Presently she carries a Ruger 9mm in her vehicle, and can shoot it well; however, I'm looking for something she can carry, preferably a smallrevolver or twin-shot pistolthat she can fit in a small purse. She is a nurse that travels a lot, and sometimes has to walk to her vehicle in less than desirable circumstances. I wouldalso consider buying her a tazer, but don't know which ones are the better on the market -- any suggestions?

I like the Walther PPK/S. It is small and thin for carry.

Kel-tec makes a really nice very compact pistol. You can get it in 40S&W, or 9mm. If you want to go even smaller they have a smaller gun in 380 and i think in 32

A buddy of mine has a 9mm Kel-tec that is really small. He is happy with it. May be worth a look.

what about an airweight K-frame Smith? Chief's Special, something like that... I think they made one with a bobbed hammer that wasn't shrouded, too.

Don't know if I'd run +P's or mag's through it, but the old FBI .38 load would work fine...

but I like the PPK idea, too.

I've been out of handgunning for so long it ain't hardly funny... don't Beretta make a small frame pistol? I think they used to call it the Jaguar or something like that...

whatever you choose...
1. She absolutely has to be able to get it going. Can she jack the slide on that Ruger, or is she carrying with one up the spout?
2. She's gotta be able to hit with it. Doesn't matter what gun or caliber it is, if she can't hit with it, forget it.
3. Awareness is a very large part of the equation, perhaps the most important part. Lots of women carry in their purse, but if she doesn't have it out when she needs it, it isn't gonna matter what she has---mace, taser, gun. A woman in these parts was kidnapped at twelve noon in a parking lot in a good end of town, simply because she had no idea the goon had targeted her until he had her in her car.

I have a PPK/S, and I love it. I highly recommend it for a small carry weapon. Walther also makes a sub-compact version of the P99 (9mm or 40) now. You might want to look into that also...although I think it might be kinda bulky...never held one.

I have a Sig Sauer P 232 .380 and it is a very nice little gun. I think the Beretta 3032 Tomcat is a good gun for women to carry because it is double action and has a tip up barrel. It is much safer to load and unload because it can be done without the hammer ever being cocked. It has very little recoil also. They are about $360 for stainless.

I suggest she look at a small .45 ACP Kimber - like one of the 3.5" barrel models such as the Ultra-Carry II. They are small, and can be kept in a purse just as easily as a double-barreled Deringer type or a small revolver,is chambered for an "adequate" round, and has a 7-round capacity.

If she can shoot a 9mm, she can also shoot a .45. But of course, some practice would be required!

Are we making an assumption that she is legal to carry a concealed weapon? I'm not going to loose sleep over it either way, but consider ramifications for her. In many states, the medical board will often revoke the license to practice with legal charges. beebeclmakes some excellant points. Sounds like she knows how to handle a sidearm, but will she be able to get to itif blind sided? It may be that a small cylinder of pepper sprayin her palmwith a band around the back of her handmay do more good if attacked. Don't get me wrong, I'm all for carrying for self defense, just wonder if a pistol in the purse will do the trick. Maybe both...