One gun?

[10-Ring]

I subscribed to that ideology for a long time. That is why I only had my P7M8 & my Italian 92fs for a very long time. Then I absolutely had to have a 45 & the collection started to grow again
I think if you can commit to the training to master your platforms, you'll be okay

 

[coelacanth]

the concept is valid...

especially if you consider that the "1 gun" may be the 1 handgun 1 rifle 1 shotgun sort of thing that guy with the bagful of golf clubs analogy was getting at. There's a lot to be said for the proficiency a person gains from repeatedly handling, using, and maintaining a single gun of each type.

 

[Run&Shoot]

If I had to it would be a Glock 23, or maybe G30.

However, no one gun is right for every situation, and we like to have fun. However, I do have a rule that I only carry one or two types of pistol on a regular basis, either a Glock or a DAO S&W 642.

And when I go to the range, I always practice the most with my carry pieces, and then rotate around the others for fun, and finish off the session with my carry piece again.

If I were to change my primary carry piece then I would first put in several range sessions to build muscle familiarity. I agree with the concept of the "one gun man" but take it as a principle, not literally.

 

[Shipwreck]

I think it may be easier to consistentaly get better if you stick with one and only gun. But, I couldn't do that. Gun buying is a disease. A disease I tell U!!!!!

 

[Baba Louie]

A nice and novel concept and probably valid back in "the day"... but that was then, this is now... and someone has to keep the firearms mfg industry alive, might as well be me.

Too many guns, too little money and time. Life is so... so unfair.

Even if I could see fit to limit myself to 'A' gun, singular; I'd still want another exact same piece for backup (or two). And, it might be kinda convenient (in a manner of speaking) to only have one caliber of ammunition to buy.

Oh well, maybe in my next lifetime.

 

[Just Jim]

You better ask all the really great shooters like Rob Leatham and McClukick how many guns they have. They are some of the best shot in the world and I doubt they limit themselves to one gun. It isn't how many guns you have it's how hard you practice to be good with what you have.

jim

 

[telkontar]

One gun of a type. I would consider a back-up of the same model to be a "single" gun.

Specialization is for insects, but I won't branch out until I can legitimately claim to be "good" with my .357 (S&W 60). Better to be good with one gun, than to be half-good with 2 guns. (When I've borrowed handguns, there is some carryover, of course, but I want my shooting to be grooved. I do not want to be thinking about mechanics if I'm shooting.)

Of course, my lever gun is also a .357, so I have interchangeability of ammo. I see no need for a 200-yard sniper rifle.

My 16-gauge pump shotgun serves its purposes and the size fits me perfectly. I borrowed a 12-gauge when I ran out of shells last fall (I allowed many pheasant to live!), and I kept trying to pump an automatic. I'll stay to a single gun in each category and try to master it.

 

[logical]

Hard to imagine only having just one because it would mean something horrible had gone wrong with my personal situation or the government...but I suppose it would be a 4" Ruger Security Six.

If I could only have one thread about having only one gun, it would probably be this one.

 

[glassman]

ONLY 1 GUN...RIGHT NOW

The only gun I own is a 4" blued python. I chose it as a range gun because of it's reputation, beauty and simplicity of use (even though it is anything but simple in its workings). I can consistantly put all six rounds inside a 4 inch paper plate at 30 ft. and with practice, I'll get better. That being said, it is not the weapon I'd choose to carry. My thinking is that a concealed weapon should be just that..concealed.. and for me, the python is just not that weapon. I'm still looking and saving for that one. There are so many to choose from on the market that I have to admit I get confused. I'll eventually make my choice based on size, caliber and most importantly reliability. I come here almost every day and read what you all have to say and try to learn as much as I can.

 

[Claude Clay]

well.......

for concelled carry it is a variety of 1911's strong side & a J-frame weak side. But a BUG is no more a second gun than a spare tire is a 5th wheel.

 

[MikePGS]

I'm actually in the process of acquiring my first handgun and am asking myself that very question... which one gun? Eventually i'll buy a few, but initially i want something to carry (for home defense i have a shotgun). So i'm still debating it, but right now I'm thinking 1911. Or Glock 19. Or Springfield.Or Browning HP. Or... you get the picture

 

[Bobo]

I have ONE GUN for ONE PURPOSE - to defend the life and limb of my loved ones.

