TTAG’s most recent reader survey indicated that our readers are 90 percent male. Hang on. TTAG’s male readers are 100 percent male. Ninety percent of our total readership are male. Oops! Transgender. OK, most of our male readership are 100 percent male and they comprise 90 percent of our readership. Hence the headline. That said, if you are one of our rare woman readers, change the headline to “Does the Man in Your Life Carry?” Which would also apply to a gay male reader, obvs. If you’re a gay woman reader, you can of course stick with the original. Although . . . a “woman in your life” doesn’t necessarily mean a partner. Your Mom’s a woman in your life, regardless of your sex or sexual orientation. Aunts? I guess they count. And daughters who’ve reached the age of maturity, regardless of their sexual orientation. Or chromosomal make-up. I think that covers it. Do they carry? If so, what and how? [h/t everydaynodaysoff.com]

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115 COMMENTS

  1. While my fifteen-year old daughter did well at the range when I took her there, I’m not sure I’m in a hurry for her to have access to any firearms without the proverbial adult supervision… that she was an excellent shot right out of the gate and commented “Gee, Dad, I’m better at this than you are” is nothing i want to discuss…

    • My 85 year old mother carries a Ruger GP 100 357 mag, stainless with a 4 inch barrel. She is still a dead shot.

  2. Wife is waiting for her CHL as we speak. Turned her around after 9 years of marriage and 15 years of being together, she used to be a liberal…

      • Ha! Thanks. I’m not a wishy washy metro sexual. I have a very strong will and was able to turn her around.

  4. no but my sister wants to she just does not have the money for her own gun and the ccw permit

  6. Nope, wont even touch one. Drives me crazy, especially since we live together just west of Detroit. She says she’s just not comfortable with that kind of power. It turns into a fight when I ask her why she is willing to let an attacker have that power over her.

  7. After about a year of convincing, my girlfriend decided to get her permit. After another 6 months, she was willing to carry. At this point, she is thankful for the security it brings, but still will not take the steps to transition from purse to body carry. She understands the problems with purse carry, but to successfully wear an IWB holster would necessitate a paradigm shift in her wardrobe. Pocket carry is out of the question. Baby steps…

    On a side note, she has settled on an LCR as her favorite carry piece.

    • I’m with you on that one. I carry the hardware and she carries the checkbook. I’m pretty sure that I’m not even allowed to look at it. Kinda like I’m not allowed to pack my own suitcase anymore after a “little incident” with a .357 and a cruiseship. WOMEN! Go figure!

    • I suggest taking her to a clean range that has a myriad of rental guns. I’m not a fan of the super compact guns like many of the .380s that are available. I want legitimate sights and more reliable stopping power. Every shooter is different. I don’t find the recoil of a .40 objectionable (although I start flinching after 5-10 rounds of .460 Smith), but some do. Since there are many caliber and platform choices, a bit of experience with many of them ought to be more helpful than thousands of words. Help her find her happy place (get your mind out of the gutter). Then again, I find that women don’t mind a whole lot of words.

      My lady has a hankering for the Sig 227. I’m not sure if she will be able to shoot it well because she is recoil sensitive. She hates my .40 Cal Glocks, but is comfortable shooting a Ruger 22/45. Then again, I’m willing to risk buying one because I love her so much (and a Sig would feel just fine on my hip).

  10. Wife has her permit, but isn’t quite comfortable enough yet with a gun to carry one. That, and she really wants a P238 in a fashionable color…

  11. Yes, she got a CCL the same time I did. She carries on body when at all possible, but keeps her peice in an otherwise empty pocket of her purse when she can’t

  12. Wife has her CHL, but “doesn’t like” to carry. In all honesty, working in the school district means she cannot legally bring her LCP to work, or even leave it her car in the parking lot! This works against building any sort of reliable ‘carry habit’.
    In truth, she doesn’t seem to find shooting the pleasurable experience I do… Go figure!

    • You used the term CHL, for concealed handgun license, which as far as I know only Texas uses for such. If you’re in Texas, know that a teacher may indeed keep a lawfully possessed firearm secured in their personal vehicle. The ban on firearms at schools does not include the parking lot. Moreover, employers, including schools, may not forbid employees from securing lawfully possessed firearms in their personal vehicles parked on school property.

      If you’re in Texas, you may want to verify the laws and make an informed decision as to when, where and how to carry.

