Buying a gun (while I still can)

[Iceaxe]

I notice that high power, high capacity, auto pistols are waaaaayyyy over represented in this forum. They are fun and have there place, but are most of you really only planning to use your pistol in a combat type situation? The high power, high capacity, auto pistols are the "IT" gun at the moment. And if I'm carrying a gun under the seat of the car or concealed for defense then the auto's are my choice. If I'm buying a gun for fun, hunting or combat they are not my first choice. Guess is what I'm saying is I'm seeing a lot of opinions and not many facts..... I think some of the gun noobs are getting bad advice....

Some things to consider when buying a gun....

First, what are you going to use your gun for?

If you are serious about home defense you might want to consider a shotgun and not a pistol. A shotgun is a much better weapon in close quarter combat.

.22's are your biggest bang for the buck. If you want to have a fun time blasting cans and targets this might be the gun for you.

If you have a serious belief that one day you will have to use a weapon to defend yourself from some type of foreign or government invasion then you want a high powered deer rifle with a good scope. Dollar per effectiveness nothing is as lethal on the battlefield as a sniper. Assault rifles are effective when used in trained groups employing fire team tactics. But for a one or two man team nothing is as deadly as a scoped high powered rifle.

Revolvers are a blast to shot, particularly the big mags. Revolvers are also more accurate then a auto. They are probably also easier for a noob to operate and fire accurately.

If you plan to hunt with a pistol you will want one of the magnum revolvers or one of the big single shots (I love my Super T/C in .223). I've shot several deer with a S&W 44.

As for high power, high capacity, auto pistols I like the 9mm because you can buy ammo really cheap if you buy it by the case at the local gun shows. Now if I were a professional like a cop I might consider something else. But the 9mm has killed more people then all other calibers combined, so it must be pretty efficient. 9mm ammo is probably the easiest pistol cartiage to find. Any one horse town selling bullets will have 9mm on the shelf.

Anyhoo..... I just wanted to make sure some of the noobies didn't get sold on a firearm that was not going to meet their needs. YMMV.

Fire away.....

[DickHead]

Well said, Ice.

[Brian in SLC]

I notice that high power, high capacity, auto pistols are waaaaayyyy over represented in this forum.

That's 'cause they sexy and what Hollywood promotes.

Marshall statistics on firearms ability to put someone down gives the head nod to the .357 mag.

Its called "spray and pray" for a reason.

I think if I had to have one pistol for plinking, home defense, carry, in the car, on my person, and bear country...I'd have to be a wheel gun. .44mag probably. Or a .357mag.

Way better choices in types and kinds of ammo. Can be reloaded easily (the cartridge, not the gun). Much more "power" than an auto.

You'd never hunt any kind of game animal with a standard auto cartridge. I hear stories of the highway patrol guys trying to finish off deer that are wounded after having been hit by a car. Ugh.

NRA huh? I'm with Pres. Bush senior on that outfit. Slime ball lobbyists. Hard for me to not lump them all together, fair or unfair.

Not that I'd care to debate it on the 'net... At least the Brady Bill got rid of having to mark my checked luggage as containing a loaded firearm.

Amazing times. Assault weapons ban sunsets without a peep from anyone. Wife of a president on second carpet bagging trip to the Senate. And a woman (gasp!) will soon be third in line to run the country. And flat tops are in in Montana.

And so on...

-Brian in SLC ("liberal" gun nut)
Did I really just hit the "submit" button?

[snatch]

go w/ a 60 cal.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=epYM2Qvq4...elated&search=

[derstuka]

go w/ a 60 cal.

http://youtube.com/watch?v=epYM2Qvq4...elated&search=

Holy shiznit! Well, the .50 cal handgun has been out for awhile now, so I guess this is possible.

Can't go wrong with a 9mm...like has been said, the ammo is cheap as hell compared to others, and it is a great all around gun. Shotguns are not bad for self-defense, however, that long barrel is a lot easier to grab than a pistol.

