Rethinking my Wife's HD gun

[Joe S]

It would make sense to me to have available whatever long gun she prefers backed up by the Ruger. If you barricade in place, the long gun can have more capacity/ability. If that runs dry, or you have to move (fire or something), the pistol is there.

Or just the pistol with an extra mag or two, and a little practice reloading smoothly.

[CCT125US]

[*]Finally, I'm not sure practicing steel challenge with an RDS-equipped rimfire handgun from low ready translates very well to real world self defense use. In steel challenge you're coming up from low ready and transition (nearly) in a plane to a succession of targets. In the real world your flopping out of bed in the dark, maybe kneeling behind the bed. What are the chances the dot may be hard to find?[/LIST]

Any feedback on my thought process would be greatly appreciated.

A concearn with the above is having a dot that needs turned on. Familiarity and confidence are huge benefits with the above. Would the negatives (quick transitions, darkness, odd positions), be easier with irons and an unfamiliar pistol?

[Tensaw]

My buddy and I spent some quality time with some .22LR ARs yesterday. We both agreed that while the .22 LR is not the preferred caliber for defensive use, neither of us would want to be on the receiving end of the amount of hate you can lay down with a 25 round mag out of one of these ARs. I also noted that, although I am an “okay” pistol shooter - using a long gun was cheating in comparison. Take that for what you will.

[Whirlwind06]

I work part-time at a local gun shop, 2 of the most common handguns that people select with hand or grip strength issues are the S&W Shield EZ models and the Kimber mini 1911's. (I forget the actual model name) Yeah, I know it's a Kimber but the Sig or Springfield models would probably be the same.

[Trigger]

20-gauge Remington 1100 with an 18 or 21-inch barrel. Youth-length stock if it will fit the shooter better. If a weapon light is a concern, mount it to the upper front side of the fore-end with a short length of picatinny rail.

[mmc45414]

A concern with the above is having a dot that needs turned on.

These are kinda new and look cool:
https://www.streamlight.com/products...tlr-rm1-laser#

ETA: Maybe on a Ruger PCC?

[JCN]

I work part-time at a local gun shop, 2 of the most common handguns that people select with hand or grip strength issues are the S&W Shield EZ models and the Kimber mini 1911's. (I forget the actual model name) Yeah, I know it's a Kimber but the Sig or Springfield models would probably be the same.

Kimber micro 9 and micro 380.
Sig P938 and 238
Springfield 911.

[rdtompki]

Lots of much appreciated food for thought.
Wife has two Kidd 10/22s that she shoots extremely well. Capacity would be 25 rounds if the BX-25 mags could be trusted. Might be able to adapt a light to the stock.
I could SBR my AR22 which takes the S&W mags. With the full hand guard and 16" barrel it's a brick, but it is 100% reliable.
20 gauge is out of the question - too much recoil
I have a very lightweight 9mm PCC that I could convert to an SBR. Recoil might be a bit much with defensive ammo; I'd have to have her try it.
Bottom line: I don't think she would want a long gun in any event but I might be surprised.

I'm going to buy one of the TLR-6 with laser and put that on her Kimber. The laser gives her a backup to the small window on the RDS and she does have a very solid presentation with both the 1911 and 22/45. She may well prefer the light/laser mounted on the full-size which also has night sights. Problem with the Ruger pistols is that we had to epoxy the C-more adapter to the barrel and that RDS is definitely a no-go for defensive purposes. If I were starting from scratch and thinking 22lr the FN 502 would be very interesting: 15 round capacity, optics ready, and rail for light/laser. (We have a Springfield EMP (3"), but it's snappy and very hard to rack so another candidate crossed off the list)

Meanwhile, starting tonight I'm going to park my SBR in the bedroom.

This degree of overthinking is what happens when you're retired with too much time on your hands.

[Bodhisattvya]

"We did a virtual shoot and she did very well with their Glock 19 so I thought the Glock 44 would be better than the 2214 but she doesn't want "a $500 gun". So, no Glock 44."

Canik TP9SF Elite is a very close facsimile to a Glock 19. The lowest buy now price on Gunbroker right now is $359.51. Excellent trigger & pretty slick otherwise all the way around.

[Duelist]

My wife has severe Rheumatoid Arthritis and I wanted to upgrade her house gun(she has an S&W 2214). We went to the gun store so she could hold a Kel-tec CP33 but the grip is too big for her hands. She can't rack a slide to clear a malfunction or push a magazine release. The odds of her needing her house gun are rare, but I liked the idea of 30+ rounds of .22lr over 8 rounds of .22lr.
We did a virtual shoot and she did very well with their Glock 19 so I thought the Glock 44 would be better than the 2214 but she doesn't want "a $500 gun". So, no Glock 44.
Anyways, if she likes the 22/45, can hit what she's aiming at, then buy a second one and she can have a NY Reload.

I just ordered a G44 to replace the one I gave to my MIL last week, and it was less than $400 shipped - like, ~$370. Depending on how much the FFL actually charges me for the transfer, I expect to get it home for right around $400.

That is a great .22, and I can’t wait to get it home. I’ve been doing most of my pistol shooting with the one I gave away for the past couple of years.

The Ruger .22/45 is really a good one, too.