[Alexander]

I compete IDPA with Glocks.
Watch Hickok's videos. He is the Glock master.

http://www.youtube.com/hickok45

[BMW_TT]

My first gun was my XD. I like it better than my glock. Go to the range and test some guns out.

[FStop7]

Originally Posted by bolinp78

People will tend to say "glock" right off the bat without considering fit. Glocks are notorious for being uncomfortable in the hand, DEPENDING on who you are. They give a lot of people trouble. You need to take that into account, I'd recommend shooting one before buying if you can.

+eleventy hundred you should try out as many as possible, you can rent all kinds of stuff at most decent ranges. if you don't like how the glocks feels then try the springfield XD

[Alexander]

Originally Posted by BMW_TT

My first gun was my XD. I like it better than my glock. Go to the range and test some guns out.

Yuck I hated my XD45, and sold it to a friend. He hated it and sold it to our other friend. He hated it, lol.

I'm not hating, my buddy loves his XD9.

[scollins]

You aren't buying a handgun from a licensed dealer until you are age 21 or older. That is a federal law. Your respective state's may allow ownership and possession of a handgun by someone under the age of 21, but you'll have to find a private party seller, not a dealer. I'm not in Arizona or Missouri, so I can't speak to their laws.

But federally, an FFL is prohibited from selling anything but a rifle or shotgun to persons 18-21.

http://www.atf.gov/firearms/faq/lice...e-requirements

[alpha325i]

Glock FTW. Springfield XD/XDM are great too. Stay away from Smith & Wesson and Ruger entry level autos. The suck ballz.

[DenverJayhawk]

Originally Posted by FStop7

For the home? Shotgun all the way. Less risk of over penetration, extremely effective, in theory easier to hit a target ehen under extreme stress.

To carry? Given your trepidation I'd think twice about carrying if I were you. Or at least not carry until after having taken some in depth classes. Carrying is a huge responsibility and is not without serious risk.

could not have summarized better. Get a shotgun if you're looking for home protection and sport. Shells are a lot cheaper than 9mm or .40-.45 cal. Skeet shooting is a helluva lot of fun too and very challenging.

Concealed carry is a huge risk/responsibilities. Make sure you know what you're doing (classes, safety, certifications) before doing this.

[Alexander]

Originally Posted by DenverJayhawk

could not have summarized better. Get a shotgun if you're looking for home protection and sport. Shells are a lot cheaper than 9mm or .40-.45 cal. Skeet shooting is a helluva lot of fun too and very challenging.

Concealed carry is a huge risk/responsibilities. Make sure you know what you're doing (classes, safety, certifications) before doing this.

Yes a good pump Mossberg is perfect for home protection. The sound of the action will make a burgler shit his pants. Plus as stated above over penetration is a very serious issue, even for expert shooters, you never know what is behind a wall.

[scollins]

Originally Posted by Aonarch

Yes a good pump Mossberg is perfect for home protection. The sound of the action will make a burgler shit his pants. Plus as stated above over penetration is a very serious issue, even for expert shooters, you never know what is behind a wall.

Racking a shotgun isn't likely to scare away most hard criminals. As an instructor in one of my classes pointed out, "It is very likely that you aren't the first person to point a gun at this bad guy. He's probably not that impressed....."

Anyway, The Box o' Truth has done quite a bit of testing on various rounds and their wall penetrating ability:
http://www.theboxotruth.com/docs/bot3_2.htm

I particularly chuckled at #4:
4. I "racked" the shotgun several times during the tests, and no bystanders lost control of their bowels.
Conclusion: Racking a shotgun will not make the bad guy faint.


Anyway, a shotgun is a good home defense choice, if you don't buy into two classic myths.
1.) You don't have to aim.

You most certainly do! At 10 yards the spread will likely be around 5"-8". Put a paper plate at the end of your hall, that is about how far the shot will spread at that distance. Now, how far off that plate can you aim and still get effective rounds on target? Not very far at all....