[shagster]

Well I own both a 9mm and a 40. The 9mm is a Kahr, light weight, easy to use and conceal, and nothing to snag on. My 40 is a Springfield XD in a 4 inch. This gun is also an excellent gun. A little bit bigger, but very easy to use and reliable. I have carried both and they are both very comfortable to carry( this depends on your holster also). Both guns are very realiable, and very accurate. I know I feel better having one with me. One very important thing about ownig a handgun for personal protection is being confident in your shooting ability, meaning lots of range time. Good luck choosing.

[jumar]

Have you had any problems with the mags on your Kahr? I had a Kahr 9mm, and after a while, the springs in both mags wouldn't push the round up enough to consistently get loaded into the chamber. So I had a lot of malfunctions.

From what I've heard, if you leave the mags loaded (which you likely will for carrying) then they end up with this problem eventually. You can supposedly get a different/better spring put in. I just decided to get a Glock instead, so I wouldn't have to worry about it. But I sure liked it better for carrying.

[DickHead]

This just in:
Now I can pack heat while wearing lycra....I got a new fanny pack for my Kel-Tec

http://bulldogcases.net

[shagster]

Have you had any problems with the mags on your Kahr? I had a Kahr 9mm, and after a while, the springs in both mags wouldn't push the round up enough to consistently get loaded into the chamber. So I had a lot of malfunctions.

You know I have never had a single problem with my Kahr. I leave the mag full all the time, the spring seems to be strong still. It has been a great gun. Hopefully I don't run into any problems later on with it.

[jumar]

Yeah hopefully you won't have the same problem. It seemed more than coincidence that both my mags had the problem, so I just replaced the gun. It wasn't until later that I heard about the spring replacements. If you end up having problems you coudl probably just do that. Nice gun when mine was working. LOL

[Iceaxe]

I usually leave my mags 2 or 3 short when storing them loaded. The weak mag spring issue is a problem with all mags that are left fully loaded, some more them others. Some firearms handle a weak feeder spring better then others.

As a side note.... a similar problem resulted in many deaths during Vietnam. Once the soldiers began leaving their clips one short the problem pretty much went away. But many of the first 16's jammed during a fire fight as a result of weak mag springs when they were first issued.

.

[basilone0331]

Any magazine spring will compress over time if left loaded, full or near full. I keep several mags for all my firearms and rotate which ones are loaded about once a month. I don't know about the Kahr but in my experience if you pay for the cheap mags, that is exactly what you get. the Berretta mags they issues us in Iraq were so bad that we would only keep them loaded when on missionsand some guys bought their own for the Berretta which were far better, but our M-16 mags we had loaded for 7 months straight without any feeding problems with very little maintainence.

[DickHead]

I usually leave my mags 2 or 3 short when storing them loaded. The weak mag spring issue is a problem with all mags that are left fully loaded, some more them others. Some firearms handle a weak feeder spring better then others.

As a side note.... a similar problem resulted in many deaths during Vietnam. Once the soldiers began leaving their clips one short the problem pretty much went away. But many of the first 16's jammed during a fire fight as a result of weak mag springs when they were first issued.

.

The problem with the M16 (And other high cap mags) isn't that they weaken. The problem in leaving them fully loaded is that there is so much pressure on the spring that double feeding occasionally occurs. It takes alot more spring pressure in a 30 round mag to compress and extend to feed all those rounds than, say, a 1911 mag.
FWIW, I've shot a WWII vintage 1911 with mags that were loaded in the fifites and left in a bedstand. Fucntioned flawlessly.

[RedMan]

Remember that 9mm is perhaps the most widely available ammo on the planet.

Whatever you choose do yourself a HUGE favor and practice often.

[bruce from bryce]

Maybe the idiot Kerry will propose the legislation.

[greyhair biker]

I carry a WaltherPPK 9mm stainless and have loved it for years. I needed something heavy enough to know it was there but lightweight enough to carry on my pack while riding out in the boonies. I rarey go anywhere without it. Hey - where's Fourtycal...I never met an expert but he's the closest one I know on firearms

[moabfool]

Great discussion. For anyone buying new, I heard something about the break in period for a new firearm. I read that you'll need to put 1,000 rounds through it before it can be considered reliable. Then again it could've been a ploy by the ammo companies. They had an ad on the next page.

[stefan]

WaltherPPK 9mm

james bond eh? bet it gets you far with the ladies

[greyhair biker]

Why Yes...you've found out my true identity