Best first handgun?

[triplebike]

Hello.

What would you guys recommend as a first hand gun for a man who has never owned or operated one before?

Bear in mind that this should be a gun that I will use to get comfortable with shooting, handling, cleaning, disassembling, etc. This is in many ways a "trainer" gun.

A few people have recommend some gun that takes a .22 round.

What are your thoughts, opinions, insights, and suggestions?

Take a basic NRA handgun course. Get yourself a .22 revolver. It's inexpensive to shoot & very easy to maintain. 22 semi auto's are the hardest & biggest pains in the butt to disassemble & clean, even though they don't have to have that done very often. I usually shoot about 300 rounds per range visit, if I'm shooting .22's thats 25 bucks max. When I shoot my 9MM I'm up to $60 ($10 per 50 rds), if I shoot that much through my .357/38's I'm well over $100 (close to $20 per 50 rds). You'll find that shooting a .22 handgun is alot of fun & will teach you how to handle & shoot properly.

[Brick]

You will never go wrong by selecting a good .22 LR pistol as your training weapon. Everything you need to learn can be learned with a .22 and is transferable to larger calibers. Your .22 will last a lifetime with reasonable care and is always affordable (and fun) to shoot. Your choice of a "carry gun" can come later after you have learned the basics.

Browning Buckmark and Ruger Mk II/III are very good choices. But, don't overlook the used market, there are some very good values available.

[ksig1869]

After starting with a 9mm and eventually getting a .22. I would definitely recommend getting a .22 first. They are a blast to shoot, cheap to shoot and did I mention fun? They wouldn't be a first choice for HD but they are relatively cheap so you can start saving up for a bigger caliber that will suit your needs better. I got a Browning Buckmark, but I heard Ruger makes a great .22 too. Hope that helps.

[rikilii]

It really depends on what your reason is for getting the gun, and how much you want to spend.

A .22 is widely accepted as a good choice for a first gun, but I don't personally agree with that sentiment if you are thinking about training with the gun for personal defense purposes. If you ARE going to get a 22, I suggest getting one that is comparable to the form factor what you think you might one day want to carry or use for self defense (i.e. get a revolver if you think you're going to go with revolvers, or get a Sig Mosquito or something similar if you think you'll lean toward an automatic). To be honest, I'm not a big fan of .22. To me, a significant part of the experience of shooting is feeling and coping with the recoil, and a .22 has almost none. You can almost get the same shooting experience with a replica airsoft gun, and you can practice with that in your house for almost nothing.

If I were you, and unless you want to shoot a LOT or don't care about SD, I'd skip the .22 and get something like a Ruger p95 in 9mm. It's inexpensive ($300 brand new), reliable, and contains pretty much all the working parts you'll find in any handgun: a thumb safety/decocker, exposed hammer, single action trigger pull, double action trigger pull, etc.

You may eventually decide to go with a simpler firearm without all these different parts (such as a Glock or Sig, or XD), but this will give you the chance to get familiar and comfortable with pretty much all of the controls you will find on any gun out there, albeit in slightly different forms.

If you are not very cash limited, you might also think about getting a gun for which a .22 conversion kit is available. It will pay for itself over time and give you the option of lots of trigger time for little cost. The options I know of off hand are 1911s, Glock, and Sig 226/229.

The good thing about buying guns is that you will almost never be able to make a bad choice because you'll almost always be able to sell it for at least 80% of what you paid for it, even after moderate use. If you buy a used one, you can probably sell it for exactly what you paid, provided you take good care of it.

[24/7dude]

I'm going against the majority and would recommend a Glock or similar pistol. Much simpler/easier to clean than a revolver in my opinion.

If you go this route with an auto pistol I'd recommend starting out with a 9mm. I don't think a 9mm is too strong of a round for a beginner unless you weigh 70 lbs and have a tooth pick like body structure.

And since you're in York, if you ever have 10 seconds to spare I'll show you how to disassemble and clean it.

[GlockmanGG]

I would go with a Glock 17 , and I would buy a .22 cal top end and shoot the thing .

If this is your first, It will not be your last. 22 cal easy to shoot ,then switch out the top end and go to a 9mm !

That's it

GlockmanGG

[stud40111]

Let me say first that I am overwhelmed by everybody's willingness to assist even to the point of being willing to meet up and assist me. Honestly, I am touched.

I think that I'm going to take everything everyone has said in here (and may even take up a member or two on their offer of meeting) and then make a decision.

Regardless, thank you very much again.

I am going to be a life long member of this board now

[rwb1500]

Let me say first that I am overwhelmed by everybody's willingness to assist even to the point of being willing to meet up and assist me. Honestly, I am touched.

I think that I'm going to take everything everyone has said in here (and may even take up a member or two on their offer of meeting) and then make a decision.

Regardless, thank you very much again.

I am going to be a life long member of this board now

Word.

PM me if you're close enough to me, as I said before. Lol, I've got lots of cheap guns if you're budget minded.

[GuyMontag]

Take a basic NRA handgun course. Get yourself a .22 revolver. It's inexpensive to shoot & very easy to maintain. 22 semi auto's are the hardest & biggest pains in the butt to disassemble & clean, even though they don't have to have that done very often. I usually shoot about 300 rounds per range visit, if I'm shooting .22's thats 25 bucks max. When I shoot my 9MM I'm up to $60 ($10 per 50 rds), if I shoot that much through my .357/38's I'm well over $100 (close to $20 per 50 rds). You'll find that shooting a .22 handgun is alot of fun & will teach you how to handle & shoot properly.

Why the hell do we make blanket statements like get yourself a REVOLVER! Blah blah blah. How about, get what interests you and what you'll have a desire to shoot and practice with. I hate revolvers and only own one to teach class with. If that were recommended to be my first gun, I'd probably have quit shooting in a month.

[mike_yorkPA]

mine was a Glock 19