help me buy a gun

[sharpshooter039]

well everyone else had their so here is my 2cents worth,home defence and hunt small game with girly arm strength,,go for a pump 410,,something like the mossburg,with slugs or the buckshot out there it is more tham enough for home defence,plus 99% of the time if an intruder hears the slide pumped they will be gone,a pump shotgun makes a very distinctive sound,then you could load it with anything from #6's up to 71/2's for small game and birds like quail and pheasant and could even take deer with a rifled slug,very good all around home gun for a female that is not used to recoil

these can be had in the $200 range so later on if you decide to move up you still have money in your budget to do so

[Cowboyup65]

Just about ready to make my first purchase. I'll be sure to have a long talk with the guy at the gun shop, but give me some opinions. I try to follow ya'lls threads on guns, and I admit, it makes my head spin because I have NO clue.
Gun prices will differ everywhere, and probably most expensive around here, but I'd like to keep it at around $500.


My details:
No experience with guns
Looking for home defense foremost
would like it for small animal hunting if it had to be
5'1", with wimpy girly arm strength.


help

Guess what I found for you, from our local gunshop who is always more than happy to instruct you before you buy. I cut and pasted the whole page so as to not infringe on copyright laws, here it is in its entireity.


DUNCAN GUN
We Take Care Of Our Customers Since 1976
DEFENSIVE HANDGUNS
BUYING A HANDGUN FOR SELF DEFENSE IS A DIFFUCULT AND PERSONAL DECISION. THERE'S ALOT OF THINGS THAT AN INDIVIDUAL MUST CONSIDER. THE FIRST STEP I WOULD RECOMMEND IS, THAT YOU TAKE A BASIC HANDGUN CLASS, (WITH A QUALITY INSTRUCTOR) IF YOU ARE NOT ALREADY FAMILIAR WITH HANDGUNS. A CLASS CAN HELP YOU MAKE A MORE EDUCATED DECISION. TELEVISION AND MAGAZINE ARTICLES ARE A GREAT RESOURCE FOR INFORMATION. JUST REMEMBER THEY ARE LOOKING TO SELL PRODUCTS OF THERE ADVERTISERS. MANY WRITERS SHOOT BETTER FROM A TYPEWRITER, THAN THEY DO ON THE RANGE. SOMETIMES FRIENDS AND FAMILY CAN ALSO BE GREAT RESOURCES, BUT REMEMBER BUYING A HANDGUN IS LIKE BUYING CLOTHING, IT HAS TO FIT YOU AS AN INDIVIDUAL.

WITH THAT BEING SAID, LET'S TRY TO NARROW DOWN SOME OF THE MANY CHOICES YOU WILL HAVE.
REVOLVER OR SEMI-AUTOMATIC?

A REVOLVER IS SIMPLE TO USE AND VERY RELIABLE. LOAD CYLINDER, CLOSE CYLINDER, TAKE AIM, SQUEEZE TRIGGER.
A SEMI-AUTOMATIC USUALLY HOLDS MORE ROUNDS, BUT IS NOT AS SIMPLE TO USE. LOAD MAGAZINE, PUT MAGAZINE IN GUN, PULL SLIDE BACK TO FEED FIRST ROUND, TAKE OFF SAFETY, TAKE AIM, SQUEEZE TRIGGER.
(NOTE: SOME SLIDES ARE VERY STIFF AND DON'T ALWAYS PULL BACK EASILY)

THESE ARE ONLY A FEW OF THE DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE TWO GUNS. HERE ARE SOME OTHER THINGS TO THINK ABOUT WHEN DECIDING BETWEEN THE TWO.

A REVOLVER, IS USUALLY A LITTLE MORE BULKY THAN SOME SEMI-AUTOMATICS, SO IF YOU ARE THINKING ABOUT CARRYING CONCEALED VERY MUCH, YOU WILL NEED TO CONSIDER THAT. HOWEVER PEOPLE OVERALL DO TEND TO SHOOT MORE ACCURATELY WITH A REVOLVER THAN A SEMIAUTOMATIC. (NOT EVERYONE, BUT OVERALL)
SEMI-AUTOMATIC, HOW MUCH WILL YOU PRACTICE WITH IT? WILL YOU USE IT ENOUGH, THAT MANIPULATING ALL OF IT'S FEATURES WILL BE LIKE SECOND NATURE. IF YOU HAVE TO TAKE TIME TO REMEMBER HOW TO USE IT, THAT COULD BE TO LATE!

IF YOU SEE YOURSELF PRACTICING ALOT, AND STAYING FAMILIAR WITH YOUR FIREARM, THEN EITHER ONE WOULD PROBABLY WORK FOR YOU. IF YOU ARE BUYING IT STRICTLY FOR DEFENSE AND WON'T BE SHOOTING IT THAT FREQUENTLY, THEN THE SIMPLICITY AND RELIABILITY OF A REVOLVER CAN'T BE BEAT.

