I am thinking about buying my son a pistol for Christmas. That's what he wants so I need to do a bit of research as he has left it up to me. He wants something that will be a good personal defense weapon as well as one that will be enjoyable to shoot recreationally. He doesn’t want a gun as big as a Colt .45, but it needs it to be able to serve its defensive purpose.
For similar use I've had a 9mm Browning High Power for a while but I suspect there is something similar or better on the market by now. When watching some of the personal defense TV shows, they guys are always using something besides that such a Glock.
Have any thoughts or recommendations?
Thanks!

He needs to pick it out himself.

Go to a store and handle a bunch of different ones.
No amount of internet reading can help when it comes to feeling comfortable with the gun you are handling.

Shopcart has it right, but we can start with, how old/big is he and how much pistol shooting experience does he have. Also, semi-auto or revolver is a critical question.

Obviously self defense semi-autos basically start with 9mm and revolvers start with .38 spec/.357.

There are no real fleas on the Browning HP and most of them use 9mm which is available relatively cheap for practice and fun shooting.

Other than that, there are too many choices in too many calibers to really narrow it down without more parameters. Forced to choose, I might suggest a .40 Glock which are reasonably priced and reliable while still having half way cheap ammo.

Ditto on picking it out himself. BTW Browning also makes the high power in 40 S&W. A great personal defense round.

Hands come in different shapes...very few pistol grips do. I have long hands that fit a fat frame 1911 type pistol with a flat main spring housing superbly (Have both an STI Edge and a Para ordinance P16) My hands also fitr a browning HP if fitted with pachmyre grips.

I have owned two Glocks and been issued with several CZ 75/85's over the years. Nothing I tried (including cutting the back off the glocks grip) could make them point naturally enough for me to use in IPSC shooting. Sure I could shoot them- and accurately, but I had to force the front sight down every time, altering my natural locked wrist grip. Slowed me down in competition, both for the first shot and subsiquent ones and I was not as firmly braced as I was with the HP.

Also, always shot way high with eigther the glock or CZ (less so with the CZ) in instinctive shooting. So, despite having free issue CZ's to wear out (and unlimited fre government ammo to do it with) I always ended up buying another HP (wore out three in 15 years).

But that is me- other folk love the CZ or like a colt type pistol with an arched main spring housing. Take son to shop . Have him pick up gun, eyes closed and come into the aim possition. You will soon see what shape grip fits.

A few of the newer pistols have changable back straps or a colt comandwer sized .40 if you have to buy without trying it first.

Yes, I can see that letting him check out a variety of guns himself makes the most sense. We'll do that. When it comes to rifles, I can chat all day about my favorites, but I haven't been in the market for a good pistol in a while so I wasn't sure what all was out there that might be particularly popular.
FWIW, he's about to graduate from college and is 6" tall. His experience with a pistol is very limited at this time. I'd like for him to take a course in pistol safety and self-defense at some point like I did years ago. A fellow from the police Dept put on one a while back.

get him 2 - if he isn't familiar with shooting a handgun going directly to a big bore really isn't the right thing. go find a cheap 22 and a couple 3 bricks of ammo. things like sight picture and trigger squeeze mistakes are much accentuated with a handgun. learning how to control is much easier with a 22 than a big bore and alot cheaper. by the time he learns to shoot well the 22 will have paid for itself with ammo costs. i know this isn't what you want to hear, cut i've coached hundreds of people in pistol shooting & its a very very rare thing to find one what does well with a big bore first

I suggest a few days at one of the well known training facilities like Gunsite, or Thunder Ranch, or Front Sight, etc. Very good training and usually the opportunity to rent either a Glock or 1911. Whatever the outcome, it would be money well spent. I've done it twice and find it loads of fun. Might even be better doing it with one of my kids.

A good 1911 in 45acp is tough to beat. I've had many new shooter try mine & small to large hands, they all love the grip angle, good trigger & soft/push recoil of even std. 230grFMJ. If you want something more "modern", I have been shooting a XD45TAC for a year now & like it almost as much as my 1911s. It comes in a compact 10rd model & full size 13rd model. Very nice pistol.

