What do the ladies carry?

[AlexanderA]

You haven't answered my question, how is she protected when you're not with her?

You're incorrectly assuming that I carry. Since that is not the case, a gun doesn't enter into the situation whether I'm with her or not.

I'm not worried that she would be a victim. Quite the contrary. I keep telling her to stop driving aggressively and provoking road rage incidents. It's gotten to the point where I hate getting into the car with her.

 

[old lady new shooter]

I don't understand why in today's world a person would choose to go around with no means of self-defense.

 

[AlexanderA]

I dunno, a kid bloodies your nose and that leads you to guns? Sounds like a lack of self confidence /esteem and not a great recipe for gun ownership. That's a false sense a power right there.

You'd have done yourself a lot of good to stand up, spit out the blood and sock him one back. Even if he's bigger and stronger I doubt he messes with you again.

Look, I was what? 7 years old? I thought this guy was my friend -- I would walk home from school with him on a daily basis. The fact that he would hit me out of the blue stunned me beyond belief. I wasn't expecting such a betrayal. And the aftermath, when he threw the nickel at me, was perhaps even worse. So much so that I still remember it to this day. And btw, my parents immediately called his parents. Their response? That they were training their son to be the bully rather than to be bullied. No apologies at all coming from that family.

So this was a wakeup call for me and my family. All the more so because we were relatively recent immigrants to this country. My parents came here from a country wracked by civil war, hoping to find peace and safety. Ha!

This was a factor (among others) that indirectly led me to guns. The general attitude from then on was that I had to be able to defend myself. The gun collecting didn't come into full bloom until many years later.

 

[old lady new shooter]

The general attitude from then on was that I had to be able to defend myself.

But you don't carry and are 77 years old. How do you defend yourself?

 

[AlexanderA]

I don't understand why in today's world a person would choose to go around with no means of self-defense.

Self defense, properly understood, involves a lot more than just guns. In fact I would say that guns are a small part of it. Self defense involves your whole lifestyle. You want to avoid making yourself a target in the first place.

Where I live (the northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C.) carrying a gun around is mostly counterproductive. Doing so actually restricts your freedom.

 

[Speedo66]

I'm kind of surprised that this thread has morphed into questioning a member as to his self defense, attitudes from the second grade, and his mindset about carrying guns. Maybe a little less than "high road" at times.

Wasn't this the "what do ladies carry" thread, with ladies being the ones asked to respond?

 

[SwampWolf]

Self defense, properly understood, involves a lot more than just guns. In fact I would say that guns are a small part of it. Self defense involves your whole lifestyle. You want to avoid making yourself a target in the first place.

I "properly" understand self-defense. Situational awareness and avoiding bad people and bad places is very important. But sometimes we have to be in areas we would rather not be (job-related, social circumstance or simply losing your way in the city). Too, there are times when you can be in the very best neighborhood, school, church, restaurant, theater, shopping mall, place of employment, etc., when you might meet the monster no matter how diligently you tried not to be a target. And when and if that should happen, having a gun is not only a big part of your hope of surviving the unthinkable encounter but the only thing that might keep you alive.

"Self defense, properly understood" reckons with the real world, not the finger-crossed, wannabe utopia we all wish it was.

 

[Brutus54]

Wife started out with a Walther PPK/S in 380 auto. Didn't care for an auto. She took over my S&W M19 and really liked it but felt it was to heavy to carry. She picked out a S&W 5 shot J frame .38 special. She now reloads her own ammo and shoot it quite well. Life is good and I got my M19 back.

 

[DR505]

I believe he means she was participating in acting out a Civil War reenactment, so there was no need for the revolver to be loaded, e.i., she wasn't carrying for defensive purposes.

I edited my post so it is more accurate...the comment about "armed women" was what drew my response.

 

[.308 Norma]

For a long time, my wife carried a .38 Special snub-nosed revolver. She tried several different 9mm semi-autos over the years, but she never could find one (other than her Sig P239) that she felt was reliable, and her Sig P239, even though it's supposedly a "compact" semi-auto, is too big for her to easily conceal on her small, 5'1" frame.
Then a few years ago, right after Smith came out with their M&P Shield EZs in .380, our oldest daughter bought one for herself, and she loaned it to my wife to try out. My wife fell in love with it and bought one of own. That's not the end of the story though.
As soon as Smith came out with their M&P Shield EZs in 9mm, our daughter (probably with her husband's urging) "traded up" - she traded her .380 in and got a Shield EZ 9mm that she told my wife, "Doesn't kick any harder than the .380 I had." However, my much more experienced, and naturally older wife once again borrowed our daughter's new carry pistol, and she says, "It Does Too Kick Harder!" So, my wife stuck with her .380 Shield EZ.
However, I need to explain that my wife, who is almost as old as I am (I'm 74) struggles with arthritis in her right thumb joint - probably at least in part due to the thousands upon thousands of full-house .44 Magnum rounds she fired in practice and competition during her IMHSA days back in the '80s. So, the .380 in a small package like a Shield EZ is plenty for her recoil wise. She doesn't have a problem with 9mm recoil in her Sig P239, but like I said, the Sig is bigger and harder for her to conceal.
Oh, and the other thing about my wife's Shield EZ is she has to grip it "higher" than what used to come naturally for her, or it will stovepipe once in a while. So, my wife practices a lot, and gripping it "higher" (like she should have been doing in the first place) does come naturally for her now.

