I recommended a 22LR for self defense/conceal carry today

eb07

eb07

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Good friend's wife. Never like firearms. Had an incident at work with a crazy client and decided it was time to protect herself.

Goes to gun shops, gets pushed into the normal rigmarole of buy a snub, buy a glock 9, buy an LCP, buy this, buy that. Was very confused and intimidated. My friend is also not a "gun guy" but he owns one.

So I offered to take her to the desert and let her shoot some of my collection to get an idea of what SHE wants.

Started off with the Ruger Sr-22. Taught proper grip, stance, sight picture, and trigger control. Absolutely accurate on steel targets at 15 yards. 10 for ten after the second mag for 7 mags worth. She had a smile on her face.

Shot this for a while until she was comfortable.

Went to the LCR 22WMR. Was ok with recoil but did not like trigger and sights. Just wasn;t a fan of the revolver much to my dismay but it's her choice right?

Moved her to the 442 so she could experience 38sp. Even with 148gr wadcutters, did not like recoil and the sights and was completely inaccurate and uncomfortable with the trigger pull ( which is sweet and has been worked over by Nelson Ford). Hurt her hands. So removed boot grip and threw on pachmayr. Still didn't like it.

Went to the P3AT. Could not rack slide. Hated sights. hated recoil. Hated grip. Could barely pull the trigger. Same thing with LCPII although trigger was a little better. Hated both of the mouse guns.

Moved up to micro nines. Nano, 43, and LC9. Did not like the recoil on any of them and was scared of them. Had a hard time racking slides. Wasn't a fan.

Gave her G26 with extended grip. Still hated trigger and recoil and grip. Could not rack slide.

After a some time out there which I let her dictate how much she shot, she informed me that she was scared to come out in the beginning but starting off with the 22 made her feel way more comfortable and she was still sacred of the other handguns. So we went back to the SR22 and worked on accuracy and manipulations.

She felt more comfortable with the Sr-22 for these reasons:

1. She could rack the slide
2. The grip was comfortable
3. Recoil wasn't scary
4. Manual safety and magazine disconnect made her feel safer ( which I feel is important for a new shooter)
5. She could easily load the magazines

So after discussing with her the trade offs of using 22LR as a self defense round I told her that she should go with what she is comfortable with and actually enjoyed shooting, rather than buy something she could not manipulate and was scared off.


I have seen so many who were not gun people get pushed into bigger guns they could not shoot accurately, properly manipulate, or felt uncomfortable with and ended up either abandoning the sport or just throwing it in a drawer never to use again or rarely using it.

She isn't anti-gun just scared of them. Now she is all excited to go shooting with my wife and I am 100% sure that after a few months of practice, her confidence and skill will build and she may want to try a larger gun on her own terms instead of being pushed into one. Plus it will be cheap to shoot and she can go with us as we go out weekly to improve her skills.

After observing her skills and fear of recoil, I think I made the right recommendation so as not to scare or lose someone new to the sport.


So yeah, I recommended a 22 LR for the first time ever. :D
 
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Ditto and double ditto.

I have a dear friend who loves her SIG P-938. The only problem is that she can't shoot it worth jack and she used to be good with a S&W .22 caliber snubbie revolver. I think that her husband, a very good friend of mine, doesn't see the issue. Next time we are together I will show them the problem.

WELL DONE eb07!!!!
 
Didn't James Bond carry a Beretta .22 caliber semi automatic originally? at least until he was ordered by M to turn it in for a Walther PPK.

The .22 LR has a lot of energy and the bullet will richochet around in the body of the victim causing maximum damage.

I have read that Mafia assassins carry .22LR caliber pistols.

My first revolver was a Smith Kit gun in .22 LR with 4 inch barrel when I was 10 years old. I learned early to respect the .22 LR.
No kidding!
 
Now that's the way to help a new shooter. The LGS I most often go to doesn't tell first time shooters, especially women, what to buy. They tell them go to a range and try out different calibers and guns to see what fits their needs and abilities to use.