  13. My late Mom had a loaded .38 Spl in the house for 25-30 years, don’t think she ever carried. Due to extensive rapes in the area, I bought the lady who has now been my wife for 47 years a Beretta Jetfire .25 auto in the fall of 1965, she has carried many times since, up until 15 years ago when she and I got CHLs, and she has been carrying constantly ever since, first a Sig P230 (.380) and currently a S&W airweight .38 Spl. BTW, after around 40 years I went to a gun show and sold that Beretta for over 3 times what I paid for it, I was shocked that anyone wanted it at all, what a POS. Figured that a contact shot would really hurt, but you couldn’t hit your ass at 10 feet. Oh, and she carries in a gun purse from the NRA store.

  15. Took me four months to get my lady to the state office here in Doral, Florida to apply for her CWL. Figure it will take about 5 weeks for her to receive it.

    With that being said, I am sure it will take even longer for her to start carrying. I don’t want to be pushy at all so one day at a time method.

    She did ask if she can carry my 938 or G26 already though. Might be a good sign.

    With that being said, is there anything to it for my lady to carry a gun I bought? I mean the paperwork has my name on it.

    • I would let her try them out, then give her (or buy her) the one she prefers. If you want to play it safe, go to the LGS and do a transfer, but I, personally (in my not a lawyer opinion), don’t think it’s necessary.

      I have gifted guns to female family before with no issues.

  17. My wife came to the range with me once. Said she enjoyed shooting my handguns. Suggested we get our Carry permits. I found us a class – she said “Not a good time” but that I should go. So I went, have my permit although I rarely carry. She has since backpedaled, and now has no interest in getting her own permit. I still invite her when I go to the range – and she declines.

    • Wow. That’s so far removed from my experience. Every road trip we take in Texas, usually to Austin. San Antonio, or Dallas/Fort Worth, entails scouting out a new range, which we eagerly try out with whatever type guns they allow.

  18. Yes, FNX-9. The combo of safety and decocker appeal to her, and it’s slightly smaller then her H&K USP.

  20. I do but my husband is uninterested.

    Not to get all politically correct on you guys, but ‘spouse’ may be a better term. Sexual preference has no bearing on the desire to protect oneself.

    • “Woman in your life” is not limited to a spouse. It includes a daughter, mother, aunt, you name it. Sexual preference has no bearing on whether or not you have a mom, right?

    • Why are some people’s default reactions so sensitive and defensive? Geez. Didn’t the article explicitly make allowance for others? Must the entire sexual preference angle be reinforced and reiterated in the comments even after having already been (over)reasonably accommodated from the start?

  21. She keeps a Beretta Nano loaded 6 + 1 with 124 grain +P in her purse. She keeps eyeing my Glock 19 making comments like “If I am going to carry in my purse then I could have a Glock 19”.

    • My wife keeps saying the same thing about my SIG MK25. I told her she’s more than welcome to buy one of her own.

  22. My Fiance’ openly caries a Springfield XDM .45 ACP 4.5″, black of course. She will be getting an XDS .45 (like mine) once she receives her concealed carry permit.

  23. My daughter has her permit and carries a full size sig P226 in a CCW purse. I have spoken with her about the negatives of that system, but she is comfortable with it, so i trust her judgment.

  24. No. My wife has touched ONE of my guns (an 1862 Colt pocket Navy) exactly ONCE. She doesn’t even like to SEE the others, as they frighten her. Then again, I bought my daughter a carry pistol for college graduation–but no, she doesn’t carry, although living in Cleveland, she really ought to.

    • I work downtown. You have to have a death wish to not carry in Cleveland. And where I live, there’s no way to get home from work without driving through the hood.

  25. My current girlfriend if from back east, I’m just now getting her to shoot they were trained from an early age that guns are dangerous and might jump out and shoot you.
    My mom on the other had seems to have “kept” my Taurus .38 which she tried out a couple years back. It’s easy to shoot, easy to load and easy to carry. I get her out to practice at least once a month. She qualifies as elderly and finds out she can no longer cycle the semi auto pistols now popular.

  26. My wife does not daily carry, but she does have her own .357 Mag for home defense. She has talked about getting her permit, and we’ve done some ‘light’ shopping for a carry gun for her.

  27. My wife was nearly assaulted by a group of road raged men with a pipe. I had begged her to get her permit previously but that was the final push for her.

