Posted: 1/21/2010 4:07:54 PM EDT
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My girlfriend is having a hell of a time trying to learn how to shoot. I'm letting her use my beretta PX4 in 9 mm and she doesn't have the strength to hold it firmly enough so it will function correctly. Recommendations on what I should do to help her out? I mean, she's only 115 pounds, so having her grip it tighter just isn't goin to work. Will different ammo help?
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My first thought was a Buckmark, but you rulled out a .22 1911? it's almost impossible to limp wrist a 1911, and the smaller grip should help as well. see, my first though was that too, but i'm really trying to avoid buying another gun right now since i'm trying to pay for PA school. would +p ammo help? the guy at the gun range suggested this to me, but i always take everything i hear at the range with a grain of salt |
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see, my first though was that too, but i'm really trying to avoid buying another gun right now since i'm trying to pay for PA school. would +p ammo help? the guy at the gun range suggested this to me, but i always take everything i hear at the range with a grain of salt |
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Check around your local area, if there's anyone who lives near you like most of us, we'd happily meet up with you and provide a 22lr or 38 for shooting/training purposes.
If you're in DFW let me know... You'd also be surprised how much is not in actual strength, but more in technique for locking a pistol in place to allow it to recoil properly. Work with her on her grip. |
| Fear of the weapon. She is probably leaning back as far as she can get from it and gripping it so she is just about ready to drop it, in anticipation of.......dropping it when it "bites" her. 80 pound afghani boys field the Kalashnikov/whatever the hell else they can get their hands on, so a 115 pound well fed, physically fit female has no physical excuse. Her problem is mental, not physical. |
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Her weight has nothing to do with it. Hand size, grip strength, forearm strength, etc, etc, can all be overcome. I once had a 5'0", 100 pound girlfriend who I taught to shoot all my guns with ease. Hell, she could outshoot most of my male friends. Of course, I was taught by some very good shooters who knew both how to teach and how to shoot, so it was relatively easy for me to pass that along. Unless you have the same kind of training, you might want to stop by a local range that has some good teachers, and get her an hour or two with them once a week or so. |
What CA_TX-Cop, C_Rion and 3rdPig said. My wife is 117#'s, shoots a Glock 23, 27 and 20. My friends 13yo daughter had no problems w/ my 23. Her POI was off but groups good, had her adjust her sight alignment, dead on, zero malfunctions, ear to ear grin . Your girlfriend needs more trigger time. Does she "want" to shoot or is she doing it for you? Is she scared of it ? +P will recoil more. Try to borrow or rent a .22 pistol for her to practice w/.
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due to the economy, her options are a 9mm or a .45. Any other suggestions? First, Understand that the more times she shoots, the easier it becomes to manage the recoil. Second, Have you thought about renting a 22 pistol at a range? For what you would spend on a couple boxes of 9mm practicing with her, you could probably rent a 22 pistol AND buy 500 rounds of ammo to shoot. That just might help get her over the 'hump' |
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I'll bet that the problem is your girlfriend is intimidated by your 9mm and isn't holding on to it the way she needs to in order to shoot it properly.
I doubt that it's her physical strength that's causing the problem. My sister weighs 105 lbs soaking wet and she handles my M&P .40 as if it were a .22. I'd start your girlfriend off with a .22 until she's comfortable shooting a handgun and as 3rdpig suggested, treat her to some professional lessons from a good trainer. |
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I personally think new shooters, especially women should be started on a .22. Training goes quicker if the .22 mimics the regular handgun you hope to progress too down the road. IE - use a DA .22 revolver if she'll shoot a DA revolver as a carry gun. Go for a walther or Sig .22 if you want to transition her to a semiauto doubleaction. Personally, I've taught my sisters, three girlfriends while I was in college, and my wife how to shoot, all starting with a .22. This saturday, I'm headed to the range with a friend from work and his 18 year old daughter, it'll be her second shooting session. My friend doesn't own any guns, so I provide the training tools. Last trip, broke her in with a single action .22 just to get the basics down without any mishaps, then spent some time with a Sig Mosquito, and a Ruger 10/22 rifle to build her confidence. This time around, we'll focus on the Mosquito, but may also progress to a full size 9mm for a few rounds, and probably have her shoot one of my AR's a couple of rounds.
