Z, thanks for the offer. But I am actually in Lincoln Park, Chicago.

The best advise so far has been to go rent some different ones at the range and see what fits. The earlier Glocks do not fit my hand well at all. Nor the bigger H&K. The Ruger semi-autos like the P90 or P92 have awful triggers to me but the PX4 is decent. Get out and shoot a bunch of different ones if you can. You may not like how one recoils in your hand compared to another even if they are similar weight in the same caliber.

I bought a .45 Ruger Vaquero based on Jeff's and others recommendation years ago and I found the above to be true in every sense. I have a gallimaufry (sorry, I have wanted to use that word for a while) of hand guns in all calibers and, over the years, have gotten proficient.

As always, the real key, and you have always been a smart young man here, is get to the range and test drive with a knowledgeable wing man. Your first car wasn't your last car, your first set of clubs wasn't the best and it won't be with guns either.

Enjoy.

Oh, one other thing. Set goals for shooting. Once you find out what is reasonable, mark your progress.

just my advice ... get a dog.... guns end up getting stolen or worse yet in the hands of a loved one and something goes wrong.....

opinion from an amateur, 9mm HK. Bulky but light and accurate

Heh heh - yup, you nailed it, vash. Good clean fun, though. :D

It all boils down to the best gun in the world is the one in your hand when you need it. My favorite motorcycle is the one I'm riding right now, and my new favorite Porsche is whatever just passed me on the front stretch...

Boys will be boys. Best advice here (going back to the OP), is simply to try a bunch and see what you like. That's a lot of fun in and of itself, and will help find your "best handgun".

The fewer buttons and levers, the better.

My 1911 (variant) has to be carried with the hammer cocked, chamber loaded, safety on. That's a lot to remember. Forget one of those steps, and either the gun cannot be fired without a two hand procedure, or is one pull of a fairly light single action trigger away from from firing. Neither being terribly good. And it's not that hard to forget, if you don't shoot much.

Home defense? Get a pump action shotgun. Wifey should be able to handle it as long as it is not a 10 gauge. Hell, just racking it will stop most intruders. Plus you don't have to be an expert shot to hit your target.

More food for thought...recoils. Semis absorb a lot by design.... 9mm, virtually none, my steel .45acp - VERY tame for a potent home defense round
.357mag in a big heavy 6" revolver M27- Quite a recoil (wifey might not like)....I'm old school.... Not betting my life on .9mm or .38 when I have better options.
.44mag in a 8" M629 is a freakin' CANON, and Jeff and I are just gonna have to disagree on this...it's all relative though...I'm not Jeff and am a novice by comparison. Thanks to Grady, I picked up some .44specials....tames it quite a bit and I'd bet my life on that round too. Enjoy the search for what's right for you...

For an inexperienced firearm owner I'd recommend a revolver because it is double action and takes a deliberate move to send a round down range.
Do not purchase a Glock or similar non safety /trigger safety semi auto...experienced folks have common accidental discharges with them and you are not experienced.
I've been teaching firearms safety/shooting to new comers for years.
A 9mm has a lot of penetration capability (may go thru a home wall into the next room) and that is a consideration for home defense and a semi auto takes much more training to use properly/safely.
I'd suggest a 38 special revolver or a .357 magnum that you can shoot .38's from until you get the confidence and ability to handle the .357.
The .357 magnum has the highest one shot one kill ratio of any firearm in the US today (coroner reports).
Remember this.....training. Practice on a range is nothing like acting in extremis and you will do what you've practiced good and bad in that situation.
If you do arm yourself for home defense then practice at home (dry runs)...where is the firearm, who does what...if we are separated what is the safe word (so I don't shoot you in the dark)...where do we go to make a stand, who dials 911, have different safe places and postures.
This may sound silly to you but 9 out of 10 home owners/gun owners never do this....as if it is second nature to them or something.
Do what the military does, have a plan, practice it, be proficient.

Dog? Pfft! I keep a basket of cobras near the front door, break in my house and you are getting a face full of cobra!