Spring:

Many good suggestions above, especially butchloc's which I agree with completely. Based on that, I have a suggestion which may or may not meet with your approval/budget. Get him a nice used (or new, I just think some of the older ones are better) Smith K22. It is a pistol that will maintain value, is loads of fun to shoot, usually very accurate and will teach him how to shoot a pistol while enabling him to use cheaper ammo and is a classic. From there, it is easy to move up to the .38/.357 frames and learn on them using .38 wadcutters.

Another cheaper option along the same lines would be to get him a Ruger semi-auto .22. They've got so many variations out now, but you might consider the .22/45 which has the same grip angle as the 1911. If it was me, I'd get him the target model or one of the hunters, but a lot depends on whether he will or can use it for hunting or carry while hunting.

quote:

Originally posted by Spring:
I am thinking about buying my son a pistol for Christmas. That's what he wants so I need to do a bit of research as he has left it up to me. He wants something that will be a good personal defense weapon as well as one that will be enjoyable to shoot recreationally. He doesn’t want a gun as big as a Colt .45, but it needs it to be able to serve its defensive purpose.
...edited for brevity...
Have any thoughts or recommendations?
Thanks!

Spring, kudos for such a kind gift.

First, what size hands does he have? (Glove size, maybe?)

What handguns of yours does he favor?

When you say he doesn't want something as big as a Colt 45, does he mean caliber or frame size?

I perceive that the prior posters (and I) assume the Colt .45 you refer to is the 45 ACP and from that we infer the revolvers are not in the running. If you meant the 45 Colt revolver cartridge that opens up a whole new world of choices. Please be specific? Remember, Col. Colt himself referred to his revolvers as "Pistols".

Does he have a preference for Single-Action, Double Action, Double Action Only or what? Some, like the Glock or Springfield XD or S&W Sigma have a sort of half-cock which I do not like. In the event of a misfire, in a true DA auto, you can pull the trigger for a second hit on the primer. In these "alternative action" pistols, the hammer/striker must be pre-cocked (usually by pulling the slide back a fraction of an inch) to get a second chance on the primer (whick I don't like). Admittedly, not the standard clearance drill for handling a misfire, but I like it for my Taurus Millenium or my (yet to be purchased) CZ clone.

Personally, I like a steel frame and any manual safety should be on the frame (Where God and John Moses Browning intended). I favor my Colt Officer's Model or Star PD or the Firestar for small-size single action pistols. Taurus Millenium Pro works for me, also. I have a good one and th only thing I don't like about it is the way it takes down. For DA/SA pistols, I really like the CZ clones

As several postings have pointed out, letting him find one that is comfortable for his hand is best. Kind of like trying to buy a shoes for someone else, or pick out a wife. Handguns are SO personal. I like this advice:

quote:

Originally posted by Don Heath:
Take son to shop . Have him pick up gun, eyes closed and come into the aim possition. You will soon see what shape grip fits.

A few of the newer pistols have changable back straps or a colt comandwer sized .40 if you have to buy without trying it first.

The Springfield XD comes with different backstraps, too. It is a good gun.

But the best advice, I think, if you can afford the money and the time is Wink's.

quote:

Originally posted by Wink:
I suggest a few days at one of the well known training facilities like Gunsite, or Thunder Ranch, or Front Sight, etc. Very good training and usually the opportunity to rent either a Glock or 1911. Whatever the outcome, it would be money well spent. I've done it twice and find it loads of fun. Might even be better doing it with one of my kids.

There is no gift as precious as the gift of your time. Quality time spent with your son is priceless, no matter if he is still a youngster or an independently living adult. AND, the training facility will probably have various guns to try out (both the schools' guns and depending on the attitude of the other students, their guns as well. Certainly, the instructors will be a WEALTH of knowledge.

Good hunting (for the perfect pistol) and Merry Christmas.

Lost Sheep