gun people..question..

I wouldn't buy any gun without trying it out first. They make Clocks in just about any caliber but the Police around here use the .40 caliber because it has more knock down power. You sound like you are not afraid to use the .40 caliber and would do good with it. It doesn't matter what the gun you buy The shell that is fired out of it is what makes the difference. You need to buy some dependable gun that will fire all the time and nothing else makes any difference except the ammunition you use. I was put in a situation where I had to kill a person and the fact that it was closer than most people think. My mussel was against the other person when I fired.

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God must have loved stupid people because he made so many of them.

Good to know.... I always thought that clocks where all calibrated in a 24 hr time format with a second, minute, and hour hand....

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Justice is the insurance which we have on our lives and property. Obedience is the premium which we pay for it.

check out :

www.wikihow.com/Choose-the-Right-Pistol good info here.

Remember of it's for self defense, ask yourself, in your heart of hearts, can you remain cool enough to shoot a person? If not, don't even think about a gun for self defense.

Try the S & W LadySmith line. Nice guns. Think about recoil when you buy...

I have a Browning .380 in my nitestand, but found a Sig Sauer that really fits me well. sigh.

Have fun!!!

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Only she who attempts the absurd can achieve the impossible

WIHH, nice layout you've got there. My pick of that litter would be the third one down in the center of the pic. I've got one just about like it except for custom grips and a few other modifications. When I lay me down to sleep at night my Colt is out of sight but within easy reach. When that big dog barks sumpthin bad is gonna happen to something or somebody. And there are a few more stashed around here.

If I were wanting a gun I would be buying it pretty darn soon. I've a nasty suspicion if Sen. Obama is elected it's going to be hard enough to hang onto what weapons we already have and darn near impossible to buy any more.

I'll agree with several others here that a revolver is the best choice for an inexperienced person who might have to act quickly in an extremely stressfull situation.

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This is the government the Founding Fathers warned us about.....

I'd love to have a Glock, or three, in my 'tool kit'...

However, for a newbie, imho, it's probably the worst possible handgun to own... for reasons already discussed. The safety system isn't designed for first time buyers, but for experienced firearms users, or professionals. Now, if you go through a training course, by the end, the Glock in 9 or 40 might be the cats pajamas...

BTW, any quality firearm is going to be an excellent investment... identical firearms bought a few years back (6) are worth twice as much now. Unless abused seriously, they appreciate in value.

I am not that experienced with guns, my mother forbid them in her house so I had that to over come before anything else. I currently have a 38 revolver and it is loaded with two bullets that are filled with birdshot and the remaining 38 shells. The man who sold us the gun said the bird shot would show that I would indeed shoot the gun and perhaps stop them, if it didn't then unload the chamber and reload and shoot until the body stopped twitching. Sounds horrifying but the man explained to me that if I owned a gun then I need to be ready to end a life.

The class sounds really great, I am surrounded with people that are really experts in guns but I would love to take a really comprehensive class, shoot, I may even want to trade up.

good luck on your selection, let us know what you decided on.

ar

So military enlisted go through 8-18 weeks of training to get to a point that the government feels thay are prepared to kill somebody....And even then they have problems if that training is needed.

I wonder if an 8-16 hr class is even remotely enough training.

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Justice is the insurance which we have on our lives and property. Obedience is the premium which we pay for it.

Nice try but the two things simply aren't comparable.

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Respect The Cactus!

sugarbush
the actual time invested in general weapons handling and mindset to kill is generally less than the courses required for a CCW permit. in navy boot camp (1989) it consisted of about 3 hr most of which was spent waiting for my turn to shoot a magazine out of a 22 cal 1911.
in marine boot camp we spent a week practicing shooting positions and learning proper technique because the tightest most stable positions are uncomfortable for most people who aren't gymnasts. after a week of conditioning the body you spend a week on the range shooting to get practice in actually firing. the object of this time isn't to get the mindset or the safe handling skills. it was understood you already had the mindset when you joined. the handling was taught in a half an hour weeks before w/ very sweaty and unpleasant corrections made for those who forgot it. the object of all that invested time is a level of precision shot placement the average person doesn't have (even in other branches of service).

BAD IDEA on many levels. Mainly due the the fact you have to have time to fire at least three rounds before you even have a chance of stopping an attacker.

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Remember, when seconds count. . .
the police are just MINUTES away!

Congress has no power to appropriate this money as an act of charity. Every member upon this floor knows it. . .Davy Crockett

Good point..... It probably could be argued that the rat shot has a better chance of hitting somebody than a single lead slug....

I have a question for the women carriers! Seeing how willing you are to get online and tell everybody what you carry and where you keep it; Do you tell everybody you know the same information? It is really rare for anybody to be attact and killed by somebody they do not know.

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Justice is the insurance which we have on our lives and property. Obedience is the premium which we pay for it.

I agree with WIHH. It's for me to know & them to find out...

Self protection is also from snakes of all kinds, etc.

Rat shot - snake shot? If you're goin' that way why not a shot gun??

Actually, what I was taught in a CC class, if someone breaks into your home, get on your knees behind the bed so you are protected, call 911 keep the phone on, brace your arms, aim toward the door & holler " I have called the police. I have a gun. Do not come into the bedroom." Never, ever go after the inruder.

