"My wife has never shot a gun in her life. I want to take her to the pistol range. I don't want her to be scared by something powerful, but I don't want her to fire something incredibly weak so as to disillusion her about the capability of firearms. What's a nice middle ground 'first' gun for her to shoot with."
Wow. Talk about a softball question.
So you want to take the Missus shooting with a minimum of fuss and trauma and a maximum of fun and suchlike. Sounds like you either have a .22 pistol, but don't want that to be the only clown at the rodeo. Well, I recommend two things...
Take her to an outdoor shooting range. The great outdoors is prettier, less claustrophobic, and the sound dissipates better. Especially for a first timer. Less boomy-jumpy echos off the walls. Brighter. You can see grass while you shoot. Unless it is gawdawful hot out it's a more pleasant experience all around.
Second, I recommend taking one of 2 types of guns along. This is the same recommendation and practice that a trainer I took classes with does. When he takes a first timer to the range he doesn't bother with a .22. He brings a full size police type service pistol. Something like a Glock 17 (9mm) or one of the other various plastic glock-types, or a regular .38 revolver. A Smith and Wesson model 10 for example. These shoot Goldilocks loads, the 9mm and .38. Not to hard, not too soft. And out of a full size pistol there is enough mass to make the recoil gentler, too. They aren't weak, by any means, and are a serious round, but they aren't a handful to control, either, and well within the comfort zone of anyone that agrees to go to the range in the first place.
If they ARE too much for the n00bie, well, you can fall back on that .22 and they will still have fun and be comfortable.
Worrying about a weak or wimpy cartridge when you're talking about a total newbie is ridiculous. The intent is to introduce the newbie to guns in a way so as to build confidence, and that is why the .22LR is the perfect cartridge for such a job. Once the newbie is confident with the .22, then move up to the 9mm or the .38 Special (148-grain wadcutters, standard velocity). Again, gauge the confidence level before moving up to the next power level.
ReplyDeleteAgree with Bob... start with a .22 for confidence and basic technique before they have to handle recoil.
ReplyDeleteIt's easy to jump from .22 to "this is a 9mm, which is a solid defensive round..."
Yeah, I thought my co-workers concerns were a little off. But his concerns are his concerns, so I hedged my advice in light of that. I will however pass on your sentiments.
ReplyDeletePeople fall in love with shooting with a .22. And once they are in love...
Yeah, the .22 is fun and it gives a new shooter a lot of confidence when they can drill targets pretty quickly. Concern for power comes when the new shooter is capable.
ReplyDeleteThe first time I shot a pistol, it was a Beretta 92FS...and I hated it. I realize this is anecdotal, but I really wish I'd started with something smaller. I was intimidated and my wrist hurt and wanted to get the hell out.
ReplyDeleteI'd say either go with a .22 at an indoor range or the full size gun outdoors. Combining a large-frame gun with an indoor range might be a bad idea.
.22 to start with here too... sorry.
ReplyDeleteBreda has said in the past that the best way to teach a new lady about guns is to let another women handle it (or words to that affect). Another point to make is, why start with a Pistol?
ReplyDeleteTrue Story time. When Carol (my Wife) wanted to learn about Guns, I started her out on a .22LR Semi-Auto. After a magazine, she put it down, and said "That's Heavy!" THEN I gave her a .22LR pistol. After emptying it, she said "Hey, that's much easier to hold than a Rifle!" Then we worked our way up. She seems to have settled at the 9mm level for her comfort zone.
YMMV, of course.
BTW, go to Snarkybytes (Alan's Site) and see about getting on the "Gun Blog Black List." All the Cool Kids are doing it.