[RZR6-4]

My girlfriend is turning 21 soon and I already told her that I am getting her a CC pistol so there is no reason for her to not be able to take care of herself when I'm not around (which is most of the time). I've had her mess with my vicker's tactical P320 which she liked but is obviously too big for her to conceal. She hated my SCCY CPX-1, mostly due to how thick the grip is. I don't think the grip is very wide but it is very long which is weird. She has shot my P365 in the past and didn't know as much about guns then so she didn't really know what to look for but she seemed to like it.

From talking to her about how the guns felt in her hand I think she might like glocks but could make anything work as far as grip angle goes. I looked at a G43 today which I think would fit her hand very well and would be easy to conceal but has just over half the capacity of my P365 and costs a little more. I don't know her to be a capacity snob like me but she is new to shooting pistols so I want her to have as many chances as possible to make hits. I would also prefer 9MM as that matches all of my pistols and most of the pistols in her family's house as well.

Kahrs have been suggested to me in the past but wondered if you all had any other suggestions tailored towards a girl with smallish hands. I am willing to pay for her to have the best tool for the job but that doesn't mean handing out $600 for a gun that's not mine doesn't hurt me on the inside so please keep that in mind. All suggestions welcome.

 

[Yosemite Sam]

Your gf is turning 21? Either you're very young or you're a rich old guy!

 

[RZR6-4]

Your gf is turning 21? Either you're very young or you're a rich old guy!

Definitely wouldn't make a very good sugar daddy so I must be young. I'm 22. Just took an early interest in the gun world hence why I've been around here for a while.

 

[Yosemite Sam]

Good for you! I grew up with guns, but took a 40 year hiatus.

 

[Coalcracker]

SW Shield EZ comes to mind. Take her with to the LGS and let her chose though.

 

[Popeye]

Take her to a shooting range that rents handguns. Have her shoot as many different handguns as practically possible (this may take more than one trip to the range). She'll tell you which handgun she wants.

And... read this: 10 Tips for Choosing a Concealed Carry Handgun

 

[AgedWarrior]

I agree with Coalcracker and Popeye. It is really important that she does the choosing...

 

[RZR6-4]

I agree with Coalcracker and Popeye. It is really important that she does the choosing...

She will most definitely get the final say, she just doesn’t know as much about them and I don’t know that she cares enough to put a lot of time into learning what options there are so I’m hoping to get her pointed in the right direction.

 

[mm93]

New shooters, and many females, need guns without a bunch of controls to figure out. So those with various types of safeties they'll likely forget how to operate when in a panic situation, are poor choices. There's also the issue of very heavy trigger pulls on many DA semiautos, which people with smaller hands and less grip strength don't deal well with.
What works great for you may be a chore for your girlfriend to use. As mentioned above, if you can take her to a rental range, and try various handguns, she'll be able to make a decision much better qualified.
My personal suggestion for new shooters is a small compact revolver. Anyone can usually shoot them well, and there are no controls to figure out. No issues with feeding, or clearing a jam. If it doesn't go boom when you squeeze the trigger, just squeeze it again. I've suggested this to a lot of new shooters, and let them try my Model 60 S&W, and every one of them chose to buy a compact revolver once they'd tried it and the various small semiautos Iet them try.
Don't rule out anything until she's tried numerous handguns. But don't get her stuck on just a semiauto because that's your preference either.

 

[Pete Moss]

My girlfriend is turning 21 soon and I already told her that I am getting her a CC pistol so there is no reason for her to not be able to take care of herself when I'm not around (which is most of the time). I've had her mess with my vicker's tactical P320 which she liked but is obviously too big for her to conceal. She hated my SCCY CPX-1, mostly due to how thick the grip is. I don't think the grip is very wide but it is very long which is weird. She has shot my P365 in the past and didn't know as much about guns then so she didn't really know what to look for but she seemed to like it.

From talking to her about how the guns felt in her hand I think she might like glocks but could make anything work as far as grip angle goes. I looked at a G43 today which I think would fit her hand very well and would be easy to conceal but has just over half the capacity of my P365 and costs a little more. I don't know her to be a capacity snob like me but she is new to shooting pistols so I want her to have as many chances as possible to make hits. I would also prefer 9MM as that matches all of my pistols and most of the pistols in her family's house as well.

Kahrs have been suggested to me in the past but wondered if you all had any other suggestions tailored towards a girl with smallish hands. I am willing to pay for her to have the best tool for the job but that doesn't mean handing out $600 for a gun that's not mine doesn't hurt me on the inside so please keep that in mind. All suggestions welcome.

My opinion/advice is a short barrel revolver made by a US manufacturer in .38special or .357. Start with .38spec in the .357. Either S&W, Colt, or Ruger. Autoloaders have too many moving parts and therefore more stuff to learn and what to do in a failure to fire situation. Caution...if she is considering an air-weight model revolver, a good idea is to find one to test first. Especially if you choose a .357. I've seen them fly out of the hands of small-handed shooters.

 

[Ram Rod]

My girlfriend is turning 21 soon and I already told her that I am getting her a CC pistol so there is no reason for her to not be able to take care of herself when I'm not around (which is most of the time). I've had her mess with my vicker's tactical P320 which she liked but is obviously too big for her to conceal. She hated my SCCY CPX-1, mostly due to how thick the grip is. I don't think the grip is very wide but it is very long which is weird. She has shot my P365 in the past and didn't know as much about guns then so she didn't really know what to look for but she seemed to like it.

From talking to her about how the guns felt in her hand I think she might like glocks but could make anything work as far as grip angle goes. I looked at a G43 today which I think would fit her hand very well and would be easy to conceal but has just over half the capacity of my P365 and costs a little more. I don't know her to be a capacity snob like me but she is new to shooting pistols so I want her to have as many chances as possible to make hits. I would also prefer 9MM as that matches all of my pistols and most of the pistols in her family's house as well.

Kahrs have been suggested to me in the past but wondered if you all had any other suggestions tailored towards a girl with smallish hands. I am willing to pay for her to have the best tool for the job but that doesn't mean handing out $600 for a gun that's not mine doesn't hurt me on the inside so please keep that in mind. All suggestions welcome.

Know what? She might actually like a snubby revolver. Amazing? Not really.
Quit trying to force your ideas upon your GF. Girls need to chose their own carry and methods. You're wasting your time getting them to accept what you think they should have.
Seriously

 

[RZR6-4]

Know what? She might actually like a snubby revolver. Amazing? Not really.
Quit trying to force your ideas upon your GF. Girls need to chose their own carry and methods. You're wasting your time getting them to accept what you think they should have.
Seriously

First of all, calm yourself. If you had taken the time to read everything you would see that I had said I fully plan on letting her make the final decision. Putting her in a gun store and saying go for it is like putting me in a plumbing store and saying go for it. I know what some of the pieces do but as a whole I have no idea what I’m doing and it would be extremely unproductive and waste everybody’s time. I have three pistols and I have had her practice with all of them, even the one I know she doesn’t like. I have access to a couple more that I plan to do the same with, even the ones she doesn’t like just so she gets an idea of what the options are. If I was forcing my ideas I would give her a P365 and say deal with it, but obviously that’s not what I’m doing. I am asking for ideas on what may be a good alternative in case she doesn’t want to go the P365 route. So chill out, ‘Seriously’.

 

[jmf552]

One of my local ranges has a course every month called "Handgun Selection." Participants get to sample a range of rental guns under supervision of instructors. It would seem like a great way to do it. Maybe you can find a range that has a course like that. I can't imagine the one near me is the only one.