Originally Posted by
Nomercy448
And semiauto shotguns are much more finicky for the female shooter. HIGH END shotguns will cycle well regardless of hold, but many low-end up to middle of the road semi-auto shotguns will fail to feed if the shooter doesn't meet the recoil well. One of my Berettas functions FLAWLESSLY for anyone over 150lbs, but my fiancee and my sister have to make a conscious effort to meet the recoil to ensure feeding. My younger cousins also have the same problem with it. My mother did considerable action work to her Franchi semiauto to lighten the springs so it would fully cycle for her. In a panic, how much focus will your girlfriend have on meeting recoil? She'll need a gun that will go bang every time she pulls the trigger.
To answer the original question. No long gun for home defense. It's way too easy to disarm ANYONE with a long gun, let alone a woman (not trying to be sexist, but less body weight and/or less strength is a fact).
Personally, if she doesn't shoot much, I'd recommend a double action .38spcl snub nosed revolver. Tell her to fire until it's empty, so the gun can't be used against her if she misses and gets over powered (advice from a FBI officer I used to shoot with). My fiancee has a Taurus 85 Ultralight .38spcl and a Smith and Wesson 65 Ladysmith .357mag (loaded with .38spcl). The advantage is that if there's one in the tube and she pulls the trigger, it goes bang... Every time...
If she shoots quite a bit, then a double action semiauto with a magazine disconnect is also a good option. She has the option for more shots, but if she gets in trouble, she can drop the magazine to prevent the gun from being used against her.
NO way I'd use a .22lr for home defense. Unless ur girlfriend can shoot a flying cantelope rapid fire in the dark without missing, then there's no way to guarantee she can connect the necessary head shots to stop an intruder.
Regardless of what you get for her, the most important thing is to have her practice with it and get familiar with how it operates. Practice will also help her be familiar with the recoil and flash, which can be startling for a new shooter.
There are so many incorrect statements in this post.
Fist of all, she needs to take a personal protection course that does not involve firearms. Look into taking some type of martial arts. Doing some strength training is also a good idea. Second, if she is going to handle a firearm, she should take a safety course first and work with a certified instructor. Once the fundamentals are down, take advanced courses. Proper instruction, training and practice are very important. You don't want to get shot because she was afraid of the intruder coming into the apartment.
A snubby is made for experienced shooters, not novices or the occasional shooter. Inexperienced shooter with a snubby equals a frustrated shooter (hard time hitting a 10 inch circle at 10 to 15 feet). The key is to hit your target every single shot, not fire hoping to hit your target. Where will the bullets that missed the target end up? Scary thought, especially in an apartment environment. A revolver with a 3" to 5" barrel can make a good house gun. You lose velocity and sight radius with the subby and gain muzzle flash and muzzle blast.
I personally would not own a firearm that had a magazine disconnect for personal protection at home or a carry gun. You have have the semi-auto shotgun, I will take a pump action.
Either you misunderstood the FBI agent, or they do not know much about firearms and their proper use for personal protection. I have witnessed many LEO and military who are not fundamentally sound in shooting a handgun. When they are taught the proper fundamentals, they are amazed at how much their accuracy and target acquisition improve.