Who makes the best 38 special? Looking at buying one for my girlfriend so she could carry it in her purse or what not. If you have any other suggestions on what handguns are good for women.
Small / snubby revolvers generally don't make good "first guns"...
Especially true for the light weight ones.
It takes work to be accurate with them. And all that work using them can be painful - especially for a light one. ...
Agreed. Indy Guy knows whereof he speaks.
Has your girlfriend ever shot an "airweight" snub nose revolver with +p defensive loads? If not, she might be surprised by the recoil. Most people find it "significant." If so and it's not an issue for her that's fine. Just be aware that a 13-15 oz revolver with a short grip firing +p loads is a completely different animal from a 26-ish oz revolver with a full grip firing standard loads. Night and day.
Given that, I prefer the Ruger LCR. It's the lightest, has the best trigger pull, and most people find, the lowest felt recoil (given the squishy back strap area of the std grip). Just my opinion of course.
Keep in mind, many loads don't work all that well in barrels this short (in terms of expansion and penetration). There are only 3 loads I'm willing to run for defensive purposes, so that can affect the cost and availability of ammo side of the equation too.
Something else to consider might be a medium size .380 like the Bersa Thunder 380 or similar - lower felt recoil, higher capacity, faster reloads, and better ergonomics. Most people find it easier to get hits with something like this.
And as someone has suggested, involve her in the process. Have her shoot some different things and you might be surprised what she picks.
And we haven't even addressed the advisability, or lack thereof, of purse carry.
...It was at that moment that I quit equating the cartridge with recoil and began thinking that ergonomics and hand size were at least as big a factor as cartridge. ...
Yup. There's a difference between the "free" recoil, or objective rearward momentum of a firearm (can be calculated), and the "felt" or "perceived" recoil of a firearm (somewhat subjective and dependent fit, ergonomics, etc). The latter can mitigate the effects of the former.
^^^^^
I really wish I had the wherewithal to say it like that...If I had a degree in something other than hard knocks I bet I could have.
Thank You coserman for translating it so even I know what I was trying to say...