Does every gun you own have a reason to justify its purchase?

Does every gun you own have a reason to justify its purchase?

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Yeaaa, it's called "I wanted them"...

DM

DM~ said:

Yeaaa, it's called "I wanted them"...

DM

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^* this

To each his own.
We live in America.
You have the right to own as many or as few as you want. It's your God given right. No justification necessary.

Ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha, ha... No.

Wait -- it's December 1, not April 1.

Hokkmike said:

I am not rich enough to have guns just to have guns.

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Not rich by any means, but have enough disposable income for guns that "don't have a reason to justify its (their) purchase." People who know me, know that I don't do anything in "minimalist" fashion. Life is short. Not saying do anything to excess, but don't deprive yourself of things and activities that are fun and meaningful to you and family.

Hokkmike said:

some people like to collect on a theme - say WWII rifles, or Winchesters. Others have some guns that are family heirlooms and have sentimental value.

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All of the above.

My first dozen or so I managed to justify with some sort of self defense/SHTF/or hunting rationale... after that, my rationale was just that I wanted it. Lol

Nope, I want one, research it if need be and buy it. Advertising sold me my past tx22 then comp slide, more mags, etc etc.

DM~ said:

Yeaaa, it's called "I wanted them"...

DM

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I have only one gun "I need", it's my carry gun. All the rest are for fun. My 9mm derringer, probably would be good for shooting vermin if they were within 10ft, my 357 Bisley could hit sometime much further away, but I could do the same with a DA. I'll probably get my wife a 22lr revolver since she doesn't want to carry her 9mm anymore (too heavy and recoil).

If it brings you joy keep it. If not move it on.

WB

Yes I bought every gun I own for a reason and a purpose. Some will not get used for a while and most hopefully will never actually be needed. But they are ready for action.

I never thought I'd own a dedicated range gun but I'm glad I got one. A police trade in Glock 17 that I almost never clean. Literally 2000 rounds between cleaning saves me time and it's identical to my carry gun so no holster change needed for range trips. So in this case, I have multiples of one type of gun.

When I was younger I was a prolific gun trader. Perused all the local gun and pawn shops looking for deals. I often bought guns I didn't think I'd like just to give them a try or because the price was right. Some I ended up liking and keeping. Others I'd keep a while then sell or trade for something else. Since I was buying used guns I was usually able to get most, if not all of my money back. And even made a small profit a few times. I could never afford to keep them all, but still have too many.

I have 2 kids and always found a way to hang onto at least 2 similar guns to give to them. My kids are grown now and they each got a Smith revolver, a 1911, a Marlin 336, a Remington 870, a Glock, and a Ruger 10/22 when they bought their own home and were no longer renting. Many of the others have been sold and the money used to upgrade to better optics etc. or put in the bank.

Most of what I have left is what I actually use and is there for a specific reason. I rarely buy something anymore. At this point I've figured out what I like and what works best for me. When I get too old to actually use the hunting rifles and shotguns they will be given away to the grand kids. A couple of SD guns will stay till I die then the kids can sort that out.

DM~ said:

Yeaaa, it's called "I wanted them"...

DM

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What he said...

Yes, they are tools, and they are designed to do a certain job, but if I'm being honest, half of mine fall into that aforementioned "I wanted them" class.
Like my wife does with something pretty she likes, I can normally find some reason to justify the purchase if I try hard enough...
If I could afford all the guns I wanted, I'd have a really big collection, not just the few I have, and I wouldn't keep trading, or selling one, to get another.

I pretty much only get what I have a use for. I looked through the cabinet the other day and I have 2 deer rifles, now at 79 I don't use the Remington 760 '06
much anymore but I do still hunt pheasants so the old '06 may have to turn into a lite 20 gauge that an old man can carry. Grew up a poor country boy and managed tp stay that way, not a lot of money for toys.

Guns aren’t that expensive. I know people that have car collections and each of the cars is worth more than all my guns. I could go buy a new $50,000 car and make a $1,000 per month payment or just save that most of that money and buy a few guns per year. In 10 years the car will be about worthless and the guns will at least hold their value. Different people have different priorities….

Yes, but I have more than one that suits that particular purpose each one has. There are times I pick up guns that need a little TLC for cheap, work on them, then have given to my kids. There are guns that are for a particular purpose that I've always wanted, and now am better able to afford, so I bought them. Do I need 4 Trap guns? No. But they are all guns I've been lucky enough to have shot in the past, and now am able to own. I have two pheasant guns, and the 1100 competition and 870TB could fill those roles also. (The 1100 has, and quite well, except for being heavy.)

