Recommendations for a first handgun…

I agree with many of the posters here . Off the Street is especially practical though this also extends to others.

On the buisness of Shotguns for home defense. I agree. However a further consideration is that if you are going to involve your wife in this I recommend a 20 gauge pump. The pump is definitely the way to go. 12 gauges are notorious for recoil. In some configurations so is the 20 but it is much more accomodating for women. With the right load it is still sufficiently powerful in close home defense enviornment. Main point is it is more accomodating for women.

I myself am a wheel gun /revolver person ...the main point being simplicity and reliability.38/357 is a fine combination. The other factor is 38/357 ammunition is relatively cheap. Especially .38 caliber for practice. 38/357 caliber is also very close to 9mm diameter. If you decide to go with a revolver ...stay away from the real short barreled ones...the snub nosed ones ..the recoil on them can be viscious even with lower powered .38 specials. Snub noses tend to be very light weight weapons. Four inch barrels minimum. The Ruger posted is a very nice pistol as are many of the Smith and Wessons and so too the Tarus line.
Good advice here...if you buy a gun ..practice with it...know your gun. Also teach your kids respect for them if they have the sense and capability to follow instructions. Gun ownership like owning and operating a auto is a responsibility to be taken seriously not lightly.

Alot of good posts here...thanks to all,
Orangetom

Buy the Springfield Armory XD9 in the .40 calibur.

Simple, easy to use, easy to sight, tritium sights, good capacity, nice feel, excellant balance and a very natural grip.

The .40 gives great stopping power without the huge kick of a .45 and better take down ballistics then the 9mm.

My personal fave is the 9mm though, but I am a proficient shooter and would have no problem getting a head shot or two within the distances experienced inside your average home.

I don't think you can go wrong with a Sig, H&K, the Springfield XD or a glock. If it were me I would probably go for either a Sig or a H&K, but the XD and Glock will do the same thing for 1/2 the price. The nice thing about the Sig's are you can get a package with multiple chambers like a .357 sig or .40 for carrying, and then change it over to a 9mm for some cheap $$ target pratice.

[edit on 12-7-2005 by warpboost]

my personal favourite is the sig p220 as used by us at RNZIR.
beautiful weapon.
not so good on accuracy but what handgun really is?
we only really use them to put rounds down range.
i wouldnt want anything else that i have tried personally and i have tested alot of handguns.
if anyone has a better idea for me i would love to hear it as we get to choose our own sidearms,
something most other infantry units i have worked alongside dont get to do.
at least in my experience anyway.

how much are you looking to spend?

i'm sure everyone means well but a lot of these guns wills et you back quite a bit
a hekler and kotch? thats big bucks there.

It's Heckler und Koch, my friend, it is German, you pronounce the G like you are clearing your troat almost, you can see the proper pronounciation on the HKpro site :p

Anyway, that Springfield Armory XD looks like an excellent gun!

A glock would be a good choice, its cheap,it works always and spareparts and gear are very cheap if U wanna pimp ur gun

i suggest a Baby Eagle www.magnumresearch.com...

Also you could get a Desert Eagle 50AE just use hollow tips.

These have to be some of the worst firearms related posts I have ever read, some choice examples include:

The SiG P220 is inaccurate (shooter's excuse #1)

A 12 Gauge has "notorious recoil" (he's asking about handguns)

Get an XD9 but in .40S&W (it's called the XD40 )

and finally - get a Desert Eagle in .50AE but use hollow tip bullets (and get a set of spinner rims to go with it - it's a pimp gun).

God I don't even want to start analyzing some of that bilge.

My advice is just to get yourself a full sized pistol in 9mm if you haven't shot much before, or the same gun in .40 or .45 if you have and want more power (and very few people can shoot handguns worth a damn - so I'd stick with 9mm).

Some like Safe Action triggers and blocky grips (Glock 17 and the Springfield XD9)

Some like traditional DA/SA guns - Sig P226, Beretta 92FS (I'd suggest the Inox Vertec model).

