Guns you thought you’d like but didn’t…

[Omaha-BeenGlockin]

Where to start?

M1A---was traded within 2 hours of the first range trip

Any .45 that's not a 1911---M&P 45--Ruger American--USP 45 all gone quickly after firing

Any AK47--from a cheap Romak--to a couple milled Arsenal Inc's---all gone and never looked back---never liked the platform but still like the cartridge--7.62x39

Any Sig pistol--- had a few but, meh--overpriced--don't even bother looking at Sig's anymore

 

[hdwhit]

1) A used Brazilian-made single shot shotgun (forgot the brand) that I bought in 1979. The extractor broke after about the fifth shell. It was going to cost more to fix than the $25, I had paid for it, so I traded it to the gunsmith for a pound of IMR-4227 and a box of bullets.

2) Charter Arms AR-7. At the time, the notion of a rifle that would float if dropped overboard (my parents had a catfish farm, so opportunities for a gun to go into the water were plentiful). I got a couple of years of trouble-free operation, but then it got temperamental an wouldn't fire more than two rounds before it failed to extract.

I have kept that AR-7 despite all its problems because it is part of my marriage. After we were married, my wife returned to her apartment to finish packing. About 2:00 a.m., I get a call from her frantically asking, "How do I put this thing together?", as there was someone trying to get in the back door. As soon as she had it assembled she called out that she was armed and the intruder left.

 

[Terry G]

This is a very interesting thread. Guns I thought of as real losers are well liked and guns I like are portrayed as losers. Glock 17 praised as the second coming I couldn't have disliked more. Glock 21 put down as too big, too much recoil, I like a lot. CZ's portrayed as too heavy, too long of a trigger reach are my absolute favorites. I carry a CZ of some type daily. "Kimber's are the absolute top level guns." Every one I shot and saw shot malfunctioned at some point. Also their ridiculous "Shoot five hundred rounds of self defense ammunition to break it in." Huh?

 

[Snowdog]

I wanted a CZ-52 for a while about 15 years ago, bought one and I hated it. I sold it for nearly twice what I bought it for, so no problems. Two Yugo M57s replace that CZ-52 and I've never looked back.

 

[igotta40]

Cap and ball revolvers.

 

[mljdeckard]

Easy. First generation S&W Sigma. I was a naive young lad who believed everything I read in gun magazines in the early 90s. What a waste of plastic and a 12 lb trigger spring.

 

[Freudianfloyd]

Growing up my dad had a Beretta 84 in .380. I LOVED that gun and would hold it (never shot it) anytime he opened the safe. After I was grown and his was long sold, I wound up getting one in a trade. I quickly learned that I couldn't hit a sheet of plywood with that thing, and wound up selling it. I bought a Beretta 92 later and had the same problem. I guess I just can't shoot Berettas. Haven't owned one since.

 

[Poper]

I thought I would like the Diamondback Sidekick revolver, so I bought one.
Nope.
Anybody else want to try one?

 

[Poper]

Browning Abolt .270…..Absolutely the MOST inaccurate rifle I’ve ever owned.

I'll guess you've never had a Kimber 84M!

I have had several A-Bolts over the years (though not in .270) and never had a bad shooter. .300WSM, .308, '06, .243 Win., .243 WSSM, 6.5 WSSM (CUSTOM)
I wonder if yours might have had a bedding issue?

 

[benEzra]

NAA .22LR mini-revolver, with birdshead grip and 1 1/8” barrel. Mechanically, it was an amazing work of art and craftsmanship. As a range toy, it was great fun. But as a defensive arm, I realized that I was better armed carrying my then-wife’s .25 ACP Raven. The final straw was when I shot a very small poisonous snake with it in our yard using a CCI mini-shotshell, and the snake slithered vigorously away into the grass, probably injured but apparently unfazed. Solids or HPs would have probably been effective, but rudimentary iron sights and a sight radius the length of a credit card made that a difficult proposition against a snake, firing was slow, and reloading required removing the cylinder from the gun.

We were a broke young couple at the time, so I eventually sold it to an FFL and used the proceeds to buy something I could actually shoot. I still think of it as a fine example of the gunmaker’s craft, and I wouldn’t mind having one in my collection again someday, but it just wasn’t very practical for me.