For many years after getting out of the Army, I stayed away from AR's (minus the XM177E2 clone I built right after I got out-another gun I wanted and at that time, scraped together the $ to build it) but my son bought one, and traded it to me for a couple guns he wanted, and I found out I kinda missed having one. I started building them (with pre-assembled uppers, they are even easier than building one from a pile of parts, not that I can't do that) and now have a couple.

I got into collecting milsurps, mostly Mosin Nagants, when a co-worker showed me an ad for M38's for $69 and asked if they'd be a good hunting rifle. I had only seen pre-import bringbacks before then, so I went down there to look, and ended up buying one. I loved them, but because of the safety, and knowing this guy, advised him not to get one, and to get a Savage Axis instead. Went on a "I have to have every variant" phase, which turned into an "enough to arm the neighborhood" phase. I've trimmed them down to a few, and the most beautiful Turkish Mauser I've ever seen. (The Turks do have the best walnut in the world.) I tenuously justify them as "Well, I have hunted with them...." but they are mainly fun range guns, and start a lot of conversations, and smiles, when I let people who ask about them shoot them.

The Cobray/Leinad SxS .45/.410 pistol I have is the one that really doesn't have much of a purpose; I bought it from a friend who needed the money. It sits hidden near the front door as a "get off me" gun, in case I'm not carrying at the moment. It pops open when shot with .410's (2 1/2" only) and full strength .45 Colt loads. I loaded some way down to shoot at the range, and have one of those as the first shot, and a factory PDX .410 as the second.

The single shot .22 I learned on has no purpose right now, since #1 son broke the stock; it hangs in the rafters waiting for a grandchild to be born-I plan on stocking it again before time for them to learn on it as my Dad, uncle, both of my sons, and I have. I also have a nice piece of walnut in the rafters for it.

Guns are tools, true, but guns are also works of art. They have inherent beauty. I love to line up my guns(unloaded) on the couch and just look at them. I get a lot of pleasure just looking at them.

This be 'Murica...

As much as we call gunz toolz, they really be toyz...

A reason to justify?

Yep, I seen it and I "justified" to myself why I needed at.

Mine generally do. I am just coldly pragmatic like that.

My weakest reasoning is “fun range toy” and my strongest is “I use it for hunting.” No “it was a good deal” or “I can sell this for more than I bought it for” but those can be good reasons for others.

I don’t think anyone needs a reason to buy a gun other than any reason they would use to buy socks, a car, a toothbrush, or knitting needles.

I need a reason though that is at the very least justifiable in my own head using my own cold logic.

All purchases have an underlying reason. This applies to all items, not just firearms. But since the discussion specifically mentions arms, I will limit to that field.

I buy firearms for a number of reasons (much like earlthegoat2 ; immediately prior). However some firearms I buy are for collections and some others might argue I don't have a 'real reason' for having them.
Much like Jay Leno's car collection, I have several for general use and the others because they appeal to me in one way or another. For instance, I have a collection of .32 ACP/7.65mm semiautomatic pistols having little Earthly good except for being part of history. Those arms have a reason for my wanting them.
That someone else doesn't have the same reason is not germane.

I'm a sucker for a "good deal" that falls in my general interest areas. So I'll occasionally jump on a used firearm that I know I could sell for more than what I paid, if it is something I am otherwise interested in; I don't buy a bargain just because it's a bargain. It's the bargain, though, rather than a need, that motivates the purchase. For example, I have no practical need for a Remington 7615 Police, but I couldn't pass up the deal I found on one in a walnut stock. At the nutty prices they are selling for these days, I know I'll have no trouble moving it when I lose interest. It definitely fits within my general interest in rifles.

Hokkmike said:

Does every gun you own have a reason to justify its purchase?

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This question being asked on "enabling" gun forum ...

I am sure we can "somehow" find ways to justify our purchases including, "This one FOLLOWED ME HOME" and "Gun was feeling LONELY in the safe" to "Guns in the safe must had BABIES".

During previous shortage almost 10 years ago, I told my wife I was building 9mm PCCs to "save money" over shooting AR at almost 22LR prices.

During current shortage, I told my wife I bought 10/22 and T/CR22 along with Advantage Arms Glock slide kit to save money by shooting 22LR I had on hand while conserving centerfire reloading components. That's my story and I am sticking to it.

Justification to buy a new firearm? Not really, I don’t typically buy many firearms, actually I probably could sell some them off because I on’t shoot them very often but I fell victim to a mass media Black Friday Sales campaign. I bought a Savage Axis XP just because. It was on a whim. My only saving grace is that I don’t already own a rifle in 6.5 Creedmore and that is what this savage is chambered in.

thunderbyrd said:

Guns are tools, true, but guns are also works of art. They have inherent beauty. I love to line up my guns(unloaded) on the couch and just look at them. I get a lot of pleasure just looking at them.

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You and I must be twins that were separated at birth. I do the same thing.