My recommendations for a 'only handgun' newbie:

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Situation - someone new to owning a firearm asked me 'what to get'?

Thought I'd ask here if you think I'm on the right track...

My recommendations are as follows:

1. Apply for the CPL/Washington.

2. Get a lockbox/safe/secure storage for a handgun.

3. Join the NRA for one year; get the 'First Freedom' magazine.

4.When issued the CPL ( I explained the 'shall issue' part ), join the Washington Arms Collectors organization.

5.Buy the firearm of choice either at a retail store, or private sale ( recommended ).

6.Buy all the accessories needed, such as hearing protection, ammunition, holster(s), magazines/loaders, etc.

7.Practice much and often.



My recommendations for the firearms were:

1. Pistol - Beretta 92 or 90-two / 9mm

2. Ruger GP-100 4" bbl. , blued or stainless.

Reasons for those two being that both are high-quality guns; ammo is reasonably available and commonly used, with the revolver being the highest recommended because of simplicity and the ability to shoot more than one kind of ammo.

It appears that the gun will remain in the home more than being CCW.

Please give your input. Thanks.

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Good suggestions, although I don't really think it's necessary that someone joins the NRA unless they have a strong desire for firearms and the 2nd amendment. Some people just want a handgun for personal defense and aren't really otherwise known to be a huge gun person in general.

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Especially for first gun/home defense weapons, I suggest Glock or Springfield Arms XD. In the event either is needed, they're both point and click, reliable as hell, and you're less likely to forget to take off the safety in your moment of greatest need. On top of that, the trigger pull is light enough to make it relatively accurate, but heavy enough to be forgiving. The price, also, factors in, with both SA & Glock being up to half the cost of a comparable beretta (up to, because you can sometimes get them at the same price, really depends what you're looking at) - all the more money left available to buy ammo for practice .

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My thinking for the NRA membership and that magazine in particular was that it would provide the individual with a lot of information and stories to consider that otherwise wouldn't be readily available.

Good old paper pages to turn and pictures to ponder. Sometimes the internet and a screen just don't do it!

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BusMaster007 wrote:

Situation - someone new to owning a firearm asked me 'what to get'?

Thought I'd ask here if you think I'm on the right track...

My recommendations are as follows:

1. Apply for the CPL/Washington.

2. Get a lockbox/safe/secure storage for a handgun.

3. Join the NRA for one year; get the 'First Freedom' magazine.

4.When issued the CPL ( I explained the 'shall issue' part ), join the Washington Arms Collectors organization.

5.Buy the firearm of choice either at a retail store, or private sale ( recommended ).

6.Buy all the accessories needed, such as hearing protection, ammunition, holster(s), magazines/loaders, etc.

7.Practice much and often.

Click to expand...

Some good suggestions there, Bus.

Why does the guy want a gun?, I'd ask.

I like the suggestion about the NRA membership and the First Freedom magazine. Very good stuff in there!



I'd add:

8. Read some gun and carry training material--books, articles,forum posts,etc.


Finally, warn your friend that it is easy to think that a firearm somehow solves all his personal defense problems. Some people think that all they need is "gun-fu" to keep them as safe as possible. This is not the case. Have the guy read this article for example:


Ready For Anything

Be Smart Enough To Know When Guns Are Not the Answer.


http://opencarry.mywowbb.com/forum65/30374.html

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.Why join WAC?Also,I can usually get a better deal from Gun Dealers that I regularly patronize on a used hand gun than a private party sale unless I know the person selling it.BTW,once it goes out the door of the store,it is no longer NIB,it becomes LNIB whether or not you have fired it.I agree on the CPL,it makes things run a lot smoother on purchasing a Handgun or dealing with LE.As far as choices on a Handgun,there are many quality weapons out there,I'm a S&W guy on revolvers,and Glock and 1911 on semi-autos.For home defense,I like my Rem 870 loaded with #4 buckshot,of course,if there are children in a household,a loaded shotgun in the corner is not a good idea.Practice as much as you can afford to,try to find an off time at a range with a professional rangemaster,if he is not busy,he can give you a lot of help.As far as the NRA,you will get a lot of junk mail to get your blood pressure up and solicit funds,just tell them not to mail you this crap and they won't.They are still a good organization and without them,we would have lost more rights than we have.

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One important thing I forgot,Learn the laws about firearms,it would really suck to lose your rights because of ignorance.

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I agree with the reading material.

It will be emphasizedthat just having a gun doesn't solve all security issues. Just as I told him there's more to having a gun than just the gun. That's the reason I suggested certain things in order.

Good point about the mailing by the NRA, I'll pass that on for sure.

At one time I was enamored with the Taurus pistols, but the Beretta always seemed to fit my hand better and the quality was a bit better overall, not to mention the commonality of the Beretta magazines with Military and LEO vs. Taurus ( I have to indoctrinate him into the Tin Foil Hat / SHTF club...:lol.

I didn't understand what 'the world of firearms' meant until I really started to look into it. It is so muchmore than 'a gun'.

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For me I say I would add an important part to your list.

Invest in an shooting instructor.

Get some good professional instruction to start off with basic marksmanship and firearm safety.

Everyone comes to the table with different backgrounds and intent or reasons of buying a "gun."

I would not limit what gun as everyone comes with differing taste and also more importantly pocketbooks. Everyone one of us has our own biases. I prefer Sigs but I can afford them and most importantly I like them.

What I usually tell people is to budget about $750 - $2000 when buying their first gun. This covers the gun ($300-$700), ammo ($200-$500), gear ($40-$200) and instruction ($50-$200) and what I call the investment stage ($140-$300).

The investment stage is going to a rental shop and testing out various guns and calibers. Go in and expect to put down $200 and just focus on shooting rather than the cost aspect. This will give the best money for the time and money to shoot and test them out.

I have seen many new gunownerswho think they found the gun. Yet they havenever shot itbefore they bought it. They just liked how it felt in the shop. And then theygo to the range and absolutely think to themselves they made a mistake.

The ammo - is another piece I have the new gun owner think about in the budget. Once a gun is purchased if you haven't budgeted the right way it's just going to sit there on the shelf because they can't afford to shoot it (practice). If people would buy a case or two then that's not a problem. People can practice and not worry about ammo prices each time.

The gear - cleaning kit, case, range bag and holster all comes in due time. It's nice to have all at once since you'll eventually need it (except the holster - no sense if they're not going to carry it).

Have fun! Get some good instruction and Practice!

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Did you people know that you can get a free year of NRA membership?!!

http://www.nrahq.org/nrabonus/

Someone can feel free post that link as a stickey post. The more people the NRA has as members the less likely it will be that politicians will push anti-gun legislation.

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You put out a lot of good info,I sold a brand new Beretta 92FS last spring and am still kicking my self in the ass,it was to a good friend though.

I look at the Glock as the AK of the handgun world,they work,there is no safety per se,if a round is chambered ,it will fire.In the hands of an amatuer,this can be dangerous.My CC Pistol is a S&W 642 for the same reason,just pull the trigger and fire,it works.

As far as the Firearms Enthusiast wold,I have met mostly good people,once in a while you meet a real jerk,but that is not usually the case.On the other hand,my experiances at gun shows have tought me that really good deals are rare.Always do your research before you invest money to buy something you will regret later.