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Dumb favorite pistols!

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I believe I have 2 favorite handguns. I don't consider either of them dumb though. They would be my Ruger SR 1911. The 1911 ergonomics are just wonderful. The other would be my old Dan Wesson model 15-2. I like it because I like the trigger & think it is a really neat & interesting design. It doesn't hurt that it is also my most accurate handgun. My only regret about it is that I only have a 4" barrel. From time to time I get a jones for a 6" barrel & shroud but somehow never quite seem to get one.
 
NIGHTLORD40K

Astra A600. Tiny sights, stout recoil (its a blowback 9mm), heavy springs, rattles when you shake it, terrible trigger, awkward grip angle.....ugly?
I actually traded this in to the LGS for an FR8 carbine. Was a good trade, not sorry bout it. But when the Astra was still sitting there three months later, I felt sorry for it and bought it back. Only gun Ive ever sold and bought again!
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Okay seeing as how I owned an Astra Model 600 years ago and absolutely hated shooting it with that straight blowback action; the fact that you later "felt sorry for it" and bought it back makes this the winner of dumb favorite pistols!

chicharrones

The dumbest favorite I have is my Ruger Single Six. The 9.5" barrel is long and unwieldy. The original grip was too small for such a muzzle heavy gun, so I put on a big grip that adds leverage and weight. My vision has degraded so I put on optics, currently a 2x scope that adds even more weight. I prefer to shoot .22 WMR out of it as I like the idea of the muzzle velocity the 9.5" barrel can attain.

The thing snowballed into a 52 ounce beast of a rimfire handgun. :eek:

What makes it dumb is, I haven't hunted in 2 decades, I bought it well after I quit hunting, and I don't shoot silhouette either. I could have bought a short barrel Single Six as a .22LR plinker, but Nooooooooo. I had to go all in with a huge and heavy rimfire revolver that I happen to like very, very much.
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This is the unofficial runner-up to NIGHTLORD40K's Astra Model 600!
 
Instead of a dumb favorite pistol I would substitute impractical and nominate my Baby Browning for consideration. I have always been attracted to miniature size guns, like the Baby Browning, Astra Cub, and Beretta Model 950; not so much for their practical application but more for their being essentially real but downsized handguns. Never going to be my first, second, third, fourth, (and so on), choice for a CCW, I'm still fascinated by their sheer size, their "mouse gun" caliber, and quite simply how someone managed to get something that small to work.

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bannockburn said:
NIGHTLORD40K



Okay seeing as how I owned an Astra Model 600 years ago and absolutely hated shooting it with that straight blowback action; the fact that you later "felt sorry for it" and bought it back makes this the winner of dumb favorite pistols!

chicharrones



This is the unofficial runner-up to NIGHTLORD40K's Astra Model 600!
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You know, I don't find shooting the Astra too bad with 115gr FMJ (once you get used to the grip angle). In its defense, its never jammed on me, the workmanship and bluing are quite nice, and it does get plenty of attention at the range!;)
 
My favorite (and only) "dumb gun" is an old black powder kit gun I found in the garbage when I was 18. All complete except for the ramrod. Sanded and stained er up, assembled it a week later and still after years, fire it every once in awhile. Makes me smile. My young boy calls it my "pirate gun".
 
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JONWILL said:
MedWheeler mentioned the Taurus PT series. I have pimped out version. 25 auto black with gold controls and fake pearl grips with gold sparkles in them
Patton would have given me a Section 8 discharge for owning that one:rofl:
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If you ever read David Drakes' "Hammers Slammers" books (highly recommend if you like military sci-fi), Colonel Hammer's adjutant/bodyguard carries a "pimped out" pistol with gold and pearl grips.
Nobody, and I mean NOBODY, messes with him. :)
 
My candidate for this category would have to be my Bersa Firestorm .22 I bought a few years ago.


Not the most accurate or even most super-reliable .22 I own, although it does fairly well on both counts. But it has a look that I have always been fond of and is a lot of fun to shoot. I have a number of other .22 handguns that will generally get the call over this gun for one reason or another, but I don't plan on getting rid of my Firestorm anytime soon. YMMV.
 
my bobcat is very accurate. Beercans at 40 yards anyway. It IS hard to shoot though.
 
bannockburn writes:

Instead of a dumb favorite pistol I would substitute impractical and nominate my Baby Browning for consideration. I have always been attracted to miniature size guns, like the Baby Browning, Astra Cub, and Beretta Model 950; not so much for their practical application but more for their being essentially real but downsized handguns. Never going to be my first, second, third, fourth, (and so on), choice for a CCW, I'm still fascinated by their sheer size, their "mouse gun" caliber, and quite simply how someone managed to get something that small to work.
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Yep. That's pretty much how I think of them. I also have a bit of a fascination for the histories of the circumstances that brought such tiny guns to market. Another impractical piece I didn't mention earlier that I own is my Bauer .25 auto.
 
