Finish this comment..."the handgun I buy has to...."

[skeeter_08]

I'll start;

The handgun I buy has to digest the WalMart Value Pack ball ammunition properly at the range; this is the reason I've always liked Sigs, I had a P228, now I have a P225, and those guns always ran real nice on the 9mm VP ball ammo, and I never had an ammo hiccup on either gun. I have plenty of the 9mm VP, plus a 50 round box of non-VP Winchester and a 50 round box of UMCs that I'm going to run through my new Springer Loaded 9mm this weekend, so we'll see what happens with this one.

I once had a CZ 75B in .40S&W reworked by a pistolsmith, with new Wolff XP recoil & mag springs, because it would stovepipe the 165gr Winchester VP ball ammo on a regular basis, yet it usually ran O.K. on the non-VP 180 gr. Winchester variety. Really good gun once I had it worked over, but the early problems I had with it kind of soured me on .40S&W; I really prefer 9mm and 45acp.

 

[pbearperry]

WORK!

 

[searcher451]

... be reliable, dependable, accurate, fit my hand, contain a potent caliber, have parts available for it ... and have Walther stamped somewhere on its side.

 

[Dr.Rob]

Be dependable. I've bought some budget guns, and I've worn some parts out on high end guns.

That only goes for 'serious' guns. There are some I buy as range toys or collectors. I don't buy a pre-war Colt as an everyday shooter.

 

[gmh1013]

Have external hammer

 

[Anna's Dad]

...not be legal in California.

 

[Caliper_Mi]

Fire an ammunition type that gives a good bang for the buck. ex: I would pick a .44 mag DE over the .50AE model.

 

[dudester]

Work....EVERY time!

 

[The Lone Haranguer]

Shoot every time. There are other considerations, but this is first and paramount.

 

[Flea]

Be accurate, reliable and easy to conceal.

 

[twodawgs]

be made of steel!

 

[oneounceload]

go bang each and every time - anything else is secondary

 

[oldFred]

"be a 1911"

 

[2nd 41]

to be:
Target Quality (except for house/conceal guns)
Be reliable
Well made.
Nice finish.
Has to be Colt, S&W, SA, Sig, Beretta or Browning

 

[Probie9]

...100% everytime.

 

[CapnMac]

Work everytime.

oh, and have an arched mainspring (or similar profile)

 

[waverace]

WORK x2 and keep working without major rebuilding every few hundred rounds .

 

[Headless Thompson Gunner]

...have a good single action trigger pull. Shooting a handgun well is hard enough already. There's no sense in making it even harder with a crummy trigger pull.

 

[PT1911]

shoot what I load and be backed by a good company...

 

[10-Ring]

work everytime & make me look good shooting it

 

[okespe04]

Be the size of a pocket pen, have the accuracy and power to kill an elephant at 200 yards, and whatever it shoots must not be able to penetrate drywall.

 

[CoRoMo]

the handgun I buy has to...

...serve an intended purpose and fill a particular need.
I don't buy safe queens or range-only guns. If it doesn't have a specific roll, I will find myself wondering why I have it. Just my $0.02 FWIW.

 

[Gatofeo]

... include a free weekend at a suite at the Bellagio hotel and casino in Las Vegas, and be hand-delivered by a gorgeous redhead with green eyes and freckles, who has fantasies about fulfilling the dreams of grumpy ol' desert cats.
If I get all that with it, I don't care if it's made of wood and propels marbles!

 

[weisse52]

Has to me something I want, not popular...

 

[L-Frame]

work all the time and feel JUST right in my hand.