My collection seems to be evolving

[Yo Mama]

I bought most of my firearms before I had children. Once they came and they are still very young now but once they came along my purchasing hit a brick wall due to money limits. Luckily I made the decision early on to buy quality, buy once cry once. I did make a few mistakes along the way though.

I have sold quite a few guns over the last few years which used to be very anxiety provoking for me. I always felt if you owned a gun you should never sell it but eventually it just became stupid to see them sit there.

So I have started noticing a few things.

1. Money actually doesn't matter, to me I'm not a collector at this point in my life. I had been purchasing with the mindset of what if one day, but now I'm at the point where it's nice to be able to use and carry them a little bit more often.

2. A lot of my recent purchases have been geared towards the children and getting them into shooting. That means more 22s than I ever had before.

3. I may have committed a mortal sin but I have sold a 1911 for a polymer gun to replace it. Overall I love the 1911, but I rarely if ever carried it. I am starting to change from an all steel to a polymer guy. I still have one 1911 that I won't get rid of.

 

[webrx]

I have plenty of guns that I dont carry, and that dont see daylight very often.

I am taking some of them to the range this weekend to shoot with some friends and a couple folks that are visiting the US from locations that are not gun friendly.

Not sure why I keep all of them, but, when I think about selling, they all seem to have a reason to stay

d

 

[sarge83]

Sounds like me, I bought firearms for my collection over the years but have slowed in the last few years. In fact this year I haven't purchased a single piece. I haven't found anything that has caught my eye. In the last five years my purchases have trailed off significantly.

I have plenty of guns that I dont carry, and that dont see daylight very often.

I am taking some of them to the range this weekend to shoot with some friends and a couple folks that are visiting the US from locations that are not gun friendly.

Not sure why I keep all of them, but, when I think about selling, they all seem to have a reason to stay

d

 

[Zaydok Allen]

My handgun taste has evolved also. I started out on revolvers and that was what I cared about. Then I started down the path of buying semiauto guns.

Now I have a pretty even distribution of revolvers, steel semiautos, and polymer guns. I like them all.

The only thing I find myself really not caring much about are shotguns.

 

[ontarget]

It happens to all of us to some degree. I have been buying more beginner guns lately for grandkids. It's just as enjoyable to work on their collection.

 

[huntsman]

I've never been a "collector" but my guns have evolved as I have changed focus. I have my basics like a quality SXS (BSS), favorite semi-auto (BDA) and a .45 Blackhawk convertible, these and my inherited guns will be left for my heirs but everything else are free agents subject to my current needs.

 

[bannockburn]

Pretty much the same here: started out being mainly a revolver guy. A few rifles and shotguns for hunting but handguns interested me the most. I think my first 4 handguns were revolvers. My brother was a semi-auto fan (as in a Mauser HSc and a Browning Hi -Power). After a trip to the range he had his guns field stripped, cleaned, and reassembled before I even finished cleaning my first revolver. I began to see the light. Oh I still bought the occasional S&W revolver but soon my collection had definitely gravitated towards self-loading pistols (think Colt Governments and Combat Commanders). Nowadays I still look but I'm pretty well situated with guns for home defense, concealed carry, range toys, along with a renewed interest in single action revolvers.

 

[Yo Mama]

Thanks everybody for your replies.

It's like I was saying before it feels kind of weird having sold off quite a few guns over the last few years. It just kind of struck me this week that my group now takes on a different form. I'd say it took about 4 swaps to do it but I'm finally getting to where I really want to be.

I also noticed that I used to be attracted to fanciness, but instead now I'm more attracted to functionality. I may have taken a bit of a loss on some of the trade outs but in the end I think it was worth it to get into something that I'm going to use a lot more and enjoy.

One of my biggest mistakes I ever made was not getting into reloading. I think my goal moving forward is going to be to start saving up some cash for a setup. Most of my handguns now are in 45 which still a little expensive to shoot them.

 

[hdwhit]

Yo Mama wrote:
I always felt if you owned a gun you should never sell it...