Here in AZ you cannot shoot unless it is definitely self protection. Your 911 call will be recorded and that is your proof that you did warn & they kept coming.

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Only she who attempts the absurd can achieve the impossible

I would guess because if you saw off a shotgun to make it concealable you go to jail...

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Justice is the insurance which we have on our lives and property. Obedience is the premium which we pay for it.

Thanks, WIHH. Never thought of sawed off shot gun at all. Just a shot gun being good for home protection. I mean snake shot or rat shot - never.

CC is about doing things legally. That's why there's a license and the fines are much heavier if you're caught doing an illegal act with a CC license - at least here in AZ.

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Only she who attempts the absurd can achieve the impossible

The law enforcement in our area use either Glock 40 caliber or Sig 40's. They're both good guns.

Pops2 - Ah the memories of going to the rifle range with my M-16A1 at Camp Pendleton during phase 2 of recruit training. I went through MCRD San Diego in the late 1970's - Beirut era Marine here..... Then there was months of A.I.T. at the School of Infantry at Camp Pendleton. Following that I was 0311 Infantry Rifleman and 0331 and Infantry Machinegunner at Twentynine Palms. I also had to qualify with the Colt Gov't model 1911 in .45 a.c.p., due to having interior guard duty at times. I qualifed as a Rifle Sharpshooter and Pistol Sharpshooter, I never was quite able to make the score for Expert.. I am required less training for my CCW license, compared to the Marine Corps weapons training.

I would not own a Glock if one was given to me, regardless of the caliber!! No external safeties, no exposed hammer, composite parts - This Marine Corps Veteran would say "No thank you!!!" I have fired many different models in different calibers, and I would rather have a full sized Colt 1911 in .45 a.c.p., my Walther P-38 in 9mm parabellum (9X19mm), the Czech CZ-52 in 7.62X25mm Tokarev, or my Ruger GP-100 revolver in .357 magnum. Reliable heavy pieces of machined steel which will always fire when I pull the trigger.

I do have smaller caliber weapons in .380, .32 a.c.p., and the 9mm Makarov (9X18mm). They all are semi-automatic pistol calibers, and the weapons have safties, exposed hammers, and are fairly accurate within 30 yards. Well, for myself at least, and my sister is proficient with them also. Under my guidance over the years my little sister has turned into Annie Oakley, and she now gives me a run for the money, when we go out target shooting with our pistols.

Get to where you can try several types of handguns, and see what feels good in your own hand. You will be the one firing it, and if it doesn't feel natural then you will have problems accurately placing your shots. There is a multitude of firearms out there, and one of them will feel like it was made for you, when you hold it in your hand.

Then practice firing your weapon on a regular basis, in order to keep up your skills. It is just like any other activity, the more one practices - the better they become at the task.

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Smarter than the average bear, sitting here on my hilltop 80 acres in the fog above the ocean...

"Life is tough, but it is tougher when you are stupid." - John Wayne

You might also try a Kahr. It is like the glock but not double stacked in the clip. I personally can't shoot a Glock for a while and then switch to the Kahr w/o some practice the pull is very long on the Kahr. I wish it was a baby Glock ,but it isn't.

How about a tazer? sp? That seems like a great home defence weapon. It will stop someone w/o killing them. OF course you are left wide open for lots of lawsuits.

Each gun is unique and I really do also recomend practice, practice, practice. I am going to go to a higher level handgun training lesson so I can see what it is like to shoot under different circumstances.

Wolf Mom, that "call 911 " sounds good.
But do they expect everybody to have a phone in the bedroom ? . . thats unrealistic.
And time is of the essence if somebody is meaning you no good.

S&W has a nice 9mm . . . . . .that kind graced the hips of many many a cop.
There was a time when the cops decided to 'upgrade' to the 40's, so a lot of good used S&W 9's were on the market.

Well, you've gotten lots of advice, some good, some bad. I guess I can put my two cents in the pot, and you can decide for yourself...

The best handgun? No such thing...different weapons do better in different circumstances. What you are looking for is the best compromise weapon.

Here's what you have to have:

1. A caliber of sufficient strength to be effective with the right bullets.

2. A gun of sufficient simplicity that you can concentrate on pointing and sight picture, not how to work the weapon.

3. Recoil that is not intimidating, even for the casual user.

4. A weapon that may reside in a nightstand, in a glove compartment or riding in a holster somewhere on your body. Therefore, need will dictate physical size. Remember, a .750 Loudenboomer is useless if you don't have access to it.

Glocks are fine weapons, easy to fieldstrip and with good MTBF (mean time between failures). So are many other weapons.

Do try many different quality manufacturers, if possible. An old trick to gauge "feel"....lay some of your choices out on the shop's countertop. Look for a distinctive feature in the store, preferrably within 30 feet. Close your eyes, pick up a weapon, aim at the chosen spot with your eyes still closed. Open your eyes and see if you would have hit your target. Some handguns are going to feel much better than others.

Caliber? If you don't plan on burning at least a box of ammo a month, start with the 9x19 or 9mm as it is commonly called and the .38 special in a revolver. Consider the top end of your quest a .40 S&W in an auto or .357 in a wheelgun. I think you'll be better off with one of the first two, if you don't plan on shooting much. Remember, the smaller the gun, the shorter the barrel, the more the muzzle blast, especially in some calibers.

Good luck in your quest...