WHAT CALIBER SHOULD I GET?

THERE IS A LOT OF CONTRAVERSY OUT THERE, IN REGARDS TO CALIBER AND STOPPING POWER. AGAIN THIS IS A PERSONAL CHOICE AND NEEDS TO FIT YOU AS AN INDIVIDUAL. A SIMPLE ANSWER IS, YOU NEED THE LARGEST CALIBER, THAT YOU CAN SHOOT ACCURATELY. IF YOU CAN'T SHOOT IT ACCUATELY, THEN THE CALIBER REALLY DOESN'T MATTER, DOES IT? FOR BEGINING SHOOTERS IT'S NOT A BAD IDEA TO START WITH A SMALL CALIBER (LIKE A .22) AND YOU CAN UPGRADE LATER. A .22 CALIBER IS FREQUENTLY RECOMMENDED, BECAUSE YOU HAVE LOW NOISE, LOW RECOIL AND LOW EXPENSE. YOU CAN ENJOY AND BE COMFORTABLE SHOOTING YOUR REVOLVER OR SEMI-AUTOMATIC WHILE NOT HAVING TO DEAL WITH THE RECOIL. HOWEVER IF YOUR NOT A BEGINING SHOOTER, AND RECOIL IS NOT AN ISSUE, THEN CONSIDER SOME OF THESE OTHER THINGS. THE SMALLER CALIBERS USUALLY CARRY BETTER, AND AMMO IS GENERALLY CHEAPER. ON THE OTHER HAND, LARGER CALIBERS HAVE MORE STOPPING POWER, BUT ALSO HAVE MORE RECOIL.

OTHER DECIDING FACTORS?

GRIP, SIGHT PICTURE, TRIGGER PULL, AND SLIDE PULL ARE OTHER FACTORS, THAT YOU MAY NEED TO CONSIDER.

LET'S START WITH THE GRIP, IT NEEDS TO FIT YOUR HAND COMFORTABLY, WITHOUT BEING TO LARGE OR TO SMALL. EVERYONES HANDS ARE DIFFERENT, SO IT'S IMPORTANT TO MAKE SURE THE GRIP FITS YOU PERSONALLY.
THE GRIP OF THE FIREARM, IS LIKE THE STEERING WHEEL OF A CAR AND IT WILL GREATLY AFFECT WHERE YOUR SHOTS GO.

TRIGGER PULL SHOULD BE ANOTHER DECIDING FACTOR. OVERALL HAND STRENGTH IS ALSO SOMETHING TO CONSIDER. DO YOU HAVE ENOUGH STRENGTH IN YOUR TRIGGER FINGER TO SQUEEZE THE TRIGGER REPETATIVELY. YOU CAN TEST THIS BY EXTENDING YOUR ARMS OUT INTO A SHOOTING POSITION WHILE HOLDING THE UNLOADED FIREARM AND SQUEEZE THE TRIGGER. IF THIS ACTION TAKES SO MUCH EFFORT IT CAUSES NOTICABLE TREMBLING, OR YOU JUST DON'T HAVE THE STRENTH TO MANIPULATE THE TRIGGER, I WOULD RECOMMEND YOU LOOK FOR ANOTHER FIREARM WITH LESS TRIGGER PULL. A SHAKY HAND WILL MORE THAN LIKELY RESULT IN POOR ACCURACY.

THE NEXT THING TO LOOK AT IS THE SIGHT PICTURE. NOT ALL OF US HAVE 20/20 VISION, AND EVEN IF YOU DO SOME SIGHTS ARE JUST HARDER TO SEE THAN OTHERS. WHEN TRYING TO FIND THE SIGHT THAT WORKS FOR YOU, SIMPLY EXTEND YOUR ARMS OUT INTO A SHOOTING POSITION, WHILE HOLDING THE UNLOADED FIREARM. THEN CHECK THE CLARITY OF THE SIGHT. IF YOUR HAVING A HARD TIME SEEING THE SIGHT AT THIS POINT, YOU MAY NEED TO CONSIDER ANOTHER FIREARM WITH DIFFERENT SIGHTS.

FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO ARE LEANING TOWARDS A SEMI-AUTOMATIC, YOU MIGHT WANT TO THINK ABOUT THE SLIDE PULL AS WELL. THE SLIDE PULL NEEDS TO BE A QUICK SMOOTH ACTION IN ORDER TO FEED THE FIRST ROUND INTO THE CHAMBER. BY NOT DOING THIS YOU MAY SUFFER A JAM AS A CONSEQUENCE. FOR MOST PEOPLE THIS IS NOT A PROBLEM, BUT IF YOU ARE LIKE MANY SUFFERING FROM ARTHRITIS OR ANOTHER CONDITION THAT EFFECTS THE STRENGTH IN YOUR HANDS THIS COULD BE A POTENTIAL PROBLEM. I WOULD RECOMMEND THAT YOU MANIPULATE THE SLIDE SEVERAL TIMES BEFORE MAKING YOUR FINAL DECISION.

