What Is Your Absolute Favorite Handgun and Why?

Status
Not open for further replies.
FO Sight Small.jpg
My favorite handgun is my Smith & Wesson Model 617 .22 caliber revolver. I can't remember how long it's been in my inventory but it's the one gun I've kept for at least 20 years.

I like the feel and the fact that ammo is relatively cheap for it. I've got a stockpile of 50K rounds from before the pandemic and a few thousand more after so I'm good for ammo for a couple of years.

The trigger pull is the smoothest I can get it at this time. It's Double Action is right at 7.5 pounds and will pop even CCI Mini Mags with no troubles.

Single Action is a rediculous 1.5 pounds. It has an Apex Tactical Mass Drive Hammer. One of the first ones available and given to me by Scott and Randy, the owners.

I had to sell all my guns recently because I was moving into assisted living and they didn't allow guns. I hung onto the 617 until the last minute and we decided not to move.

I like the 10 shot capacity and I use DS-10 Speed Loaders for it when I shoot Steel Challenge Matches.
 
Jeff olson said:
My favorite would have to be this 19-2. It was my dad's. And according to him it was owned by a prominent Hollywood actor, but I can't confirm it. But it's not the one I'd keep if i could only keep one. View attachment 1076404 View attachment 1076405 View attachment 1076406
Click to expand...
Wow Jeff, best pics youve posted yet of that amazing 19!
If anything, I am more convinced than ever that it is silver plated.
In any event, it is a stunning gun. :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

I can only narrow it down to 2.
Sentimental favorite-
IMG_20200309_222608_9.jpg
And practical favorite-
a995.jpg
I wouldn't feel underguned with either if it were my only, but thank goodness I dont have to choose!
 
AzShooter1 said:
View attachment 1076402
My favorite handgun is my Smith & Wesson Model 617 .22 caliber revolver. I can't remember how long it's been in my inventory but it's the one gun I've kept for at least 20 years.

I like the feel and the fact that ammo is relatively cheap for it. I've got a stockpile of 50K rounds from before the pandemic and a few thousand more after so I'm good for ammo for a couple of years.

The trigger pull is the smoothest I can get it at this time. It's Double Action is right at 7.5 pounds and will pop even CCI Mini Mags with no troubles.

Single Action is a rediculous 1.5 pounds. It has an Apex Tactical Mass Drive Hammer. One of the first ones available and given to me by Scott and Randy, the owners.

I had to sell all my guns recently because I was moving into assisted living and they didn't allow guns. I hung onto the 617 until the last minute and we decided not to move.

I like the 10 shot capacity and I use DS-10 Speed Loaders for it when I shoot Steel Challenge Matches.
Click to expand...

617 is a great gun. I went out late last year to try to find one but literally couldn't find one locally or on Gunbroker. But my local dealer had a brand new Smith Model 17 in stock so I bought that instead. I love it,
it's a beautiful gun but having ten rounds is more fun than six so I will still eventually hunt down a 617. I hope you can stay out of assisted living and keep shooting AzShooter! I have a friend in Az who has
been prodding me to try Steel Challenge, I never have and I'm not that great of a pistol shot but it looks like a blast!

Thanks for sharing your story and picture.
 
Old_Grouch said:
My favorite is a Smith & Wesson Model 15. Purely sentimental as that's the model of gun that I was first trained with, qualified with, competed with, and carried daily.
It's not the one I'd keep if I could have only one. I'd keep either my Model 63 2" (.22 LR J frame), or my Model 360 (.357 mag J frame).
Click to expand...

More revolver fans here!
 
NIGHTLORD40K said:
Wow Jeff, best pics youve posted yet of that amazing 19!
If anything, I am more convinced than ever that it is silver plated.
In any event, it is a stunning gun. :thumbup::thumbup::thumbup:

I can only narrow it down to 2.
Sentimental favorite-
View attachment 1076434
And practical favorite-
View attachment 1076435
I wouldn't feel underguned with either if it were my only, but thank goodness I dont have to choose!
Click to expand...

Not a P7 fan here at all just based upon a friend let me shoot his and I found it awkward, heavy and uncomfortable, I think that gun has only gained cult status because of a Christmas movie.
But I will say those grips make that the nicest looking P7 I've ever seen. Good investment you have there.

Your 686 is beautiful. Such a classy looking revolver.
 
I'm struck by the amount of Revolver Love evident in this thread. I personally don't really have a "favorite" handgun and I'm thinking that maybe it's because my guns are mostly Glocks or Glock wannabes. (But I do dearly love my Marlin bolt action .22.. )
 
Last edited:
upptick said:
I'm struck by the amount of Revolver Love evident in this thread. I personally don't really have a "favorite" handgun (but do dearly love my Marlin bolt action .22 rifle), and I'm thinking that maybe it's because my guns are mostly Glocks or Glock wannabes....
Click to expand...
Yeah revolvers to me are works of art. I have some plastic fantastics but they are just not the same.
Anyways i thought this thread was about guns one currently owns. Not a pie in the sky gun in someone's dreams.
 
Capybara said:
Not a P7 fan here at all just based upon a friend let me shoot his and I found it awkward, heavy and uncomfortable, I think that gun has only gained cult status because of a Christmas movie.
But I will say those grips make that the nicest looking P7 I've ever seen. Good investment you have there.

