Wife needs a carry gun

[MisterB]

Another vote for the Glock 43 and 42

[Bryan11]

Another vote for the Sig's, my girlfriend has the 365xl for the purpose of the extra barrel length to control the muzzle rise, and i carry the 365. Great shooting pistols and the capacity is well worth it.

[RascalArms]

I'll just reiterate what a few others have stated. Take your time on this and get as many firearms in her hands as possible. I like revolvers for women or young inexperienced shooters but you say although she's not a newbie, she's not a fan of wheel guns but also doesn't feel real comfortable racking slides. To me, your short list is a great start. I'm still leaning heavy on the Walther CCP for her current situation...but bottom line, she needs to shoot what fits her.

[175gr7.62]

As already stated, find the the one she likes but.......the P320 and the 43X are dang nice pistols. The P320 has the best out of the box trigger I have run across on a striker fired gun.

[Artos]

Take her down to the gun shop & have her fondle a S&W 442 or 642...they feel good in the hand & another vote for the hammerless wheel. If she still isn't happy, then pick up the other models considered & see which one she gravitates to.

[RifleBowPistol]

Your wife does not sound like a typical woman, but still a woman, probably still has small hands. I would think a smaller gun would be a better choice.

I got my wife a PK380, she likes it a lot, it was suggested to me by a buddy, who got one for his wife, after many people suggested that gun for females. My wife does have trouble with guns, she did not grow up around guns, has only shot a few different guns, since we have been married. She prefers her PK380 over everything else, rifle, pistol and shotgun I have gotten her to shoot. She does very well with the gun.

So some time a while back, our daughter said she wants a handgun, but it has to be blue. So I searched the world over, read a lot, then concluded that a PK380 would be a good choice for her, more so, since her mother already has one. I did a lot of looking and found one blue PK380 for sale. I bought it, had it shipped and got it a week later. Then I needed ammo, turns out, we had a lot less 380 ammo than I realized. I had bought a large box of bulk 380 ammo years ago, and thought it was near full, turns out it was near empty, only about 30 rounds left in the box. We shot those up, along with some of her defense ammo.

So they both needed 380 ammo. I paid way too much for 380 dies, but then found bullets for a good price, powder, then finally primers and cases. So I finally got some 380 ammo loaded. So the plan for today, is to get my daughter out today and get her to shoot her pistol. The bullets I got are some Sierra/SIG 90 gr. hollow points. I got 1000 of them, then a 1200 primers. The load I have come up with is 4.5 gr. of Autocomp behind that 90 gr. bullet. It's supposed to push that bullet out the barrel at 1015 fps. I am hopefully going to shoot some through the chronograph later today.

The PK380, seems to be designed for females, the magazine springs are light, easy for women to load them, my wife has no problem loading the mags. Same with the recoil spring for the slide, it's also light, she has no problem with racking the slide. The trigger is pretty nice, can be shot double action or single action. Does not have a slide release, once you put a loaded mag in it, just pull the slide back and release it. It does have a manual safety on the rear of the slide, that is ambidextrous, external hammer. Then it has a place under the front of the frame for a light or laser, they make a laser for that gun. I got a laser for my wife's gun. It helped her learn to shoot the gun, showed her what she was doing when pulling the trigger. I don't think it's practical for self defense, you most likely won't have time to turn it on or remember to turn it on. So for the most part, probably a waste of time for defense purposes. But good for teaching the shooter what they are doing wrong, when actually trying to hit the target.


I have shot my wife's pistol many times, I am pretty good with the gun, for a compact gun, it's pretty accurate. Kind of a fun gun to shoot, just a bit expensive to shoot right now. For my wife and daughter, it think it's probably the perfect gun for them. I would prefer a 9mm for me, in a little large gun, but something very similar, but really the PK380 would work for me also.