I have been in gun stores and have seen husband and wives wanting a gun for protection but they have no idea what to get. When my wife wanted a gun for protection and I really didn't know squat about what gun would be good for self protection. We went to a gun show and we asked the vendor what he suggested. He suggested a 38 spl S&W model 36 Rossi clone because it wasn't overly heavy, was a very safe gun for an inexperienced shooter, was easy to use and dependable. We paid $185 for it new in the original box. The wife had no problem shooting the gun and wasn't scared of using it. I still have that gun after 30 years and it still is dependable and accurate.

If I could make a suggestion to gun ranges that also sell guns is advertise one night a week or a month for people interested in getting a gun to come and shoot some to see what they would like and can handle effectively. I know there are many that do have these classes. Have a short class on how to safely handle guns before they let them start shooting. Can you imagine how many new shooters could end up drawing blood because not knowing how to hold a semi auto or revolver safely? I guarantee there are many people that buy a new gun and don't bother reading the gun manual and safe use of the gun.

Anyway kudos to your helping a new shooter enjoy the world of guns. I do have the Ruger SR22lr and it is an enjoyable gun to shoot.
 
My significant other also prefers a 22 over any other caliber, including light 38 special loads out of her 640-1. For purse carry she also prefers the 351c in 22 mag over the 640. (It did take her some time to warm up to the heavy but smooth trigger)

Her first pistol was a 22A which fit her hand well, was easy to operate and maintain and was very accurate. She traded that in for a 617-6 10 shot 4 inch and hasn't looked back since. She rocks it in an old Hunter OWB rig with rentention strap filled with 10 CCI Stingers. We've shot about a 1000 Stingers through it and have never had a single fail to fire. For these reasons, I'm supportive of her preference for it. It should also be noted that I lost track of the round count in the 351c after 1000, and still to this day have not had a failure to fire. It mostly sees CCI but its digested winchester and armscor just fine too.

I believe that 22s can be reliable enough for protection use, but I highly recommend putting the time and practice into finding a super reliable round and be accurate with the first shot/followups.

SVT28
 
My wife's first carry gun was a Bersa Firestorm 22. She could shoot lights out with that little gun, and with CCI Mini-Mags it NEVER malfunctioned. She'd tried a 38, but didn't care for it. "I like this one." She said. Good enough for me.

She carried that little Bersa for years, before she decided on her own that she wanted something bigger. Now she has a Bersa 380 which she shoots just as well.

(She's not recoil sensitive either. I was shooting a 4", Model 29 one afternoon, when she asked to try it. You sure? Yes. After six rounds she turned to me with a shrug and said, "I thought you said this thing kicked?)
 
YOU DID AN OUTSTANDING JOB ! ! !

MAKE SURE THAT YOU TEACH HER HOW TO CLEAR A JAM. SEMI-AUTOS ARE PRONE TO JAM WITH JUNK AMMO.....

I SUGGEST THAT SHE SHOOT CCI MINI-MAGS---A 40GR, GILDED LEAD ROUND NOSE SOLID, THAT IS EXTREMELY RELIABLE, VERY ACCURATE, AND CLEAN BURNING......

BECAUSE THE BULLET IS NOT EXPOSED LEAD, COVERED WITH A HEAVY COAT OF LUBE, THE ACTION DOES NOT GET GUMMED UP---THUS MITIGATING THE PROBLEM OF FAILURES TO EXTRACT/EJECT.....
 
Good job working with her. If she’s not comfortable with a firearm she won’t shoot it well. Confidence is the best defense.
 
Richochet said:
Didn't James Bond carry a Beretta .22 caliber semi automatic originally? at least until he was ordered by M to turn it in for a Walther PPK.

The .22 LR has a lot of energy and the bullet will richochet around in the body of the victim causing maximum damage.

I have read that Mafia assassins carry .22LR caliber pistols.

My first revolver was a Smith Kit gun in .22 LR with 4 inch barrel when I was 10 years old. I learned early to respect the .22 LR.
No kidding!
Click to expand...

It was a Beretta model 418 in 25 acp. but close enough ;)
 
Good eb07! I always start new shooters off with a .22 also. Usually one of my Ruger Mark II or III pistols and work up from there.
 
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