Beretta Tomcat. .32 cal. Hollow point. Will easily fit into about any size pocket. Barrel pops up for first round. Magazine carries seven more bullets. Small. Very concealable. Good for small hands, don’t need upper body strength to rack slide. Has a safety. Semi-auto.
Or the Smith & Wesson Airweight, .38 cal (Plus P). Plus P signifies a more powerful load in the bullet. Bought this for my bride. Added Crimson Trace laser sight. No safety. With the laser turned on (small switch in grip), it becomes a point and click (shoot) pistol. Revolver, 5 shot. My small hands bride told me it hurts her hand when she shoots it.
So, she now has a Ruger LCRs, 9mm semi auto, in pink camo.
Try several pistols. Shoot them. Pick the one that works for you. Everyone has their personal preference. God speed.
I’m an 80-lb. lady with very tiny hands. Everything heavier than a switchblade has too much recoil to suit me!
If you must carry, though, and are not very experienced — stick with the revolver.
And get experience.
Rotate the lever on the frame next to the trigger guard forward and that pops the barrel up so you can load the first round directly into the barrel, so no need to rack the slide. Double action or single action first shot, then SA for rest, seven rounds (?) I think. My daughter has mine. Feed it Winchester Silvertip hollowpoints. Not much recoil, concealable, nice punch. I put a laser grip on mine so its a little `fat'. Don't get the silver one if you want a laser.I’m having issues with my right shoulder (gettin’ old) and will have to buy one when I move. Any idea how going lefty will make a difference if I practice a lot?
Beginner?...
9 shot revolver, .22 cal
If needed, shoot 6 times while yelling ‘pistolla, pistola’.
If they don’t leave, use the last three shots to confirm your acclimation.
Get yourself a Lady Smith which is a Smith and Wesson .38 caliber which is a snub nose perfect for your purse or pocket. At point blank range its perfect.
1. You can not go wrong with a Smith & Wesson.
2. Ruger makes a very close competitor, called an LCP. Many people, myself included, think the Ruger trigger is better than the Smith & Wesson, especially since this is a double action only revolver. Al least try the Ruger before you buy.
3. Strongly consider a laser sight in the grip. The Rugers can be bought with a Crimson Trace laser sight as a factory option. Don’t know about the Smith & Wesson. Especially for a beginner, the laser sight is much easier to use. Outdoors during the day, the conventional sight is better. Indoors or at night, the laser sight is worth its weight in gold. It is not an either/or situation. The conventional sight is always built into the gun. The laser sight is in addition to the regular one. The switch is in the grip where it naturally comes on when you aim the gun — nothing extra to fool around with.
4. The Ruger LCP in .38 is matte black with an aluminum frame. In .357 it is is a matte black stainless steel frame. This is an advantage over a shiny stainless gun. It may not look as nice in the gun shop, but serious shooters know that the less visible your weapon is to your opponent, the better.
5. For a beginner a revolver is usually a far better choice than a semi-auto. I have taken several classes, and the majority of instructors carry revolvers, and these are very experienced people.
6. Despite the fact that a semi-auto is thinner than a revolver, a revolver is usually easier to conceal. It has rounded edges and a partial outline is far less noticeable than the angular edges of a semi-auto.
It’s not a bad choice, especially if you are inexperienced with firearms. Revolvers are pretty well foolproof.
Hey, great decision on a carry gun for self and family protection! As a former professional firearms “user”, now jut concerned about self/family protection...
Here is my advice- do not take any advice on a website at face value- mine included!
Go to a reputable firearms trainer ( no, not a gun seller!). Get training and understanding about what you are about to embark on, then you can make an informed choice.
Too many folks buy on advice and not experience- I say it is worth maybe $400 spent on an NRA certified Pers Protec in/out the home as well as basic firearm safety, then spend money wisely on the specific tools- firearm, holsters, spare mags/carriers etc.
When you became of age to drive, you just didn’t go buy a car and then learn how, right? even more so with a firearm.
You can go to the NRA website ( nrahq.org) and look up NRA certified instructors in your area.
You also could check out professional training organizations, but they usually require travel and lodging and rather costly tuition, maybe later for you.
Some will say get a revolver vice an auto or vice versa, but both require effort and skill, and many find one or the other more comfortable and more accurate that the other- so get training, then decide after having the opportunity to handle several types etc.
Disclaimer- yes I am a former military/civilian firearms/tactics trainer and later an NRA certified Instruction-but no longer in the business.
Best
My go-to is a Sig automatic in .40 S&W, but I’m a lifelong shooter and have been paid to carry weapons, as have many other Freepers.
I am a big fan of wheelguns (revolvers) as opposed to automatics for one reason. ‘Oh s**t’ ready-to-panic situations suddenly happen sometimes, no matter who you are or what your resume has on it. A good wheelgun is simple and very reliable. They don’t jam. (Cheap crap guns may have other reliability issues, when you’re betting your life do your homework and spend the money). A good revolver is reliable and simple. The disadvantage is that they’re slower to reload than an automatic. You solidly thump an intruder six times with .357 magnum, you probably won’t need a reload though.