If you buy a gun because you NEED it, then until that need goes away or significantly changes, you would have no reason to sell it. That's a little bit different from just having a "never sell a gun" rule of thumb. But, if your needs change, you should sell the gun(s) you have that no longer meet that need and use the proceeds to help fund their replacement.

Of course, some of the guns I once had a need for, like my RG-25 (which fit in a Texas Instruments calculator case) have little market value but have developed great sentimental value for me, so I keep them because I don't want to let them go and the few dollars is not worth as much as the memories. Again, that's different from a "never sell a gun" rule of thumb.

Abandon the "never sell a gun" rule and replace it with a needs-based/wants-based model and the anxiety will disappear.

 

[Ohio Gun Guy]

My Collecting has slowed too...I've sold a few and bought a few since kids..... I too have more .22s than I ever planned. On a recent range trip with my boys all we had were .22s mine* and "theirs" that I had bought for them. They were so proud of them and we had a lot of fun! the BEST guns I've ever bought - The kids 22s.

Henry H001 (Lever Action)
Rossi 62 (Pump)
Ruger 10/22 (Semi Auto)
Savage Cub (Bolt / Scoped)

And yes - My oldest can shoot (22) as well as me, sometimes better! Crazy!

 

[WelshShooter]

I was never that fussed on military surplus firearms. Why buy something that's nowhere near as accurate as a modern rifle? After going through a .223 and .308 bolt gun I eventually had a6.5x47 Lapua rifle built for me which is like a laser. It got a bit boring after a while. I started shooting my Enfield No4 and Yugo M48 a bit more and found it much more rewarding when shooting accurate handloads. In addition, I now have an M1 carbine and a Finnish M24 in my collection. Getting 2 MOA groups at 100 yards with the Finn (a rifle which is probably 100+ years old) is just incredible, and was a big eye opening for me as to how capable these rifles are.

Whenever I hit the range I always take a milsurp rifle or two along with my 6.5x47 Lapua rifle to make the most out of all the targets available up to ~1,300 yards. Seeing those targets fall at 900 yards when using open sights is guaranteed to put a smile on your face!

 

[wally]

Overall I love the 1911, but I rarely if ever carried it. I am starting to change from an all steel to a polymer guy.

I quickly became a polymer guy for my carry pistols, but performance on the plate rack proves I'm better with the all steel 1911.

In a perfect world I could carry a 1911 and it would be the best choice for me, but ... Rule #1 of a gun fight is Have A Gun!
The small & light polymer guns really help fulfill this rule.

 

[Hardtarget]

The way guns came to me has been weird. I now have 5 .22 rifles...took 55 years for that. There are 5 12 ga shotguns. Really never had a "focus" to what guns were finding a home with me...it just happened. The only guns I bought that are not with me now... were gifted to my sons.

Mark

 

[sappyg]

I think most accumulations evolve. Mine has.

Regardless, no matter what I'm shooting ATM, reloading has always been the most significant part of this lifestyle.

 

[bluzman]

I started, like many here, with a single shot .22 as a kid. I still have it. 20 years later, I added an 8mm Gewehr 98 WWII trophy (sold), and then, 30 years after that, two polymer pistols (9mm and .40S&W). Over that period I went from New England to the mid-Atlantic states to California. While California was evolving into something I couldn't abide any more, I added a couple of .45ACP 1911s and a .223 semi-automatic rifle. Now I'm retired in Texas. In the last 3 years, I've sold the 9mm polymer pistol, added two magazine fed, bolt action rifles (.22LR and .223), a semi-auto .22 rifle, three more 1911s (.22LR, 9mm and .40S&W), a .357/.38 lever action rifle, and last but not least, my 9mm 1911 format carry pistol. Currently, I'm considering a .357 revolver to go with the lever action - either a S&W 686, a Ruger Security Six or a Ruger GP100 Match Champion. BTW, all my firearms get to the range periodically, but I'll admit that some see more action than others.

 

[SHOOT1SAM]

I find myself looking for more "quality" guns, than 'quantity' guns. Doesn't matter how many I have now; I want better. And after fondling a Beretta 28 gauge semi-auto, I think there's a new one in the near-future!

Sam