 

[MosinT53Hunter]

Lets see....rather long list...

Chinese 213 is a good start. Reliable 9mm, safety kinda wonky. It fit my small hands perfectly, and pretty accurate. Empty cases constantly hitting my forehead got old REAL fast. So, bye-bye.

FEG PA 63. I have had two of them through the years, first in 9x18 Makarov, second in 380. ACP. Beautiful pistols, very James Bond feel to them, especially the 9x18 Mak I had first. If I had to guess, it was
brand new, never fired. But...then I shot them. Sting on the web of my hand constantly, lots of slide bite...hmm...maybe a reason they were not shot much. Down the road they go.

Colt Officer ACP went the same way as the Glock 30. Too jumpy in my hands, balance felt off.

Have had an AR, AK, SKS, Century Arms C93, lost interest in them all.
Mausers go that way too. Just cannot fathom why I don't like them.

I have kept the Mosin Nagant carbine, the odd ball Spanish Mauser converted to look like an FR-8 in 7.62x39, and the very worn Chinese SKS full of trench art.
Just like odd, unusual, or mechanically interesting guns.

 

[hey smepl this]

Springfield Hellcat. I loved the look and size and feel of it. Perfect for conceal carry. But I couldn’t hit the broad side of a planet at seven yards. Replaced it with a Canik Mete MC9 which I’m pleased with.

Taurus P1911. 1911s don’t excite me much but I felt obligated to have one. And I do like 45ACP a lot. So I got the Taurus bc it looked great and was priced right. It was a great gun. It felt more solid than my buddy’s Kimber. Very reliable—never a single failure. But the fit in my hand was not right. No matter what i did, my trigger fingernail dug into my left thumb or hand. I have long fingers and I think other 1911s would do the same. I don’t think 1911s are for me. I like a little chunkier grip.

 

[defjon]

Ruger LCP Max. I love the concept of a pocket size 10+1 380, but the Max just didn't live up to my expectations.

Me too. Terrible trigger and accuracy. Felt heavier than it should and printed in the pocket for me.

Prefer a gen 1 lcp custom for that role. Better accuracy and profile. Not bad for 8 rounds onboard and fast reloads.

 

[Odd Job]

The biggest disappointment I experienced was two .45ACP De Lisle copies I tried here in London. They were NOT quiet and they were inaccurate. Here is one of them:



This Armalon .44 Mag conversion was disappointing. I was expecting better accuracy:



In the US, I couldn't get on with these guns:


FNS9 - didn't like the grip or the trigger, couldn't make good hits with it.


This Beretta was uncomfortable to hold and fire, and generally felt unpleasant in every aspect, even loading the magazine. It must be in the top 5 of the worst guns I have ever fired.

I didn't like the Marlin Papoose rifle I tried here in London, it just felt cheap and wasn't accurate.

Of the guns I have bought, the one that I regret buying is the SIG522 (now sold). I shoot mainly suppressed and that gun would supply a nasty wisp of smoke at the rear of the receiver right into my face. It was unreliable when firing suppressed in quantity. I had two bolts, seven magazines, spare firing pins and springs and I just seemed to have undue strife with that rifle. Cleaning the bolt was a bind!
In the end I sold it as a parts gun for £90 just to see the back of it. I had some nice days with it, but my overall experience with that gun was one of disappointment.

 

[J-Bar]

Two come to mind.

I have always loved .410 shotguns, ever since my grandfather let me borrow his Winchester 42 to go rabbit and dove hunting. I was deadly with that gun. I have always loved double guns, so I thought the CZ Sharptail .410 would be the perfect combination. It just did not fit me I guess. It went down the road after I broke 3 birds with it in a round of skeet.

You gotta have a 1911, right? So years ago I bought a new in the box Ruger SR1911. Point of impact was far left and high. I asked the owner of the range to shoot it. It hit far left and high. He said, "It's the gun, not you." We compared the sights on mine to one he had for sale in the display case. The front sight on my gun was considerably shorter. I contacted Ruger to get a replacement sight, they said no deal. It's the only time I have been disappointed in Ruger Customer Service. I lost about $50 selling it to a friend after full disclosure. Kinda soured me.

I have two pump .410s (one is Grandpa's old gun) and no 1911 these days. Probably going to stay that way.