    Luckily she was able to get away from her would be attackers in her vehicle but the option of being armed makes us both a lot more comfortable.

    She carries every day IWB a ruger sr22. We are working on going up in caliber.

  28. “Male and they comprise 90 percent of our readership” — that is a BAD OMEN for the future of our constitutional rights. Have you also asked about political self-characterization? “Conservative” is not the dominant sub-culture for much of the US — including various “affluential” groups.

    The modern day version of the Anti-Saloon-League has a simple, misleading, visual message to feed to the The Masses.

    Re-framing the debate and preaching beyond the converted will be mission critical for us — although I do not see any group following that path.

      • Click on my (pseudo) name — I like to place articles in liberal media — and spend time responding and sparring with people. There is a second article also — just search Digger via my real last name — join the comments section! I participate in the debates surrounding other’s articles also. Also very active in Gun Owners of VT — GREAT GROUP!

  29. No, but my mom has expressed interest since I’ve started carrying. She’s never really been into guns, and is kind of nervous around them, but she’s a pretty good shot. Took her to the range on mother’s day with a few of my handguns, and she did great.

    Out of the three I brought, she liked them in this order:

    Bersa Thunder .380 — My carry gun. Comfortable, good factory sights. Mom loved it.
    Springfield XD Compact .45ACP — Intimidated at first, but no strong feelings about it.
    Taurus 738 TCP .380 — NOPE. NOOOOOPE. Light, snappy, little gun. Mom wasn’t a fan.

    • Funnily enough, my mother in law loved the Thunder .380. I gave her one for Christmas, and she’s going for her CCW class soon. My wife has one too and loves it, but we did learn that it’s pretty picky when it comes to ammo.

      • I haven’t had any problems with mine, then again I have some serious OCD about keeping my guns clean. I guess that’s what happens when your first rifle is a Mosin Nagant. I clean it after every range trip, even if I only shoot 50 rounds, and at least once weekly. I never imagined a gun could get so dirty just riding in a holster all day.

    • My Mom has arthritis in her hands and can’t operate most pistols. She can drive the Bersa though, and she carries hers in her purse.

    • I’m really interested in the Thunder. Don’t think it would be my EDC, but I like the ergonomics of it.

  31. She carries a Kahr P9 in a belly band at high appendix under one of those kinda hideous flyaway tops that are popular these days. 7+1 in the gun, 8 round backup mag.

  32. Not yet. We both plan on carrying in the future in Illinois. She carries a pepper blaster in her purse. She taught self defense at the YWCA years ago & is very pro-gun. I wouldn’t be with a woman who was anti- gun.

  33. Does the wife carry? Not yet, but her class is next week, and she’s already talking about having to get different guns to go with different outfits.

    Our cats? No, except for the one.

  34. Yep. SP101 .357. Takes it everywhere she goes.

    I always figured, if I needed to carry my gun, well… the S had H the proverbial F, but she convinced me to get my CCP two years ago.

  35. My wife carries a P250.

    Not carry guns, but my mom has a Marlin .22 I gave her for varmint control and my sister-in-law has an SKS I gave her after we both attended Missouri hunter’s safety course back in the ’90s. She’s small, and I thought 7.62 x 39 would be a good compromise between performance and recoil, but it’s still too much for her to enjoy shooting. She probably needs an AR.

  36. My wife works in DC so daily carry doesn’t happen. But when she does carry 90% of the time she dresses like someone born in 1950 (jeans and a blouse) which allows her to carry her M-9. Most of the other time she will take the Nano.

    I forgot, I am trying to get her to open carry sometimes but she is apprehensive about it even around the house.

  37. my wife just got her permit a few months ago. . .. I am nudging her gently to on body carry and not just leaving it in the car

  39. My wife carries a LC9. She loves the safeties on it. She is saving up for a Lady Smith.

  41. Hell yes, my wife carries. Springfield XDm compact, .40 S&W. Her previous EDC was a Ruger LC9.

  42. She doesn’t carry. She comes to the range on occasion, but she has never developed the shooting skills to feel comfortable carrying. I generally load for her, since she still doesn’t feel comfortable with that process even.

    So I got her a stun gun and pepper spray. Those, she will carry.

  43. Absolutely. She’s had her CHL for several years now, carries a Ruger LC9 IWB, backed up by a Sig P250 in .45ACP in a Concealed Carrie brand purse. You know, for those active shooter situations when you’re going to need that additional defensive firepower.

