First Hand Gun Purchase *First Post*

[Oldmandan]

[TMB 1]

S&W SD9VE is another option, but you should also get a shotgun.

[GeeBee49]

I'll agree with others as far as a .357 magnum with the .38 special option for your wife. I would suggest a Ruger GP100 or S&W 686. I prefer a 4" barrel in medium frame revolvers but both come in other lengths.

[JustJoshinYa]

My first gun I ever bought was a 1911 in 45, I love that gun and shoot it the best out of all my guns. I would use that gun for home defense over most my other guns but mainly because I feel confident shooting it.

When I bring new shooters to the range most like shooting my 4" revolver smith and Wesson 586 with 38 special loads. It's a heavy gun and absorbs a lot of the recoil. Also new shooters tend to shoot better with a heavier gun I think because when they hold it they are already prepared for the recoil since it's a heavy gun. Whereas picking up the glock the recoil usually catches them off guard.

It's more important to find a gun you both like to shoot and shooting it enough to feel comfortable/confident in it. I would highly recommend trying a revolver in 357/38 and seeing if you both agree on it. Good for home defense and pretty straight forward operation.
-Josh

[five.five-six]

I wouldn't limit myself to first hand guns, there are a lot of deals to be had on 2nd hand guns too.

[Teachu2]

The wife and I both have CCW permits and enjoy shooting - we have our own range. I own a variety of handguns, and my wife has tried them all. The ones she prefers are the S&W M&P 9C (off roster now), the RIA 1911 Tactical in 9mm (also off roster), and the S&W Shield in 9mm. We both carry Shield 9s as our EDC carries.
She has small hands and some arthritis, so she's much more limited in her choices. Guns she hates to shoot: Ruger LC9, Ruger LCP, and any double-action revolver.
Her favorite to shoot is the 1911 9mm. She's a very good shot with a Glock 19 and a XD-45, but they give her pain in her hands pretty quickly. A 1911 in 45 works, but she gets tired of the recoil pretty quickly. In a HD situation, she can pick up any semi-auto we own in 9mm or 45acp and make effective use of it. Any Glock, XD, M&P, CZ, or 1911.

[Norcalkid]

Mahh, Just take your wife to the range, let her grip and feel a bunch of the rental guns. When you think one fits her well rent that one and see if she likes it. If so you need to learn to like that one.

I think all the major manufactures make something that fits into this range. Just personal preference and what's actually available.

[kurac]

If you want to by a handgun now, do you really have much choice? Get whatever they have now that will work for you, also make sure you can get some ammo for whatever you buy. Then later, like in a few years, get what you want.

[BamBam-31]

Welcome, Angelo! You've already received lots of good advice, so I'll just add one thing: Sometimes women have difficulty racking the slide on a semi-auto because of bad technique more than a lack of size or strength. Make sure she's using an overhand grip with her non-shooting hand, and make sure she's simultaneously pushing the frame forward with her shooting hand while pulling the slide back with her non-shooting hand. The worst is when they simply hold the gun with their shooting hand and expect to use two fingers to slingshot the slide back.

[Lead Waster]

I am a Glock fanboy so I would recommend the Glock 17 or 19. The fact that your Dad doesn’t like them shouldn’t even be a factor... however you said that your wife is not liking it. I would then recommend the CZ-75b. It is an excellent gun and has similar features to the sig 226 however, it doesn’t have a decocking lever, instead it has a safety but can be manually decocked, which you should be very careful about if you do that. It has great ergonomics and is all metal so it absorbs recoil.

Using a revolver is often recommended. I’d prefer a semi auto to a revolver anyway. However if you do decide on a revolver, aside from the previously mentioned S&W 686 (.357 magnum/ .38 special) I’d like to suggest the S&W 625 which is a six shot .45 acp revolver that uses moonclips to reload. With practice, it can be reloaded very quickly. Capacity and reload speed is always a concern with revolvers. The 625 carries only 6 rounds but reloads fast with preloaded moonclips. With practice the 686 can be reloaded quickly with speed loaders. There is also the 627 which is an 8 **** .357 that reloads with moonclips, but no revolver reloads faster than a 625 and the stubby .45 acp ammo!

Personally, if the Glock were not off the table, that would be (and is) my first choice for home defense. I have a lot of handguns including a few revolvers (like the two mentioned). If I had a Sig 226 or a Cz-75 SP-01 bd (deco let version of cz-75) I’d conxiders those because I like double action guns. The beretta has a huge grip, but I hope to get in one day... it might be a contender for me too.

[Lead Waster]

Oh yeah, if someone say 1911, I’d recommend against it as a guy who just wants a gun for home defense. There are too many manufacturers and magazine manufacturers for that design. It offers nothing for home defense over any other gun, but brings issues with it that a beginner might not want to deal with. Going back to Glock, a Glock 21sf carries the same round, but 10 rounds while the 1911 carries 7 or 8. The Glock has a reputation for being reliable. An unworked on 1911 ... depends on who made it, depends on which magazines you have for it whether it’s reliable or not.

People will disagree with me. This is my opinion.

[ojisan]

For home defense pistol, I'd get a 45 than a 9 due to less penetration... but I could be wrong...

guesstimator, opinionator, and commentator.

The universal handgun is a 4" barreled steel .38 Special / .357 Magnum revolver.
Adjustable sights models preferred.
Everything from low power plinking to target to home defense to hunting is possible with this one gun and the right choice of ammo.
Choose a Smith & Wesson or Ruger and you will have no regrets.

[KrisDSA]

If your getting one gun for HD. I would make sure it has a Rail to add a Weapon Light. I would go Glock then CZ SP01/P01 - Beretta PX4 Storm/M9A1 - Any Sig

[CheapBloke]

The universal handgun is a 4" barreled steel .38 Special / .357 Magnum revolver.
Adjustable sights models preferred.
Everything from low power plinking to target to home defense to hunting is possible with this one gun and the right choice of ammo.
Choose a Smith & Wesson or Ruger and you will have no regrets.

Stirring the pot for caliber? Uh sure... whatever floats your boat.
And I said Pistol, not Revolver. Unless if you think a revolver is a pistol lol.
guesstimator, opinionator, and commentator.

[Mr. Blue]

I’ve seen new people get too wrapped up in “what gun to get”. Its the most common question around here and typically the person asking the question is looking for confirmation bias. Nothing wrong with that, but the gun is not the most important aspect of your first gun. As many have said before, I think you should get a full size polymer 9mm. Glock 17, Springfield XD9. People tend to like shooting or not, and I can’t imagine trying to train if you don’t enjoy shooting or at least understand the importance of training. That said, you’ll need a few thousand rounds to really get into feeling great with the gun. Even if you’re a total marksman after 100 rounds, you’re still going to need to run the gun and prove its reliability. A buddy of mine has had dozens of malfunctions from his Glock, and he has spent a ton of time trying to fix the issues. No gun is impervious to failure. You might consider taking a hard look at caliber availability and price. If you find availability favoring any specific caliber, 10mm, 9mm, 40, 45ACP, 357 sig, 38/357mag, 380 etc... normally I would never recommend this aspect of selection, but right now if you can’t shoot your Glock 17 more than a few hundreds rounds, whats the point? Also, consider getting two guns. One for you, one for your wife. It seems like every time the wife gets a gun of her own, she’s more inclined to use it, learn about it, train with it. And for good reason, she picked it out.

Anyway, there’s a lot to learn but don’t get bogged down on needing a certain brand. There’s a lot of good stuff out there.