Journey to owning my first handgun

[Gunner]

I have to chime in and say the Springfield XD line is a great weapon, over 3K rounds of .45 through mine and she's still going strong.

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XD is a good gun but a 45 light polymer pistol is not good for first pistol. By the way whats up with all the crap here. Like a dysfunctional family. Who runs this joint? Its like an insane asylum here. Totally out of control from what I have read. Some interesting topics but its like a bar full of bums arguing.

[Dylan]

XD is a good gun but a 45 light polymer pistol is not good for first pistol. By the way whats up with all the crap here. Like a dysfunctional family. Who runs this joint? Its like an insane asylum here. Totally out of control from what I have read. Some interesting topics but its like a bar full of bums arguing.

I agree about the 45. It might be a bit bigger than one I'm looking for in a first handgun. I don't think anyone is really arguing in this thread. I asked for everyone's opinion and am getting them. Just friendly opinions and discussion.

[BU1]

Who runs this joint? Its like an insane asylum here. Totally out of control from what I have read. Some interesting topics but its like a bar full of bums arguing.

[Seismic Sam]

Actually Dylan, there is quite a bit of undercurrent here, as Glocks have a legendary status as being made by Gaston Glock, a guy who never designed a gun before, and spawned the great revolution of plastic guns, AKA "Tupperware". They ARE dishwasher safe, so you can clean them that way of you want!! 40S&W Glocks have a nasty habit of blowing up, but only if you load your own ammo for them and don't know what you are doing. The Glocks are made high up in the Austrian mountains in caves by trolls who are distant cousins of mine, and who spend lots of time dremeling out the bottom of the chamber to get the gun to feed properly. People who own Glocks think they are the greatest gun ever created in all aspects, mostly because they drank the Tupperwre Kool-Aid as n00bs and now are "true believers".

By all means do try one, and an M&P, and some other stuff, and stay away from all of Rodentman's guns!! They are very large, and kick like a mule, and are mostly shiny and pretty except for the 50 cal Desert Eagle. Renting different guns at Bill's is a good way to pick one, and don't try to save money by only trying 2 or 3. You save maybe $100 over trying 6, which is cheap considering you run the danger of spending $600 on a gun you'll think is a PITA in a year.

I, by the way, am the 800 pound reloading troll, and please stay away from reloading for the foreseeable future. You are just learning about pistols, and that is going to take several years just to get up to speed on those. Reloading is something very serious that can get part of your gun hand blown clean off, and it's NOT for people who haven't studied up on the subject thoroughly, and are OCD as far as doing things perfectly.

[wrench]

Welcome, Dylan
I was in your place, just about 10 years ago. Took my first class from Bill's, just like you. A very steep learning curve to figure out types of pistols, ammunition, safety, how they work, etc.
My advice is to shoot as many different pistols as you can. Rent them, and while you're renting, look around at what others are shooting. If you see something you like, be friendly and comment on their nice looking pistol. "Hey, is that a ________?" "I've been looking at those..."
Shooters are a friendly bunch, and 95% of the time, if I admire someone's guns, they offer to let me shoot it.
Let's you try a lot of different guns without the rental fee.
If there's something you'd really like to try and can't find, put a post on here, and chances are someone will have one you can try out.
Like I said, we're a friendly bunch, and love to see new shooters be successful.

[Seismic Sam]

I have to chime in and say the Springfield XD line is a great weapon, over 3K rounds of .45 through mine and she's still going strong.

Sent from my HTC One X using Tapatalk 4 Beta

XD is a good gun but a 45 light polymer pistol is not good for first pistol. By the way whats up with all the crap here. Like a dysfunctional family. Who runs this joint? Its like an insane asylum here. Totally out of control from what I have read. Some interesting topics but its like a bar full of bums arguing.

The main purpose OF this board IS to provide a place for a large group of bums to hang out and it IS a big dysfunctional family, and yeah it's like a cheap bar. As a matter of fact, there actually is a REAL bar that is the prototype located at East 7th Street and Wacouta in St. Paul, and if you think this place is bad, don't go there. The owner will take one look at you tell you to STFU, and it's only downhill from there.

I think you'll find something you'll like better if your find a board full of liberal soccer moms who all hate guns and the people who own them, and share recipes for Bundt cake and scones and have tea parties once a week. Happy trails!!

[Spartan]

PLEASE IGNORE THE PINK UNICORN .... and anyone else who spews GLOCK GLOCK GLOCK ....

The truth is most modern hand guns are pretty well made .. it comes to fit, use and comfort level.

The fellas are suggesting CZ, 1911s, smith M&P, Springfield XDM, glock, sig, but I like H &K more than most ....

you have to think about carrying ? if you are it changes ' cause a gun is a heavy thing to hump around .... is it s target gun...? most carry guns are not that fun to shoot ... and certainly pocket guns are miserable to shoot... bed side gun ....
Remington 870 .... car gun ... ?

do you want striker fire or hammers .. single or double action.. or single/double action... safety or no safety

then does it fit .... Glocks are good guns but they hold like a bar of soap !

glock requires a limited amount of maintenance as do H&K s .... 1911s are reliable 100 year old technology ... CZ has a great price point and is widey used world wide by Police.... XD and M&P are polymer very durable frames... but again striker fire.. the Sig is very accurate out of the box and feels nice to most people the 226 is bigger than the glock 19 so g19 would be about the sig same size as p229 ...

bottom line is pass on the tauras, pass on the beretta and shoot the following guns
cz75
sig 226, 229 and 2022
hk usp 9 and p30
glock 17,19 and 26
m&p full and compact
xdm full and compact
1911 full and commander sized
heck try a smith revolver 686 in .357 mag

if a gun is too cheap remember you get what you pay for .... sig and hK are more expensive but they are quality guns

it needs to fit your hand and your needs .... soccermoms need mini vans not corvettes .... farmers need pickups not porches ...