2.) Racking the slide alone will send the bad guys fleeing.

It might, but I wouldn't ever count on it. And now all you've done is given away your position and the fact that you have a weapon. Maybe the bad guy has a weapon too, but it was tucked into his pants. He hears you rack the slide, and now he decides it's time to draw his gun too.


Also, a firearm is a huge liability if you don't train and practice with it. You can't just buy a shotgun, put 25 rounds through it and then think you've got it down. Take a class! A range close to you likely offers defensive handgun and/or defensive shotgun classes. Well worth it in my opinion....

[DenverJayhawk]

Racking the slide alone may not make a hardend burglar flee, but he/she will sure as hell recognize the sound and it will make them think twice.

As stated, you still have to aim. But you don't have to be nearly as accurate to hit your target as with a slug. Margin of error is much greater.

Anoarch - 12 gauge Mossberg pump is perfect. Both my granddad and dad have one with interchanging barrels.

[oct1285]

how often should I take apart my magazines and do maintenance on them? I have an xd and I have one mag fully loaded at all times. I'm sure its not good for the spring to have it loaded all the time.

[GGreek5]

Originally Posted by lambtron

If you want a cheap plastic gun that shoots real bullets, get a Glock. If you want a well crafted gun that is accurate enough to shoot the wings off a fly whilst leaving the rest of the poor bastard intact, then get a Sig Sauer.

+1. I have many handguns and the Sig is by far my favorite. I cant really conceal carry with it, but it stays by my bedside. Glocks are good to though.
To the OP, go to a gun store and handle a few different handguns till you find one that you like.

[Alexander]

Originally Posted by scollins

Racking a shotgun isn't likely to scare away most hard criminals. As an instructor in one of my classes pointed out, "It is very likely that you aren't the first person to point a gun at this bad guy. He's probably not that impressed....."

Anyway, The Box o' Truth has done quite a bit of testing on various rounds and their wall penetrating ability:
http://www.theboxotruth.com/docs/bot3_2.htm

I particularly chuckled at #4:
4. I "racked" the shotgun several times during the tests, and no bystanders lost control of their bowels.
Conclusion: Racking a shotgun will not make the bad guy faint.


Anyway, a shotgun is a good home defense choice, if you don't buy into two classic myths.
1.) You don't have to aim.

You most certainly do! At 10 yards the spread will likely be around 5"-8". Put a paper plate at the end of your hall, that is about how far the shot will spread at that distance. Now, how far off that plate can you aim and still get effective rounds on target? Not very far at all....

2.) Racking the slide alone will send the bad guys fleeing.

It might, but I wouldn't ever count on it. And now all you've done is given away your position and the fact that you have a weapon. Maybe the bad guy has a weapon too, but it was tucked into his pants. He hears you rack the slide, and now he decides it's time to draw his gun too.


Also, a firearm is a huge liability if you don't train and practice with it. You can't just buy a shotgun, put 25 rounds through it and then think you've got it down. Take a class! A range close to you likely offers defensive handgun and/or defensive shotgun classes. Well worth it in my opinion....

I love killing people so to me racking the action is just a warning of their doom.

[CarForHire]

1911 FTW. I didn't like the triggers on most Glocks that I have shot.

[Alexander]

Originally Posted by CarForHire

1911 FTW. I didn't like the triggers on most Glocks that I have shot.

Ghost trigger's are cheap, and amazing.

Yeah 1911's are in a different class. The only problem is the lack of round capacity. I'd rather take a 9MM with 124grn JHP then a 45, but that's just my shooting style and the fact that the more rounds the better in a gun fight. I only keep one mag in my CCW and 2 in the car, so If I'm outside my vehicle I will only have X amount of rounds due to the one mag (31 ).

My Kimber SS TLE



My comp Glock. It's been completely tricked out since that picture.


