One for her

[PeterCartwright]

Howdy!
I find alot of guys just don't get it when it comes to recoil on female anatomy; it's more than just hand size. Upper body strength including arm (forearm, upper arm and shoulder), neck and especially upper and mid back stength, joint flexibility, and limb-trunk-neck ratios all play into it, among other things such whether there are already physical impairments present like arthritis or carpal tunnel.
If you want her to 'enjoy' practising, and she's not a shooter already accustomed to recoil, then you better find a gun she can hold up and which will have just about no recoil with a 38spec round. Forget the tiny carry guns; I have an SP 101 in 357 and it has alot more recoil even with 38 spec ammo than the GP 100 in my medium size female hands. I don't shoot the SP 101 for pleasure with 38 spec; I pull out the GP 100 or a Ruger Vaquero.
Find a Ruger GP 100 in 357, 3 or 4 inch barrel, and put the compact Ruger grips on it. The added weight of the gun will tame the recoil, while the small grips can accomodate her hand size. Another option would be one of the New Ruger Vaqueros in 357. Like the gentleman said above, size is not that important in a home defense gun and the larger size/weight will offset recoil. I would also hand load the 38 spec and down load it for her.
Last, but not least, hook her up with other lady shooters who understand her needs better than guys. I've spoken to a number of women over the years who were turned off due to bad initial experiences from their male 'teachers'.

As a male shooter interested in recruiting more women into this field, I REALLY appreciate this kind of input. Your suggestion about compact grips on a GP makes a great deal of sense. I recently worked with a brand new female shooter (as in "I've never shot a gun before"). After shooting a number of wheel guns, starting with .22 rimfire and moving on to mild .38 wadcutters (chiefly in Smith K frames and J frames with one SP in the mix as well as a P9 Kahr) this woman decided the 3" model 60 Smith fit her best. Even with the heavy barrel and full underlug, the gun is light enough to have noticeable recoil for new shooters. I have a 4" GP with the full sized grips. I wish I'd thought about getting a set of the compact grips to give this woman the option of the heavier gun. There's no avoiding the reality of physics (greater mass = less perceived recoil). I'll keep that in mind for the next time.

PC