By George Emanuel
What the heck! I am feeling a little more daring than normal so I’ll wade into this never-ending discussion with my two cents. Which one should she, or you, buy for her?
The canon may be an exaggeration, but I have seen some sheer stupidity on the part of men. If there are any testosteroneone-laden Rambo’s left in the room, leave now, this is a serious discussion and does not involve your asinine hypothetical situations. If you can set aside your energy drink and are interested in learning, however, have a seat.
Much has been made of the muzzle and downrange energy for years. And these are exactly that, measurements of energy. They are useful, I suppose if you are looking for a round to hunt anything from squirrels to moose. They can give you an idea of their ability to go through flesh or organs and crash through the large bone structure of various animals.
Big bore stuff is very dramatic when it impacts ballistic gelatin, but we are not stopping blocks of jelly, we are stopping a human threat.
The ability to stop the threat is what we need in a self or defense scenario, period!
The ability to quickly empty the magazine of a .22 caliber pistol into a 4″ – 8″ target from distances of contact to 10 yards hitting the Center of Mass (thoracic triangle) will stop the threat, and together with movement toward escape will likely get you home safely!
Now before you have a tantrum because I mentioned a .22 cal for self-defense. Think about the infirmed, wheelchair-bound, diminutive, the elderly, or others who might not be able to handle a .380 or larger due to their unique circumstances. The .22 has its place and should not be overlooked. Though I do not recommend it to most people as their first option
I am a good-sized man and can readily conceal a full-size semi-auto and two extra magazines on my person.
Are you big enough to do that as well? How about your wife or daughter?
Too many times guys take the wife, daughter, girlfriend, or whomever to the gun shop and encourage them to buy the gun “they” would like to have themselves. This is stupid! I’d bet dollars to donuts the guy couldn’t handle the gun competently himself either.
Your loved one will have a much better experience with a firearm they feel comfortable with and will want to shoot enough to become proficient.
How does the gun fit her? A Beretta 92 is certainly a good gun, but the grip is huge. Do you say she wears a size 6 wedding band?
I have a Beretta M92, and it fits me great. I wear a size 13.5+ ring. Ask a jeweler to show you the next size up on his sizing ring set. There is none as it is large enough it is outside of normal range.
Physical size matters. Will the user be able to reach the mag release, the slide lock, or pretty much the most important item, the trigger?
Bigger calibers recoil more and are generally louder.
I have seen couples come to the range with the ladies’ brand new snub-nosed .357 magnum and proceed to shoot the ceiling, and the floor and would have shot God knows what else had I not intervened.
Guess the man helped her choose the right gun!
The muzzle blast from the little snub nose is a factory-installed impediment to getting her into shooting sports. That I can guarantee you. Think about learning to drive on a road packed with squirrels running back and forth in all directions, or trying to get a dozen loose cats into the car with all of the doors open.
When learning to shoot we don’t need any distractions which can be eliminated, Recoil and muzzle blasts are distractions.
So, back up and take stock of the situation. How should you proceed?
I have a few suggestions as I don’t like pointing out problems for which I can’t offer a possible solution.
Take a class from a Certified Instructor. Most, as do I, have multiple .22 cal firearms of various sizes and types which can be shot under the supervision of someone who knows how to teach and has the requisite patience to do so.
We use .22 cal starting as one of our key jobs is to eliminate as many distractions as possible so that the learning can proceed effectively. I and most instructors will be happy to spend some time after class with your firearm, if feasible. We can also, in many cases, arrange for private lessons of varying duration.
Many gun shops have indoor ranges and can rent you a gun for a small fee to shoot on their range. This is great for trying before you buy. It can help to dial in an appropriate gun. It also helps to develop a rapport with the shop. This can be very beneficial.
If you already belong to a club this is another alternative for exposure to different guns. Most members will be happy to let you shoot their guns, especially if they know you are looking at purchase possibilities. Be polite, explain to them what you are doing, and they will be glad to help you. Should you approach one of the very few curmudgeons among our fraternity, thank him for his time and move on. He’s just an ass and likely can’t help himself, let alone you, anyway.
Now I have mentioned .22 cal quite a bit in this article. Please do not consider this as my endorsement of it as a go-to defensive round. But, as it has brought down deer, it certainly will, and has, brought down human threats. If this is the largest comfortable, controllable, caliber that allows for good shot placement it will be much preferred.
For most people, a 9mm would be my preferred choice for self-defense. It has minimal recoil for accuracy, can be found in many sizes and capacities to be fitted to the user’s stature and physical difficulties, and it will get the job done more efficiently than a lesser caliber. To stop a threat it may also require additional shots to be fired, but each carries many times the weight of the .22 pistol.
I’ll leave you with a final piece of guidance. Whatever you spend on the gun itself, please be prepared to spend twice that much on training, and enough ammunition to practice and become proficient before you even consider using it for self-defense.
If you and your mate can work together and one can teach while the other learns, great, teach them. However, if your dynamic is typical, get a professional involved to teach them. They do not have that whole relationship dynamic, which is not conducive to learning and they know how to teach and positively reinforce the students learning. Being critical in a positive way is an art that all really good instructors possess. It is rarely found in training those we care for the most.
So guys, man up and get her trained properly. Take a course together and I’ll be happy to let you do lunch together. The rest of the time you will be separated so you can concentrate on your learning and escape the dynamics that can lead to much frustration, no matter how pure the intentions.
Being responsibly armed is a journey, enjoy it, and don’t take shortcuts that likely won’t end well
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