  45. My wife and daughter both do not have their own handgun yet but they like to rent the .380’s at the gun store range. My wife is real close to buying her own. It’s just a matter of when we can get back to the store.

  47. Wife wins most of the arguments in the house.

    Not because she has the LCR 38 spl in her purse, sig P230 in her night stand, Beretta 92fs in her dresser, a Glock 21 in the closet, or the Taurus 380 in her car.

    The good thing is that she has to clean all her guns herself and I only have to clean mine.

  50. I’m 68, carry a gun all the time, everywhere. I’m also a certified firearms and self defense instructor. Teaching all comers, but have special material for women, elders and physically challenged individuals.

    My adopted daughter shoots, and I have hopes for my two grand daughters, just as soon as they get out of California. 🙁

    I’ve already had to shoot a man in self defense. Here’s the story if you are interested. http://www.thepriceofliberty.org/?page_id=846 Follow the directions to get a free copy of my book with practice suggestions and drills I use and teach. Anyone can use them, obviously, but they are especially important for women and others who are most apt to be victimized. Reading this small book just might help your lady or daughter understand how vital it is to be prepared to defend herself.

  51. Wish mine could carry, but she has a violent temper on occasions. I can handle her coming at me with a knife, (very rare occasions) But not a gun. Maybe some day, till then, I just keep out of her way when she starts yelling.

  52. Small, single-stack 9mm. Either a Kimber Solo or a P938. Though, her favorite is her Hi Power, which she’d carry but for the size.

  53. My mom carries a Gen3 G19 (blech) currently. My problem is, she keeps trying to “borrow” my sweet little XD subcompact ever since I made the mistake of letting her play with it at the range. Apparently she wants a summer carry gun and it’s a much better fit in her Can Can than the Glock. I have to watch the frelling thing like a hawk any time she is around =P

  55. Oh, my goodness, I LOVE this site! (especially since you’ve cleaned it up as I’ve followed it for a couple years) Every day when I read it I laugh. TTAG rocks! I am 100% female. I’ll answer for my husband as he’s too busy running our small business to follow witty sites like this. I carry 99% of the time I’m awake. Yes, I carry at home. My P238 is invisible (um, yeah, that’s concealed carry ), and my other 9 mm pistols get regular workouts in tactical classes & practice.

  56. After years of having my guns locked up with actions/cylinders in one place the guns in another and Ammo in a third while my kids were little, I got out of the habit of shooting.
    Because we would carry the Single Six with us camping, the new wife said, “I want to learn how to shoot” and by god she did and we both got our CCW, aquired a new line of carry and full sized pistols, an AR and a new 10/22. The family has a chunk of land where we have a private range. She got ME off my duff. I didn’t have to drag her kick’n an scream’n. The son in his twenties now, is onboard as well.
    It was her doing. She works 19:00-7:00 at Childrens Hospital in Milwaukee and has a 50 mile commute, she didn’t like the idea of relying on the kindness of strangers on the side of I-94. She carries.

  57. Not only does my woman (fiancee’) carry, she’s a freakin’ NRA instructor!

    One thing’s for sure, I never have to worry about being nagged for having “too many guns.”

  59. Purple Pearl P238 loaded with Precision One 90gr XTPs. (Thanks to Shooting the Bull’s ammo quest, the Golden Sabres she had are now relegated to plinking ammo.) It is a gorgeous firearm. We walked into the LGS a few months ago and that little handgun pulled her over like the gravity vortex of a black hole.

    She saves the Mini-14 for special occasions.

  60. Yes. Sig P238 Rainbow w/extended mag full of critical defense in a flash bang holster. We’re in Arizona, so no permit required.

  61. If you see my wife with a black purse (with braided steel in the strap), odds are it has a Glock 26 in it…..and apparently she doesn’t bother to read signs on store doors

  62. sadly nothing for my wife. she isn’t interested in it currently (pregnancy makes shooting a no-go)

  64. I’m working on getting the wife into a CCW class. She’s gotta have time, first. I’m hoping that Greg Block can give us a hand with that. The wife currently carries a Taser C2 if I make her, and has it available by our nightstand.

