The ladies getting those must not be shooting one first. I would think the amount of recoil on .357 LCR would be unpleasant at best. Which means you won't practice much. Or I could be wrong.
There u go thinking. Have "you" shot one to be able to give that advise?
Anyway, having shot both the .38 and the .357, the felt recoil of an LCR is IMO somewhat lighter than many other guns with a similar size and weight frame. The full load .357's are a handful, but not painful to shoot, while .38 practice rounds are actually quite pleasant for a small frame revolver.
^^^this I owned one too. Not bad I just didn't want itActually, the extra weight of an LCR in 357 (steel frame as opposed to aluminum used in the other models of the line) coupled with the Hogue tamer grips that come on them from the factory makes for a pretty mild shooting experience with 38. I've heard the 38 version is a little handful, but my experience (and that of my recoil-sensitive wife) with the 357 was a pretty easy to shoot snubby. Full power 357 will get your attention, but anything less than full-power loads are pretty easy to shoot in the thing...
In fact, I was one of those (with her input, mind you) who bought one for the wife. It was her favorite gun to shoot, but she felt it too bulky to carry with her preferred method, so she's running a G26 now.
MUCH less felt recoil than the Airweight Smiths firing +P 38...
As a XDs owner and operator, AMEND to this!!OP: Do you have experience with small revolvers? They're not "beginner" or "first" guns. They're not all that easy to shoot and to shoot well. And they certainly can be unpleasant.
A gun that's unpleasant to shoot won't be shot much for practice. And small guns need more practice to develop proficiency....
I haven't shot that one but I have shot a Ruger security 6 in 357. I still do, periodically. Most of the time I use 38s. Because of the recoil. I'm assuming a smaller gun will be less pleasant. As a rule, though certainly not 100%, ladies seem to prefer less recoil than that in their carry guns. ( from many conversations ) Thus, I'm passing along advice to try some 357s. But like I said, since you can just drop down to 38 if the 357 is too much then it probably doesn't matter.
My wife also carries and fires an LCR .357. She is 5'2" and 105 dripping wet. She loves it!!!! We go to the range monthly and she won't fire anything else...
The LCRs must be better than the S&W Bodyguard .38 then, since that thing was unpleasant to shoot with an awful trigger. I sold it pretty quickly and went back to a small semi-auto as my carry piece (currently a Kahr CM9).
My wife also carries and fires an LCR .357. She is 5'2" and 105 dripping wet. She loves it!!!! We go to the range monthly and she won't fire anything else...
Pfft. Amateur. 9lb10oz VBAC. And I can tell you that the two have nothing to do with each other.Besides anyone who can push a 7 pound 5 ounce human out, can handle a little recoil!
If the LCR is steel framed, then there really isn't any point in comparing it to the light weight models. I have one of the latter as a BUG. I hope I never have to use it. It hurts. The ability to maintain a good grip can be problematic for those with larger hands, but that is probably why it is well-suited to women.