[wrench]

share recipes for Bundt cake and scones

You have scone recipes? I love scones.

Seriously, ask 10 gun people, and they'll have at least 14 opinions on which gun is best. Only you can answer which pistol is best for you, and you don't know that yet. You have to shoot a lot, and develop enough comfort that you can even discriminate between different guns.
You might buy a dog or two, and in two years you might like something completely different than you like now.
Think of it as process.
Really loud, fun, process.

[Dylan]

Welcome, Dylan
I was in your place, just about 10 years ago. Took my first class from Bill's, just like you. A very steep learning curve to figure out types of pistols, ammunition, safety, how they work, etc.
My advice is to shoot as many different pistols as you can. Rent them, and while you're renting, look around at what others are shooting. If you see something you like, be friendly and comment on their nice looking pistol. "Hey, is that a ________?" "I've been looking at those..."
Shooters are a friendly bunch, and 95% of the time, if I admire someone's guns, they offer to let me shoot it.
Let's you try a lot of different guns without the rental fee.
If there's something you'd really like to try and can't find, put a post on here, and chances are someone will have one you can try out.
Like I said, we're a friendly bunch, and love to see new shooters be successful.

Thanks for the welcome! Also, thanks to everyone else who's given their input on guns to try. I'll definitely be trying most of them out within the coming weeks and report back on the final decision for those who care. Thanks to everyone too for the positive support. I'm looking forward to getting back out there and working on my marksmanship. This has been a great start to what hopefully turns out to be a lifelong and rewarding hobby.

[XDM45]

Welcome Dylan...

There is a lot of good advice here and opinion. Gather information, but pick for yourself. Find what works for you, what feels right. I'd start with what's the purpose? To pink? Self defense? What's the goal? Glock, S&W, Springfield, Ruger, all fine choices, it just depends on you really. Take into consideration how much you'll practice because some rounds like 9mm are cheaper than say .40 or .45ACP, but don't let any single factor be the deciding one. Look at cost, ease of maintenance, feel, caliber, and a ton more things to consider. Right now, gather information.

In my own case, I bought a Ruger Mark III 22/45 because ot had a grip like a .45ACP does, it's cheap to shoot, a good plinker, practice gun. Those are thge pros. The cons? Easy to develop bad habits with a .22LR since there's no real recoil, ammo is hard to find right now, that particular gun has frustrated many a gun owner in dis/re-assembly of it. Now the same day I bought that gun, I bought my XDm .45ACP for self-defense, my main carry weapon and main handgun. Pros? Ease of takedown/re-assembly, good feel, reliable, durable, fits me well. Cons? Sight dots come off easily (but you can fits that easily enough), expensive to shoot.

For me, each gun I own has a specific purpose. I tend to buy calibers, not guns. I have 2 .34ACP calibers and 1 .22LR caliber pistol. My next purchase will be a Ruger 10/22 .22LR rifle.

So define your goals, do your research, take your time.

[XDM45]

By the way whats up with all the crap here. Like a dysfunctional family. Who runs this joint? Its like an insane asylum here. Totally out of control from what I have read. Some interesting topics but its like a bar full of bums arguing.

I've been asking myself why it's been so dead in here lately and decided to make a thread on it to gather people's opinions.... check it out and comment there so as to not derail this thread here. viewtopic.php?f=36&t=45372&p=480099#p480099

[DoxaPar]

Like my G19 too. Although, it isn't sexy (IMHO)

[dupa]

everyone has their own reason for what they shoot.. some it's because it's all they can afford.. others it's because it's the first gun they shot in the military.. as long as you can shoot it accurately and enjoy shooting it, you should go with it..

[20mm]

THIS IS VERY, VERY IMPORTANT!!!

Seeing as you are brand new to this whole thing, when you go back to Bill's you MUST buy a copy of Michael Martin's book on personal defense and carry!! While a one day course is a good start, you probably are not going to remember all of it, and this book is the most complete one out there, that you can read, AND THEN READ AGAIN!! AND AGAIN A MONTH LATER!! And then refer to regularly after that until you have all the concepts memorized.

The reason is that if TSHTF while you are carrying, there is ONLY time to react, if that, so you need everything that you need to keep yourself alive locked into your head with plenty of range practice to build up your muscle memory. Seriously, this is no small task and is going to take many months to get to the point of really being competent. So buy the book, and then Read The EFFEN Book, and then RRTFB, and RRRTFB!!

Good luck, and learn to look behind you with your peripheral vision...

You do know it was a handgun familiarization course, and not a P2C class right? You might as well suggest getting some reloading manuals too.

[aht_six]

Glock 19. It's the standard to which all other guns are measured.

Why get a lesser gun? That's for future purchases!

Now that's funny right there, I don't care who you are.