[aigel]

IMHO the quality on S&W is still there to this day, you can't go wrong with any of their products. I went and looked at a couple reviews of that carry 19 and it looks solid.

That said, that is a big and heavy piece for a carry gun 34 ounces. Why not go down to a classic 36 / 60 as posted above? Lighter (19 oz), smaller, no internal lock, and the .38+P will make a fine self defense round unless he needs it in the woods against dangerous game as well. And if you buy a classic non-lock gun like that, you can always get your money out of it when it is time to try something else.

Cheers,

G