I don't have any oddball stuff.
With my budget, I concentrate on things that I really enjoy that are useful. Not that being fun isn't a good use of a firearm. I certainly understand that.

I admit I would like to have a Desert Eagle .50 AE though. Big heavy thing isn't good for much, but I have fired one and found it to be a lot of fun. Maybe one day I'll pick one up.
 
Arkansas Paul

I admit I would like to have a Desert Eagle .50 AE though. Big heavy thing isn't good for much, but I have fired one and found it to be a lot of fun. Maybe one day I'll pick one up.
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A friend of mine had a Desert Eagle in .44 magnum and that hand cannon was simply a hoot to shoot!
 
NIGHTLORD40K

You know, I don't find shooting the Astra too bad with 115gr FMJ (once you get used to the grip angle). In its defense, its never jammed on me, the workmanship and bluing are quite nice, and it does get plenty of attention at the range!
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Oh for sure I will give you that it was well made, had a decent matte blue finish, and was very reliable. But I always had to save it for last because after fifty rounds the web of my hand hurt so much I was done with shooting for the day!
 
bannockburn said:
Instead of a dumb favorite pistol I would substitute impractical and nominate my Baby Browning for consideration. I have always been attracted to miniature size guns, like the Baby Browning, Astra Cub, and Beretta Model 950; not so much for their practical application but more for their being essentially real but downsized handguns. Never going to be my first, second, third, fourth, (and so on), choice for a CCW, I'm still fascinated by their sheer size, their "mouse gun" caliber, and quite simply how someone managed to get something that small to work.

View attachment 773029
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That little pistola is too pretty to be dumb. ;)
 
Like a few others here the Beretta 950 .25. I paid less than $100 for it NIB almost 40 years ago. It has taken up residence on the second shelf of my safe for many many years. When I was younger, and before I could afford anything else, I use to place it behind my wallet in my back pocket. Illegal as heck back then and, as I reflect, incredibly stupid. I have a couple of carry rigs for it but it rarely sees daylight and I shoot it about once a year. I'll never sell it.
 
Well, way back when, it was my dad's .22LR Luger.
He found rounds that worked well with it, but with anything else, it could be finicky. The whole thing was just another note on why I enjoy German crafstmanship, but am simultaneously impressed and infuriated by German engineering.

Mine, before I had to sell it?
A S&W 586. An amazing gun, solid, good size, loud when I wanted it to be, and the trigger was heavy.
Only dumb in my case because I'm not in a position to keep guns long when they're too small to hunt with (like I'll ever actually manage that) and too big to carry.
And on my 130-pound self, that thing was a big solid bulk.
But I'd gladly buy it again if I could afford pure range toys.
 
NIGHTLORD40K said:
JONWILL said:
Patton would have given me a Section 8 discharge for owning that one:rofl:
Click to expand...

If you ever read David Drakes' "Hammers Slammers" books (highly recommend if you like military sci-fi), Colonel Hammer's adjutant/bodyguard carries a "pimped out" pistol with gold and pearl grips.
Nobody, and I mean NOBODY, messes with him. :)
Click to expand...

Well, yeah, but he'd have gotten a Section 8 from Patton, too, and not because of the gun he carried.

Anyway, back on topic: My favorite isn't dumb (various flavors of 1911), but I do have a couple of favorites among the dumb ones...

1. Remington R51 Gen 2: This gun came so close to not being dumb. The mechanical design is a marvel, like the Model 51 before it; if Remington had put even a little effort into QC, it would have been an amazing carry piece. When it works, it's the nicest-shooting 9mm I've ever fired. I'm still tinkering with it, hoping to get it up to my standards for reliability because I'd love to be able to carry it, but as it came from the factory, it's not quite there (it's still jamming upon loading the first round about five percent of the time).

2. AMT Automag III: I consider this one dumb simply because I can't imagine a single use case where it makes sense to design and build this gun, but for sheer unadulterated "WTH...? OK, this is awesome"-ness, it's hard to beat blasting .30 carbine rounds out of a 6" 1911, and that's why I love it.
 
I haven't hunted in a long time. All of my shooting is either paper targets at the range, or plinking at my BiL's property. So my 7.5" Super Blackhawk 44 magnum is probably a bit excessive. I really like it and it's fun to shoot, but I really don't need a four pound chunk of metal and a big stout cartridge to punch holes in paper or cans. It's my favorite handgun.
 
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