Best 9mm for a new female shooter?

[wbbh]

"Nope. She refuses to make the decision." Sounds like you might be more intent than she is about getting her a handgun. She also doesn't want to disappoint you by picking the 'wrong' gun.

Try getting here a session with a qualified expert. I've always said, gun safety, driving and computer use is best taught by strangers. It helped my wife's shooting. She had carried a Ruger LCP and was changing over to a Ruger LC9s. She can shoot my .45 SIG and Ruger pistols as well as several 9mms very well, however she struggled racking the slide. This was not a problem with the Ruger LC9s and it was purple so that helped.

Our local gun club has a women's group that invited a local trainer to give them all a basic shooting class. He had my wife adjust her grip on the Ruger to center it in her had, however with a great grip, she could not reach the trigger. The instructor took out his Glock 43 and she put five quick shots into the X ring. That night I ordered the first pistol she actually chose, a Glock 43. She loves shooting the 43 and tears out the center of her targets.

Rent some pistols for yourself and let her try them; shooting much more definitive than just holding pistol.

[Cosmodragoon]

If you can find a reputable professional that will give her some basic instruction and help her to try some different options, that would be ideal. Since that isn't always a viable option, use this as an excuse to get together with some gun-owning friends. If these friends are men, have them bring their wives, girlfriends, daughters, or whatever. Everyone can have fun trying out different stuff, especially with reactive targets like water bottles, milk jugs, etc.

See, you know a little about how she feels with respect to weight, width, and recoil. At least find out what kind of trigger she likes (SA, DA, DA/SA, hammer or striker). That will give you the best starting point. Also consider the end point if you miss. It wouldn't hurt to consider options where your interests intersect. It will make your life easier (and better) just in case she doesn't like it.

As far as the suggestions so far, this is a good family to start looking at:

Walther P99 has several nice backstraps, the PPQ is even more sculpted. If she's thinking of carrying, a PPS M2 might be a good choice.

The P99 is relatively compact for a full-sized high-capacity handgun. Recoil isn't bad with standard-pressure ammo, though it is more noticeable than it would be in a bigger or heavier gun. They are very durable and nicely contoured for carry. I only ever see the "AS" models these days, which nicely emulate DA/SA sans hammer. Compared to DA/SA guns, the P99 has a pretty good trigger right out of the box.

The PPS has the normal striker-fired operation, akin to a single-action. This one also has a good trigger right out of the box. The different magazine lengths have different grip extension lengths. This allows not only for different carry methods but for an additional grip accommodation. The longest one makes the PPS behave and feel like a full-sized gun, despite being thin and petite. (For some people, that is full size.) The little gun handles 9mm recoil exceptionally well for its size class.

[mr bolo]

the GLOCK 43 single stack with a narrower grip would be a good choice

[Mastrogiacomo]

I'd buy her pepper spray until she can make up her mind. A person should be able to decide this for themselves. I have Beretta 92FSs, a S&W 686+, and small guns like the Walther PPS and Colt Detective Special. Someone that can't decide on a gun should take their time until they can.

Laura

[Sgt Pepper]

Sig P239
Sig P225
Beretta 92 Compact
Browning Hi-Power (with one reservation - I would change the mainspring to a lighter one)
Browning Hi-Power with Navidrex thin grips is enlightening.

These pistols maintain some heft, which is important, yet allow for smaller palms and/or fingers to comfortably control the pistol. The worst thing that you can do, in my ever-not-so-humble opinion, is to get something that is too small and too light.

[OldScout]

I had a granddaughter graduate from HS this year and bought her a brand new Bersa 380 for a graduation present. I started her gun training when she was 12 yrs old with a Bersa 380 and my Bersa 9UC. But the 380 was and is her favorite.

[Badgerstate]

I recently bought a Walther PPQ and when I first got it, my wife wanted to go with me to the range just to get comfortable with it, incase she ever has to use it.
She is a new shooter, not particularly strong or athletic and she had no problems shooting the PPQ. She said the recoil wasnt bad at all (it is a 9mm, afterall) and she shot pretty good groups with it.
Theres a part of me that thinks maybe I should have bought a CCP because the recoil spring is a bit heavy for her. She can rack the slide to chamber a round just fine but I dont know that she could clear it if it had a malfunction. Its a Walther, so it should never malfunction but its still something Ive thought about.

[Doc Holliday 1950]

My friend from Boston is totally right. Until she can find that perfect fit she might take along i her purse Pepper Spray. There actually are GSs & Ranges that cater to women. They have their own classes and their own practice sessions. I know this sound dumb, " Happy wives make for happy lives'. Guys, I know how hard this is for you but chill out.

[Spats McGee]

Originally Posted by bbousa

Nope. She refuses to make the decision.

It sounds to me like you should consider the possibility that she does not want a gun.