WHATEVER SIZE, STYLE, OR CALIBER THAT YOU DECIDE TO GO WITH, JUST REMEMBER THAT SAFETY AND PRACTICE ARE THE KEY.


ADVANCED TIP: ONCE YOU'VE NARROWED YOUR CHOICES DOWN TO ONLY A FEW DIFFERENT FIREARMS, THERE IS A SIMPLE DRILL TO TELL WHICH FIREARM YOU WILL SHOOT THE BEST. FIRST START WITH AN UNLOADED FIREARM (NOT RIMFIRE) AND AIM IT IN A SAFE DIRECTION, SQUEEZE THE TRIGGER, WHILE WATCHING THE FRONT SIGHT. IF THE SIGHT MOVES WAY OFF TARGET, THIS WILL TELL YOU WHERE THE BULLET WOULD HAVE GONE. YOU NEED TO USE THIS DRILL WITH EACH ONE YOU ARE CONSIDERING AND COMPARE THE MOVEMENT OF THE FRONT SIGHT. THE ONE WITH THE LEAST AMOUNT OF MOVEMENT, IS GENERALLY THE FIREARM YOU WILL SHOOT THE BEST.

HOW DO I PURCHASE A HANDGUN?

HOW DO YOU PURCHASE A HANDGUN ? PURCHASING A HANDGUN IS ALOT EASIER THAN MOST PEOPLE REALIZE. IF YOU ARE A LAW ABIDING CITIZEN WITH NO CRIMINAL OR MENTAL ILLNESS IN YOUR BACKGROUND, YOU ARE ELIGIBLE TO PURCHASE A FIREARM. THE FIRST STEP IS TO GO TO YOUR LOCAL SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT AND TELL THEM YOU WOULD LIKE A HANDGUN PERMIT. THERE IS A $5.00 CHARGE FOR THE PERMIT AND THEY WILL DO A BACKGROUND CHECK. ALOT OF SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENTS WILL GRANT YOU THE PERMIT WITHIN JUST A FEW MINUTES, OTHERS MAY TAKE JUST A FEW DAYS ( 2-3 DAYS VARIES W/COUNTY). THE HANDGUN PERMIT IS NOT DESINATED FOR ANY SPECIFIC HANDGUN. BASICALLY IT'S JUST STATING THAT YOU ARE LEGALLY ALLOWED TO PURCHASE A HANDGUN AND THAT YOU HAVE NO CRIMINAL OR MENTAL HISTORY TO PREVENT THE PURCHASE. AFTER YOU HAVE OBTAINED THE PERMIT, YOU WILL TAKE IT WITH YOU TO PURCHASE THE FIREARM. THE DEALER WILL HAVE YOU FILL OUT SOME SIMPLE FORMS AND WILL TAKE POSSESSION OF THE HANDGUN PERMIT. THE PERMIT WILL REMAIN WITH THE DEALER TO BE FILED WITH THE OTHER PAPER WORK. THIS WAY, SHOULD A QUESTION EVER ARISE ABOUT YOUR FIREARM THE DEALER HAS YOUR PERMIT TO STATE THAT YOU WERE LEGALLY ALLOWED TO PURCHASE THE FIREARM.

ANOTHER WAY TO OBTAIN A HANDGUN IS TO HAVE A CONCEALED CARRY PERMIT. IF YOU HAVE A CONCEALED CARRY PERMIT, YOU ARE EXCLUDED FROM THE HANDGUN PERMIT RULE. A CONCEALED CARRY PERMIT IS GREAT TO HAVE AND NOT THAT DIFFUCULT TO OBTAIN. TO BECOME A CONCEALED CARRY PERMIT HOLDER YOU MUST TAKE A SHORT CLASS TO LEARN THE LAWS OF CARRYING A HANDGUN, AND PASS A REASONABLE SHOOTING ACCURACY TEST. ONCE YOU HAVE PASSED THE CLASS, TAKE YOUR CERTIFICATE TO THE SHERIFF'S DEPARTMENT, THEY WILL DO A BACKGROUND CHECK, AND YOU SHOULD RECEIVE YOUR PERMIT WITHIN FOUR TO SIX WEEKS.


BE SAFE, PRACTICE, AND HAVE FUN ENJOYING YOUR RIGHT TO OWN A FIREARM!



