My Journey to Find a Gun That Works for Me

At least my husband had picked up some wisdom along the way (being married to me for all those years helped) and he decided he’d better stay out of this decision.  Thankfully, I had some inheritance money from my mother’s estate, so I was willing and able
to spend some of it on such purchases. The Baby Eagle was what he decided & picked out – 9mm caliber, etc.  After my research, I did decide that the 9mm was probably the best defensive round for me, as it was considered adequate, but allowed more rounds to be carried in a magazine.  Not being sure that every round would hit the attacker, I liked the idea of having more at my disposal.

I had shot my husband’s Kel-Tec PF9, but found that my non-callused hands didn’t like the recoil impact on my palms.  I have large man-sized hands, so a larger pistol is a more comfortable fit for my hands.  With the research, I also had learned the larger the pistol, usually the less recoil, so decided I didn’t want to drop down to a mouse gun.  So, a double stack magazine with the wider
grip seemed to be a one feature I wanted.  I didn’t want to get a revolver – back to that liking more rounds thing, besides I’d learned on a semi-auto, so I didn’t want to have to learn more than absolutely necessary at that point.  Not being sure that the 4 gun safety rules were instinctive in me, I liked the comfort the external safety on the Baby Eagle gave me, so that was a feature I wanted.  One of the things I liked about having that type of safety was the thought that someone unfamiliar with that gun (a child or a criminal) might give me time to wrestle it away from them.

Okay, now I had my list of features, it was time to go looking for MY gun.  Semi-auto, 9mm, external safety, double-stack, and a shorter barrel than the Baby Eagle.  I went a range to rent & shoot possible candidates.  (Left TrailerDwarf & our sons at home.)  The guy at the counter was very helpful, and showed me a CZ Rami.  It fit every requirement I had for my gun.  One problem, they had one for sale, but not to rent & shoot.  He did rent me a couple of guns that were similar in size (but out of my price range), so I
could experience the level of recoil.  I decided I didn’t want to buy that day (especially because I couldn’t shoot it).  I needed to have time to think about it, and talk it over with TrailerDwarf, as I was still feeling insecure about making such a big decision. 

After TrailerDwarf found a brand new CZ Rami with an ambi-safety (safety can be operated from either left or right side) from a
reputable on-line company, at a price I was willing to pay, so I swallowed hard and ordered it.  I figured I paid the rental & range fees at the range, so didn’t take up their time without recompense, even if I didn’t buy a gun from them. 

I’ve heard it said that picking out a gun for a woman can be compared to picking out a bra for her. You might know what her size is, but only she will know if it fits her.  I really like my CZ Rami, but each person needs to do their own research, and decide what is going to work for him or her.