[smax]

If she likes the overall operation of the P226 but wants something a little lighter/smaller/thinner, then look at the P239. I got one for my wife and she loves it.

[jimbob86]

I do not recommend the P938 for a newbie due to the need for stone cold competency of dealing with a cocked and locked gun with a safery.

I don't recommend carrying ANY gun unless you are committed to "stone cold competency" with it ..... and by carrying many different guns on different days, you are complicating the matter immensely...... I've drilled with the 1911 to the point that when I'm funnin' around at a bowling pin match with other guns, even revolvers, my thumb swipes the safety down, even if it is not there to be swiped.....

Crunch time is no time to be trying to remember which gun you decided went well with your outfit today. It's a self defense tool, not a fashion accessory...... pick one and stick with it, because trigger time is the only way to muscle memory, and it takes a ton of it to instill....and just as much to unlearn it.

[lee n. field]

Originally Posted by bbousa

She's new to shooting. 25 yo. Athletic. She wants something other than my Ruger SR22. She has been shooting my 226 Blackwater, but that's a little to heavy for her. Recoil is ok. She prefers the thinner grips, but most have way too much recoil for her. Any suggestions? Thought is she will be able to get confident enough to keep it on her nightstand at night.

Weight. "The g00gle sez" the 226 is 32 oz, presumably unloaded. So, lighter than that.

Recoil. It's a 9mm, expect for the really small guns, recoil is going to be negligible.

Thin is desirable.

Is a single stack OK? Ruger has an aluminum framed 9mm lightweight commander that weighs in at 29oz. http://ruger.com/products/sr1911/specSheets/6722.html

My own personal preference would be an XDS in 9mm, in either the 3.3 inch or 4 inch version. Thin. Weight is 23-25oz, unloaded. Magazine capacity 7 to 9 rounds (depending on which magazine is used.) 2 different backstraps, for some adjustability in grip size.

Also, yeah, she should try a Glock. 19 or 26.

[Vividia]

Originally Posted by jimbob86

I don't recommend carrying ANY gun unless you are committed to "stone cold competency" with it ..... and by carrying many different guns on different days, you are complicating the matter immensely...... I've drilled with the 1911 to the point that when I'm funnin' around at a bowling pin match with other guns, even revolvers, my thumb swipes the safety down, even if it is not there to be swiped.....

Crunch time is no time to be trying to remember which gun you decided went well with your outfit today. It's a self defense tool, not a fashion accessory...... pick one and stick with it, because trigger time is the only way to muscle memory, and it takes a ton of it to instill....and just as much to unlearn it.

With respect, you are not me.

Each of the guns I carry routinely feel very different in the hand. I have drilled enough with each that picking it up blind in the dark i know which i have and how to use it.

I started out years ago shooting revolvers, and carried the 442 exclusively for several years. Each of the others was added over time, and only with care and practice.

They are most certainly not a fashion accessory, and if you knew me you would know that there is not a "fashion consideration" bone of any sort in my body.

One carries better in a pocket, another better in an IWB holster. I would rather carry comfortably depending on the season and what I am going to be doing that day than chained to a single tool just because. Even hammers come in different flavors depending on the job at hand, don't they?

The OP asked for opinions for a gun for a woman. As a woman, having been an enthusiast for years, and a collector, i felt qualified to offer one on the ones I own. I did not encourage in any way the necessity of owning multiple models. In fact, I encouraged a "do all" with the Shield.

You are certainly entitled to your opinion, but please don't be so dismissive of the opinion of another.

[Cosmodragoon]

If she likes the overall operation of the P226 but wants something a little lighter/smaller/thinner, then look at the P239. I got one for my wife and she loves it.

The fancy version is on my wish list but it'd be for me. It's a great little gun and I love the feel of it. It's enough to overcome the "do you really need another 9mm handgun" and the "do you really need a thousand-dollar handgun". I put a few bucks in the jar whenever money comes in. It just has to survive long enough to get there.

https://www.sigsauer.com/store/p239-...2-compact.html

[tipoc]

Go over to https://www.corneredcat.com/article/...ss-adventures/

and suggest that she look around there.

Originally Posted by bbousa
Nope. She refuses to make the decision.

She has to want to buy a gun or it's no good pressuring her to make a decision. She has to look forward to the process or it's no use laying 20 good guns in front of her. It's her call.

Give her a credit card and say "take this and get whatever gun you want or whatever else you really want." If she comes back with a new phone, a laptop and some shoes, then ya know, and she'e happy.

tipoc

[Andy Blozinski]

Have you considered a .38 revolver?

[CWKahrFan]

The latest issue of NRA's American Rifleman magazine has a long article about a test they ran with 35 women shooting and evaluating 18 popular handguns. Top finisher in the 9mm category was the Walther CCP followed by the Sig P320 compact, the H&K VP9, and the Springfield EMP4.