How many loungers got guns for Christmas?

I agree that something is better than nothing but if FD's looking for recommendations we would be doing her a disservice to point her at a .22 for any reason other than practice IMO.

I just don't agree with sweeping statements.

Not optimal for personal defense.

I still stand behind my 380 suggestions.

The walther pk380 is very nice as well.

If you can handle the recoil you may want to check out the Kahr CM9 PM9 series as well.

Well notice I didn't say I'd bought the Ruger yet. I expect they'll come down in price when Ruger gets off their ass & starts producing more of them.

A .22 is great to get your technique honed - aiming, firing, you can even practice drawing (I mentioned I'd bought myself a 1911 in .22 caliber - ultimately I want to buy a .45 1911 but my purpose in buying the .22 is to practice shooting and correct any bad habits while I'm firing cheap ammo instead of the considerably more expensive .45). But as tresanus mentioned, a .22 is not optimal for self-defense or really much more than hunting small game, like rabbits and squirrels.

Everyone should have a .22 but I don't think people should rely on one to defend their home or their person. You can kill a man with a .22 but you'll need a lot of luck or pretty good aim. A .22 round isn't going to stop an attacker and while you may be able to put multiple bullets into someone, the point of close-in self-defense is to put someone down right away - not to shoot them a bunch of times and wait for them to bleed out, or to count on being able to hit them in a vital spot when the pressure's on.

That said - anyone I take with me to the range who's never fired a gun before? I give them a .22 and let them get used to it first. Then we move up to a heavier .38 revolver with a long barrel (and by "heavy" I mean weight-wise - a heavier gun isn't going to kick as hard in general) to get them used to how that sounds & feels.

You'll get good advice here as it appears that many of the ladies in the Lounge carry firearms for self-defense. You might even post a thread about it...

I buy my own guns and I reload my own ammo. Santa is too much of a pussy to bring me a gun.

Mom had her heart set on this PINK .22 Taurus semi-auto that she saw at the gun show where Dad picked up his Judge & my Mossberg but Dad wasn't having it. First of all it was smaller than my iPhone & Mom already has a .32 semi that fits in her purse; second Dad said "I'm not buying a PINK handgun unless Jesus himself is standing next to me on Judgement Day and he says I have to!"

my wife won't even get me a nerf gun

I got plenty of ammo, but no guns.....

I bought my wife a Sig Mosquito .22 (in pink) and 800 rounds of CCI mini-mags. She loved it! She even shot better than me

That's awesome! My DW would love one of those. What did you pay if you don't mind me asking?

I paid $315 (no sales tax). I have read a lot that says the Mosquito jams, but the first 150 rounds didn't jam. I really like it so far. She liked shooting my .22 rifles, but enjoys shooting handguns more. However, we only had 9mm and up for caliber, so the .22 is much more manageable.

Please shoot me a PM if you run in to any issues with it. I'd like to do some research and put this on my list.

You musta been bad 'cause Santa has brought me guns before. (Not this yar tho')

Just to be clear, I absolutely know that I would need something with more "bang" than a .22. It was just the first gun I shot. The 9mm I used was too big for my hands so I felt very uncomfortable shooting it.

Look at single stack magazine 9mm's, they will have smaller grips.

Kahr CM9 PM9 series have a little weight with them, so the recoil should be diminished. However, the smaller/lighter the handgun the more "kick" you will feel. If the kick of a small single stack 9mm is too great, then I suggest you look for small single stack .380acp handguns.

Beretta Cheetah
Walther PPK or PK380
Bersa Thunder 380 or Thunder 380 CC

I would not look at Keltec PF9s or P3AT (and their ruger cousins) because these will kick like a mofo.

But as others have said, go to the range, rent a 9mm and 380 and try as many as you can out. Most ranges just require you buy the ammo and pay the rental fee for a gun, but you can switch it out as many times as you'd like (or as long as your ammo lasts!)

THanks for the insight. I bookmarked all of these and have been looking at all the suggestions from the thread.

DH said we will go to the range this weekend so we can try them. He thinks maybe the .380 will be good for me. There is a gun show here this weekend so he said once we get a better idea of what caliber and such, we can check out the show.

THanks for the insight. I bookmarked all of these and have been looking at all the suggestions from the thread.

DH said we will go to the range this weekend so we can try them. He thinks maybe the .380 will be good for me. There is a gun show here this weekend so he said once we get a better idea of what caliber and such, we can check out the show.