Home defense gun for elderly parent

[JeffA]

I am thinking of purchasing a gun for my dad for christmas. He currently doesnt have any guns but was in the army and has gone shooting with me a few times (recently) so he is not a complete novice. I want my parents to be armed but dont see them doing it on their own. I think if i made the purchase for my dad he would appreciate it and would go to the range with me and another friend of his.

My dad has arthritis and is in his 70's so i want something that is easy to use and low on recoil. I do not think a semi-auto is a good choice because racking the slide might be difficult, clearing malfunctions, etc. I thought a revolver might be a good fit but i am not sure about recoil on a .38 spl. I know many of you might say take him to the range and see what he likes but I would really like this to be a surprise. I also thought about a home defense shotgun but i dont see my mom letting that sit around in a accessible location where as a handgun could be kept readily available.

My initial thought was a ruger sp101 or gp100 with a 3' or 4'' barrel in .357. I would suggest he uses .38 spl at range and .38+p for home defense. What I dont know is the recoil on a gun like this. I have a s&w 642 lightweight that recoils hard and I dont shoot it well.

Any input is appreciated. Thanks.

[gunforhire]

get him a stoeger coach gun in 20 gauge. No slides, decent recoil and rock solid reliability. If you want to be classy get him a mules ear shotgun. another option is smith and Wesson model 15. 38 special should be no issue with that gun

[ktech]

First of all, a lightweight S&W is going to recoil a lot more than a regular weight .357 mag revolver shooting .38 spl, simply because of the weight difference.
That said, I would not buy someone a defense gun as a surprise - I appreciate where you're coming from, but if they're going to use and be comfortable with the firearm, they have to be a part of picking it out in the first place, in my opinion.

With regard to handguns vs long guns - long guns are obviously superior to handguns, but if he wouldn't be able to store a long gun somewhere accessible, a handgun would be the better choice.
One final thought for you. If he can't reliably shoot a .38 spl, get him a decent sized .22LR wheelgun. It may not have "stopping power" or be tacticool, but a .22LR can still stop a threat, and if that's what he's most comfortable shooting, that's what he'll use when a threat presents itself. 3 .22LR rounds on target beat 6 .38 spl rounds into the wall any day of the week.

[TTS]

A revolver is fine if he can pull a 12-14lb trigger with arthritis.

I have also found that anyone who can pull a revolver trigger can rack the slide on a full size semi-auto.

[photogpat]

Taurus Model 85 in .327 Federal Mag -- then get him the .32 S&W long rounds. Light pop, easy trigger, and 6 shots.

[MissouriDave]

With Arthritis the recoil can be a showstopper. Depending on how bad it is there may be no good handgun option, but ones that I think would work well in semi-auto are 9mm for a lower recoil load, and heavy such as the Sig p226 and the Beretta 92. In D/A revolver a 38 special load in a steel Smith and Wesson J-Frame with Pachmayr decelerator grips works well also. You can get Pachmayr grips for semi-autos with back straps as well. Decelerator grips do work well. Federal makes low recoil Hydra-shoks in 38 special and 9mm.

Have you seen the Ruger 22/45 lite with an aluminum top end? That could be a real good option. Good 22 loads will do the trick if placed well. Lighter weight and light recoil all in one. You also may get the bonus of him liking to shoot it, which will make him proficient.

I would suggest to get him out and test some theories before commiting dollars.

[FJ540]

Is there a reason not to go with something like a shorter AR?

Recoil is virtually non-existent. Racking the action requires no dexterity. Far easier to steady with a third point of contact on the weapon. And you get 30 tries to hit your target (or they run away instead of waiting for you to run out).

[jdege]

If you're looking for a low-recoil revolver, that you won't have to carry around, you can't beat a .44 magnum, firing .44 special rounds. Big, fat, slow-moving bullets - just about the same ballustics as .45 ACP. And a big, heavy gun equals very low recoil.

[thunderoussilence]

Good Luck

[3Spaniels]

Is gifting allowed with the straw buyer rules?

[plblark]

The pdf I could find is from the 2008 atf 4473

[yuppiejr]

Revolver triggers can be tuned to be pretty light and smooth, I am managing early onset arthritis in my right/shooting hand and shoot revolvers exclusively because I find the grip more comfortable than most semi-autos. The platform is significantly easier for my less experienced wife to pick up and bring into action than any semi-auto we've worked with.

There are lots of good all steel 4" .357 magnum wheelguns out there that can be set up with nice grips and shoot reduced power .38 special +p loads without a lot of recoil, the .44 magnum w/ .44 specials is also an option (though probably more expensive and heavier which can be a liablity with arthritis). A shooter grade Smith and Wesson K-frame with a trigger job might be just the ticket... otherwise a 20 gauge or .410 single shot/double barrel shotgun could be good options as well... maybe both.

[rugersol]

http://www.ruger.com/products/newModelSingleSixSingleNine/specSheets/8150.html



... with proper cowboy grip, the weak-hand thumb cocks the hammer ... less work, for both hands! ... and these hammers are usually very easily "lightened"!

9rd .22 WMR!

[Heffay]

I would guess that a shotgun would be the ideal home defense gun for this situation. A 20 gauge semi-auto? Give them their 5 shots with something that is fairly forgiving aiming-wise and is simple and reliable.

They may be more comfortable with a shotgun too, instead of a handgun. I'd ask your parents to see if they would have a preference.

It can be kept in a bedroom closet. Retreat to the bedroom in case someone breaks in, grab it from closet, call 911.

[Sigfan220]

Probably best to take him to Bills for a day of rental shooting. It is all guessing untill he hits the range with a gun in hand.

Rent a couple see what he thinks, then buy. It would suck to buy something based on internet advise then find out he can't shoot it for beans.