I agree with you. My Colt Commander is much easier to rack than any of the little pocket pistols.WildBill wrote: In my experience it is harder to rack a slide on a 32 Auto and .380ACP pistol versus a larger caliber. I think that may be due to them having a blowback design.
A revolver might be a good idea here, but she still has to pick it out for herself. And, just because it feels good in the hand does NOT mean it will feel good to shoot. The air weight revolver that seems like a great idea at the gun counter will turn into the gun that NEVER makes a second trip to the range.
If I had to make a recommendation for a small revolver, based on what I like, I would say a Ruger GP100 or SP101.