Your 686 is beautiful. Such a classy looking revolver.
Click to expand...
Is it possible you shot one of the double stack P7s? They ARE crazy heavy and bulky- I find the single stack P7 to be quite svelte, though the squeeze cocker is still off-putting to some for sure.
The grips are Nills and I got lucky that they came with the gun in addition to the factory black plastic panels.:)
 
My absolute favorite handgun was one that I no longer own, my Glock 26 Gen 5. Second favorite was my Gen 4 that preceded it. Between the two of them, I had many thousands of rounds without ever a single failure, and dead-on balls accurate. Unfortunately, arthritis in my shooting hand finally got to the point where I could barely rack the slide, and disassembling it for cleaning took several minutes of frustration. So now it's gone, and I miss it.

G26.5.jpg
 
For me, its my 4” L Frame 686+ .357 Magnum.

AEFDA54A-3D82-4757-BFEF-31B518268D60.jpeg 4381024E-063A-4B2F-9867-90BB0AC7E446.jpeg 1C3E4D3D-4C2A-4920-9E80-CF9F6FF54E0D.jpeg

I chose it over my more versatile Dan Wesson 15-2 pistol pack only because I carried the S&W as a duty gun for over six months in 2003 after hurting my thumb. (I couldn't put enough pressure to release the slide lock, decock or push in the magazine release on my SIG P-228, but I could push a S&W cylinder release.) Getting the ok to carry it, and qualifying with it, got me out of the drudgery of desk work, plus seeing a revolver bring toted in a drop-swivel holster got some atta-boy’s from the senior cops I ran into and some “DAAAAMNS!” from the junior gangsters in town.

E8B281F9-30B2-4694-8C6F-4D2A6644D8F4.jpeg

The 15-2 with the 5 barrels I have can certainly do more, but after all I went through with the Smith that gun means more to me.

Stay safe.
 
Riomouse911 said:
For me, its my 4” L Frame 686+ .357 Magnum.

View attachment 1076526 View attachment 1076527 View attachment 1076528

I chose it over my more versatile Dan Wesson 15-2 pistol pack only because I carried the S&W as a duty gun for over six months in 2003 after hurting my thumb. (I couldn't put enough pressure to release the slide lock, decock or push in the magazine release on my SIG P-228, but I could push a S&W cylinder release.) Getting the ok to carry it, and qualifying with it, got me out of the drudgery of desk work, plus seeing a revolver bring toted in a drop-swivel holster got some atta-boy’s from the senior cops I ran into and some “DAAAAMNS!” from the junior gangsters in town.

View attachment 1076529

The 15-2 with the 5 barrels I have can certainly do more, but after all I went through with the Smith that gun means more to me.

Stay safe.
Click to expand...

Ha, ha, awesome story of revolver carry.
 
NIGHTLORD40K said:
Is it possible you shot one of the double stack P7s? They ARE crazy heavy and bulky- I find the single stack P7 to be quite svelte, though the squeeze cocker is still off-putting to some for sure.
The grips are Nills and I got lucky that they came with the gun in addition to the factory black plastic panels.:)
Click to expand...

I think it was a stock 8 round P7, thats the normal one right? Yes, I did find the squeeze cocker to be weird and awkward too. Some H&K guns I really like but an equal number I find to be rather clunky and dorky. I am definitely not an H&K fanboy,
to me they are the same as most other brands, some winners and some losers. Those grips elevate your P7 way up cosmetically.
 
Pistolay said:
My absolute favorite handgun was one that I no longer own, my Glock 26 Gen 5. Second favorite was my Gen 4 that preceded it. Between the two of them, I had many thousands of rounds without ever a single failure, and dead-on balls accurate. Unfortunately, arthritis in my shooting hand finally got to the point where I could barely rack the slide, and disassembling it for cleaning took several minutes of frustration. So now it's gone, and I miss it.

View attachment 1076530
Click to expand...

So what can you shoot now with the Arthritis?
 
Since handguns were all designed to shoot, and I look at them as tools (mostly) it would be my Glock 19C (compensated) gen 3. Mods are trijicon sights and a bronze ceracoated slide. It lives in my nightstand with a TLR light/laser attached. Everyone knows what a G19 looks like, so I won't bore you with a photo. I can use this handgun for HD, range fun, and CCW. I could carry it for CCW, but its Florida, so a S&W shield 9 is easier to use for me, given that "summer wear" is pretty much year-round wear most of the time. The only area where it may come up a little short is in power as a hunting sidearm, where I generally use a beat up G23. But since the most dangerous critter I am likely to come up against is a wild pig (unless there is a massive escape from the local zoo), I feel 15 9mm hollow points are up to the task, in the event I can't just scare the thing away. FWIW, I have found pigs not as hard to kill as people generally think, and herds of them generally scatter at the sound of the first shot when I am hunting them (with a 223 AR).
 
Status
Not open for further replies.

Similar threads

B
  • Locked
  • Poll
What's your overall favorite brand of handgun?
2 3 4 5
Replies
107
Views
5K
PistolNewbie
P
Tallball
  • Locked
Your Favorite Handgun Acquisition of 2021
2 3 4 5
Replies
115
Views
6K
wiscoaster
W
K
  • Locked
What is your favorite bargain price handgun?
2 3 4
Replies
92
Views
5K
Cactus Jack Arizona
C
C
  • Locked
What are your favorite inexpensive handguns
2 3 4
Replies
80
Views
5K
bullet8542
B
B
  • Locked
What is your favorite handgun (choose one) and why did you choose it?
2 3 4
Replies
90
Views
4K
telewinz
T
Back
Top