  68. I’d say my wife is a gun girl. She has a .carry permit, a 38 special revolver, 9mm Glock, and Tavor, Problem is she has as much trouble keeping track of her guns as she does keeping track of her car keys and iPhone. I know where the Tavor is but I’m as clueless as she as to where her handguns are hidden. Good thing our kids are adults and we have no grandchildren.

  69. My second comment on this post. My Ex was former air force and actually learned how to shoot. I’d say she carried 75% of the time. At 6’1″ she could carry pretty much what she wished. I had a hard time keeping hold of my Kimber CDP so she I bought her a Springfield Loaded, full size with a inside the waist band holster. She loved it also carried inside a custom made large purse which you would never suspect contained a firearm. We both shot and trained on a regular basis endpoint: since we were both bigger than average folks having a common platform makes sense. The ability of both of us having 1911 platform handguns made sense. Both used the same magazines, holsters and bullets and zero confusion if we swapped pistols. This was the same basis that a lot of police forces subscribed for many years. This does not work if you better half prefers a different pistol or caliber but it made me more comfortable knowing we both carried and had the same firearm. Food for thought?

  70. My mom is still carrying my Taurus Model 85 she likes the feel and is comfortable with the pistol. A small waistband holster works for her and she can shoot it very well. Mid range .38 specials with soft lead seem to work very well and are easy to shoot. Per previous posts my Ex handles a .45 just fine but my mom was never comfortable with the size or recoil. Mom used to carry my custom S&W 9mm later was also using my CZ52 but as she aged I found she could not properly rack the slide and often missed chambering a round which could lead to a disaster. Thus the switch to the Taurus I would consider a newer LCP or the like but she prefers the Taurus so far. My thought is this we keep trying to upgrade our significant others before they are ready and scare them off or persuade them this is not the correct path. Current girlfriend is very liberal and has only worked up to shooting my Buckmark for the past couple months (she is very slowly starting to re-think her views). If they are not comfortable with what you are handing them then re-think the situation. AND that is another thread.

  72. I called my mother last Sunday to see what she wanted to do for Mothers Day. I expected her to want to peruse antiques and eat someplace nice. Instead she asked if I could take her to the range. I’d forgotten that she’d recently opted for a S&W .380 bodyguard over the XDs-9 she’d been carrying and was desperate for range time.

    We split most of the day between working draw and fire drills, reinforcing verbal commands and assertiveness combined with movement and just letting her shoot the heck out of the little gun to develop a feel for it.

    I was surprised not that she wanted to shoot but that she choose to do so on Mothers Day. By the end we were so sweaty that we ended up having dinner of hot dogs at a roadside stand instead of a ‘nice’ restaurant. It was both the most expensive and least elegant Mothers Day I can recall in my adult life but also the most fun.

  74. She’s waiting on her permit to come in the mail as we speak. I’m going to feel a lot better once she gets it. I’d like to be around to protect her 24/7, but that’s just not possible.

    She’s a darn good shot with her Taurus PT111 G2. She’s a new shooter, but she’s a natural. It’s just a matter of time until she’s much better than me.

  75. The wife keeps a SA XD .40 in her nightstand. I have just convinced her to get her Texas CCW for those times that she’s out without me. It took 8 years. But she came to me with the desire to learn to shoot her own gun. Worth the wait.

  77. Tarus Judge- house
    Glock 22- car (previous service pistol)
    Glock 26 some of the time when in bulky clothing/car
    NAA 22mag Black Widow mainly because she wears those tight outfits that anything larger would print so much she might as well open carry.

  78. The woman in my life doesn’t want me to be the man in her life anymore after 25 years.
    Actually, she had an affair after 14 years.
    So… technically, she didn’t want me to be the man in her life back then either. But now she wants a divorce. So that pretty well settles it. Makes her nervous when I carry my Kahr P45 around the house in an OWB holster. When I do talk to her, she makes a point of glancing down at it.
    “Aw, don’t worry yer pretty little head, woman. It stays right here on my hip. I ain’t goin to jail over you. I want to watch my kids grow up and I can’t do that from behind bars.”

  80. Woman here … Initially avoided guns because I was scared of anything other than a shotgun or revolver. Hubby wanted to take CC class so we both went. Realized that being taught how to handle a gun takes away the fear. Qualified with .45 auto and .45 revolver so I can carry anything I want. Currently carry Taurus PT111 G2 all the time, usually on body but sometimes in my purse. It sleeps by my bed at night and is always accessible.

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