Dealing with clueless in-laws. And guns.

[Guest Joey]

About a month ago my mother-in-law decided she needed a handgun for self defense. There had been quite a few home invasions in her town at the time and the bad guys hadn’t been caught. Though my in-laws are pro 2nd amendment, my mother-in-law knows next to nothing about guns. So she sent her son to the local gun store to look at guns and check prices.

He, my brother-in-law, is telling me about this really nice gun he found with Crimson Trace lasergrips.

Me: What kind is it?

Him: It’s a Winchester revolver

Me:

… I was silent for a few seconds and then I asked:

Me: What caliber is it?

Him: Baby .45

Me:

…

Me: .45 Long Colt?

Him: No, Baby .45

Not .45 Long Colt, .45 ACP or .45 GAP. No, this was a Baby .45 caliber Winchester revolver.

I didn’t want to embarrass him in front of his new GF so I didn’t call him out on it. I did ask him the same questions two more times and got the same answers. I also expressed concern that anything .45 wouldn’t be good for my mother-in-law to shoot since she broke both her wrists just under a year ago. I could tell that advice made no impact on him though my mother-in-law did promise to shoot something before she bought it. I suggested a .38 Special or even a .32 since recoil was an issue.

Fast forward to last week:

Same brother-in-law is telling me about the guns they bought. Dad got a Taurino Slim 9mm and I was a little confused as to what mom got. A few google image searches later and we decided that mom got a Walther P22.

Me: Taurino? … Do you mean Taurus?

Him: Yeah, some brand I’ve never heard of.

Later I mentioned to my in-laws that 22 isn’t the best choice for home defense. Mother-in-law said that the gun store owner assured her the 22 would expand and blow up upon impact. Father-in-law said that a 9mm was too much for home defense. He was worried that it could go through a wall and hit a family member in the next room.

Edited August 20, 2010 by Joey

[Guest Drewsett]

Be happy they have a gun period. I can't convince my mother to keep even a .22 in the house. She's convinced my stepfather with a baseball bat is all she needs until the Franklin PD arrives.

[Guest Joey]

I'm hoping my mother-in-law will get my wife interested in shooting. I know I haven't been able to.

[Steelharp]

Dealing with clueless in-laws. And guns.

Seems like one takes care of the other... just sayin'...

[Guest Drewsett]

Thankfully I was able to get my wife interested which is saying a lot for her character...she has some pretty painful past history with guns that I won't get into here. She even has her own gun that she will occasionally allow me to shoot

Her parents are another story. Her father is a bit of an outdoorsman, so he has a deer rifle, but that's it. Better than nothing. Her mother is scared to death of guns...I'm surprised she allows her husband to even keep the deer rifle in the house. I was convinced that she would never speak to me again once she heard that her daughter is on her way to becoming a gun nut.

I still remember when my wife called her mom the first time after we went to the range and I heard through the phone, from across the room, "you have HOW many guns!"

I still chuckle a bit at that one.

Like I said, be happy they have something at all. Teach them how to use it (if they will let you), and otherwise just keep to yourself about it. If you're lucky, you can convince your wife to come along on a range trip you take with them to teach them the basics (once again, if they're willing). Then the sheer boredom of everyone else shooting and her not might get your wife interested. That Walther P22 is a great gun to learn on.

[Guest Joey]

Steelharp: LOL!

I don't claim to know all there is to know about guns. But Baby .45 caliber Winchester revolver? WTF?!

Drewsett: Yeah I'm glad they have guns. A 22 is better than nothing. But something that starts with .3 is better than a 22 IMHO. I'm a little pissed that some gun store owner fed them a line of BS about a 22 being adequate for home defense.

Maybe with the low recoil and cheap ammo my mother-in-law will really get into guns which will hopefully lead to my wife getting into guns. That's what I'm hoping for anyways.

Also, how is $400 for a new P22? My brother-in-law was pretty happy that he got it on sale for $400. Sounds a little high to me but I haven't looked at prices in awhile.

Edited August 20, 2010 by Joey

[Guest Drewsett]

From what I've seen, 400 is high for a P22, unless that included tax+tics. Then I would say it was reasonable. I would be pissed about that gun store owner. It's not in Middle TN is it? I don't want to patronize a business that would lie to their customer to get a sale.

[Guest Joey]

No, this store is in south west KY.

Also, my in-laws are Yankees so that might explain a lot.

[Guest Drewsett]

No, this store is in south west KY.

Also, my in-laws are Yankees so that might explain a lot.

Glad to hear that it's not here in TN.

Yankees?

Ewwww....

J/k

For Yankees they're doing pretty darn well if you ask me heh.