Found this somewhere else....makes some pretty good sense from a quick read of it:
The Ultimate "newbie" gun purchase guide
Let me start by saying that odds are some people will get upset with me because I'm going to come out and say-for all practical purposes, and in most cases, it's useless to ask anyone "what is the best gun to buy/get?" Why? It's all opinion and preference based. There is only one right answer but there are many
wrong answers. (Before you “jump” on at me for this statement…keep reading.)
This primarily applies to those looking to purchase looking to purchase their first gun. This does not apply if you've already done your research and you are asking for opinions on specific information to help finalize your purchase.
One final note, most of the info below are referencing hand guns, but can be applied to rifles as well.
You may be a connoisseur of hand guns, but have never owned nor fired a rifle before. The below will also work in this case.
So if asking the question is basically pointless, what's the point of this post? To try to explain the process of actually making a good and wise decision on which gun to purchase.
How am I going to do this you ask? Before I answer that, let me explain why I said there are many wrong answers. I have seen the basic question a lot on pages/forums like this - "I want to purchase a hand gun [or rifle or shotgun], which should I get?" While the intent of the question is a good one and it's good to ask for advice, without any form of information on you or the purpose for the purchase, the forthcoming answers are basically useless and you will likely only get responses based on what the responder owns - everyone is partial to their firearm. In addition, without knowing something about you, no one can give you a proper reply.
What do I mean "knowing something about you"? Quite simple:
- male/female
- body type and size
- to some degree your physical/strength ability
- to some degree age
- budget
- open carry, conceal carry, bag/purse carry
- purpose of purchase (large or small game hunting, land or air based hunting, self defense, home defense, defense on the go, multi-purpose use, etc)
While these may not appear to be game changers, they are. The answers to these will determine if the
poster gets a good reply/guidance or just “useless” information. You see:
- I may be able to carry and use a .357 Magnum, but my sister (1 foot shorter, and 1/2 my body weight) may be lucky if she can fire a 9mm and may need a .22.
- The gun you can carry on your waistband without issue, may cause your friend to need to wear a belt AND suspenders because it's just too heavy for him to carry on his waist.
- The gun my friend conceal carries may be too big for my coworker and it's obvious he is carrying a gun.
- The gun I can fire 5 successive rounds with one hand and get within a 3" ring, may be a gun that puts you on your butt due to recoil, or is likely no longer pointed toward the target but pointed toward others and you are at risk of shooting them.
So knowing something about you and your intent will help provide better answers. I'm not going to
recommend a .357 to someone who is petite and never fired a gun before. I’m not going to say they can't fire such a gun, but without having fired a gun before, you don’t know what they can or can’t handle. You don’t know if starting off with a more powerful round will put them and/or others in danger. Nor am I going to recommend a $1,000 gun to someone with a budget of $300.
In regards to the "there is only one 'right' answer", the right answer is a gun you
- can afford to buy
- will carry and
- can control and use
It doesn't matter if the gun recommended by 100% percent of the responders is a good or great gun IF it's too heavy to carry or the caliber/recoil is too powerful for you to control. Any gun that you can't buy, carry, control or use is the WRONG gun, no matter what anyone else may say.
So how do you get the gun for you?
You need to get some hands on experience. And to do this, you need to get off the internet/off the couch/out of the house and go visit family, friends and/or gun stores/ranges. Go to where the guns are and fondle several guns for a while (l hear the guns like that).
See if a friend, family member, or coworker will take you to a range with them and fire their gun(s). See if there is a gun store with a range near you that will let you rent or shoot some of the guns they have in the shop. This would allow you to fire a few guns and different calibers; which will help you narrow down the options. At worst, if this is your first gun and you've never shot before, by firing a couple different calibers you can see how your body reacts to the difference between them. You may find for you that a .45 is just right, or it could be just a bit too powerful.
When looking for a gun, keep the following in mind. It should:
- fit your hand
- be comfortable to hold
- The magazine should easily be inserted and ejected without your hand getting in the way
- be a weight you can wear, for HOURS ON END!!!
- be a size for your body type
- have ammo you can easily find or scavenge in the area you live (or around it)
When I was serious about purchasing a gun, I went to a several different gun stores and fondled a
variety of guns. I had previously fired different calibers so I had an idea of what I liked…and more importantly…what I did NOT like. In the end I chose the one I have because:
- It fit my hand. I was able to get a good grip on the gun. I could snugly wrap my hands around it and it felt secure in my hands no matter what I did with my hand. It wasn't loose, nor was I struggling to get my hands/fingers around the grip.
- It was comfortable to hold. No pinching of fingers or flesh of my palm, all of my fingers were on the grip. I could hold it out in a firing position for a couple minutes without it feeling awkward or heavy.
- It was easy to insert and remove the magazines. Some of the guns I tried had shorter grips and my pinky or even half of my ring finger would be below the grip. This caused issues with the insertion or ejection of a magazine. I had to loosen my hold on the gun so as to allow the grip and magazine to separate from my fingers and palm so I could insert or eject the magazine. If I didn't, the flesh of my palm and/or 1 or more fingers would either get pinched between the magazine and the grip and thus it would not be fully inserted; or it would not eject because my fingers or palm was holding the magazine in place. The final issue was that after I loosened my grip the gun was no longer secure in my hand. It felt like it was ready to fall to the ground, and this also would allow a possible attacker to more easily knock it out of my hand.
- I was fortunate where I was allowed to put some of the guns in my pants pocket (minus anything else to prevent scratched/damage) to loosely simulate carrying it in a holster and to walk around a couple stores like I was carrying for a few minutes. I know a few minutes is not like 12 hours, but it gave me an idea of the weight. You can tell pretty quickly if a gun is going to be heavy after a few minutes.
