[Pre-diddy]

Looking for a new gun.

Fairly simple requirements...

Girlfriend will be using it, so the following things are most important
1) Size/ergonomics. She has small hands, my xd-9 is too big for her.
2) Accuracy. It doesn't need to be competition accurate, but i think its better to have a gun that rewards practice (I'm trying to introduce her to shooting)
3) Recoil. She did ok shooting my friends .357 revolver (long barrel), but I think the xd was a little too light and snappy for her.


Obviously other things like reliablility and price are a factor, but I'm not too concerned about things as long as the first 3 conditions are met.
Gun will strictly be used for plinking/range use. Leanng towards smaller calibers for obvious reasons.

Any opinions on either Walther P22 or Sig Mosquito? I don't hear much about them, and when I do, it seems to be mixed at best. I've shot Ruger's .22 before, thats an option. Open to suggestions...

 

[Ducman]

If this is just for practice, there is no reason to go to a centerfire I would look at the ruger 22/45 since the grip angle is the same as most handguns...except the glock.

For centerfire and HD, I would suggest the M&P in 9mm, the adjustable backstrap will help with the fit

 

[Adler]

Well for guns that are defense capable I have a few

Bersa 380 thunder- Excellent overall pocket gun, decent stopping power, very concealable, and great for smaller hands

S&W99 and/or Walther p99- Adjustable grip, excellent gun, several trigger configs to choose from

CZ75- Widely copied and loved gun, various options and calibers

EAA Witness- More economical CZ copy. More calibers available

For plinking

Beretta NEOS
Browning Buckmark
Ruger Any

 

[jamz]

Both the P-22 and the Mosquito are somewhat cheezily built, the Mosquito more so. If you have a 1911 style gun, you can get a .22 conversion kit for it, and that gun is kind to small hands.

Other than that, like Ducman said, the S&W M&P has adjustable backstraps, and can come in a full size 9mm which would help alleviate the recoil.

 

[Pre-diddy]

Thanks for the replies so far. FWIW gun will not be used for self-defense(at least I sure hope not). It's actually going to me my gun, staying at my house, and I already have better options at hand for HD. Range use only, thats why I'm leaning heavily towards .22, or other small and cheap calibers that would be less than ideal for SD.

The idea of a heavier 9mm isn't bad, but her hands are exceptionally small/weak so I'm weary of anything full size without her holding it first. She can't even cock the hammer on a revolver with her shooting hand, she has to use her suport hand. I don't think she could rack the slide on my XD.

Can anyone quantify just how bad p22 and mosquitos are? It tough to read internet testimonials and figure out the frequency/seriousness of some issues. Are the issues blown out of proportion, on target, understated, etc.? Either way, I'm off to the store to check some of these out in person.

Thanks all for the input thus far, keep it coming I'm open to all suggestions. I'm a little out of my element on this one.

 

[Mndfusion]

I have a buddy with little hands that fell for my hi-power and i ended up selling it to him. I didnt even want to sell it but he offered $100 more than i paid!

A good .22 -- that would be the ruger MK. I like the older mk1 the best, mine has a 6 in. tapered target hvy brl and shoots through the same hole sometimes. Its as accurate and reliable as any .22 i ever shot.

j frame revolvers are cool to, the point well, and shoot really fast.

 

[Adler]

Mosquitos are just awful so dont even try them. The P22 had several early production issues that are now fixed related to loose parts and being very very ammo picky. They are still somewhat picky, but much better.


You might want to look into a used Walther P1. Very cheap and cool, and built for small hands since its a single stack magazine. The slides are very easy to rack as well.