Cosmoline
Member
I've owned about 150 firearms over the years, and I'm constantly buying and selling them. Of all those I have and those I wish I still did, here are my personal top ten+1
--CZ 452 Lux. Tack-driver accurate, very well balanced, affordable. The CZ's are built like a scaled-down centerfire Mauser. Unlike nearly all American .22's, there is nothing "toyish" about them, nor are any corners cut. Like the Winchester 94-22 with a scope mount cut made so sharp it sliced my hand open like a razor blade.
--Sig Sauer P225. One of the best-balanced and easy shooting 9x19's I've ever used. It's just a shame Sig won't import them into the US anymore.
--Mossberg 500. My personal mossy has been through life as a squad car backup shotgun, a contractor's bear gun, and finally as my own backup/general purpose gun. If I had to survive with just one firearm, this would be it. It's rusty and beat up and has taken enormous abuse. But it's never failed to cycle, never jammed and always goes "bang." The tang safety is an added bonus.
--SAR-1 AK-47 clone. My own piece of the AK universe, it's taken nearly as much abuse as the Mossy and still shoots every time. Not a tack driver, but impressive none the less. And a viable hunting rifle when loaded with the new 154 grainers.
--Mosin-Nagant 91/30. No it's not as accurate as a Finn, but it's one of the best balanced military firearms ever, and it handles like a carbine in spite of its great length. Plus, it's so wonderfully weird looking.
--Yugoslavian M-48 Mauser. My first C&R rifle, the M-48 has a special place in my heart and is the origin of my screen name. On hot days cosmoline still comes out of my hands from all the scrubbing I did. Not the best balanced Mauser or even the best looking, but an absolute workhorse and well-neigh impossible to destroy.
--Colt Police Positive Special. One of the forgotten gems of American handguns, a PPS used to sit on the hips of countless lawmen across the nation. Now it's unfairly written off as an inferior, outdated design. Mine would shoot quarter-size groups in DA mode at 25 yards, and was probably the nicest DA shooter I've ever used. The pull is odd by modern standards, but once you get the hang of it you see why so many loved the old PPS's back in the day.
--Uberti SAA knockoff. I could never afford the real thing, and if I could I wouldn't want to shoot it. So I was "stuck" with an Italian copy of the old Peacemaker. Just the same it remains one of my all-time favorite handguns. Perfectly balanced, wonderful to shoot, and beautiful to boot.
--FN-49. This one makes me weep, for I sold it in a pinch and I've never seen one so pristine since. The SAFN would shoot moderate 8x57JS at near-MOA, though I did not know at the time just how excellent such performance is from a semi.
--Marlin 336. I owned my Marlin .30/30 back when I was into hard-hitting magnums. So it never really got a fair hearing. But in hindsight I've come to appreciate more and more its excellent balance and the utility of the old thuddy thuddy.
--Savage 99. This is a recent purchase, so to some extent the jury is still out. I picked up a 99E in .308 and early results have been so impressive I'm including it on my list.
--CZ 452 Lux. Tack-driver accurate, very well balanced, affordable. The CZ's are built like a scaled-down centerfire Mauser. Unlike nearly all American .22's, there is nothing "toyish" about them, nor are any corners cut. Like the Winchester 94-22 with a scope mount cut made so sharp it sliced my hand open like a razor blade.
--Sig Sauer P225. One of the best-balanced and easy shooting 9x19's I've ever used. It's just a shame Sig won't import them into the US anymore.
--Mossberg 500. My personal mossy has been through life as a squad car backup shotgun, a contractor's bear gun, and finally as my own backup/general purpose gun. If I had to survive with just one firearm, this would be it. It's rusty and beat up and has taken enormous abuse. But it's never failed to cycle, never jammed and always goes "bang." The tang safety is an added bonus.
--SAR-1 AK-47 clone. My own piece of the AK universe, it's taken nearly as much abuse as the Mossy and still shoots every time. Not a tack driver, but impressive none the less. And a viable hunting rifle when loaded with the new 154 grainers.
--Mosin-Nagant 91/30. No it's not as accurate as a Finn, but it's one of the best balanced military firearms ever, and it handles like a carbine in spite of its great length. Plus, it's so wonderfully weird looking.
--Yugoslavian M-48 Mauser. My first C&R rifle, the M-48 has a special place in my heart and is the origin of my screen name. On hot days cosmoline still comes out of my hands from all the scrubbing I did. Not the best balanced Mauser or even the best looking, but an absolute workhorse and well-neigh impossible to destroy.
--Colt Police Positive Special. One of the forgotten gems of American handguns, a PPS used to sit on the hips of countless lawmen across the nation. Now it's unfairly written off as an inferior, outdated design. Mine would shoot quarter-size groups in DA mode at 25 yards, and was probably the nicest DA shooter I've ever used. The pull is odd by modern standards, but once you get the hang of it you see why so many loved the old PPS's back in the day.
--Uberti SAA knockoff. I could never afford the real thing, and if I could I wouldn't want to shoot it. So I was "stuck" with an Italian copy of the old Peacemaker. Just the same it remains one of my all-time favorite handguns. Perfectly balanced, wonderful to shoot, and beautiful to boot.
--FN-49. This one makes me weep, for I sold it in a pinch and I've never seen one so pristine since. The SAFN would shoot moderate 8x57JS at near-MOA, though I did not know at the time just how excellent such performance is from a semi.
--Marlin 336. I owned my Marlin .30/30 back when I was into hard-hitting magnums. So it never really got a fair hearing. But in hindsight I've come to appreciate more and more its excellent balance and the utility of the old thuddy thuddy.
--Savage 99. This is a recent purchase, so to some extent the jury is still out. I picked up a 99E in .308 and early results have been so impressive I'm including it on my list.
