Home defense? Usable by a small girl?
Think: 20-gauge shotgun. Pump-action might be the better choice, and an 18-inch barrel.

Bigger girl? Go to a 12-gauge instead.

Although using a shotgun still requires familiarity and practice, it will be much, much easier to learn to use effectively than any pistol.

Good home defense shotguns are a best bargain and arguably the best option for home defense. Remington, Mossberg, Winchester. My advice on a pistol would be any of the big names: Glock, Sig, Beretta, S&W, CZ, Ruger, etc..which are known for reliability as number 1. 9mm is a good choice for new shooters and experienced shooters alike. There are so many handguns that fit your criteria of high quality and dependability it's hard to say pick this one over that one w/o you or your girlfriend shooting them. I prefer Beretta's, so 92FS or PX4 Storm would be my suggestion.

I went through some of the same questions not long ago. I started out with a Sig P238 right off the bat. Then I started doing more due diligence and determined for home defense I needed to possible have more than a 7 round clip. I also decided a 9mm would be a good choice for two reasons: One, it is a large enough caliber to effectively stop a bad guy; two, practicing is much cheaper due to ammo costs. I ended up purchasing the Springfield XDM 9mm Compact; it can both be carried due to its size and has a large clip capacity. Like denner above said, there are many pistols that meet your needs. I'm pretty much a beginner in all of this, so I'm sure there are going to be much more expert opinion out there. Good luck.

For some reason a lot of women like the revolver over a semiauto.
Has she said which she likes?
Have you gone to a lgs and rented some guns to try?
happy hunting

For my girlfriend to carry I was thinking about getting her the Ruger LCR .38. Its a super light weight handgun that very simple to shoot. All you do is point and squeeze the trigger. No safeties to fumble with in a life or death situation. Thats what I would go with.

All depends on your preference, but particularly your hands. I have a CZ-75 SP-01 which is great, but my wife can't handle it comfortably, so I bought an FNX-9. It's lighter b/c of polymer instead of steel and it's smaller. This is a gun that both she and I can train on and use. It wasn't alot of money in my book, but I am of the "pay more to get more" school of thought. And FNH has been making firearms since about...oh...1889.

My wife uses a Ruger SR40......

Took a slightly different approach. Got wife a intro handgun class. Pointed her at the rental cage and the gun counter and told her find what was comfortable for her and that she was welcome to shoot anything I had but needed to find what fit her. Going after the 3 c's. Class started her on the way to confidence, she picked comfort, and practice, practice, practice is making her competent. By the way -- she picked a H&K P30 as her primary -- said it felt the most comfortable and then she shot it and bought it. She shoots it quite well.

Love it! "Honey, I want this $1000 gun"

I hope to get an HK P30 soon, but I'll have to justify this to my wife. Maybe I'm going about this all wrong?!?!

I also took the wife out, and let her handle many revolvers and semi's............believe it or not, her favorite was an HK P30 LS.....due to the cost, I also had her check out the Ruger SR40, and she liked that also, and it's what we ended up getting....maybe the HK for the next one....QUOTE=Tip;272609]Took a slightly different approach. Got wife a intro handgun class. Pointed her at the rental cage and the gun counter and told her find what was comfortable for her and that she was welcome to shoot anything I had but needed to find what fit her. Going after the 3 c's. Class started her on the way to confidence, she picked comfort, and practice, practice, practice is making her competent. By the way -- she picked a H&K P30 as her primary -- said it felt the most comfortable and then she shot it and bought it. She shoots it quite well.[/QUOTE]

Originally Posted by goNYG

Love it! "Honey, I want this $1000 gun"

I hope to get an HK P30 soon, but I'll have to justify this to my wife. Maybe I'm going about this all wrong?!?!

Nope - you didn't read close enough. I bought my Sigs (both of them) -- SHE bought her H&K!! Her decision.

We both work - both make good $$ - if I want something I gotta pay for it -- if she wants something -- She's gotta pay for it.
We both contribute to the "house account" that pays bills, buys groceries, etc.
Work great for us -- don't have to justify it -- just have to figure a way go pay for it!

She didn't like the Rugers -- "felt" great -- she didn't like the way it shot. Also shot M&P, Baretta, Glock, Browning, Sig -- kept going back to H&K. Next choice probably would have been Browning.

My first gun was a Browning High Power 9mm. Still a favorite!

Hello Heathsmith
Try the bersa 380, it is strong and ur girlfriend can use it to protect the home as well. Good gun for concealment too. I brought one for the wife and she has not put it down since, and she is getting better at the range. However, I prefer the Glock23 Gen 4..