 

[tominboise]

I bought a Keltec Sub 2000 in 9mm. The trigger sucked and the ergonomics really sucked for me. I sold it during the pandemic for a profit and bought a Ruger PCC in 9mm. Way better set up.

S&W DA semi autos. I generally shoot them pretty well, but I really can't stand the DA/SA transition (applies to all DA/SA pistols for me). I like SAO, like the 1911 platform, and I like striker fired pistols like Glock and Springfield Armory.

J frame 22 revolvers - The one's I have had have never really shot as well as the K frame 22's. I tried to like them but really couldn't over time. I ended up selling off all my J frames but one, a 640 that I keep in a drawer in my toolbox in the garage.

I have two AR15's which are "OK". I don't really shoot them much as they don't do much for me, but I have them, just in case.

 

[tominboise]

S&W 640 PD (*** was I thinking?)

Matches my experience. Only gun I bought new, shot 5 times and sold off. Was happy to get rid of it.

 

[small town life]

1911 45acp back in '86. If it weren't gravity I wouldn't be able to hit the ground. Getting beyond the ftf and feeling issues (still did it after I gave it away) I tried very hard to like it for 1k rounds. The new owner (Vietnam helo pilot) was more efficient with it and resolved most of the issues. I was used to shooting 44mag, so transitioning into a (need a monthly calendar to clock it) way much slower velocity made me shoot like a nade launcher. 45acp rounds were forgiving when I bought a g21! Very accurate gun!

 

[rsrocket1]

Baretta 92fs. I really wanted one and when I got it, it was like “meh, I could have taken it or left it” it came with customized thin grips which made it more comfortable to hold. I couldn’t imagine being in the military and being forced to be proficient with the stock grips.

Fast forward a decade and with a fee thousand more rounds through it, though not my first choice to shoot. It has become somewhat enjoyable to get comfortable with and is in my rotation of range pistols.

 

[Bronco72]

Never met a gun I did not like BUT have met a few that I did not warm up to

 

[Walkalong]

Single action revolvers, I just can’t learn to love them. I’ve tried

 

[Mac Attack]

1. Back when I was a teen, I talked my dad into buying a Lama .380 1911 style handgun. It was cool as heck but was not comfortable to shoot at all and .380 ACP was expensive.

2. Ever since I saw Quigley Down Under, I wanted a Sharps rifle in 45-70. I found a Pedersoli model 1874 Sharps rifle with a great octogon barrel and all the bells and whistles. I found out that I could only shoot it with black powder rounds. I invested in all the reloading gear including a drop tube, dies and 100 cases. I loved the thought of owning a sharps rifle but BP was a pain to shoot and clean. I ended up trading it for a AR15 National Match rifle that I use for Service rifle matches.

3. I owned a Keltec P32 for years and it was a great pocket carry handgun. I ended up selling the P32 and regretted it for years. I ended up buying a P3AT and it filled the whole from my old P32. But it was a real pain to shoot due t lo trigger slap. It’s one of those guns that you own and carry but shoot just enough to be proficient with it. Not my favorite range gun.

 

[bernie]

I used to be a hard core duck hunter. The Browning A5 is a classic old school duck slayer. I found a Japanese produced 12 gauge A5 with synthetic stocks and choke tubes. I bought it one summer and could not wait for season. Season got here and I carried it the entire season. It was stone cold reliable, but I could not hit a barn if I was inside it! I never could shoot that classic style humpback. It got sold.

 

[MrChicken]

Walther PPK. Wouldn't feed HP's. Left a nasty set of railroad tracks on my hand.

Any 1911 without beaver tail grip safety. Similar to the above just a dimensionally smaller wound.

Bolt or lever guns in most anything besides .22. Got tired of taking a beating a long time ago.

 

[WooD]

Mossberg Shockwave. I bought it new, and it had the roughest action I've ever experienced on a pump gun. Put 20 rounds thru it, and probably cycled it 100's of times thinking it might smooth out. I did completely disassemble it and gave it a good cleaning and oiling too. Took the brace off, and sold it. I was really wanting to like it too. Planned on stamping it as a SBS. Thought about buying the Remington version, but heard they were bad for rusting.

I have 2 old Wingmasters, and a really only Winchester 1200. Those 3 are smooth a silk.

Did I get a bad one or are Mossberg's like that?