The Firing Line Forums - View Single Post - Help a Newbie Lady out? First handgun purchase...

Madcap_Magician · January 4, 2015, 07:01 PM

Of the three, the only one I cannot recommend is the Ruger LCR.

These are excellent revolvers, but if the gun is primarily for home defense, and it is your first handgun, there's no reason to get a tiny five-shot revolver.

They are primarily for concealed carry. The recoil is extremely stiff, and it is a difficult gun to learn to shoot well.

The Beretta 92 is a fine gun, but I would recommend slightly against it. If you have small hands it is a little difficult to handle due to the circumference of the grip and the reach to the trigger. If it fits you reasonably well, though, it is accurate and very soft shooting, carrying a good number of a reasonably powerful cartridge. However, it is a double action/single action pistol, and it takes a goodly amount of training and practice to learn to manage the two distinctly different trigger pulls in the same gun.

The Glock 19 is an excellent gun and has most of the benefits of the Beretta 92. It has a little more recoil due to its smaller size and weight. Grip is still on the fat side, but the Generation 4 Glocks are a big improvement over the earlier guns in this regard.

I would recommend you also consider the S&W M&P, which has most of the pros of both the Beretta and the Glock as far as shootability and capacity go, but which is also substantially more ergonomically comfortable for a wider range of hand shapes and sizes, due to modifiable backstraps and the gentle swell and rounded shape of the grip.

If you would like to try a revolver, a Ruger GP100 with a three- or four-inch barrel or a comparable Smith and Wesson like a Model 10 or a Model 64, all of which are six-shot, medium-sized, steel-frame revolvers, will be good choices. Trigger pull is heavier than the semiautos, but smoother. Operation is easier, although if you can drive a car, you can shoot a semiauto correctly

Those revolvers will also give you the option to practice with .38 Special target loads, which recoil very softly, and carry heavier .38 Special loads for defense or even go up to powerful .357 magnum loads.

January 4, 2015, 07:01 PM	#34
Madcap_Magician Senior Member Join Date: August 13, 2009 Location: MN Posts: 668	Of the three, the only one I cannot recommend is the Ruger LCR. These are excellent revolvers, but if the gun is primarily for home defense, and it is your first handgun, there's no reason to get a tiny five-shot revolver. They are primarily for concealed carry. The recoil is extremely stiff, and it is a difficult gun to learn to shoot well. The Beretta 92 is a fine gun, but I would recommend slightly against it. If you have small hands it is a little difficult to handle due to the circumference of the grip and the reach to the trigger. If it fits you reasonably well, though, it is accurate and very soft shooting, carrying a good number of a reasonably powerful cartridge. However, it is a double action/single action pistol, and it takes a goodly amount of training and practice to learn to manage the two distinctly different trigger pulls in the same gun. The Glock 19 is an excellent gun and has most of the benefits of the Beretta 92. It has a little more recoil due to its smaller size and weight. Grip is still on the fat side, but the Generation 4 Glocks are a big improvement over the earlier guns in this regard. I would recommend you also consider the S&W M&P, which has most of the pros of both the Beretta and the Glock as far as shootability and capacity go, but which is also substantially more ergonomically comfortable for a wider range of hand shapes and sizes, due to modifiable backstraps and the gentle swell and rounded shape of the grip. If you would like to try a revolver, a Ruger GP100 with a three- or four-inch barrel or a comparable Smith and Wesson like a Model 10 or a Model 64, all of which are six-shot, medium-sized, steel-frame revolvers, will be good choices. Trigger pull is heavier than the semiautos, but smoother. Operation is easier, although if you can drive a car, you can shoot a semiauto correctly Those revolvers will also give you the option to practice with .38 Special target loads, which recoil very softly, and carry heavier .38 Special loads for defense or even go up to powerful .357 magnum loads.