About two years ago I began to see how dangerous our world had become.

I began researching security options one of which was weapons. I decided on a number of weapon options one of these was firearms. I wanted one firearm that would be the best compromise for my purposes - home defense, and concealed carry 24/7.

My Kel-Tec P-3AT with ArmaLaser fits this role the best for my purposes.

I don't own the gun for fun. To me it is a tool designed for a very serious purpose, and as such, it is a tool with which I intend to gain great proficiency. Yes, it can be fun as well, but that is not why I own it and that is not why I shoot it.

I dry practice with it every day and live practice twice a month. This gun is not a "range" gun. I don't shoot slowly and try to make one hole when I practice. I practice with one goal in mind - to hone my defensive skills.

Would I buy one or more guns in the future? Yes, if I determined a need I wouldn't hesitate, but at this point in time I don't feel I have a need.

I think Colonel Cooper's statement, "Beware the man with one gun, he may know how to use it" fits me quite well.

 

[Confederate]

It's amazing how many people I ask this question, and the answer is: A stainless Ruger Mark II or III automatic. I'd have to agree.

 

[yhtomit]

horses for courses ...

I don't get to shoot as much as I'd like (by a very long shot), but I still enjoy having more than one. I'm glad to have at least one ...

- bolt-action .22 rifle (for small zombies) -- I know that there are some great autoloaders, but a bolt-action is like a stick-shift, a satisfying between-shot ritual. Saves me on ammo vs. a 10/22, too

- revolver -- I don't like the feel of all that many, but my S&W 625 has nice grips and shoots softly.

- shotgun -- now, I need some friends with land near Harrisburg, PA, so I can blast some pumpkins

- autoloading centerfire pistol -- if I could have only one gun, I suppose it's between the XD and the 625; it's good to know after spending most of my life ignorant of it how to load, shoot and clean a pistol.

- autoloading .22 -- a 22/45 is perhaps the most fun gun to shoot of my small collection (though I won't make that claim too strongly -- fun is fun, after all, and I'm fickle), and esp. good for introducing others to shooting in a non-scary, low-recoil way.

When I can afford to add representation in other categories, I'd like at least one in a few more categories, too:

- a concealable "mousegun"; Kel-Tec p11 is highest on my person list for this category right now

- a super-robust AK style rifle (Saiga looks good, from what I've read, but the closest I've fired to such a thing is an SKS) in a NATO caliber

- a nicely accurate AR style rifle in the same caliber

- a 1911 pistol of some variety (Taurus, if that's still the best deal in 18-24 months Otherwise, perhaps Rock Island Armory, or the best deal I can find on a used Springfield Loaded model ... )

- a CZ75 or some similar variant (Witness, etc)

- a Glock, so I can really get used to handling it safely.

- a pistol-caliber carbine (Hi-Point? It's tempting ...)

- a rifle-caliber "pistol" (though I'd hardly call it that) like the PLR16 from Kel-Tec

Partly it's that like beautiful cars, stereo equipment, and other such things, there's an inherent appeal to the hardware, partly it's that I have to assume (despite some happy changes in CCW and other isolated pockets of the law) that guns will always get scarcer rather than the other way, and partly it's that growing up in a no-guns household only honed my itch to make up for it

However, there's also that some things are hard to learn other than by doing, at least for my non-intuitive self. Since I have a few pistols, and have learned to break them down for cleaning, I now understand the mechanisms for doing so better by extrapolating from a few than I would have been able to do from one one. I know that some people say they'd rather not (for instance) switch basic gun type because they've become so skilled / used to the location of a 1911's safety, or otherwise wedded to a carrying style, and I'm not knocking that idea. I'd just rather be familiar with many kinds, even if it means I won't be quite as much of a gun-human cyborg-lichen.

(Also, I'd rather open-carry the 625 when I live someplace that's feasible, but still be comfortable with the hypothetical P11 such that I could carry that one concealed when appropriate.)

timothy

 

[ArchAngelCD]

If I could only own 1 gun I would choose to have my 2.75" Ruger Police Service-Six. (.357 Magnum) Too bad Ruger and S&W won't put out a mid-size Magnum like the Service/Speed/Security-Six and the K frames. IMO, the Service-Six or the Model 19 Snub are the perfect carry revolvers.

