Recommend low maintenance handgun for a non-gun person

[jbrown50]

My wife is not "into guns" nor is she a gun person. She wants it simple and prefers her little S&W 637 j-frame .38 revolver. When we're together at the range I convince her to operate and shoot my semi-autos for the sake of familiarity but in no way would I try to force her to make either of my Glocks, Sigs, Kahrs or XDS 45 her primary guns. She's simply not into becoming proficient with them.

She trains with her little .38 j-frame and is very good with it. That's all I can ask and it's better than her not being interested at all.

[Brotherbadger]

but a 9mm Glock is the ticket for someone like that.

Agreed. That, or a revolver.

[22-rimfire]

Interesting and somewhat rambling thread but I like the subject matter a lot.

There are all kinds of people in this world with all kinds of skill sets. I favor getting training with firearms before much shooting. I do not favor government mandated training even for a carry permit. The training can vary with the individual, but a friend who is comfortable with guns is indispensable for a new shooter. Even if the new shooter is slightly familiar with a particular firearm design, the comfort and confidence that having someone there that "knows" is important. Safety is paramount.

Me, I started with DA revolvers after I turned 21 after shooting long guns since a teen. There was nobody to "train" me. I read the instruction manual and handled the gun empty to familiarize myself with the function. Did the same thing with semi-auto handguns.

Today with the availability of "professionals" in urban areas for training new folks, I favor paying someone to get you started at a basic level. If the interest takes off, the new shooter goes forward from there.

The comfort and familiarity with a gun mostly relates to safety concerns, loading and unloading, basic aiming and being about to hit the torso area of a person at 7 yds which "ain't hard" even with a gun you never shot before. (I'm referring to normal sized guns, not derringers and so forth.) The cleaning and other care can come a bit later, but are good basic skills to know. New shooters do not have to know how to dissemble a semi-auto pistol and put it back together.

So, suggesting a gun to a new shooter should be based on what that shooter is more comfortable with. I would show them how to handle both a double action revolver and pistol. They can choose as to what they prefer. From that point, they can broaden their interest if they choose to.

You would be amazed how many people buy a handgun and never even test fire it to see if it works.

I am guilty of that. I have safe queens that will never be fired and never intended to. I also have guns that I never got around to shooting, both handguns and long guns that I have owned for years.

But this thread is about new shooters and choosing and mostly about home defense. They certainly need to have shot what ever gun they acquire to get at least a minimum level of comfort and confidence with the gun.