IF YOU HAVE QUESTIONS, PLEASE FEEL FREE TO EMAIL [email protected]



BUYING YOUR FIRST
DEFENSIVE HANDGUN
COPYRIGHT 2008
DUNCAN GUN SHOP

[iceman]

for a all round.....get a shot gun
good for many uses and easy to reload

just my .02

[sharpshooter039]

she said she wanted to be able to use it on small game if needed,she is NOT going to use a handgun on small game,I know alot of people with firearm experience that cant hit a squirrel with a .22 pistol,,,small bore shotgun all the way

[Omegaman]

My 2 cents. There are some shops in new york that don't carry or even sell hand gun ammo. She also said hunting and defense , that being said in a SHTF time I do not want to be trying to feed my family with a pistol. I am thinking hunting birds, deer and other small game maybe black bear and if you can wing shoot a duck with a pistol then I want you on my team:). Now I am a huge fan of the 10/22 but again weak for hunting large game. So I would say a shotgun, it has wide choice of rounds that double for hunting and defense. It is easy to learn how to do your own reloading if need be. Now price wise I was in a shop today and looked at 1 used 870 and 10/22 if I had purchased both it would have been just under $500. For use in the home I would like a shotgun with a tele-stock because full length I could hunt with it and shortened I can turn in a hallway with it. Add-ons for shotgun that you don't have to have but would be sweet, tac light, scope or red dot, laser, multi stock opptions, chokes,ammo holders, mag extenders and slings. The shotgun just seems like a multi tasker.

[Mosa00]

my 2 cents. I have a Ruger SP101 357magnum revolver and a 25 year old Taurus PT92 9mm semiauto.

Took my wife to the range where she wanted to learn to shoot. I thought for sure she would like the revolver with some light 38 loads to get started.... she shot ok, but when she picked up the semiauto Taurus, she was hitting in the black the whole magazine... turns out she really got comfortable with the semiauto over the revolver...she just couldnt get the feel of the trigger from the Ruger. ...

we went shopping, and bought her a Walther PPS in 9mm...small, thin, light and perfect fit for her small hands.... she LOVES it... so, for a pistol, I might suggest a semiauto over a revolver... just my experience...


but, after reading everybody elses posts, and re-reading Brosias post, I am +1 with a 12ga pump shotgun for their first gun for home defense...ok ok ok... now I sound like Im flip flopping, but for a first gun the 12 ga is the way to go...

Mosa

[hazenoff]

Everyone I have talked to and read about, recommended a 22 rifle, like the small, survival arms Survival Rifle, at 200 bucks ... I have one, I picked up at a flea market for 120 bucks, clips can be had at the sportsman guide, for 15 bucks. The gun is ultra light, and collapses into it's stock... and there are many *weapons system* mods that you can do to this gun, none of which in my humble opinion add anything more than looking badass to the rifle. Plenty of parts are available for the AR7, and over all, it's a fine shooting little rifle, that could be modified into a pistol, etc. In a survival situation, your more than likely going to be shooting rabbits and squirrels before going deer hunting, if you live in a city... if your out in the woods, you probably already have a deer slayer laying around. I like the AR-7 because of it's light weight, accuracy, inexpensive ammo .22 LR, and in most cases it would lend it's self really well to survival situations, without breaking your back.

If your looking for something more defensive, I'd say you can't go wrong with a AK-47 , for half the price of an AR 15, you get a battle proven gun, that's highly reliable, and still available with 700 rounds of ammo for under the 1000 dollar mark at most reputable dealers. The 7.62X39 cartridge with soft tip bullets and a good scope, which can be had for about 90 bucks, would be a very good deer rifle, as well as a tactical arm.

Home defense, Shotgun...unless your planning on the military busting down your door... then AK-47, Steel Core bullets, and a guardian angel. Most burglars will evacuate your house, and their bowels when they hear you loading the shotgun shell into the barrel.

Handguns, in my opinion are a weapon of last resort, you should always pick up your tactical rifle first, to defend yourself... but a great handgun in my opinion for self defense should be a revolver, and a 40 caliber. The reason is two fold... revolver equals no messing with pulling slides, etc back, it's a point and click deal... then the 40 cal has more than enough stopping power with hollow points that you won't have to worry about having 13 shots in a 9 mm to stop someone.

Just my two cents...

[Northphx602]

I would go with a Ruger 10/22 for shooting birds, and moderately sized game, for the price you can get a pretty decent 10/22, an optic and some rounds, especially if you shop around on some of the online brokers. As for a pistol, I'd suggest a Glock 19 (9mm), for a man its a nice concealable pistol, for a woman, small enough to manage and easy to master; the Glock-17 mags will fit and will enable you the additional capacity of 2 more rounds. If the arguement is stopping power, training over knockdown power will result in accuract with shot placement and the end result will be the same-lethal supression of the threat. (always re-index your targets after engagement and prepare for follow on shots...train-train-train).

I would re-look the desire to save money with a rifle, I'd get something that can engage game as well as threats from distances in excess of 200 meters, .223 rifles vary but the rounds are abundant, especially if you are networked.

Just my two cents.