If you started your gun journey over...

Skribs

Skribs

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Something I was thinking recently, is that I might have picked a different gun for my first gun, if I had to start over again. I might, and I might not. My first gun was a full-size .40 S&W handgun. Since then, I've preferred 9 over .40, but I also have smaller (.380) and bigger (.45). If I could, I might start over with a 9. Or I might get a .40 again. Or I might start over with a 9, but also eventually get another .40.

What about you? What was your first gun? Why was it your first gun? Looking back on what you got then, and what you could have gotten instead, would you have made the same choice? Why, or why not?
 
JohnKSa said:
I don't know that I would have changed WHAT I bought as much as how much I bought. I would have bought a lot fewer guns and spent what I saved on ammo, range and entry fees.
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Agreed
I would not have changed my first handgun either. Beautiful 1985 model 686 with a 6" barrel. The change would be I would still have it.
I also would not have jumped into Contenders as deeply as I did.
Sometimes, less is more.
 
Im not sure what my first gun was, as a kid I had a Remington 788 in 243 and a 410 in my room. I can’t remember which was the first I purchased for myself, a pistol of some sort.

I would also have a lot more revolvers and less semi auto pistols.
I would have more 22’s.
I would have bought my Beretta 391 much earlier.
I would have spent more money on a good hunting scope earlier.
 
I don't think I would do too much different. Still have the first gun I bought , Model 94 30-30. But I would have talked or traded my grandad out of some of the first guns I ever shot that ended up going to uncles who didn't give a rip.
One thing I would do different is save some of the money I spent on girls, cars, and other frivolous stuff like computers and spent that on guns that I wanted and never bought.
 
My first gun was my Beretta 92FS that I bought in 1997. I love it, and still have it. However, I carried it concealed in all weather conditions for years before buying something smaller. I could have avoided all that suffering (especially in summer months) if I had gotten a compact pistol.

Being a broke college kid, it took me years before I could afford a second pistol. In my infinite wisdom, I bought a full-size H&K USP .40. Not a whole not easier to conceal, but at least it was a lot lighter. Finally, I got a Sig P239 in .40 which became my daily carry pistol. So if I had to go back and do it again, I'd probably start with a compact Sig or H&K USP.
 
My first functioning firearm was a little .25 acp Baby Colt clone that I found in a discarded couch in front of the house that I had just moved into in Southern Oregon.
Dad took it and sold it just before he and I hitch-hiked to his mother's house in Los Angeles.
I had just turned six years old.
It was another twelve years before I actually bought a firearm, although a number of guns passed through my hands during that time.
Dad sort of absorbed those guns and turned them into cigarettes and coffee money.
This sort of led me to snag what guns passed my way and then quietly stash them away.
I still do that to this day... .
 
My dad bought my first rifle in 1968. A Model 94 30-30. About a year later I bought a Mossburg 185 bolt action shotgun from a neighbor for $25.00. I still have both and would never think about selling. Lots of guns came and went during the last 50+ years.
 
The first real gun (not a BB gun) that I shot and hunted with was my Dad's Remington 121 (which I still have, and somehow it's in outstanding condition despite me and my 3 brothers all taking it out a lot as kids). My first gun of my own was a Revelation .410 bolt action. I don't recall exactly how I ended up with that gun, but I know it was bought new from Western Auto, and I believe it was for Christmas. I soon found out that I liked my friends' breach-loading shotguns much better than a bolt action, so that was my first gun-related lesson about educating myself before buying, instead of after. I can't recall what I traded the bolt-action for a couple years later, but it might have been my first .22 LR rifle, my used 1966 model 10/22.

What I'd do differently: If I knew then what I know now after owning and shooting hundreds of different guns, I would have bought a certain four guns much earlier in life:
- Browning International Medalist (or an FN 150, which is the same gun)
- CZ 75-based handguns (or the 97 if I prefered .45 ACP)
- A heavy-barreled .22 LR target gun (first choice would probably be the Winchester 52, close second the BRNO Model 4)
- A BRNO or CZ .22 LR Sporter (either a BRNO Model 2 or 5, or a CZ 452 American, Lux, or FS)

The above is what I'd change to increase the enjoyment I've gotten from the hobby. Basically, I'd just discover my favorite guns earlier in life. Otherwise I'd be fine to repeat what I've done so far, particularly with regard to shotguns and centerfire rifles.
 
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First gun was a Ruger P89 because it was both cheap and available. It’s a fine gun and for a first gun? Sure I’d buy it again.

In general if I was starting over? I’d get a Glock 19, Sig 365xl and a semi or full custom 1911 and save myself a lot of money.
 
I agree with @JohnKSa and @Armored farmer. Overall, fewer of more select quality, and start reloading to get the maximum potential out of them.

That said, my first personally owned firearm was a Mossberg 500 12 gauge combo given to me by my wife. I still have and enjoy shooting it. It's taken more game than any of my others as I've used it for deer in shotgun-only areas as well as for squirrel and other upland game. More expensive shotguns have come and gone, but the Mossberg is here for the long haul.

My first defensive handgun was a S&W 4013. Really liked it, but eventually tired of the DA/SA action. Still, I liked the .40 S&W round and I learned a lot from my time with the 4013. Do over? Probably pass on the .40 and stick with a 9mm.

My first rifle was a Marlin 336 that my FIL gave to me. He "inherited" it when my sister-in-law's ex abandoned it (and her). I never really took to the lever action or the .30/30 cartridge. The first rifle I bought was a Remington Model 7 in .308. That one was my go-to hunting rifle for many years until I decided to get out of .30 calibers altogether. It was the last one to go, replaced with another Model 7 in .7mm-08.

If I did it all over again, I'd be more intentional about my purposes and let that drive my selection of cartridges. Then I'd pick the most suitable launchers, quality over quantity. And I'd start reloading much earlier. At this point, I need to further downsize as I can effectively satisfy all my needs with significantly fewer guns.
 
Skribs said:
What was your first gun?
Click to expand...
A Model 55 Winchester .22 (S, L or LR) rifle.
Skribs said:
Why was it your first gun?
Click to expand...
My Mom and Dad gave it to me for my 10th birthday in 1958.
Skribs said:
Looking back on what you got then, and what you could have gotten instead, would you have made the same choice?
Click to expand...
Of course I would have made the same choice. In the first place, like I said, it was a gift. Besides that, I feel my Model 55 Winchester, single-shot, semi-auto .22 is the perfect kid's first rifle. I still have it. No doubt, one of my grandkids, or great grandkids will have it one of these days.
Maybe I'm not understanding what a "gun journey" is. o_O
 
I would have just started earlier, even if it was 5 years earlier and paced myself better. Kinda averaging 30ish a year
 
Knowing what I know now, Id still probably have gone with the Colt/GI 1911's, as there really wasn't any other choice at the time.

Then, Id put every spare cent into machine guns of every type.
 
My first gun was a Ruger Blackhawk .357 mag. Purchased in Mainz Kastel, Germany in 1977. That, along with 2 rifles I hand carried back (thru the airports in Germany, NY, Philly and KC) to the US when I separated from the Army. My, how times have changed!
Wish I could've picked up a bunch of Colt SAAs back then.
 
My first pistol was a Kimber Compact in 2000. At the time it was supposed to be the best of the few non-Colt 1911s, and mine has been great to me for a couple of decades now.

I would change how much weight I put on some writer's opinions - like COL Cooper. I was very adverse to 9mm and plastic for years.
 
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