM! You can not do this. You will be up here on vacation soon, don't do anything. When you're here we'll get my handguns and borrow a couple calibers I don't have from friends and we'll figure out what works for you. Geez. She asks so what do I do in the mean time (someone has been creeping around her property at night). Load your shotgun, keep it with you at all times. Call 911 when you hear noises, go into your bedroom, lock the door, crouch on side of the bed across from the door with your shotgun, tell 911 you are armed with a shotgun and PROTECT YOURSELF. She shoots the shotgun and hunting rifles very well.
Long story short....
You can not pick a weapon for anyone. No one on here can pick a weapon for someone else.

 

[P.B.Walsh]

onlymeself, thanks, that's sums it up, I got the general idea now.

I'll tell her that I can't pick one, and that she need to ask around, and handle the pistol.

Thank you for all the help, and I'll not forget it, thanks again,
P.B.Walsh

 

[Avenger29]

Another suggestion...have her handle every gun in the shop. I've found many shops will steer a woman towards a snubnosed lightweight revolver because that's a common perception of "what a woman can handle".

Try going into a shop and asking to look at handguns for a gift for your mother. The shop may not know you from Adam, and your mom might be an IPSC shooter who cleans house with a 1911 in .45ACP, but they'll often try to sell you a tiny revolver. I've even flat out told shops my mother can easily handle a .45 1911, and they STILL pointed me towards the snub nose revolver over my objections. Needless to say, I never went to those shops again.

 

[P.B.Walsh]

I didn't know that... wow..., thanks for the info.

 

[bigfatdave]

She needs to go straight to www.corneredcat.com and read everything there. Twice.

And she needs to get to a basic pistol or Women On Target course.
WOT is generally free, look for an offering at a gun/conservation club.

 

[RyanM]

Light, concelable, low maitenence, cheap (under $250), low recoil, and powerful.

Unfortunately, that's a very unrealistic list.

If she wants a high quality gun that cheap, she's going to have to start with "stolen."

If she wants "powerful," every single other criteria has to go.

Recoil increases as the size and weight of the gun decreases, so the easier a gun is to carry, the harder it is to shoot. No way around it. Ever try shooting an ultra-lightweight 6 pound .30-06 without a good recoil pad?

The closest thing I can think of would be a Kel-Tec P11 or PF9. Both are 9mm (sorta powerful, sorta not), and both are around $300. And both are extremely lightweight and compact. Recoil isn't that great, though.

Other than that, a good all-steel .38 special (not .38 S&W, as ammo choices are much more limited then) with about a 3" barrel is a good choice. Used S&W Model 10s have been going up in price, but you can still find them for around $200 if you're lucky. The benefit of a revolver is that the first shot can be snakeshot, backed up by 4-5 rounds of JHPs.

 

[The Lone Haranguer]

Snakes (of the no-legged kind), if a handgun is to be used at all, are best dispatched with a shot load, which pretty much limits one to a revolver. Personally, I fear the two-legged kind much more, and would rather select a carry gun with that in mind.

 

[Kleanbore]

Avenger 29 nailed it.

Here's what can happen.

http://www.snubnose.info/wordpress/self-defense/newbies-and-the-snubnose-redux/

I loaded the snubnose revolver for Frieda, and she aligned the sights. She struggled to pull the trigger back, and when the little revolver finally barked, it almost leapt from her hands. She looked at me in astonishment. She looked back at her target, and trembled as she began to pull off another round. Bam! A look of genuine concern crossed her face.

"You don’t have to keep shooting it," I told her. "We can unload it."

"Good," she replied. All too often when a woman enters a gun store to purchase a gun, they are met with ignorance if not outright condescension. Over and over I have met women who purchased a snubnose revolver as their first handgun. The only reason I can fathom for this is a salesman wanting to make a sale, and him knowing that the female new to shooting, will go for the smaller gun.

Frieda had fallen into that trap. Unfortunately, the snubnose revolver is one of the most difficult handguns to shoot well.

 

[blindhari]

When all qualifications are listed it sounds like you are talking about a 38 special. First go down to a local gun shop or pawn and have her try holding one, maybe a model 10 S&W with a 4 inch barrel. Then if possible find one she can shoot. Make sure of hearing protection and having someone on hand to help her with learning to hold properly, noise and recoil are the two biggest put offs for newbies. Go to J&G sales on the internet and look at thier list. They have S&W 4" 38 special with bobbed hammers for under $250. This was done to prevent them hanging up when in use, but it also means there is one less place to hang up coming out of a purse. Lastly tell her to save up the money for adequate ammo and GET SOME MORE TRAINING ,professional if possible.
blindhari

 

[P.B.Walsh]

Thanks again for all of the replies. I look into those 9mm and .38 suggestions.

But are you talking about a .38+P or a .38 special?

Thanks

 

[Avenger29]

But are you talking about a .38+P or a .38 special?

.38spcl +P is just .38 spcl loaded hotter. You start off with regular .38spcl rounds and move up.

 

[RyanM]

A gun chambered in .357 mag will shoot .357, .38 spl +p, or regular .38 spl. If you shoot either type of .38s in it, though, the chamber will get a crud ring eventually, which has to be cleaned out before you shoot .357s. Also, velocity with .38s will be reduced compared to a .38 only gun.

A gun chambered in .38 spl +P will shoot that or regular .38 spl.

A gun in .38 spl that doesn't say +P on it anywhere is most likely an older one, before "+P" was invented, and you probably shouldn't use +P ammo unless the manufacturer says it's safe. I believe S&W says that all of their older all-steel .38s are safe with +Ps.

Finally, there's a caliber called the .38 S&W, which can be confusing, especially since the full name of the .38 SPL is ".38 S&W special." The .38 S&W is shorter and fatter and uses a wider bullet than the .38 SPL. You can sometimes find real old revolvers in .38 S&W for a song, but ammo will be very limited.

Another 9mm I thought of would be the Kahr CW9 (the budget version of the P9). Those are closer to $400-500 used, depending on your luck. But in my experience, Kahr 9mms have less felt recoil than the cheaper Kel-Tecs. They also have much smoother triggers, much better sights, and are more accurate.

 

[Elvishead]

+1 used S&W Model 10 or 15 4"

Accurate, reliable, affordable, and low recoil.

Darn fun to shoot too.

 

[rogertc1]

Hi-power is under $250

 

[VeggieH]

old school

Ruger bearcat in .22 mag.I believe they are 8 or 10 rounds(don't feel like digging mine out),very good shooter,intimadating,and you can get shot shells for snakes or to wound not kill an aggressor.These can be had for under $250 if you shop around(bought mine in 1988 for $50).good luck..............PS it likes CCI.

 

[kludge]

Light, concelable, low maitenence, cheap (under $250), low recoil, and powerful.

Light != Low recoil
Powerful != Low recoil

The gun that fits most of her criteria is a Ruger Speed Six .357 Magnum, loaded with .38 Specials. Can also get snake shot loads.

 

[ronto]

Ruger or S&W 357 revolver and start off with standard 38's and move up as far as she can handle...Stay away from Taurus or Rossi revolvers.

 

[bigfatdave]

Why the heck are you shooting at snakes anyway?
Leave them alone, they eat rodents.

Snakes don't invade your home and poop in the pantry, rats and mice do.
I would not be purchasing one firearm to handle snakes AND intruders anyway ... different tasks need different tools.

We need a sticky regarding "what gun for someone else" threads, they are getting more common, and more silly.

 

[RDak]

FWIW, my wife likes our old Model 10-5. She's medium build also.