I bought myself a Sig 238 when they first came out. Very accurate and reliable. When Sig came out with the Ultra Compact I got one. When my wife saw it, she immediately claimed the 238 as hers. She has never fired any kind of gun in her life, so I took her out in the back yard and gave her instructions and a 22. By the time she made it to the 238 she was doing very well. She likes the 380 round best. Says anything bigger hurts her wrist. But as good as she shoots, it is all she needs. The girl is good!

Consider how she will carry it. I am not a fan of purse carry. If a BG comes at her the first thing he is going to grab is the purse. Either for the money or to keep from getting hit with it. Then they have the gun. Accessibility is another problem. Most women don't "like" the purses designed for carry. The five steps of a draw from holster has to be mastered, a draw from a purse would be infinitely more complicated. Even a small light 1911 is a big gun. I have taught my wife and two daughters basics of handgun carry. All of them chose a 45 over a 9mm, the felt recoil of the 9mm seems sharper than that of the 45. Let them shoot different calibers you may be surprised. My daughters didn't like the 38 snubbie at all.I would say most women do not want to carry a pound and a half of gun in their purse. My 2 cents.

I got my wife a Flashbang holster. Kind of cool, actually.

Danger will robinson!danger!
Please do not buy your wife a handgun. Big mistake. SHE needs to try,hold,handle on her own. Ask her own questions. If she doesnt, you will end up with a gun she will not carry.

Thi kabout it.would u want me pick out your gun for you.?

Just sayin....i did this once in my life:eek::eek:

Thanks everyone for the input!! She is fairly familiar with firearms ( mostly rifles and shot guns for hunting), and she shoots my beretta 96 pretty comfortably and she shoots my ruger mk3 hunter ok to. I was leaning towards 1911 since that's what I carry. I think the most important thing is just to have her handle a bunch of different pistols and make decision from there.

Xxxxx

Yes yes yes!! I was on a tablet yesterday when I posted my reponse Sunderbrew. Please encourage her to try different firearms, maybe even stand behind her and tell the ninjamallguncounterclerk to lighten up when he wants to show her a "woman's gun"... encourage her to shoot, shoot and shoot different firearms until she finds "THE" one for her. It's got to be her decision though... If she choose a pink Charter Arms revolver that she WILL carry... it's better than that nifty .45 1911 that you would carry... cuz she'llhave it on her when its needed.

I have a couple of Bersa's that I thought my wife would like. 380 and 22 LR. I bought them without her knowledge... then said "what would you think if I bought you a new pistol for your birthday?" Her response? "If and when I want a pistol, I'll choose it myself. You taught me to shoot, and you told me to buy what I'll carry" (hate it when she quotes me!!!!) "when I find the right one, I'll buy it."

I gulped...and was proud... at what I created. She will NOT be intimidated by some salesman at the gun counter. She'll kick his.... as the English say.... "Arse."

Still my 2 Cents.
DaFadda