biscuit jake

IDRedneckGirl, if you are sure you don't want to do revolvers, no need to read on.

I recently bought my adult daughter a Ruger single action with a bird's head grip. It fit her very well and it points naturally both for her & Mrs Biscuit. Plus they come in various hard hitting calibers. The most pounce for the ounce.

gogiggen

glocks are nice, but I dont like them because they feel unsturdy with the lightness. My personal favorite handgun: CZ 75-B .40 cal nickle satin finish, hogue grips. the nicest handgun Ive shot, its compact enough to conceal, but the 40 cal provides the punch you need. very accurate also.

martinfaw

RedneckGirl, everthings about covered the only thing I might add is that if
you went with the .357 mag revolver(which is highly recomended) you can also shoot 38 special bullets which the recoil is more manageable for a lady.
This would be like having 2 guns.

James M

handloader1

S&W Model 60LS (Lady Smith) 357. Mag. Good luck.

[email protected]

Redneck girl try the glock single stack .45, I think it's the model 36. A tougher handgun doesn't exhist. It's concilable, powerful and dependable and being a single stack mag. may fit your hand. Remember the best gun is the one you have with you, so pick something you'll actually carry!

Duckbutter48

You prob wont beat a Glock. There are a ton of different configurations so go and handel a couple of them and see which model best fits you. They have about the best reputation around for automatic handguns. Just make sure your fingers are strong\long enough to work the release on the side. They are made for carry so they dont stick out much to get any extra leverage on them.

The Springfield XDs are pretty nice also. You cant go wrong with most of the big name 1911's also if they fityour hand but a 45 is alot of gun if its you 1st.

BSTNFREEK

First off, dont buy a 9mm unless all you plan on doing is competition target shooting...they are worthless IMO. I personally would rather get shot with a 9mm at 25 yards than with a good .22 with a CCI stinger in it.

Second, alot of states have minimum barrel lengths for pistols for hunting purpuses, so be sure to check out local laws and make sure(in WI minimum is 6" so almost no 'Glock' style will work)

Third, you are talking protection an awful lot...people, bear, cats.... GO WITH A MAGNUM. For stopping power on any predator, a magnum is the ONLY way to go!

My only recomendations would be a .357 mag, or a .44 mag, WHICHEVER YOU CAN FIND THAT FITS YOU BEST, and the longer barell the better, to reduce kick, and improve accurracy. Lots of ammo choices, cheap and expensive, for smaller sized game, and for big game.

hunter338

I am currently have a Compact 1911 made for my wife in the 357 Auto cal. She has shot some of my Sig 40's and 357 Auto's and seems to like this perticular cal. She has also shot my custom made Colt 45 and likes the feel of this type of pistol. So I am haveing one made with the Ultra thin grips so that they fit her hands.

It really depends on what fits you and what you are accustom too.

HAPPY HUNTING.
hunter338

IDRedneckGirl

Wow, thanks guys, there's a lot of really good info here! I really appreciate it. I've been looking into a couple different .357s and I'm actually pretty impressed with them. I'll let ya all know what I come up with.

IdahoElkHunter, yeah... I've ran into some odd characters up off of Bunco and especially Fernan.

Thanks again!

bigbulls

If you want to fill all of your wants in a single gun then the only option is a revolver in .357 mag or 41, or 44 magnum if you can handle the added recoil. Remember that you can always hit the range with 38spl. A Smith and Wesson model 60, 686... Ruger SP101 or GP100... or one of the many small and concealable revolvers that Taurus makes would make excelent choices. All of these small compact revolvers will have small grips so finding one that will fit your hand shouldn't be any problem at all.

With few exceptions if it's an auto I would not rely on it against an angry bear or any other wild animal capeable of eating you. There just isn't enough firepower there to stop a large predator before it gets to you. The exceptions to this one rule would be a 44 auto mag, Desert Eagle, etc... but then they are going to be way too big to pack around and conceal.