Second, TRAIN. get to where you’re utterly familiar with the operation and maintenance of your weapon and you’re a competent marksman.
I once had a loud and startling incident occur in my bedroom (pass on the jokes, thanks) in the middle of the night. I had been under horrific stress and had a few drinks to get to sleep. I came out of my sleep *already on my feet, armed, and sight alignment acquired* scanning for a target. It turned out to be an almost-comical thing, no deadly threat, but it proved an excellent practice final-exam.
Go reliable, simple, hard hitting and train. And train some more.
Every firearm mentioned thus far is just that—a “firearm” used for recreational purposes.
It doesn’t become a “weapon” until you are using it for self defense or defense of others.
In that sense a gun is like a hammer, chef’s knife, ladder jack or plumb bob.
If you give it some thought, this isn’t quibbling. Who wants to hear, “Hey, they’re comparing weapons over on FR.”
Consider the Ruger LCR in .357 Magnum. It’s a lightweight 5-shot revolver, and the .357 model is slightly heavier than the .38 model, so you can carry .38s and have less felt recoil due to the extra weight (which is about 2.5 oz.).
I’m a huge Smith fan, but not of their J-frames. I’d take a serious look at the Ruger LCR in .38 Special. Their trigger seems to be a bit smoother than most J-frames. Also, no need to get one in .357 Magnum. I know several very experienced and recoil insensitive shooters than say it’s an absolutely miserable thing to shoot in so light a gun. Good .38 Special defense ammo will do the trick.
Just my personal experience...I'm not an arms expert.
The 642 is one of the most popular concealed carry guns for good reason — it’s light, easy to carry, has adequate stopping power, it’s simpler to use than an autoloader and it’s reliable.
All handguns are compromises however and the downside is that it’s light weight results in sharp recoil, especially when using full power .38+P loadings. The trigger is long and heavy (and usually gritty when new), the sight radius is short and the sights themselves are small and not as easy to use as on a full size gun.
These guns are difficult to shoot well and not particularly fun at the range. At a minimum, you’ll want to make sure you get rubber grips that fit your hand well and start off with low-power loads.
This is one gun you definitely want to shoot before you buy. You might also want to try out the Smith & Wesson model 640 (essentially a steel framed version of the 642) or the Ruger SP 101. These guns are much easier to practice with if you don’t mind the extra weight.
S&W makes great revolvers and their semis are excellent too.
If you have shot it and like it go for it. Light to carry and foolproof.
An Uncle Mikes pocket holster is a handy way to carry.
http://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/advanced_search_result.php?keywords=m642&x=0&y=0
That particular model is $377 ($389 in pink), and $547 with Crimson Trace laser sights at Buds. I highly recommend Buds as the cheapest trustworthy source of new guns - if you are buying based on research and shooting other people’s guns. If you test fire at a gun store, see if they will negotiate between their price and Buds’ price. I’ve never seen a local store that will match Buds, but many will come down on price because they know you can get it cheaper. Note, with Buds you also have to pay a FFL (person with a federal license to transfer firearms) to deliver it to you, which is an extra $25 or so.
The S&W M642 is an excellent handgun for almost anyone, and a nearly perfect first defensive carry handgun. It’s popular with men as a backup because it’s so light, and with women as a primary weapon for the same reason. A heavier weapon will feel better in recoil, but that’s useless if you won’t carry something heavy. Shoot it and make sure before you buy, but it’s a good choice for a smaller woman (as your research verified).
If you shoot it and don’t like it after shooting it on two different days, then I’d agree with the suggestion for a small .22 instead (do research or ask FR for model recommendations if you decide to go that route). The .22 is a far better defensive handgun than most people give it credit for, responsible for a high proportion of fatal defensive shootings.
http://www.buckeyefirearms.org/alternate-look-handgun-stopping-power
A majority of attackers stop as soon as they are shot, regardless of whether it is a 12 gauge, a .50 cal, or a .22. Getting shot is traumatic and scary, and criminals will most often either drop or run away even if it’s just a .22 from a pistol.
I absolutely love Glocks, and own more than one, but under no circumstances would I recommend a Glock to a new shooter. My advice: Do not get a Glock. Do not test fire a Glock. Do not consider a Glock until you have been shooting for several years, and probably not even then. Read the FR threads on accidental shootings. Glock’s market share is not huge, but they have an embarrassingly large majority of accidental shootings. They are not for beginners, not even cops who are careless with firearms, and certainly not for you given what you have posted.
Feel free to ask more questions; FR really is a good place to do research if you can separate individual biases from good advice for you.
Great choice, do it.
Consider a speed loader or two to have around, especially in the night stand.
The 642 has been around for a long time, chief advantage is that it is small, hammer is concealed and makes it relatively snag proof from your clothing, and adequately powerful for self defense. (This is expert advice from my husband who is a firearms expert by profession)
FR is one of the last places I'd look for firearms advice, but since you asked I think that lightweight 642 is going to be a painful little monster that you won't end up carrying because you won't like practicing with it.
My opinion? Glock 19, or Glock 43 if your hands are too small for the 19.