Dilemna $300 to spend

[Barbara]

Requirements:

Dependable.
New or used.
Autoloader.
Reasonable sized caliber.
Reasonably concealable.

I'll probably give whatever I buy to my oldest when he turns 18 next year.

Suggestions?
(unless the suggestion is to spend more $$..can't do it.)

 

[P95Carry]

Barbara .... within that budget .. you can do much worse than consider a Bersa Thunder in .380 (9x17) ..... or for a bit more power, a tad bigger ..... get a Makarov ... (9x18).

You will be able to get either well within your budget .. concealment is pretty easy .... and both robust and reliable . Do a search on either or both, as we discuss them a lot .. lots of stuff to read.

 

[Atticus]

http://www.ruger-firearms.com/

A new Makarov and a bunch of ammo wouldn't be a bad option either.


Her'e a good site to get an idea of what is out there and approximate prices.

http://www.gunsamerica.com/

 

[Barbara]

Thanks.

This won't be my primary carry gun but its recently seemed like a good idea to have a second one I could use for carry if necessary.

 

[CWatson]

Bersa Thunderer 380.I like the Mak also but it is a little heavy and if I wanted the weight I would get one of the Star M 9mm from SOG for $130.CW

CW

 

[10-Ring]

I was thinking 357 wheelgun up until I got to the semi-auto portion of your post So, for $300, I'd go w/ the Mak and some practice ammot to get acquainted w/ it

 

[berto]

FEG PJK 9 HP High Power clone or Arcus 94 (also a HP clone)
Both 9x19 (or 9mm NATO,Luger,Parabellum,..etc)

Both are based on the world reknown GP-35
Reliable
Accurate
Widespread parts,magazines availible
Good defense round,ammo's cheap
Easy to conceal

 

[Preacherman]

RAP 401 (9mm) or 440 (.40 S&W). Excellent guns, and available in the $250 range. It's a South African-made clone (with some improvements) of the Astra A-75.

 

[rugerfreak]

Current CDNN catalog:

Steyr M9---$277

CZ40---$249

S&W Model 10---$279------A revolver----but still a good option.


All are NIB.

 

[armoredman]

J&G Sales - Star BM, commander sized 1911 style in 9mm, good shape, used, $139.

 

[Tropical Z]

Id second the RAP's,Arcus,and FEG HP clone.I really think the Arcus is the deal of the century right now.See below.
www.aimsurplus.com

 

[XavierBreath]

Bulgarian Makarov. Get two at SOG, and you are still under $300.

 

[Ala Dan]

Hey Barb - Greeting's From The Very Cold Deep South!

Lot's of good suggestion's thus far. The likes of the .380
Bersa Thunder, the Mak, and the larger FEG all look very
appealing. My only experience lies with the little Bersa;
and that experience was a + in this little gem's favor!
They may be the best kept secret among "handguner's"
to come down the pike in a long, long time? I found the
one I tried to be utterly reliable; even using assorted JHP
ammunition. I wouldn't hesitate to recommend one to
anyone seeking my opinion.

Best Wishes,
Ala Dan, N.R.A. Life Member

 

[Jeff Thomas]

If you can go a little north of $300, the Kahr K9 is an excellent concealed carry handgun. I see them for $375 to $400 on gunsamerica.com.

Regards from TX

 

[lee n. field]

About 6 months ago I was presented with the same ammount and roughly the same requirements. I bought the following:

Bulgarian Makarov with cleaning rod and 2 magazines.
2 extra magazines and a mag loader from makarov.com.
A Pearce rubber grip (from a gun shop junk bin for four bucks -- woo hoo!).
500 rounds of blasting/practice ammo from dansammo.com
a surplus ammo box to hold it all in.
And I threw in a spare holster I had. Enough change was left over that I could easily have bought a decent holster from a variety of vendors. There's a lot more people making Mak holsters now than when I got my first in '97.

And now he is _set_. The gun is a known quantity, very reliable, _common_. There should be no parts availibility problems in the future.

The idea was to get properly equipped, which takes a lot more than just buying the gun.