[KW Gary M]

Being somewhat new myself I would suggest a 9MM as a starter. It has the power to stop about any attacker. Most of them hold 10 or more rounds, many hold over 15. They are pretty accurate and easy for a new shooter to learn and the ammo isn't too costly which will allow you to shoot more paying less. Like anything you are new at practice, practice, practice. My very first day shooting a pistol I rented a 22, 9MM, .40 and shot a friend's .45 and .357. The 22 was easy and fun but doesn't have the power. A thick leather jacket will stop many 22's. The .40 felt a little too much to handle on day 1. The .45 and .357 mag just blew me away being brand new. A .45 will stop a bear but will do you no good at all if you fire and miss. The 9MM just seemed right for me. Someone above suggested you will buy another gun and another in time so start with something powerful enough to get the job done but easy to handle and cheap enough to shoot a lot and learn. Then move up. I love my 9MM and am now looking at a .40 or small 357 Mag for future purchases. I might suggest going to a gun show and holding as many different pistols as you can to decide which feels best in your hand. We are all different and a gun I love you might hate and I might hate one the guy next to me loves. HAPPY SHOOTING!!!

One more thing to add. You were talking about the Springfiels XD .45. I chose the XD 9MM and LOVE it. I got the sub compact because I live in Key West FL where shorts and T Shirt is proper business attire so small helps hide. I love the XD. The thing that attracted me to it at first was the many safetys. Being ew safety was VERY important and you can never have too many. The 9MM XD also holds 16 + 1. A lot of stopping power.

[Merlin45]

IMHO...check out any of several sites on stopping power for diff handguns. After you do the math....I think you will cleary see...anything less than a 9MM, is useless for self-defense. Factor in, the fact that the perp may be wearing heavy clothing, or under the influence of drugs/alcohol. As to your choice, find at least a 9MM..I carry a Taurus PT 24/7 in .45 cal. 12-shot...and use either 230 grain Cor-Bon, or Quick-Shock. But I been shootin for awhile.....My only point is....if you want to have first shot stoppin power....you gotta use a round that will accomplish that. You said it was mainly for home defense...I would also reccomend a good light. at 2 in the mornin when someone breaks in...you are half awake, and WILL not be able to focus...a light lets you pretty much point and shoot. As an aside....I personally never use reloads....If I can't afford the good stuff....why even carry?....My life, and my families well being, deserve the best I can buy. I practice with the same round I use for home defense. That way, no suprises...

[Mike Franklin]

'Looking for advice on my first handgun.'
The gun you need should be easy to operate, easy to feed and let you learn sights, handling, trigger control and basic gun use. The most basic hand gun you can get is a revolver in .38 or .357. You can learn nearly everything you need to about a hand gun with one of these. In maybe 35 years or so you'll think back over all those guns you owned and remember the good habits you learned with that first one. If you're smart you'll hang onto that gun and use it to teach lots of other people the basics with it.
You don't learn to drive in a Indy Race Car why get a whiz-bang super combat model as your first handgun? The super duper will come with time IF you later need or want one.

[sniper1958]

Something to think about: a first handgun for defense should be as simple of an operation as possible. I'd recommend a revolver (boring to some). It's a pretty basic operation with no special rules to remember of how to clear a problem such as a fail-to-fire/fail-to-eject/fail-to-feed. Just point & shoot and get the job done. Along those lines, I'd recommend a .357 revolver. Start with .38 +P ammo. You won't get the .357 recoil and you're only giving up 10% (roughly) of the .357's energy. Getting a .357 instead of a .38 also gives you room to grow into a magnum (if you would ever want to). Learn the basics on a revolver and then grow into a semi-auto. I started with a 4" Smith Mod. 586 (now available as a stainless 686) in .357 using +p ammo. Soon thereafter, I moved into the semi-auto world. I started with 9mm and sold it after a month in favor of the 1911 in .45. 40's are great but you've got more pressure than a 9mm or a .45. That's my $.02 for what it's worth.