Another help me decide thread...Pistol or Rifle???

[itgoesboom]

Forgive me for asking this in General discussion, but it doesn't fit soley in either rifles or handguns sections. So here goes....

My wife has decided that i need to spend more time on a hobby, and since she knows i love shooting, she is encouraging me to do it more often. Ofcourse, finaces are the reason why i don't shoot more often, so we agreed that i can get a .22lr for my birthday in a couple weeks, since it will be cheap to shoot, and will get me out of the house when i am not working and give me a way of destressing. Plus every household needs a .22

My first thought was to get a .22 pistol so that i can practice more often and get better with my carry pistol. Also, i belong to a pistol range, so it would make plenty of sense.

But then i thought that it might be even more fun to purchase a .22 rifle. I can still use it at the same range (although i probably won't be renewing my membership), and out in the forests that are so abundant up here.

I currently have a CCW pistol (bersa .380), a shotgun, and an SKS.

So i am pretty torn as to what i should pick. Rifle for 25-50 yard plinking, or pistol for close range practice.

Any help will be appreciated.

I.G.B.

 

[Shooter 2.5]

The rifle may be fun but the pistol will help you with your carry pistol. A friend and I regularly shoot clay birds on a dirt bank with pistols from 65 yards away so it can teach you to reach out and touch something.

 

[Mastrogiacomo]

I'd go with the pistol too. Get the rifle another time when money's not so tight -- you might want it in another caliber then. For now, I think the pistol gives you more options.

 

[Standing Wolf]

Pistols are much more challenging to shoot well, as far as I'm concerned.

 

[Mastrogiacomo]

I always love a challenge...

 

[HankB]

My wife has decided that i need to spend more time on a hobby, and since she knows i love shooting, she is encouraging me to do it more often.

Does she have a like-minded sister who's single?

Seriously, I'd suggest buying a good quality pistol of some sort.

 

[Mastrogiacomo]

The Beretta compact type M is a nice gun...and maybe the wife will join you shooting? I have two and plenty of Winchester value pack ammo in stock..makes a fun range gun and great home defense firearm.

 

[Preacherman]

Depends on your budget. A decent .22 rifle can be had for about $100 (Marlin at Wal-Mart): a better one for less than $200. A good .22 handgun will probably cost in the $250-$400 range.

If you need the handgun practice, by all means look at a .22 handgun: if you don't shoot very much with a long gun, by all means look at the rifle. It's all a matter of what fits your needs best.

 

[itgoesboom]

Thanks for the advice guys.

I should have clarified a few points;

1. Finances were bad, but they are pretty good right now, so even if i didn't make this purchase, i will be able to shoot more often, since my wife proposed a monthly "ammo budget" that is a couple times larger than what i am used to.

2. I currently get to shoot my pistol more often than my rifle, but that can change month by month.

3. Whatever i get will mainly be used as a method of being able to relax, since this is really my only relaxing hobby.

4. I will be getting my Ruger back from the FBI by the end of the summer, after the guy who stole it goes to trial.

5. Hank, yes, my wife does have a single, like minded sister, but i doubt she would want to live in Texas


Thanks for all the tips though guys. I am horrible at making these decision, which is why i have to come here for help all the time.

I.G.B.

 

[blades67]

I think the rifle would be the better choice for relaxation.

 

[CB900F]

IGB;

Me, I'd get a Ruger 10/22 & never look back. Why? 'Cause you can do more with it than just about any single other .22. If you want to make it look like a German WWII MG42 machine gun? Can do. Down the road if you want to make a tack-dirvin' squirrel-poppin walking gun, no problemo.
More accessory parts for this than you can believe, unless you have your own Brownell's catalogue already.

All with the same basic gun that you bought one time. If you want to get into the gun & learn all about it, this is the one to do it with. After all, if you really boob it up, you're only out $165.00. Not so cheap with a 1911 or Buckmark.

Go gopher shooting with it. That's now my favorite shooting sport. I'm told that there are plenty of the little buggers in Oregon, though I'm not sure exactly where. Come to Montana, we've got enough & some left over.

900F

 

[Cosmoline]

CZ 452 Lux with iron sights. You will NEVER regret it! It's absolutely accurate out to 100 meters and beyond, and there's a ton of great .22 LR ammo that gets an extra boost out of the rifle. I can knock down iron targets at 100 yards with mine and some high-velocity rounds. You will feel like European nobility shooting it, I kid you not.

 

[telomerase]

UFO evidence

>My wife has decided that i need to spend more time on a hobby, and since she knows i love shooting, she is encouraging me to do it more often.

Well, it's hard for us to advise you until you specify the conditions on your home planet. Can you see far enough through the methane to make use of the rifle's extra range? What is the surface gravity, etc.? Frankly I'm surprised a race capable of interstellar flight hasn't advanced to beam devices of some kind. BTW, can you trade us some of your wife-improvement technology, or does that violate your Prime Directive?

 

[hansolo]

Evidence of UFO's/Advanced race

I don't know about evidence of an Alien race, as all they seem to want to do is abduct Humans and probe their Po-Po's, but this post proves evidence of someone with a funny sense of humor......LMAO!

P.S. My cousin had a Honda CB 900 about 20 years ago...you ride one of these? It was the first motorcycle I took to over 120 mph...and the last

P.S.S. I buy all my ammo with cash...if my Wife finds out I'll get the "Bobbitt" treatment.

 

[10-Ring]

I went a long time w/ just 22 handguns before I bought my first 2 rifle, so I'm suggesting pistol. At some point, you will have both

 

[itgoesboom]

Well, it's hard for us to advise you until you specify the conditions on your home planet. Can you see far enough through the methane to make use of the rifle's extra range? What is the surface gravity, etc.? Frankly I'm surprised a race capable of interstellar flight hasn't advanced to beam devices of some kind. BTW, can you trade us some of your wife-improvement technology, or does that violate your Prime Directive?

LMAO

I was just about as suprised as you guys are about her encouraging me to shoot more often, cuz its always been a little difficult to get her to agree to me purchasing ammo, or getting a range membership, or when i decided that i NEEDED a new rifle....ect ect ect. Especially since she does all the finances. But, she just wants me to be able to have a hobby that is purely fun, no stress (like my other hobby, which i am trying to make my career). So I am not going to argue with her about it, and i will just be happy that she is encouraging me to shoot more often, and isn't arguing about me getting another firearm (although she says, yet again, that this is the last one ). I think i am even more stoked with the monthly ammo budget than the new firearm, cuz now i can shoot much more often.

I.G.B.

 

[buttrap]

well I still recall buying a unissued rem 1903A3 for 150 bucks and the wife said "what another 30-06? you already have 4 30-06 guns". She was a accounting major so is pretty good with numbers......