Wanting to buy my adult daughter a pistol for CC. I was thinking 380, any suggestions on a light and simple handgun.

S&W 380 EZ. That’s the EZ to use 380 that my wife decided on. You can get it with or without a safety lever. It has a grip safety. Excellent pistol.

Ruger LCP II

Glock 42

Bersa BP380CC

Probably best to let her handle several and pick the one she likes best. Good luck.

Glock 43 or sig 365

This is good advice.

dont know where Dayton is but yes, let her shoot several.
For Christmas, I bought my daughter the S&W EZ and the Walther CCP-M2 (9mm) it also has the "easy racking slide" She will shoot both, keep the one she likes, probably the S&W just because of the recoil.

I'll then take the other one a sell it or keep it for myself. The Walther exudes class.

Ditto on either one of these. 365 has a higher capacity if that's important.

north American arms in 22Mag

can stick it in her tiny purse or pocket

.380/9mm whatever … if it's cumbersome they get left at home

in real defense situation, just having a 22 mag on her is more important than larger caliber

For the money hard to beat a shield in 9mm. But lots of good options out there. Is she recoil shy, if so maybe a 380EZ. Will she only carry a tiney gun, then an LCP or maybe a j frame. If you want to spend a little more the p365 looks pretty good. While i do agree that the little gun is more likely to get carried the LCP is about the smallest i would go, but they can be jumpy. IDK how experienced a shooter your daughter is. Also is she going to practice? If not then an LCR or a Jframe would be the best bet. And by practice i dont mean 50-100 rounds a year

Despite popular belief a .38 revolver is not the best choice for a new, weak, or shooter than doesn’t want to practice much.

Smith and Wesson M&P Shield 9mm

Actually it is. They ain't gonna hit crap with either cause they don't practice, but the much simplified manual of arms is mo better. Push button, cylinder swing out, ammo will only go in one direction (with a rimmed cartridge that is common in those guns), close cylinder, done. No safeties, backwards ammo in mags, slide to rack, limpwristing, stove piping that you have to clear cause you dont practice enough to know what is going on (cause you limpristed it), trying to put mags in backwards, etc. I have seen all this happen with newer shooters. I know that the trigger on a revolver ain't going match the trigger on an auto so they are harder to shoot accurately, but they are much more likely to be loaded correctly and have a chance of going off at all. I can learn the the most ignorant person around how to make a revolver work in a couple of minutes and since it is very self explanatory, they will still know how to operate the gun 6 months later. The same cannot be said for autos.

Take her somewhere that rents handguns to try, let her decide

A few months ago I had the opportunity to shoot(test shoot for a friend because he was scared of it) an old Charter Arms Chiefs Special. 2" barrel 38 spec., 5 shot. I didn't like it because of the gold plating his deceased B-I-L had put on it, but, that sucker shot sweet. I was expecting a lot of recoil with 158 gr. semi wadcutters. It was quite mild. I shot 4 cylinders thru it at 7 yards and they all grouped, 4 different targets, no bigger than a Skoal can. His wife has now laid claim to it but I have dibs if he ever sells. I loved shooting it. First thing I'd do would be take a Sharpie to the top of that shiny sucker and black out the front sight.

Many revolvers transfer recoil differently.

If she wants an auto with the softest recoil and a slide easy to rack, I couldn't recommend the M&P .380 EZ more. That pistol impressed the heck out of me! I will end up with one someday...this next year hopefully.

The wife carries a Walther PPS IWB. She also liked the LCR in .38. She liked the LCR best early because it was easiest to use, but settled on the pistol because it is easier to hit with.

I suggest a LCR in .327, supplied with a couple hundred rounds of .32 S&W target ammo for familiarization. Stoke it with Georgia Arms 100gr .32 H&R for carry only. I would not use .327 in that gun as the barrel isn't long enough to take advantage of the extra powder over the .32 H&R. (In case you didn't know, .327 revolver will fire just about all the .32 caliber handgun cartridges. Very handy in an ammo shortage.) It'll be low recoil in practice, simple to master the manual of arms, and with the long stroke of the trigger less likely to result in an accidental discharge than most of these pistols.

I think you'll be hard pressed to pick the right handgun for someone else; especially a female. For one, handguns have to fit the hand. For two, women have to figure out how to carry. Purse carry is a terrible idea. Women's pockets are too small for pocket carry. Belt carry is a task to figure out because of the difference in their figures. Maybe a shopping trip to the indoor handgun rental range is in order instead of just a gift.

To add: The wife was going on a about a sale at the wella armed woman web site yesterday. Lotsa girly holsters.

We were looking at the M&P 380 EZ, the slide is really light. My friend knows of a range that will either rent or let you try out a few so that's where we will begin. Thanks for all the input