XD40


P99 40 AS


I've got a shit ton of guns, but those are a few of my favs in terms of pistols.

[scollins]

Originally Posted by Aonarch

Ghost trigger's are cheap, and amazing.

Yeah 1911's are in a different class. The only problem is the lack of round capacity. I'd rather take a 9MM with 124grn JHP then a 45, but that's just my shooting style and the fact that the more rounds the better in a gun fight. I only keep one mag in my CCW and 2 in the car, so If I'm outside my vehicle I will only have X amount of rounds due to the one mag (31 ).

Get a double stack 1911, like the STI 2011! I've got the STI Tactical 4.15 in 40S&W, and my mags hold 18 plus 1. I could have the mags tuned and they'd hold 20+1. They offer 9mm, 40S&W and 45ACP versions.

Here is mine, "dressed" up a little:

[M3ltdown]

Originally Posted by scollins

Get a double stack 1911, like the STI 2011! I've got the STI Tactical 4.15 in 40S&W, and my mags hold 18 plus 1. I could have the mags tuned and they'd hold 20+1. They offer 9mm, 40S&W and 45ACP versions.

Here is mine, "dressed" up a little:

Nice....A suppressed Tactical! Me wants. I've been tempted to get a 2011 gun for awhile. Nighthawk is gonna start making custom 2011s too.

I only own 1911s.
-Wilson Combat CQB Elite in 9mm (range gun)
-Les Baer Thunder Ranch Special, .45 custom by John Harrison (safe queen)
-Nighthawk Custom GRP Recon, .45 (nightstand gun)
-Dan Wesson CBOB, .45 (carry gun)
-STI Off Duty, 9mm (wife's gun)

Nothing beats a 1911 with a 3.5 lb. trigger pull!

[Schm]

In the end I decided that I am just going to take hunting more seriously, and eventually my grandfather is probably just going to give me a shotgun/rifle (He has 100+). Handguns are simply too risky and dangerous, and I don't want to have one until I'm more comfortable with firearms in general and I'm 21.

[NYC6]

Originally Posted by lambtron

If you want a cheap plastic gun that shoots real bullets, get a Glock. If you want a well crafted gun that is accurate enough to shoot the wings off a fly whilst leaving the rest of the poor bastard intact, then get a Sig Sauer.

Sig trumps Glock.
Heres my 228. I need to update photo with BMW fob included. OP- if you're interested in getting a handgun take an accredited HG handling class and go shoot some rentals in a nearby gun dealer. A handgun is just a tool and as safe as the person behind it.

[scollins]

Originally Posted by NYC6

Sig trumps Glock.

That's crazy talk foooo!

Sig makes a nice weapon, but I can't stand to shoot them. The slide catch is in the wrong spot for my style of grip (my thumbs rides on it, making it inoperable). They also have a very high boreline axis, making recoil more pronounced. Top quality like I said, but poor ergonomics for me.

The progression of handguns is simple:
1911 > Glocks & S&W M&Ps > Sigs > All other.
45 > 40S&W > 9mm.

/thread.

[Alexander]

I own 3 1911's and absolutely love them (Greatest pistol ever made). All in .45 ACP

Double Star 1911
Kimber SS TLE/II
Springfield Armory 1911-A1 (100% MADE IN USA, not that Brazilian bullshit).

[Alexander]

Originally Posted by scollins

That's crazy talk foooo!

Sig makes a nice weapon, but I can't stand to shoot them. The slide catch is in the wrong spot for my style of grip (my thumbs rides on it, making it inoperable). They also have a very high boreline axis, making recoil more pronounced. Top quality like I said, but poor ergonomics for me.

The progression of handguns is simple:
1911 > Glocks & S&W M&Ps > Sigs > All other.
45 > 40S&W > 9mm.

/thread.

H&K USP? God I love them. I owned a USP Tactical and sold it to my dad. Expensive pistol in it's class but the fit and finish is superb.

Sig makes great 1911s.