I always carry a CZ75 copy in 10mm,a EEA Witness, best 10mm I have ever owned. I have thought about getting a smaller gun, something more practical, but at the same time, something chambered for a all around good purpose round. I keep coming up with 9mm. I have seriously been thinking of looking for a nice 9mm as a carry gun, something smaller than what I have. I know there are a lot of choices in 9mm, I just have not looked, I have a list of hunting guns I want, those are what I look for all the time. But truly, the PK380, would be a great little gun for me to carry, it's not a 9mm, but most self defense situations, there should be enough rounds in the mag, to put an end to most any problem. I am hoping those loads I have worked up, you would only need one to get the job done 99% of the time.


If your wife does not like revolvers, I would look at single stack, 9mm and 380s. I know Sig makes some single stack 9mms or they used to, and I am sure there are other companies that make single stack 9mms. The single stack would be a better choice for a female, the grip diameter should be smaller. So it should be easier for a female to get her hands around and work a safety, decocker or slide release. For a female, I would probably stay away from double stack autos, and 1911s, both typically have grips that take a decent sized hand to grip properly.

One last idea on the subject, back to the PK380, Walter makes a PK22, it's identical to the PK380, I have found them for sale at Academy for $300. I plan on buying a couple of them one for my wife and one for my daughter. So they can practice more, without having to worry about finding 380 ammo.

[muzzlebrake]

Bersa Thunder 380 with Buffalo Bore ammo. Accurate and reliable. Very concealable especially in a purse and doesn't weigh a ton. Easy on the shooter's hands. https://bersa.eagleimportsinc.com/be...thunder-series

[muzzlebrake]

For a little more power https://www.theshootingstore.com/sin...81741&ref=shop
Great safety features SA/DA and decocker.
It is bigger and heavier but not that much. Fits a small hand very good.

[huntmaster]

my wife really likes her P238 that used to be mine until she shot it. I now have a 365xl that I hope she doesnt shoot or I'll loose it too

[COACH_EM_UP]

How about a brand new GLOCK 26?

[TxBowHntr]

HK VP9SK. Phenomenal trigger, easy to shoot, and the sides and back of the grips can be customized to fit. Great option for a purse carry.

[WyoBull]

I initially bought my wife a Glock 43 and the more she shot it the more she did not like it because of the shorter grip. She has bigger hands so I ended up getting her a 43x and that little bit longer grip made all the difference in the world for her comfort in shooting it. At the same time we bought the 43x I also bought here a CC purse and she really likes that as she is not one to conceal carry on her body. Before she settled on the 43x she handled several others for quite some time in the gun store and that is the one she was ultimately drawn to.

I took over her 43 for myself and really like it a lot.

[bullets13]

The Sig P238 & P938 are great pistols. I also like my less expensive Taurus G2C.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

This. My wife carries my p238. Smoothest action of any pistol I’ve ever owned. It’s a .380 though. I have a p938, which is 9mm, but everything is a lot tighter on it. Both are easily concealed, and they’re pretty, which your wife will like. Both have a safety, which is good for throwing it in her purse. My wife carries her (my) p238 in a purse with the gun pocket in it.

[xman59]

most women do like the size and grip of the sig p365, but most like the s&w ez slides for the ability to rack the slide as most lack the strength for the slide on many pistols...

take her to a gun store let her pick up and get the feel of as many guns as possible,,, then pick a caliber to match the pistol that she likes, since most are offered in multiple caliber choices,,,,, men tend to always push their wives towards guns they like,, not what is best for them,,, I saw this almost daily when I worked in a gun store several years back,,,,

if she does not like it and it does not feel right to her she will not carry it!!!!!!!!

so what good does it do her or anyone if it's to big, to heavy, too hard to work the slide, or too much recoil ? A .22 with well placed shots is better than big bullets with lots of noise or a gun she can not handle under stress

[Sinkey]

I carry both a SIG P365 and a Glock 43. I actually like my GLock better the SIG, but my wife likes neither. lol.

I ended up getting her the Shield 380 EZ and she loves it. Fit her perfect and she shoots it well.