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Post by Reaver on Oct 24, 2012 19:59:23 GMT
You might be surprised. My father uses a glock 26, which is 9mm. the felt recoil is significantly worse than my Springfield Loaded 1911. Weight of the gun and the recoil springs you install can greatly reduce recoil, as well as using lighter ammo.
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Sam H
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Post by Sam H on Oct 25, 2012 0:31:03 GMT
Bersa makes a good gun and the older Walthers are good too.
A .380 will do the job if she can shoot well under duress. A 9mm will do a little better and a .45acp will be better yet. Of course if you're looking for a round that will be assured of a one shot stop then that particular cartridge hasn't been made in a platform that can be carried concealed yet.
Anyway my wife started with .22lr, moved on to .380 and 9mm and is now a staunch "Its got to start with a ".4" or I won't shoot it person. Basically .40S&W, .45acp, .44mag etc. or larger is all she'll shoot now except for the .22lr - she loves that caliber for plinking. For personal defense though she carries a full size 1911 now as do I.
Handling recoil really has nothing to do with the size of your arms and everything to do with technique and mentality.
If you're afraid of recoil you won't be able to handle it. If you can come to the realization that recoil won't hurt you then you can handle just about any load out there (truth be told there ARE loads that WILL hurt you as the shooter through recoil but those are not something you'll run into on a frequent basis). Your preparedness for it mentally is very important. I've seen people fail to "handle" even a single action .22lr revolver (which doesn't have much recoil at all!)
Next is proper shooting technique. Proper technique can make recoil much easier to handle. Have bad shooting technique and you're probably one of the ones complaining about the recoil of a 9mm or larger. Proper shooting technique and good practice can make you one of the people who can honestly say that recoil doesn't bother you one bit.
Oh and shooting handguns is quite different from shooting long arms. I strongly suggest that you and your g/f get some training from someone who is well versed on how to shoot a handgun properly and well.
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Post by zentesukenVII on Oct 25, 2012 3:55:44 GMT
Perhaps I know someone who is up for the job...?
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Taran
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Post by Taran on Oct 25, 2012 16:05:59 GMT
.380 and .38 Special both have FAR more recoil than a .45 ACP. They have a comparable powder load but not as much mass either in the weapon or in the round. So all that excess energy goes into the recoil.
As for a small woman controlling a .45, my wife is a little Asian woman and shoots my .45 better than I do at 20 yards or less. I have the advantage at anything more than 20 yards, mostly because I practice at those ranges.
That said, there are FAR better .45s than the Springfield XD and XDM. Glock, for instance. Virtually any 1911 (if she isn't afraid of carrying in Condition 1). The XD line is not one of Sprinfield's best.
My wife CCs a .38 special snub-nose revolver. I am going to find her a sub-compact 1911 so that she can hit if she has to shoot without first sticking it into someone's gut. Could very well be too late by that point.
We are also avid fans of Speer Gold Dot hollow points in the heaviest grain available for that caliber. We'd use Hornady XTP/Critical Defense, but the Marines buytoo much of that, so we can't find it most of the time.
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Post by zentesukenVII on Oct 25, 2012 16:37:09 GMT
Check out Tnoutdoors9's videos on .45 acp tests. Speer proves to have good results, but he seems to like FMJ the most.
I will have to just go out and shoot some more guns with her so we can find what she likes.
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Sam H
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Post by Sam H on Oct 25, 2012 16:57:13 GMT
Maybe...
Now about shooting other guns - last I remember Fletcher Arms in Waukesha had a good selection of handguns that you could rent and shoot on their range. If you want professional instruction they also had a professional instructor there too.
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Post by zentesukenVII on Oct 25, 2012 17:43:31 GMT
Thank you! I will have to check them out!
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Post by RHVette on Nov 4, 2012 21:16:46 GMT
Congrats on finding a good one! As for what kind of gun she should get, that really should be up to her. If I were you, I'd find a place that rents guns and get her a range day with as many rentals and as much ammo as she wants for a birthday present. That way she can try out anything that catches her fancy.
However, I can make a couple of suggestions. One, a .380 is probably not going to be a good choice for a first gun. They have their place, but most are blowback operated and lightweight, which increases felt recoil, and usually have tiny sights. Additionally, .380 ACP is expensive, especially the good carry ammo. Not the best combo with which to enter the gun world. Price wise, 9mm Luger and .45 ACP are the two most common pistol rounds in the US by a mile, and the economy of scale makes their FMJs some of the cheaper options. Additionally, being so popular, they also have a wide variety of high-quality defensive ammo available. Another option is .38 Special. It's a bit more expensive, though my experience has been that it's a bit of a wash, since you tend to not run through ammo as quickly.
With this in mind, there are A LOT of options available. Glock, SIG-Sauer, H&K, CZ, Springfield Armory, S&W, Ruger, Colt, and more all make good guns. At a beginning price point, I'd probably point you to a certified pre-owned or police trade-in Glock or SIG, or a new CZ75 or S&W M&P (simply because there aren't a lot of police trade-in S&W's yet and used CZs are hard to find.) Any of those are going to run around the $375-$500 depending on condition. A used revolver would also fit in this price range easily though with as many models and variants as there are, that can be a bit of a minefield. The Ruger Six Series (Security, Service, and Speed Six) are all built like tanks as are S&W L-frame revolvers like the 686. The K-frames are also a good choice, just be aware that they can't really take a steady diet of .357 Magnum like the L-frames can, but they will probably fit in that sub-$500 budget easier than the L-frames. I'd avoid a J-frame revolver for the same reasons as a .380: too small and snappy for a first pistol.
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