Some go single action - Browning Hi-Power, SiG P210

If you have to ask the question, I would guess that you haven't done much shooting, so don't buy a gun that you haven't tried out at a rental range or borrowed from a fellow shooter.

If you really just want to take the plunge, most novices are very happy with the Glock 17 right out of the gate - but at the very least, make sure that the grip angle and shape fit your hand well, this is critical. You'll know it when you feel it, just try a few guns for fit one after the other.

As for caliber. For self defence applications, the top 9mm rounds give you every bit as much performance as the larger more powerful calibers (.40S&W, .357 SiG, .45ACP, 10mm etc). They are easier (and more pleasant) to shoot, cheaper, and your magazine will hold more rounds size for size.

If you want to make a big mistake, just buy something like the Desert Eagle mentioned above - you'll put one box of $1.50 per bullet ammunition through it and never shoot it again until next Christmas. This is exactly what happened when everyone went out and purchased a S&W Model 29 after watching the first Dirty Harry movies (this is a .44 Magnum, the most powerful handgun .... blah blah blah).

Remember that bullets cost money, over the lifetime of the average high quality handgun, this is the critical factor, not the purchase cost of the gun itself, bear that in mind.

[edit on 5-8-2005 by Winchester Ranger T]

Hey Skippy, as your so convinced by what you 'read', why not head down to your local mosque for some AK47 training, i'm sure you could buy one and a handful of rounds from your local muslim 'insurgent'

[edit on 5-8-2005 by timski]

[edit on 5-8-2005 by timski]

i would reccomend the 44 mag. single loader, double action great gun good accuracy and awesome stopping power.

Originally posted by txdback
i would reccomend the 44 mag. single loader, double action great gun good accuracy and awesome stopping power.

Could you provide us with a make and model ?

The baby Eagle is just the IMI Jericho, big deal, 500 bucks for an average gun.

I heard the recoil on a .40 isn't that much different from a 9mm, too bad I never had the priviledge to fire a handgun (yet).

One of the first items is your budget. This will determine new or used weapon as well as brand.

If money is no issue-lol-my first handgun was a S&W 9mm (5906). Very reliable.
A sig sour 9mm (226) is a great weapon.
A revolver is also a good first weapon. Unlike other posters, I recommend getting a 357 Mag not a 38 special. The reason is a 38 only shoots 38's a 357 can shoot both 38 and 357. I like Smith and Wesson GP-100 as a great first weapon.

From my vast experience of guns I recommend the ones that the good guys carry in the movies, and not the ones carried by the bad guys.

The good guys guns never need reloading, always work, are much loved, are so accurate you can hit your target by just waving it in the general direction. Has bullets that go through anything, and make loud bangs.

The bad guys guns however, have terrible aim, and are so gutless as to be unable to shoot through plywood. (Often the heros hide behind doors in perfect safety.) The bad guys often drop them, so they must be slippery as well.

I hope this helps....

I would recommend a Glock. Very easy to use and clean and very reliable with the proper ammo. My first gun was the Glock 19 which is the 9mm subcompact model. I was able to buy the 19 with 2 extra 15 round magazines for under 600.00. I keep it loaded with Hydra-Shok jacketed hollowpoints for the extra stopping power that the 9mm needs. Before buying I went to a range and tried a few of the guns out and preferred the Glocks. I plan to buy a compact Glock 45 for conceal carry as soon as I take the course. I have all adults living with me so I have no need to keep it locked up but a small gunsafe with a keypad might be an option because you can keep the gun loaded and there is no need to look for a key if you need to access the gun

[edit on 9-8-2005 by ato178028]

Skippy,

>>
I am not “into” guns so to speak and have never owned anything but air rifles (as a kid). I have fired a semi-automatic a couple of times, but overall guns haven’t been a part of me and my family’s lives.
>>

Then you'd better decide whether or not you want to invest the time to be so. Because a gun is like a driver's license or any other 'must practice and study continuously to be good' _commitment_ to becoming competent with a potentially bystander-lethal tool.

