If you could only have one gun, what would it be?

If you could only have one gun, it would be a:

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I love these types of threads. They're always fun to read. :D

I'd grab my 9mm CZ 75B. 9mm is plentiful and could be easy to acquire. Plus ease of carry/concealment if needed.
 
I think I know where you're coming from Warp. It surprised me for a long time how many gun people don't carry. Legal or not really has nothing to do with it for the majority. They just don't think that anything bad will ever happen to them.

Oh sure there are some that would carry if it were legal. But they are in the minority, at least from what I've seen.

It boggles my mind also. But there you are. Nobody thinks it will ever happen to them. And of course the chances are that it won't. To me and you, I think, it's not so much about the odds, but the risks. I'm more willing to go through all the hassels attendant to carrying than to risk what can happen.

To answer your question, I'll take my S&W Shorty 45.


Cat
 
Catshooter said:
I think I know where you're coming from Warp. It surprised me for a long time how many gun people don't carry. Legal or not really has nothing to do with it for the majority. They just don't think that anything bad will ever happen to them.

Oh sure there are some that would carry if it were legal. But they are in the minority, at least from what I've seen.

It boggles my mind also. But there you are. Nobody thinks it will ever happen to them. And of course the chances are that it won't. To me and you, I think, it's not so much about the odds, but the risks. I'm more willing to go through all the hassels attendant to carrying than to risk what can happen.

To answer your question, I'll take my S&W Shorty 45.


Cat
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I've been using this ever since I read it...

Sometimes it isn't the odds, it's the stakes.

But what really gets me is that it isn't a matter of people thinking nothing will ever happen to them, because they are talking about how great a shotgun/rifle is for defense, and about how much more effectively they stop people than a handgun. Apparently a lot of people think they are far more likely to need to defend themselves while in their own home than when away from home. (and then I get tangled up thinking about how you can still use a handgun for defense at home)

It makes an EXCELLENT question to ask people in person, though. At the gun shop, the range, a shooting expo, etc. Once they answer with rifle/shotgun, ask them why they choose to be unarmed. It makes for great conversation. :)
 
Handgun. When you have spent weeks carrying around a rifle, you realize what a PITA it can be. Been carrying a pistol everyday for a couple years. Only time it's been a PITA is when I fell playing basketball with my daughter and bruised my hip/glute. Literal PITA. The convenience of a handgun means it's always there... even while playing basketball at the park.

I'm talking midnight tonight. Not when the US dollar crashes, or SHTF, or home defense, or hunting. In the life I live, right now. I can protect myself or my family in < 2 seconds against people I would otherwise not be capable of defending myself or others against, 24/7.
 
Only own one gun , never going to have only one gun. But depending upon what I m doing I may be only using one gun.
 
I did have only one gun for about ten years. It is a sharps 45-70. If i could only have one gun again that would be it. Not because its tactically superior, necessarily, but because i'm better with it than i am with any other gun i own.
 
A rifle. I trap for fur and small game. Not optimal for selfdefense but can be made to work, but hard to take down elusive game from a distance with a handgun.

I like the TC Contender thought though for sure...
 
One

basis, I say their most common use is carry. I, for example, carry virtually 100% of the time that it is legal to do so (and then some). That's a hell of a lot of use.
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Your definition of use is much broader than mine. Carry is not use in my book. Carrying a saw and using it to cut a board are not the same. I apply that to my firearms....I am using a gun when I am squeezing the trigger. With that understanding, the most likely use of a firearm for most of us is for practice and as a piece of sporting goods.
 
Pete D. said:
Your definition of use is much broader than mine. Carry is not use in my book. Carrying a saw and using it to cut a board are not the same. I apply that to my firearms....I am using a gun when I am squeezing the trigger. With that understanding, the most likely use of a firearm for most of us is for practice and as a piece of sporting goods.
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Good point Pete. I know that from 10/15 - 12/31 I pretty much shoot a gun every day of the week unless I find empty traps. I carry, but other than at the range (Thank God) I never "use" that gun.....
 
This is a "At the stroke of midnight tonight, you will only have the one gun that you select, with no opportunity to acquire another gun in the foreseeable future" question.
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That's easy, i'g grab my Krieghoff and run!

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Why? Because it keeps on working for ALL of my firearm needs, from defence of my home and property to putting food on my table!

standard.jpg

Light, accurate and reliable, it just does it all...

DM
 
I find this post a little confusing as you refer to ONE gun but the body of the post asks whether one can legaly carry a handgun.

Is it one gun or one gun AND a handgun?
 
I would have to go with a fine 12gauge semi auto, an all purpose, home defense, pigeon slayer and shoots slugs too.. This would do it for me.. Of course I couldn't only have one but if this is what's its about then yea a shotty would be for me
 
j1 said:
I find this post a little confusing as you refer to ONE gun but the body of the post asks whether one can legaly carry a handgun.

Is it one gun or one gun AND a handgun?
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I didn't get it either??? :eek:

That's why i took the quote out of his post and went with it!

DM
 
j1 said:
I find this post a little confusing as you refer to ONE gun but the body of the post asks whether one can legaly carry a handgun.

Is it one gun or one gun AND a handgun?
Click to expand...

It's one gun. That's why I asked "if you could only have one gun, what would it be" and said "One gun. Only one gun. That's all you get"
 
Well Warp, I still think it's mostly a case of 'it can't happen to me'.

