First time gun buyer experiences

[c45man]

Any one have any experiences with their first time gun purchasing experience?
Any mistakes that you learned from, any regrets, or even thankfullness that the correct choice was made.
The first few firearms I purchased, I was not in the company of anyone that knew firearms. As a result, miscalculations were made and I landed up with either pure junk, or firearms that were not as good as others I could of bought. I have learned a lot in the 45 years of buying, horse trading, and selling, but still not anywhere close to an expert. Too many new models and makes that causes constant changes in the gun buying landscape.

[e7ats]

I just purchased my first firearm not to long again and love it.

First what my wife and I did was join a shooting range with different type of guns you can rent. We went to Freedom Armory, South of York,PA. We went through several trips trying out different guns we liked or didn't like. Once settled on a gun we liked we bought one just like it. It also helped reading on this forum about different guns and what others thought about them. The guys behind the counter where very helpful about operations of the guns as well.

[c45man]

Your lucky e7. There was no internet, just gun magazines that spoke highly of every gun made, weather or not it was the truth. Indoor ranges were rare and I knew of none that rented guns.

[DonM55]

Bought my 1st rifle in 1964. Being left handed it was impossible to find left handed and they cost more. Quickly ruled out all bolt action rifles.

I bought a lever action so right/left handed didn't come into play. Bought a Winchester because it ejected spent rounds out the top vs Marlin which ejected out the side or past my face.

It's so much easier today with all the info available as well as finding a gun to handle and even shoot before buying.

[mpan72]

I don't have any regrets about any of my gun purchases. My first was a Jennings .22. I paid $150 forit. It was all I could afford as a new father. I just felt the overwhelming need to perotect my new family as best I could so I bought it and praticed with it as much as I could.
My second gun was a much better gun and only $25 more than the Jennings. It was a S&W model 10. Buy this time I knew a lot more about guns and just kept looking untill I found a great gun at a great price.
I had to learn as much as I could on my own because none of my family or friends were gun people.
I only own seven guns but I think I have the basics covered and I continue to learn more about them all the time.

[mpan72]

I just purchased my first firearm not to long again and love it.

First what my wife and I did was join a shooting range with different type of guns you can rent. We went to Freedom Armory, South of York,PA. We went through several trips trying out different guns we liked or didn't like. Once settled on a gun we liked we bought one just like it. It also helped reading on this forum about different guns and what others thought about them. The guys behind the counter where very helpful about operations of the guns as well.

That is what my wife and I are going to do as she has finally decided she wants to learn how to use a gun and get her own. I will help her as best I can but won't point her toward any one gun or even gun type. We will also take a couple classes together.

Your lucky e7. There was no internet, just gun magazines that spoke highly of every gun made, weather or not it was the truth. Indoor ranges were rare and I knew of none that rented guns.

When I first got the bug there was an internet but I did not know what it was because I could barely afford to pay attention let alone buy a computer. I was able to wrangle up all the mags about a month after they hit the stands and I also found them to be a little biased. What I would do was talk to the other shooters at the range and find out what they were shooting.I would see how there guns functioned and ask questions. I learned a lot that way.

[LifeInPa]

When I bought my first rifle an M&P 15-22 I had a good experience with Gander Mountain (Dickson City) the older gentlemen was friendly and knowledgeable, got a good price of $480 when it was first released. The 15-22 had teething issues since it was an early model and I had to send it back twice. In fact it's back at S&W now getting an upgraded recoil spring so I can feed standard velocity ammo but otherwise I love it.

Buying my first pistol an M&P 9 this past October wasn't so good. Tried a bunch of local dealers and got a shitty attitude from them and the prices sucked. I bought one online for $489 and had it FFL'ed to a small hunting shop/Deli around me who had decent customer service. What I learned? Do a lot of research and ask a lot of questions. I am buying an AR-15 next month so I did a lot of asking around on this website and got into talking with someone that sells them. He's a bit of a drive but he's friendly and I hear good things.

Remember firearms are an expensive purchase so get some knowledge before buying.

[GeneralWashington]

I bought my first gun not long ago, a few weeks actually. I wanted a small CC gun that was still comfortable to hold and reliable and after a lot of research I ended up getting a Bersa Thunder 380. I'm very happy with it, although when I got it I probably didn't do everything I should have (i.e. rack the slide, ect...) but as it was new it was not much of an issue. The guy was friendly enough.

I'm just glad I did a lot of research first as God knows what I would have bought without doing it.

[paulpa21]

I try to buy a gun for a purpose. I found that when you try to buy one that will be good for concealed carry and target and this and that it falls short somewhere and you start looking for another one that will be better at one thing or the other. So purchase something that does a great job at what you are looking for most.

[Got Ammo?]

My only regret is that I didn't buy one years sooner. For years I wanted to get a pistol, but I worried too much about getting the right one. The other thing that made it difficult was that I wanted "something different" than the Beretta M9 I was used to shooting in the Army, mainly because I wanted to experience something new. Well, there's a lot of different stuff out there...

I bought mine at the first gun show I ever went to. I really liked being able to pick up a lot of different guns without being bothered by some idiot gun shop guy. It was a little overwhelming though because I realized that I was interested in a lot of them, and there were other variables I hadn't considered, like night sights and compact vs. full size models. Once I decided that this would be my first pistol and not my only pistol, it made it a lot easier. I got a super deal on a S&W M&P 9mm and couldn't be happier.