I am in the market for my first hand gun. I have fired hand guns in the past but never owned one. My interest is home defense and shooting as a hobby. My wife is interested as well. I originally narrowed my search down to the Beretta px4 9mm, thinking of buying both the standard version and sub compact. The sub compact would be for concealed carry. My problem is that I have small hands. I have not fired the Beretta, but held it in the store. I was quite disappointed. The px4 grip was too big around for my hand. I understand there is backstrap options for this gun. Would that make the grip narrower? Also, I could not reach the safety with my thumb or forefinger. To take the safety off, I had to hold the gun with one hand and release the safety with the other.

I considered the Glock, but in holding it I found the same problem. Too thick for comfort. Also, I understand the Glock has no external safety. If the trigger is inadverately pulled, the guns shoots. I was thinking I wanted a gun with the external safety as my wife can be quite accident prone at times, plus I just like the idea of a safety. I know it may add to reaction time in a jam, but I think the everyday stress of accidental firing outweighs any potential split second need to fire. Also, what is the difference in the different type Berettas? Type f, type this, type that. I can't say I fully understand single action, double action, or a gun having both. If you can manually decock the hammer, so it can't fire without manually pulling it back, isn't that the same as a safety? I know I am a raw rookie here with these questions. The guy in the gun store was about as helpful as a rock. What I am looking for is a quality 9mm that is tailored for small hands.