Calamity Jane

[Pat]

Patricia, my lovely wife, has, of late, been concerned for her personal safety and that of our home front.

I think what percipitated this feeling is the timing of several public threat assessment briefings by local law enforement agencies, the exploding illegal immigrant population, the witness of civil order breakdown during natural disasters, AKA hurricane Katrina for expample, and the growing Muslim, seemingly unfriendly, population here in our town.

Her reaction to all this is to arm herself and her family, me. To that end she attended a fire arms orientation class and learned a little about various pistols suitable for women. She fired about 18 shots from three different pistols, a .22, a .38 special and a .380 revolver.

Here is a picture of her target. Not too shabby for a woman who has never fired anything bigger than a .22 varmit rifle 55 years ago.

We are considering a pistol for her and a 12 guage pump for the house.

She has to go through all the concealed weapon processes and then we will decide on a pistol.

I'm also sensing this attitude in many of the men in the posse and other families in my neighborhood. Attitudes that didn't exsist before.

Word up.


(Me? I'm not worried, my hands are registered deadly weapons, yea right.)

[Cobra25]

I hate to say this but maybe it's time too start thinking about moving.

[Vortex]

Nice shooting Patricia! For a first gun for protection I recommend a S&W Model 36 revolver. Snubnose, small, reliable and efficient. As for the shotty, though I have a Winchester pump I would recommend the Remington 870. You can get one of those at Academy Sporting Goods for around $225-250. Its the shotgun we used to carry for work, very simple to operate and also very effective, esp when loaded with No. 4 buckshot.

[Pat]

Compared to other places, moving from Bossier Parish would be like jumping from the frying pan into the fire.

Jim; thanks for the rec, I too favor the 870.

[Mike Poore]

Yep on the 870, Pat. A 12ga loaded with 7/8oz of shot @ 1,150fps (2 1/2 dram equiv) will do good service, and has reasonable recoil. As for handguns, I strongly recommend a revolver. S&W was marketing the "Lady Smith" in 38/357 which was basically a scaled down "K" frame. You can get snake shot which is loaded into the first & second chamber, shot at the face of the intruder/attacker...with the next four into the torso.

[SC Cheesehead]

+3 on the Model 870.

I like your idea on the handgun loads, Mike. Makes good sense.

[Mike Poore]

I was mistaken in the designation of the Lady Smith as a "K" frame. It's actually on the "J" frame, the lightest and smallest, which had been the old "I" frame, and fits a woman's hand very nicely. Do your practice with shot or light .38 special loads, not full patch .357's

Secondly another reason for liking the revolver, and this is a sobering thought.....you posses the empty (fired) casings, which are not on the ground as with an automatic, and considered evidence, which could be used against you by an aggressive prosecutor with political ambitions.

Next, and this is most important, BEFORE YOU CALL THE COPS, CALL YOUR LAWYER. And don't just look one up in the yellow pages; know who you're calling.

Also, there's a book, and although a little dated, and considered by some to be somewhat sexist, published in the 70's I believe, highly recommended. http://www.amazon.com/Gravest-Extreme-Firearm-Personal-Protection/dp/0936279001

Remember, this is not a game or fantasy, it's you and your loved ones who are the victims.

[FordNut]

Most people would recommend an automatic rather than a revolver. And for myself, I prefer an automatic. My wife has a hard time with them, she doesn't have enough hand strength to rack the slide. She likes the GP100, but it's a little bulky for carry. I'd agree with the J frame, but stick with 38 special rounds, it's such a small pistol it will be hard to handle with 357 magnums. Another benefit of revolvers is that in a time of crisis you just point and shoot, no need to worry about where is the safety, is it on or off, is a round in the chamber, etc.

[Pat]

A friend allowed Patricia to try out a Kapp semi auto. Nice size, easy trigger pull but that slide was a monster. She couldn't pull it back and I had a hard time.

Patricia seemed to like the revolver the best.

Thanks guys for your input.

Regards

[Vortex]

http://www.snubnose.info/docs/Model_36.htm