 

[Remington1911]

Most women still do instinctively expect their male companion to do the protecting if he's there... a couple of years ago there was a weird case, a guy and his girlfriend eating take-out in a dark parking lot in the wee small hours, suddenly from the other side of the lot somebody started aggressing against them, the woman, who IIRC is something like a Glock representative and known to be a very good shooter, whispered to the boyfriend to do something. ISTR he's a racer of either cars or motorcycles. Anyway, he did take out the BG.

That said, I did also read a post somewhere by a woman who said she and her husband decided that if they are somewhere with their kids and Something Bad happens, he will carry the kids away and she will engage... the rationale being that husband can carry several children at once, and also earns more money, so if she gets killed the kids will be better provided for than the other way around.

I see the logic behind that, but there is no way in hell I could do it.

 

[Remington1911]

Self defense, properly understood, involves a lot more than just guns. In fact I would say that guns are a small part of it. Self defense involves your whole lifestyle. You want to avoid making yourself a target in the first place.

Where I live (the northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, D.C.) carrying a gun around is mostly counterproductive. Doing so actually restricts your freedom.

There is so much....I was looking for a better word, but got nothing......... Wrong in that statement I don't know where to start.

In normal life I have never "pulled a gun" on anyone. And yes I do think I see where you are trying to go here. Being "situationally aware" is a real big thing in keeping something bad from happening, nothing is full proof, and in some cases long eye contact can start something. But in general if your "head is on a swivel" you car less likely to be put in a bad place.

I assume by the "doing so restricts your freedom" meaning "gun free zones". That is the only thing I can think of. Only thing I will say is there are very few LEGAL gun free zones. Most private business....again I would say all but you never say all.... are just a policy put in place by the owners/managers of said business. Asking you to leave is about as much as they can do if everything else with you is good.

 

[JDeere]

Back to the OP. If she likes her revolver so be it and let it be. Like what you carry, carry what you like. My wife carried a G19 and then a G26 for years. Not long ago I bought a 365XL to see what all the fuss was about. We went to the range one day and I told her to try it. Long story short I ended up buying another one for her. ymmv

 

[Remington1911]

He meantioned in a prior post that his girlfriend had a prior bad experience with semiautos and got slide bite.

My wife has that issue as well, sorry I missed that post.

She tends to "choke up" on a hand gun, she has really little hands, and that is another limiting factor.

I guess in the end you need to expose her (or anyone for that matter interested in this) to as many different choices as possible. And then go over it again and again. Then let her make her choice, offer your experience and suggestions.

Story time.

The wife is looking for something new....that parking garage deal, her office is moving in Aug. so she wants to start to carry again. She does not want that Jframe, and she does not want something as big as the Bersa PPK clone. So she is looking again and got that Beretta. It is not the "best" thing, but "it is better then nothing".

In making that decision size was the most important thing on her list, followed by all the other "normal" things. In her hunt she started shooting all the old stuff we already had, including a walther model 8. This is a very small little 25ACP "vest pocket" type deal. It is very small, and she found out there is such a thing as too small to get a good grip on the thing. We also weighed the availability of "practice" with such a hard to find and expensive cartridge. Her next try was 32ACP and again the issues finding practice ammo, and the costs of ammo came into play here. You MUST practice with your choice at least monthly. And I also think "full" practice, where you bring the gun into action from wherever you are carrying it. After that it is 38 and 380, well we are already there. So we went to the little Beretta. Not a big fan of rimfire for SD, but it is better then a stick. I told her the stories I have including the guy that got shot six times with a Beretta Neos before he decided he was hurt and better sit down. But like I said better then nothing.

Whatever she gets, she MUST practice with it, and not just standing in front of a target, the draw present fire type drill. I understand there are issues in that where many places don't allow that type of drill, this is what snap caps are for. We are lucky to practice with "live" rounds in our back yard, but if you don't have that, snap caps and your living room is good. And as icing on the cake one of those laser target things is good for that as well.

 

[Tallball]

Sounds like some of you believe that other people should make their wives shoot and/or carry different handguns.

My wife is 6'4". She's a Kentuckian with two Master's degrees. No one makes her do anything.

It's kind of funny when a car salesman or someone like that thinks they're going to intimidate her into a decision.

If I'm out of town she'll allow me to leave a loaded 32 magnum revolver in her room, but her enormous pit mix rescue dog (110 pounds) is actually in charge of security.

This is my sixth long-term relationship (over 20 years this time). Admittedly I prefer hard-headed women, but I am pretty much 0-6 in "making" any of them do things they really didn't want to do.

 

[dodo bird]

My wife carry’s a credit card. Very dangerous with it.