In both owning, cleaning and employment you can never afford to spend less than a couple hours every second week getting to the range, buying the ammo, shooting at both 10 and 30ft, coming home and cleaning the piece.

All of which must be taught to you by a professional.

Indeed, since there is no mediocre which suffices in gun safety and most handgun accidents end up being owners or owners relatives killing themselves, THE VERY FIRST question which you should expect a reputable gunshop owner to ask you in deciding whether HE is 'good enough' to train you must be: "Do You Have The Time?"

If s/he doesn't show enough interest in your safety to make this inquiry, first, walk away.

>>
Anyways, every day I am starting to think I should own a handgun more and more as the world is seemingly going to pieces. Something that I can keep tucked away, safe from my kids and family but handy in case something goes down.
>>

1. Move to a Safer Neighborhood.
Honestly, your money is insured in an investment portfolio or even a savings account beyond any hope of a night time robbery to steal it. A better house is equally a leverage of APPRECIATING property value after purchase. Things that a gun can never be.

2. Get an Alarm System.
Short of a coked up fool, most robbers will choose to run when the klaxon goes off, the lights come on and ADT calls up to say they are sending the cops. Indeed, just the 'sticker shock' of a labelled window or door alone will keep most from bothering you. Even if you buy a weapon, it is better to have an alarm to front-end cue your response since you _never_ want to start defending against an intruder, bleery eyed and half asleep, as s/he comes through your bedroom door and you reach for the nightstand.

>>
Want something that I can take to the range just a few times a year to keep in practice, and something that would stop an intruder with the first hit. A gun that’s reliable as well.
>>

Almost any gun will 'stop an intruder' with the first hit, even if the instinct is simply shock-bloody-fingers-owie-run! rather than physical knockdown.

The question is whether or not you can MAKE that initial 'center mass' event happen in an unexpected situation. While keeping in mind the locations of your kids bedrooms and possibly your neighbors if you miss.

Everything that is downrange of you is not 'a freebie miss' and practicing a few times a year is often worse than nothing for the sense of false confidence it instills in an amateur.

Good shooters can /feel it/ when they are off their mark by more than about a week's worth of absent range time. The muscles don't lock to a steady hold the same way and the eye doesn't lay to a common (dominant) center on the sights like it should.

If you want to own a gun, you must realize that you are going to likely be spending a minimum 20-30 bucks a month at a decent range, to stay in the groove. This after forking over upwards of 100 dollars _beyond purchase price_ to have a good firearms instructor teach you the basics of safe employment of your weapon.

If losing your expanded cable channels due to a new mandatory hobby is seemingly more than it's worth, you probably don't need an HDW.

>>
What are your suggestions?
>>

Not that simple.

Is a secondary potential user going to be female or male? Do they or you work out or otherwise have good forearm and upper torso strength? Do either of you need glasses to see anything beyond your arms reach? Do you have kids that might come "Daddy!" ing in the night because they are scared or need a glass of water?

Really, irrespective of your principle-shooter physical capabilities, your first instinct must be to protect your loved ones from each other and yourself.

If you've just had an incident which put you on edge, discuss things with your family as to whether a gun would make everyone feel better or worse. If the uniform response is "We don't know!?", take a small vacation, even if it's just to a theme park for a day. Release the built up adrenal response and come home looking for an answer. Because it HAS TO BE a commitment from _everyone_ old enough to understand how dangerous a recourse this can be in the family group.

Their "I have a pistol, but I don't want you to look for it or play with it." understanding and your trust in their ability not to be curiouis about an 'unknown' must be the first step to making the decision to own any gun.

THEN, if you feel you still need a home defense weapon, my recommendation (unisex, 40 year old near sighted asthmatic invalid) would be for a simple revolver with a 4" or 6" barrel in a .32 or .38 caliber class.

Six shots are more than sufficient in any but a gangland environment.

