New to pistols

[Draxton Smitz]

I'm going to try out the new Heritage range in Easton in a few days. They rent pistols and will provide help operating but my question is what to start with. I'm a "big bang" kind if guy but would it be more wise if me to tent something small to start or is there not too much difference?

I plan on going for an hour or 2 to get my feet wet before throwing down the money to take a course with them. I have plenty of shotgun and some rifle experience but am completely new to pistols.

So... Advice?

[razorback17]

I highly advise starting with a .22 LR pistol so you can learn technique without risking development of a flinch.

Big bangs are great, I think there's some kind of theory about a big bang floating around somewhere , but if you develop a flinch while shooting handguns it can be very hard to unlearn in the future. If you work your way up from the small calibers you will be able to handle the larger ones better when you get to them.

I'd recommend starting with a .22, then move up to practicing with a .32 or .380, then 9mm, etc. Build your way up.

[normanvin]

If you are new to handguns you should start out with a smaller caliber. Starting with a big boomer could start you off with some bad habits. Flinching would be one for example.

[Grizz2720]

I highly advise starting with a .22 LR pistol so you can learn technique without risking development of a flinch.

Big bangs are great, I think there's some kind of theory about a big bang floating around somewhere , but if you develop a flinch while shooting handguns it can be very hard to unlearn in the future. If you work your way up from the small calibers you will be able to handle the larger ones better when you get to them.

I'd recommend starting with a .22, then move up to practicing with a .32 or .380, then 9mm, etc. Build your way up.

First post nailed it. Start small and work up.

[pitt45GAP]

ditto on the above, shoot some 22LR pistols, it will allow you to focus on technique and not be distracted by the recoil and boom of the service calibers. Once you have good technique, then apply said technique to the other calibers and you will shoot better.

Source: Me
I started with a .45 GAP (don't get me started) - and the recoil had me developing a tendency to anticipate and push the gun down and to the left. I had to work very hard to concentrate on a surprise break, to get rid of that flinch.

[Raystown]

Get yourself a lil 22 handgun ... .. fun to shoot and CHEAP .. You can shoot it all day ...

[harold63]

A 9mm would be fine if you are already shooting shotguns, but are you shooting the SG's without jerking the trigger? No forgiveness with a pistol like a SG. A little jerk of the trigger and you can still hit a clay, but with a pistol, even the slightest jerk will show up on your target, or for all intents and purposes, not show up on it at all. Squeezing the trigger is a state of mind as much as it is practice. I would start with at least a full size 9mm, not one of those nose bleed pocket 9's. You will be disappointed with a .22, quickly, if you shoot SG's as much as you say.

[dgg9]

I highly advise starting with a .22 LR pistol so you can learn technique without risking development of a flinch.

Too true! One of my first guns was a Glock 27 -- set me back months with a flinching habit.

A strategic way to go is to get a gun that's plausible for self defense or CCW, but which also has a .22LR conversion kit. Glock has one; so does the 1911 platform, and I'm sure there are more.

Then again, it's semi-unlikely your first-ever service caliber gun will be the one you settle on. So that's an argument to be made for getting a standalone .22. The best "first gun" strategy is hotly debated. My personal 2 cents is not go higher caliber than .38/9mm for first gun.

[FNG19]

I highly advise starting with a .22 LR pistol so you can learn technique without risking development of a flinch.

Great advice. Besides, 22LR is cheap as hell to shoot, so you'll get much more range time for the same money as a more expensive caliber. It's a great way to build skills and experience while removing any of the complications that come with larger calibers. And, it's also instructive after you've built experience with larger calibers to go back to your 22LR and see what bad habits you've developed. The paper doesn't lie.

[dgg9]

And, it's also instructive after you've built experience with larger calibers to go back to your 22LR and see what bad habits you've developed. The paper doesn't lie.

This is also great advice. The thing is, unless you shoot all the time, even a veteran shooter can develop shooting pathologies like flinching. And it's hard to shoot your way out of a shooting problem, when recoil is in the equation. Sometimes you have to go all the way back to dot targets with the .22 to get back in the groove.