There may be better choices but I doubt it and I have to go with what I know.

 

[happy old sailor]

one gun?? how could one possibly do that. i like the bag of golf clubs analogy. i started out with a BB rifle when i was 5 and i still have it along with many other guns i have "had to have" over the years. most are dear to me, thats why i bought them. one gun, im not smart enough to figure that out. ok, ok, im weak, but, as happy as if i had good sense

 

[Damien45]

Wow, what a tough question. I started with a S&W 686 4"....LOVED that gun. Then I have owned 2 SIG 229 .40sw's, 2 Kimber 1911's, 1 SIG P22940 .40sw. That is just the handguns. I have owned 2 AR-15's, a Savage Tactical .223, Yugo Mauser M98, and an Enfield .308.

Now, starting over, I am getting a SA XD .40sw Service Model. With plans to ad a Mossberg M500 or 590, Savage Tactical .308 (or .223 again), another AR-15 (once I move out of PRC) and another 1911 .45ACP.

Yeah, no one gun here....but I will shoot all equally with the understanding that any one may be the one needed.

 

[tackleberi]

I like the theory and try to accomodate it as best I can, although I've only gotten this far, and can't go any further:

-1911 Gov't (Wilson, backed up by Colt 1991A1)
-Seecamp (32 and 380; I carry the 32)
-M1 Garand

The Seecamp is the all-the-time gun; even when I carry my 1911, my Seecamp is in my pocket. I carry the 1911 whenever I can, although my job precludes this at times. Even though the .32 caliber might raise some eyebrows, I can put all 7 COM, and I'll have the gun when it's needed.

I settled on the 1911 as my preferred platform due to the widespread availability of parts and accessories and my personal comfort working with the design. When I originally began my quest to liquidate the arsenal in my one-gun quest, I was hoping to base it on my other favorite gun, the HK P7. The first time I had to find a replacement part, however, I decided that if I was going to do the one gun thing, the gun had to be servicable now and in the future without days spent online/on the phone looking for parts. Although the short list came down to Glock and 1911, the 1911 won out based on my personal shooting comfort with the 1911 design.

The Garand is necessary because every American needs a good rifle.

The only fly in the ointment is this beautiful 1974 Colt Detective Special, (factory hammer shroud and 2 sets of factory grips) that I can't put out to pasture just yet.

Now, if I could just keep the 1911's from reproducing in the safe (I just found a 9mm Commander that will be coming home with me next week). , but that' s a different thread.

 

[DawgFvr]

I hate these "either/or" threads...but, after thinking it through. If, tomorrow, all my weapons were destroyed or stolen...and I had to immediately replace them....I would: purchase a S&W 642 and a M1 Garand. Yup...I guess I could live with that for awhile.

 

[ezypikns]

I own a dozen handguns.

Semi autos and revolvers. Lately though I find myself reloading for and shooting only one of them, a S&W blue steel 5" 1911. It just shoots so well. I've been putting 150 to 200 rds through it every week for the last 6 months. It is 100% reliable and so accurate.
I do have another problem though. I want another pistol badly (Hi Power), but just can't justify owning and shooting another one when I love this one so much.

Sad. And weird.

 

[Cosmoline]

Back in the "good" old days, a lot of gun owners had only one gun because that's all they could ever hope to afford. Some of my grand uncles were in that category, but I wouldn't have considered any of them particularly good shots.

 

[Tbu61]

One gun???? What kind of crazy talk is this

I have quite a few, it took YEARS to get them all.... The one that I hold dearest to my heart... Colt Python, even though I heard they are not very popular... lol

 

[L-Frame]

Pretty easy for me. My S&W 681 PC. 3" barrel with a front night sight, 7 shots. Powerful, easy the shoot, very accurate,would work as a duty gun, and it's my CCW gun. Does everything I need with no compromises whatsoever.

 

[the lone gunman]

Really ,if I could only have one gun for all purposes. I would have to go with my 1894 marlin 44 mag lever action.

 

[Mark8252]

One Gun

My one gun would be a shotgun. Home defense, hunt, trap and skeet....all with one gun.

Actually I have 3 gun safes full of various firearms.

.