Believe me, KC, I'm no sado-masochist when it comes to blast and recoil. My "house gun" is loaded with standard velocity, standard pressure .45 Colts. My carry guns either have those in the chambers, or standard .44 Specials or .45 ACP's.

There is a time and place for the big boomers, and self defense ain't it. They can be almost as disorienting to the shooter as they are to the intended target, especially indoors in poor light. It's like having a flash-bang go off in front of you. That, and their power is simply unnecessary. Far better to stick with the various "Specials" or "ACP's" than the "magnums". The lower intensity, lower pressure, lower recoil stuff is all we need against one another. We only up the ante when whatever it is has bigger teeth and claws than we have.

Definitely wise advice. If you would do decide on a semi-auto, DAO (Double Action Only) would be a good idea.

I am not a big fan of simply having a shotgun for home defense. First and foremost, if in a home defense situation you are pinned behind a bed or behind a bookcase, it becomes very difficult to aquire a target with a long gun. Granted, a shotgun doesn't need pin-point accuracy, but it does have to be pointed in the general direction of a perp. Try this: take a 3 foot long piece of 2x4 and hide behind your bed. Now take that 2x4 and aim it at your bedroom door. While this can be done, how much of your body did you expose when doing this? Repeat with a 6-inch long piece of 2x4. A lot easier to do this while keeping your body behind your cover. Another thing to try is to hide behind a bookshelf where your dominant hand is on the inner side of the bookshelf. How are you going to aquire your target without fully exposing your body? ( when at the range, it is essential to also practice shooting with your non-dominant hand, but I digress...)

Second - if the perp also has a firearm or weapon, and manages to wound one of your hands, how are you going to take aim and pull the trigger on a shotgun with one hand? If you have a pump action shot gun, how are you going to charge the firearm once you've managed to fire a round - with just one hand? Sure - the movies show how easy it is to rack a shotgun with one hand - but try it without practice - and it isn't as easy as it seems.

Third - the notion that just racking a shotgun will stop most perps -- if that is your thought, then I suggest you NOT get a firearm for home defense. If you have a firearm for home defense, you MUST be ready and willing to use it. That means you have to come to terms with the consequences of that action before the situation even comes to light. Racking the slide should not be considered a deterrant, but rather a means of having your firearm ready for action. What if your racking the slide of a shotgun is matched by the racking of multiple guns by multiple perpetrators who have entered your home? This is an ethical and moral decision you must make before owning a firearm for home defense. We are talking about killing another human being, after all. A better warning to a perp is to shout loudly these four sentences:
WHO ARE YOU?
GET OUT!
THE POLICE ARE COMING!
I HAVE A GUN!
I believe that gets the message across far clearer than the clickety-clack of a shotgun.

As always - one size does not fit all, your mileage may vary, enter at your own risk, and objects in mirror are larger than they appear...

My $0.42,
-Z-man.

Shotguns have to be aimed. Even an open choke at 10 yards still only sprays shot at about 1.5 feet in diameter. At 5 yards, that's about 8 inches ... You cannot shoot it from the hip, unless you practice.

I do like a shotgun for self defense however. The mechanism and handling is second nature after thousands of rounds down the barrel. It can be easily traveled with without having to lock it or raising an eyebrow - at least compared to a handgun. An 18" barrel makes it handy and still a backup, if there is small game to be had in the area. :)

G

Shotgun 'spray' is a complete myth at close range.

Dogs die.

Very few dogs will actually bite, or act to stop or subdue a home intruder. Most just bark. Although a good early warning, it can easily be silenced by a violent home invader. The early waning is only useful if it gives you time to get your gun (as in my home break-in experience).

Some guard dog breeds, like my Boerboel, Rottweilers, Cane Corso, Presa's etc, will quickly attack an intruder…But these dominant breeds have minds of their own, and sometimes make bad decisions. The liability of owning one is HUGE…and ofter not covered by home owners insurance. I won't do it again. A yapper dog and a gun is a better solution.

And I think this has been mentioned before - Just the sound of the pump action on a shotgun after he's entered your house may be enough to send a perp running.