- The hand gun I have is on the larger size for a hand gun, but then again, I'm a larger guy and have large hands. I know I picked a good gun because people rarely ask me if I'm carrying (as I conceal carry). There have been a few occasions where, because I moved just the right way, and a friend or family member was looking at me just the right way, they saw the gun imprint on my shirt or the bottom part of my holster (l normally carry outside the waist band - OWB) and discretely asked if I was carrying. When I said yes, they asked how long, and I said X number of years, and they said they never noticed, even though we spent much time together over that time. So my gun fits my body type well and, evidently, it's not easy for someone to determine I'm carrying just by looking at me. Thus for me, mine is ideal for concealed carry.
- In regards to ammo, I chose a gun that uses 9mm. Not that its better or the best (nor the worst), but because odds are I can go just about anywhere in the world and find 9mm ammo in any sporting goods store, gun store, many department stores (Wal-Mart anyone) and probably just about any house that has hand guns in it.
I love my gun (it's an HK if you want to know) and would recommend the brand to any who ask. But as to what specific gun to get, that is all based on you and you alone. Everyone has an opinion on makes, models, and calibers; and what works for me may not for you because you may be of a body type a lot different than me and thus the model, or even the make, may not be the best fit for you.
So feel free to ask for generic information on the purchase of a gun or the pros and cons of different makes or even models. Sure get some guidance. Learn about different guns and their capabilities. But when it comes to the actual purchase, the only right answer is the gun you will buy, carry and can properly use and control. Any other gun, no matter how many recommendations, how long it's been around or anything else is the wrong gun for you.
A couple final suggestions:
1) KNOW THE LAWS OF YOUR CITY/TOWN/VILLAGE/COUNTY/STATE/AREA - basically WHEREVER you carry that gun. The "l didn't know about..." defense is NOT going to save you. Some US states have laws that say if there is a no guns sign on a business window/door and you walk in with a gun (open carry or concealed carry) you are committing a felony with fines and jail time. In other states, the no gun signs ultimately mean nothing and nothing can be done to you, unless you fail to leave when asked (trespassing charge in some places).
Some places have what's called "castle doctrine" -the ability to defend your property. Other places
don’t. This means you may not be able to shoot anyone stealing your property (car, tv, cat, etc) and
if you do, you'll be arrested, jailed and charged with a crime.
And if you get arrested you face having your guns removed until the charges are dropped or you are cleared; or forever if you are convicted. All because you didn't know the laws of where you live.
2) When you purchase a gun, you should have a way of locking it up. This is both for your protection and those within your home. Many people leave guns loaded within their home and accidents can happen. It also helps to protect you if your home gets robbed. Having your guns in a good safe that isn't easily carried off can help ensure your guns aren't used in future crimes; and could allow you to not have to purchase new ones.
3) Training. If you can, get professional training on the basics of gun ownership, use and maintenance. It's neat to fire off some rounds with family and friends, but sometimes they have incorrect information on a gun use and maintenance. They may never have seen your gun so care and use is possibly a bit different. Also, professional training can be used to help you if you ever shoot someone and are taken to court. Being able to show the court that you had professional training, and you were taught how to use your gun can be one thing to help keep you out of jail should have to defend yourself (of course, this is all based on the circumstances of the incident).
4) Buy gun insurance. Not for your gun but for you. Why do you need gun insurance? Questions: Do you have auto insurance? Home/renters insurance? Life insurance? Health/medical insurance? Why? If you've never been in an auto accident, why buy auto insurance? If you are alive, why buy life insurance? If you don't get sick, why buy health/medical insurance? Oh, just in case it needed, you say. To help offset bills or to give you some SS back, you say? Interesting. But you say you don't need gun insurance. Hm. Many people think they don't need gun insurance because they'll never fire a shot unless they are defending their life. Well, if you haven't noticed, we are in a sue everyone for anything society. Criminals are suing gun owners for being shot while injuring or robbing the gun owner. Criminal's families are suing for the "wrongful" death of their kid (it doesn't matter that their kid was performing a criminal act). Though you may win your case, it will likely cost you thousands of dollars.
And here is the other thing to consider - lf you get arrested, do you have 10% of your bail in cash or other equity lying around (that's the typical bond payment to get out of jail)? What if your bail is $1 million, do you have $100k in a bank? But I'll put up my home as collateral you say. Not if your home doesn't have the bond amount in equity or value (home value S75 -that doesn't cover the S100k for bond and if you still have a mortgage or second mortgage, that value is even less).
Some companies will pay everything for you with no out of pocket expense on your behalf. Paying $5OO/yr for 20 yrs ($10k) for gun insurance will sure seem trivial if you need to pay S100k just to get out of jail, and not counting lawyer fees, court costs and whatever else is needed to defend yourself or pay out.
One more thing - your home owners insurance, in almost all cases (but be sure to check anyway) will NOT cover you if you fire your gun. lt may help to purchase a new gun if yours is stolen or damaged due to fire or tornado or whatever, but not in a civil or criminal court case.
Owning a gun is great, welcome to the family. But it's a HUGE responsibility. There is a lot more at stake than just having one around in case it's needed. And while some would like to think a STHF scenario will mean lawlessness, and it may...for a time; odds are it won't and firing off that gun to "defend" your property or gear or food may come back to haunt you.
As with everything we post – Do what you will. If you have questions about the law regarding guns, ask a
gun law lawyer. A normal lawyer may not know the intricacies of gun law and you could get incorrect information.
Be safe and enjoy.