Many people spend more time away from home than at home. And even at home they are too far from a weapon. The Tueller drill shows how you can get your throat cut faster than one can usually draw from close range. There should be the same sort of drill to show how fast home invasions happen.

Bubba weighs 350 pounds, and he and his crew are really angry at you for having stuff they don't. They've done this before. They can be in most houses in a very few seconds while Joe Sixpack sits there in stunned disbeleif, it's all over but the screaming.

But owning and shooting a fine shotgun/rifle is very comforting when you're sitting in a fantasy world that it won't/can't happen to me. "I'll get 'em with my trust Daisy Red Ryder 200 shot cabine with a compass in the stock."

Thing is, that most it's true, they won't ever need a pistol to keep their wife/husband from being raped in front of them. But how does one know that they are one of the lucky ones? My crystal ball is broke so I rely on a short gun and my skills. Both are always with me.


Cat
 
Catshooter said:
Well Warp, I still think it's mostly a case of 'it can't happen to me'.

Many people spend more time away from home than at home. And even at home they are too far from a weapon. The Tueller drill shows how you can get your throat cut faster than one can usually draw from close range. There should be the same sort of drill to show how fast home invasions happen.

Bubba weighs 350 pounds, and he and his crew are really angry at you for having stuff they don't. They've done this before. They can be in most houses in a very few seconds while Joe Sixpack sits there in stunned disbeleif, it's all over but the screaming.

But owning and shooting a fine shotgun/rifle is very comforting when you're sitting in a fantasy world that it won't/can't happen to me. "I'll get 'em with my trust Daisy Red Ryder 200 shot cabine with a compass in the stock."

Thing is, that most it's true, they won't ever need a pistol to keep their wife/husband from being raped in front of them. But how does one know that they are one of the lucky ones? My crystal ball is broke so I rely on a short gun and my skills. Both are always with me.


Cat
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A bit off topic, but that brings up the fact that, IME, most people don't take the simple steps regarding home defense. I think too many people think having a gun is the be all end all of home defense. An armed homeowner/resident should be the absolute last line of defense, with layers of defense other than that to stop/deter/slow down assailants, while alerting you. Exterior lighting, closed and locked doors and windows, beefed up locks and door jambs, a locally monitored alarm, dogs, proper landscaping, etc.

Personal note: I spend most of my time with the computer on the coffee table in the living room, like so:

20121112_172125_zpsfe058510.gif
 
One gun.... it would have to be a rifle. Probably a 22. If it matters, a handgun would be my second choice... another 22. Third gun would be centerfire carry gun.

Warp said....What always confuses the hell out of me is people who select a rifle or a shotgun for their only gun when one of the reasons (if not the main reason) they own guns is for defense.

I really, really don't understand how, generally when this question comes about, so many people pick a rifle and quote stuff about how handguns are weak and ineffective...but in my mind, defensively speaking, a gun left at home doesn't do jack crap for you.

So I am wondering what % of people that pick a rifle or shotgun cannot legally carry a handgun anyway, as it would THEN make a lot more sense to pick a long gun, IMO
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The dominant reason I own firearms is not self defense. It certainly crosses my mind. I have a concealed carry permit. But when you limit the ultimate choice to one gun, I go with what I shoot the most and have the most fun with. My life doesn't revolve around self defense.

Throw in a scenario or three and my choice may change. It boils down to I won't own only one gun and the whole one-gun question is kind of mute.

I owned more than one gun when I was 15 years old.
 
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It's kinda odd how this question gets fielded. If one were asked "if you could only have one book, which would it be?" and the respondent answers "I'd not have just one, that's silly, I had more books than one when I was one!". odd.
 
I don't find it "odd", but it is interesting how a person thinks. I answered Warp's question, but I added that basically it is unlikely under normal conditions that I would only own a single gun. I don't like a single option.

Now if the question was "What gun would you carry?", the answer would be Warp's handgun preference and then it would be revolver or semi-auto.

I suspect if Warp thought about it, he knew precisely what gun or type of gun I would choose as my "one and only" based on previous banter back and forth. :D
 
Twice in my life, due to finaces, I have been reduced to one gun. Just couldn't afford more. Both times of course it was a handgun. First time a Colt 1911 commercial, the second a Charter Bulldog.

So I don't find the question odd at all.


Cat
 
Catshooter said:
Twice in my life, due to finaces, I have been reduced to one gun. Just couldn't afford more. Both times of course it was a handgun. First time a Colt 1911 commercial, the second a Charter Bulldog.

So I don't find the question odd at all.


Cat
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Financial stress is one potential reason for, at some point, only having one gun. Absolutely.
 
I would choose a handgun if portability was a concern. For example, I worked out of my pickup for three years staying in motels and so forth just about every day. I toted along a single handgun because it was easy to conceal and didn't take up much space. My long guns were stored at my parents at that time. As soon as life settled down, I gathered my firearms and I bought a better revolver (Colt Diamondback 22) which was followed by a Colt Python.

For me it depends a lot on where I live... rural or urban.... rent or own.

So far I have not been reduced to a single gun. Catshooter, your scenario does pose a different line of reasoning for me. I think at this stage of my life, I would also choose a handgun and probably a revolver since I am not likely to be going to the range very often if I only could afford a single firearm.
 
If one had only a single gun, because of finaces, going to the range much is certainly reduced. You're quite correct 22-rimfire. And a revolver does make sense for that. You also loose less brass with one. Need zero magazines too.

Generally a revovler can be a much smaller investment if one cares to set it up that way.


Cat
 
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