Look in your hometown forum, probably someone willing to help if you can't rent a .22 at a local range. The deal I have with my friend from work is simple - he supplys the ammo and picks up the tab for lunch. We all have a good time. As a side note, the budget is meaningless if you turn the GF off of shooting by not training her properly - if you stick with her and she doesn't like guns, you'll rue that "budget" decision for the rest of your life. |
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first off, your GF is probably limp wristing...simple as that; autos have to have a firm 'backstop' (lcoked wrist, firm grip, body, etc) in order for the slide to reciprocate properly; lower powered ammo will probably not fix the problem, but in fact make it worse (as in makeing the gun function)
if not, get her a revolver; if auto, stick w/ 9mm of the 2...but a .22lr would be nice to at least get her eased into shooting read and haver her read this article http://www.backwoodshome.com/articles2/ayoob85.html focous on grip, stance, and position; the rest is fundamentals of getting your shots on target at best though, get profesional training and be done with it |
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Quoted: Her weight has nothing to do with it. Hand size, grip strength, forearm strength, etc, etc, can all be overcome. I once had a 5'0", 100 pound girlfriend who I taught to shoot all my guns with ease. Hell, she could outshoot most of my male friends. Of course, I was taught by some very good shooters who knew both how to teach and how to shoot, so it was relatively easy for me to pass that along. Unless you have the same kind of training, you might want to stop by a local range that has some good teachers, and get her an hour or two with them once a week or so. Bingo ........... when you don't know how to teach, hire someone who does.  |
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Check around your local area, if there's anyone who lives near you like most of us, we'd happily meet up with you and provide a 22lr or 38 for shooting/training purposes. If you're in DFW let me know... You'd also be surprised how much is not in actual strength, but more in technique for locking a pistol in place to allow it to recoil properly. Work with her on her grip. This ^ I got a sub-com walther P22 she can dumb rounds through all day, or a couple of G23's if higher caliber is her bag of chips. EDIT: from the title, i'm glad this thread didnt go the way i impulsed it. |
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I've got to agree with everyone else here. Move her to a .22 to start, even if it means eating raman noodles for dinner for a month. Several of us have been poor college students and still figured a way to go shooting or buy the occasional gun.
My wife learned to shoot with her dad's .44 revolvers. Subsequently, she still has a bad flinch when shooting a handgun, if she doesn't think about it. I had to move her back to shooting .22 pistols. Then she can concentrate on the fundamentals, without all of the recoil and blast. Once she got the feel for the .22, she did fine with a 9mm, .40, or .45. As noted, it's stance, grip, and technique - not physical size. Before this she was having a difficult time keeping a group under 12" on a target at 5 yds. Afterward, she could punch out a nice, ragged hole in the middle of the target. When she hasn't shot for some time, she often needs to go back to shooting the .22 before moving back up to centerfire calibers. A .22 handgun is a good thing to have in any event. ETA: and look around. You can usually find a Ruger .22 for a couple hundred dollars. |
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Bowling? You know, to strengthen her wrist. Aww come on, there are better ways to strengthen your GF's wrist than that. You need to get her a .22, plain and simple. She will gain confidence and then be able to handle a 9mm. The Ruger MKIII 22/45 is a great firearm, and under 300 dollars. Most can be had around 240, brand new. I'd look into that, they're a lot of fun too. Another thing to do is really watch how she grips the gun. Most girls like to lean back when they shoot. Get her on that son of a bitch, make her lean into it, high thumb grip, etc. |
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Make sure the bore is directly in line with her forearm. Getting her wrist directly behind the gun will help.
Good solid support from the weak hand will help too. Lean forward Use a couple dummy rounds in the mag to check for any odd anticipation of the recoil. Dryfire |
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Quoted: Quoted: Bowling? You know, to strengthen her wrist. Aww come on, there are better ways to strengthen your GF's wrist than that. You need to get her a .22, plain and simple. She will gain confidence and then be able to handle a 9mm. The Ruger MKIII 22/45 is a great firearm, and under 300 dollars. Most can be had around 240, brand new. I'd look into that, they're a lot of fun too. Another thing to do is really watch how she grips the gun. Most girls like to lean back when they shoot. Get her on that son of a bitch, make her lean into it, high thumb grip, etc. This advice is almost exactly what I was going to say. The cost of like 8 boxes of most 9mm will get you pretty close to owning a good .22. Ruger Single Six, 22/45, Walther P22 can all be gotten for under 300 and even a lot cheaper than that. Also, in this economy .22 is the way to go. 20-30 bucks for 500 rounds of 22 or the same cost for 50 rounds of anything bigger. Lot more bang for your buck, and is a better training tool. |
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It takes almost no strength to keep the handgun from malfunctioning. My girlfriend is 5' and weights 90 lbs... but she can fire both my CZ-75 and Glock 19 reliably.
Train her on a .22. Make sure she has a good stance(none of the leaning back with the crotch forward shit). She is more than capable of shooting the weapon reliably. And you can always send her to a class. |
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I just skimmed, so it might have already been asked and answered, but: why do you think stronger recoiling ammo would help? THat will just develop flinch and a dislike of the gun in general.
Anyway, surely you can either rent a .22 or find a friend with one to borrow (hit your HTF here). Also, you should work with her at home before ever getting to the range in the first place. Work on grip, stance, weapon manipulation, all in a quiet environment. Nothing is harder than trying to learn while being at a loud range, surrounded by gawking guys, with an intimitating firearm in your hand. She (or any new gunner) should not be learning the basics at a crowded public range. She should be comfortable handling and presenting the firearm long before you load the mag with live ammo. |
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Quoted:
I'll bet that the problem is your girlfriend is intimidated by your 9mm and isn't holding on to it the way she needs to in order to shoot it properly. I doubt that it's her physical strength that's causing the problem. My sister weighs 105 lbs soaking wet and she handles my M&P .40 as if it were a .22. I'd start your girlfriend off with a .22 until she's comfortable shooting a handgun and as 3rdpig suggested, treat her to some professional lessons from a good trainer. +1 This pretty much nails it. My wife is 5'4" tall and weighs 105 lbs. She can handle all our handguns very well even though she's diminuative. Everything from a Python to various 1911's to Sig P220,226, Beretta 92F, etc. |
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