They never jam on a weakened clip spring or a poorly cleaned action. They never fail to eject properly or to come off safe because you forgot that element of their use.

And most importantly, you ALWAYS know whether a revolver is empty or loaded, safe or not, with one press-to-flip of the cylinder release.

A revolver is also going to be _vastly_ more accurate in an amateur's hands if only because you don't have the variable pull strength and distance of a double action letoff hitting detente and the subsequent slide ejection sequence effect on sight picture recapture and finger safety.

I find being able to manually crank the hammer back for each round to get maximum release sensitivity on minimum barrel rise with _certain safety_ between each shot gives most people a 50% increase in accuracy due to a more honest mechanical understanding of 'what's going to happen next'.

The ONLY thing which a semi brings to the fight is 8-12 shots vs. 6. And that just doesn't mean diddly on a first round hit basis of engagement decision with a single, unarmored, opponent.

Especially if you have kids, to go along with this weapon, I recommend both a lockbox and a trigger lock AND separately located and secured speedloaders not less than 10ft away in a different piece of furniture (kids have been known to defeat one locked drawer directly with a stolen key and then go to the one next-ammo-over from behind which is why dual-keying, same-storage locaiton, alone doesn't always work).

Obviously, this is going to make the gun nearly worthless in a night time quick-response need, but if you are gone for significant periods of the day and your mate needs it, it is better than 5-15 minutes waiting for cops.

Anything less, especially with kids in the house, is more a tragedy waiting to happen than anything positively reinforcing to your safety condition or your ego.

>>
Only real live gun owners need apply, I am not interested in all the “speculation” from people who don’t actually shoot guns.
>>

As an alternative to lethal weaponeering, why not a dazzler or a tazer or a good solid baseball bat? All of these devices may be purchased without license and without the same degree of fear of a child 'bypassing your best intentions' to kill themselves or someone else. They are additionally often cheaper and can be purchased with variable licensing requirements at the security shops that seem to be popping up at every strip mall as well as online.

CONCLUSION:
A pistol bullet will leave the muzzle at anywhere from 650-850fps. A magnum can take this up to 1,200fps or more. That's 2-3 'plies' of wallboard at 12ft room spacing or up to five panes of glass.

Especially in an urban environment, you just _cannot_ afford to miss with that kind of capability.

If you cannot imagine what your son or daughter's chest looks like as a 5th mile per second projectile the diameter of your pinky fingernail goes through it, you aren't thinking sufficiently about whether you need a handgun enough to be more than 'into' it.


KPl.

I'm going gun shopping tomorrow.... is Bass Pro Shop a good place to buy? or are they expensive?

I'm surprised if no one mentioned this one but if your looking for a self defense weapon I would highly recommend the Taurus Judge 410/.45 self defense revolver.

It fires a 410 shotgun shell or a .45 colt.



There is also a Long Barrel version.



The Taurus Judge would also be an ideal survival weapon. It does fire shot but the barrel is rifled so the bullet still has accuracy. The fact that it also fires a shot gun shell is great also. I bet if you scare a pheasant up you could score some dinner with this weapon. Plus it is much lighter weight and much smaller than a shot gun or a rifle.

The "Taurus Judge® " is so named because of the number of judges who carry it into the courtroom for their protection. Capable of chambering both .410 2-1/2" shotshell and .45 Colt Ammunition, this amazing combo gun is ideal for short distances - where most altercations occur, or longer distances with the .45 Colt ammo. We have finely tuned the rifling to spread the shot pattern at close quarters or to guide the .45 cal. bullet to the target. Fully customized with fixed rear sights, fiber optic front sights and Taurus Ribber Grips®, the "Taurus Judge" is one decision-maker that lays down the law.

[edit on 28-9-2009 by DaMod]

reply to post by joedirtii


Never been there, but my dad tells me they have a wonderful selection of guns. Chances are you'll get a good price there. But shop around a bit if you can, take a look in some gun shops if there are any local ones. Also see if they are willing to price match.