 

[AlexanderA]

I assume by the "doing so restricts your freedom" meaning "gun free zones".

That, and, as a Virginia resident, I would have to disarm when going into Maryland or the District. Trips there are a daily occurrence for me. What do you do with the gun under those conditions?

Just generally one less thing to worry about, by not carrying. And, frankly, I don't feel the least bit threatened. The one time in my life that I was robbed, by a gang of pickpockets on the Athens subway, a gun wouldn't have done me any good anyway (if indeed it was possible to have one).

I spent 30 years working in a federal building, in the District of Columbia. Of course carrying a gun was not remotely possible there. I didn't miss it at all.

 

[JERRY]

If your significant other only ate hamburger because of the memory of an over cooked piece of leather by some hack that puts ketchup on steak... wouldn't you at least want them to try a rib eye steak before they settle for hamburger?

 

[westernrover]

Au contraire! The lady has the steak. You're trying to get her to try a Big Mac.

 

[old lady new shooter]

Au contraire! The lady has the steak. You're trying to get her to try a Big Mac.

<g>

 

[Remington1911]

That, and, as a Virginia resident, I would have to disarm when going into Maryland or the District. Trips there are a daily occurrence for me. What do you do with the gun under those conditions?

Just generally one less thing to worry about, by not carrying. And, frankly, I don't feel the least bit threatened. The one time in my life that I was robbed, by a gang of pickpockets on the Athens subway, a gun wouldn't have done me any good anyway (if indeed it was possible to have one).

I spent 30 years working in a federal building, in the District of Columbia. Of course carrying a gun was not remotely possible there. I didn't miss it at all.

I was going to guess after the "Virginia" that you likely rode the train and worked in DC. I know DC has changed quite a bit in the past 20 years, they have done an amazing job at keeping a lid on the Chicago style element that I encountered there. Few places I have ever been made me as nervous as I was on the train back from the Navy yard.

That would be rough, I do understand the .gov cheeze. But hay look put in for a transfer to the IRS, they have 85k new openings and I bet those people can carry....they may need it when they start to hit up ma and pa for taxes due after their garage sale where they made $601.33

 

[kidneyboy]

I'm trying without luck to get my gf to start shooting semiautos in order to expand her options for ccw.

You should learn something from this.

 

[Jimbo80]

[QUOTE="JERRY,] My girlfriend had a bad experience in a previous relationship where she was not taught anything and she crossed her thumbs and got slide bite really bad. Since then she has sworn off semiautos. [/QUOTE]

My brother did the same thing when I took him shooting 45 years ago. He hasn't touched a gun since. I just replaced the long gone culprit (S&W 39-2) in my collection and I'm afraid to show it to him.

[QUOTE="AlexanderA, ]Armed women make me nervous. But what do I know? I'm just an old guy that grew up in a different age.
[/QUOTE]

I am a lifelong Batchelor with a tendency to break up early in relationships so arming a woman I am dating always seemed like a bad idea to me. One thing my experience with more women than most has taught me is that trying to push 'em in any direction they don't want to go is not a good idea unless you're very skilled at reverse reverse reverse psychology. Even then you're lucky to bat .300.

 

[WYO]

I don’t see any reason to encourage someone to change a firearm with which she is entirely comfortable and proficient. The key word, though, is “proficient.” A lot of people consider themselves proficient because they can consistently hit an 8 inch circle at 7 yards while taking 5 seconds to fire each shot. In a dynamic situation, that is not proficient. Proficient is being able to do things like landing multiple good hits on a person charging you from 7 yards and being able to deliver rapid shots on multiple targets. The best way to let anyone (male or female) make their own well-reasoned decision is to up the stress a little and see what happens under pressure. I have female acquaintances who have chosen semi-autos initially or who have converted from revolvers to semi-autos after seeing how much easier it was for them to perform under stress with a semi-auto in the same size/weight/caliber range of a comparable revolver.

Until a person wants to change, though, pressuring them to change is counter-productive. Just be realistic about their current chances of survival against a truly evil person. If you can get them to be realistic about their chances, they may want to change equipment and/or or practice more under realistic conditions. As an added benefit, this can be fun and a team building exercise.

 

[Rexster]

That said, I did also read a post somewhere by a woman who said she and her husband decided that if they are somewhere with their kids and Something Bad happens, he will carry the kids away and she will engage... the rationale being that husband can carry several children at once, and also earns more money, so if she gets killed the kids will be better provided for than the other way around.

Interesting logic, but, IMHO, a better reason for the woman to engage the Something Bad, is because Something Bad would probably take about 3/4 of a second to realize that something was quite unusual, and about another 3/4 of a second, or more, recovering from some amount of disbelief. Lots of defensive shots can be fired in 0.75 to 1.5 seconds. An unexpected move can disrupt Something Bad’s OODA Loop.

See “OODA Loop,” described numerous place on-line. Observe, Orient, decide, Act. Interrupting an opponent’s cycling of Observing, Orienting, Deciding, and Acting, can be decisive in any battle.