...And One to Learn On
There are literally hundreds of handguns on the market suitable for use as a beginner’s first defensive pistol. However, on the assumption that we want to be frugal with this first purchase, here are a few representing exceptional value as well. Once a new shooter gains proficiency with a starter gun, they may want to graduate to something spendier and more complex.
The traditional answer for a first carry gun has, for years, been a revolver and that argument still has merit. However, the road to Hades is paved with well-intentioned husbands/boyfriends who got the women in their lives a lightweight snub-nosed .357 Magnum wheelgun as a first carry piece. These ladies might have tolerated a few .38 Special target rounds on the range, but after the first bone-wrenching magnum load, they were pretty much done.
Rock Island Armory produces a no-frills .38 revolver called the M200 that is simple, robust and cheap. They offer a compact snub-nosed version as well. For a starter gun to tuck into a purse or slip into a hip holster, there is no simpler point and click interface. The M200 is a good vehicle to teach basic trigger control and sight usage as well. Recoil is manageable and, when stoked with proper expanding social bullets, the gun is adequately powerful. Of course, Taurus, Smith and Wesson, Charter Arms and others produce top-notch revolvers about which rivers of ink have already been spilt, but the Rock Island gun has the added benefit of being remarkably easy on the budget.
Most defensive revolvers are double action with no external safeties. This means the gun can be stored safely with the cylinder fully loaded and then fired simply by pulling the long, heavy trigger through its complete cycle. Each pull indexes the cylinder and fires a single round, so the gun can be emptied with either five or six pulls of the trigger. With a little practice, a revolver can be fired very accurately in DA mode. If the circumstances allow then the hammer may also be manually cocked such that the trigger is lighter and more comfortable. However, the long and heavy double-action trigger pull mandates that the firing process be intentional and helps minimize the risk of an accidental discharge.