.38 Special S&W 640

[KLB]

What about a S&W 640 (.38 Special) for a wife whose arthritis does not permit either loading a magazine or racking a slide? I bought her a 9mm XD Mod 2, but she couldn't use it.

[Grundy1133]

my mom has issues racking a slide and so she uses a 38 special revolver. not sure about the model but it is a S&W. have you looked in to the M&P .380 EZ? supposedly super easy to rack the slide and as for loading mags, if she can use a MagLULA it makes loading mags a breeze. even my mom is able to load mags with it.

[LDB415]

They are a great little gun and the little bit of extra weight compared to the 642 etc. should make it more comfortable to shoot. If you are going with the PRO model it's also got much better sights. I've been considering one myself. Good luck with your decision.

[Boxerrider]

How big of a priority is concealing it? If a slightly bigger gun is an option for her, then a K-frame revolver like the model 10 is easier to hold onto and more comfortable to shoot. It carries an extra round too.

Jeff

[cmgee67]

The S&W 642 would be my choice or the new S&W 380 EZ if you want semi auto. My wife’s gun is the 642 and it has the full size grip on it that smith puts on some of the Ladysmiths. I currently EDC a 642 as well and love it. They do have a heavy trigger though, but in stress it won’t matter. My wife really likes my Glock 19 but she told me she didn’t want to have to deal with a magazine or racking a slide all she wants to do is pick it up and pull the trigger. She can load and unload it easily and she doesn’t have very much strength in her hands so it being light really helps. The recoil on that gun honestly is not bad even to her and she is very recoil sensitive.

[RPBrown]

We had the same issue with my wife. She carried a P938 for a while until she went on a womens only range trip and realized she couldn't rack the slide. Tried an XD9 sub compact. It was okay for a while until arthritis got worse. She decided to go to a revolver as well but went with a Model 640 in .357 at my request. She can still shoot the .38 in it but if I ever carried it (yeah, right. Like she would let me) I could load it with .357. She absolutely loves it, can easily reload it and shoots lights out with it.

[oljames3]

What about a S&W 640 (.38 Special) for a wife whose arthritis does not permit either loading a magazine or racking a slide? I bought her a 9mm XD Mod 2, but she couldn't use it.

Let you wife fire the pistol or revolver before you buy.

My wife found that the Ruger LCR .38 kicked too much for her. While she is very accurate with it, she did not want to practice firing due to perceived recoil. She now carries a Walter PPS M2 LE.

I agree with cmgee67 that the S&W .380 EZ is worth a look. http://blog.krtraining.com/smith-and-we ... un-review/

Loading or inserting a magazine and manipulating the slide does not have to be as important a consideration as some might think. For example, my wife carries her Walther with 8 rounds in the magazine and 1 in the chamber. Thus, it is similar to an eight-shot revolver. With a 5 shot revolver, like her Ruger LCR, should would have to reload after 5 shots. Reloading a revolver is slow and requires fine motor skills. Difficult to do under stress. Inserting a magazine is often easier, espeically if done before the slide locks to the rear.

The main point remains the same. Take her to a range that rents pistols and let her pick her own.

[howdy]

I have a S&W 640 that I bought in 1997. It has about a 11 lb trigger pull and kicks like a mull with .357 loads. The .38 is much better. My 30 year old Daughter has a hard time pulling the trigger. Try to find a range that has loaners or rentals. Let her try several revolvers and see which one she likes.

[rotor]

I love my Ruger LCR in .38 but my wife will never touch it again. It is too light and she can't handle the recoil. That's with regular .38 and not +p. The laws of physics are there no matter what. I might consider the new Colt Cobra if I were buying again.

[LTUME1978]

Another option for those that are recoil sensitive and can't rack a slide is the S&W 351 C. It is a 22 magnum air weight revolver with 7 shot capacity. There is now some pretty good self defense ammo out for the 22 magnum and 7 shots should be enough to at least get the bag guy (or gal) to take off.

[ml1209]

Can't go wrong with a revolver. I like them a lot

[The Annoyed Man]

My wife owns a 642 and I own a 640. I used to own a 642, but traded it with a forum member for the 640. Both are good pistols. If you’re only going to ever shoot .38 Special, get the 642, as it is a lot lighter than the 640. If I were to buy another .38 or .357, I would not buy a “hammerless” (enclosed hammer) design like eithe of those two. The double action on those pistols is not that great, if you’re into triggers, and they can be a little stiff for people with weaker hands. My wife stopped carrying her 642 for that reason.....it was too hard for her to shoot it well. She now carries a G43, and before that, a Kahr CW9, and finds both of those pistols MUCH easier to shoot than her revolver. I also own a M&P340 in .357, which is another enclosed hammer J-frame, but with a Scandium frame. It is REALLY light to carry, but the trigger pull is still about the same as the 640. I keep it as a “throw it in a pocket for a walk to the mailbox” kind of gun. But if I were to buy it again, I would buy the exposed hammer version, just so as to have the option of single action fire if I wanted it. These pistols are so stubby, with such a short sight radius (and such minimalist sights anyway), that well placed aimed fire becomes more difficult than it would be if you had single action available to you. They are fun to shoot, but I would use mine more often for plinking and casual shooting if it could be thumb-cocked. You can always bob a hammer to make it more snag-free on the draw, and I just don’t see myself shooting from inside a pocket or something, so I don’t find the enclosed hammer to be that much of an advantage - at least within the context of my life.