Concealed Carry for My Wife
Does anyone make a 22 Mag CC semi auto. My wife is a little 5 footer so a 357 or even a 38 is too much for her. I'm thinking a 22 mag or a 32 mag. She wants something very small without a lot of kick. One of those 11 oz guns. Thanks!
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Look at the Keltec P32.
Skip the P3AT.
And, let your wife decide.0 -
No, no such thing. But, I doubt she would be happy with it; I have fired a couple of .22 mag derringers, & the recoil is substantial.
Has she tried a S&W J-frame with wadcutters? If that's still too much, then .38 special shot caps may be adequate; no one takes one in the face at 5' & shakes it off.
Neal0 -
wife is 5'0 98lbs...she has the ruger sp 101 32h&r magnum...sounds like the girls are pretty close...she likes it... 0 -
There is no such gun as a .22 magnum semiautomatic suitable for concealed carry. While there are a few types of .22 magnum semiautomatic guns, ALL of them are large and bulky; none of them are suited for concealed carry on a small adult.
If she likes the revolver I second the suggestion of light load (eg wadcutter) .38s. They're still likely better performers than .22 magnums. From an all steel gun, recoil is really pretty light.
.32 magnum "could" work, though ammo is somewhat scarce and can be a little pricey.
IMO, Kel-Tec p32 is less gun that it seems. Not only are the guns generally unreliable, but the small slides can be physically difficult to rack.
There are several manufacturers that make .22 magnum revolver snubnoses. I've fired Smith and Wesson's airweight version of same, its quite a lightweight gun. If I remember right, not only is it lighter than the .38s, but it holds 9 rounds.
The big problem with .22 magnum as a concealed carry gun is that the .22 magnum round was designed for a RIFLE. It uses slow-burning powder that doesn't get used up completely in a short pistol barrel (particularly not in a 2" snubnose barrel).
The result is that most of the powder gets burned OUTSIDE the barrel, leading to surprisingly big and bright muzzle flash. Further, ballistics out of the short barrel are pretty lousy.
Using standard 40 grain bullets, you only get about 1000 fps from the 2" barrel. In other words .22 magnum from a snubnose revolver gives you ballistics roughly equivalent to .22 long rifle from an ordinary pistol.
You can argue the merits of a .22 pistol (it certainly is better than nothing), but by all measures its a fairly anemic round for self defense.0 -
Women at the Local Gun Club Women's Self Defense Course almost universally like the S&W 340 in .32 H&R Magnum. 13 ounces, and a respectable energy Round.
My wife is a Big Girl, and carries the S&W 640 All Stainless, @ about 23 ounces - her only complaint is it is heavy, but she likes it anyway, because it is easier on her Arthritis. She practices exclusively with WadCutter Target Loads that I load pretty light. She carries Full-House .357 loads.
[EDIT - Most Gals don't want to deal with the Extra Controls, Complexities, and Failure Modes of Semi-Autos - rather, their Boyfriends push them towards Semis.]0 -
Lets not forget about the Ruger, and S&W small framed revolvers in 327 Federal. They can shoot 32 H&R's, or 32 S&W's also. That is beginning to look better. But as said...hard to beat a j-framed 38.
Best0 -
and don't forget the small .380's. my wife didn't like the PM9 but has no issues with the colt mustang or the P238. NAA makes nice all metal guns in .32 and .380
but, if you must have a .22 auto, i can sell you this one cheap.[:D]
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When all is said and done, get a small 38 special revolver and use light wadcutters until she is comfortable with it. Then move up in power until you find a round with sufficient power that she can handle. Revolvers are simple. Pull the trigger and it goes bang. If it doesn't, pull it again and it will go bang. I tried for years to get my wife to use a semi auto. Finally gave up. 0 -
Another vote for a J-frame revolver. A .32 will work with hollowpoints, or a .38 with wadcutters (if you can find WC ammo nowadays.)
If .38 wadcutters are elusive, another choice would be the Remington 130 gr. FMJ in the yellow box. I've found them to be fairly mild. Also, the Glaser safety slug ammo is not hard-kicking and has a loyal following.
I would not recommend .38 shotshells for a carry gun.0
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