Gumby0961
Member
45 years ago a 10/22 was my first gun purchase. On sale at Gemco for $50, I still have it. Taught my kids to shoot with it and pretty soon it will be my grand kids. Hopefully you are at the beginning of a life long hobby.
My first gun
- Thread starter cdahl383
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Congrats!
Get some Aguila Mini-Shells for it. Best friend of mine, brought his kids over to my house to shoot Monday. His 14 year old son, Wyatt, has taken to shooting my Stoeger Coach Gun w/ 12 gauge mini-shells. He was blasting holes in my 55gal drum burn barrel at 25yds with Aguila MS slugs and a big smile on his face. Friend's 16 year old daughter likes shooting it too.
I snag a box or 2 every time I see em for sale:
https://www.academy.com/shop/pdp/aguila-ammunition-minishell-12-gauge-shotshells
Aguila has slugs, buckshot, and 7.5 bird shot. Get some of each.
Note normal length 2 3/4 inch buck shot will work just fine in that gun. Might rattle your teeth and leave some nice bruises on your shoulder. Worth experiencing it though as a newbie.
Looks good!
Grab some Glock mags for it ASAP. Factory Glock &/or Magpul are the best / easiest to find.
Keep an eye on these search engines for ammo. 9mm looks to be currently running $0.40/rd which is higher than normal. If you can afford to do so, grab a case of 1000rds.
Brass cased ammo is best.
Steel cased Russian ammo is best avoided. You can try some but it might not be all that reliable in your gun.
Standard bullet weights for 9mm are: 115gr, 124gr, 147grain.
The Ruger should work with all of those.
Some ammo search engines to keep an eye on:
https://www.wikiarms.com/group/9mm?sort=1&order=asc
https://www.ammobuy.com/ammo/9mm
https://ammoseek.com/ammo/9mm-luger
http://www.gunbot.net/ammo/pistol/9mm/
https://www.ammograb.com/9mm-luger/
https://gun.deals/category/ammo?caliber=1
Lastly gunbroker will always have ammo for sale. It just might be more expensive than you want to pay.
Here's a general search for 1000rds of 115gr 9mm with Buy Now selected.
https://www.gunbroker.com/Ammunition/search?Keywords=9mm 115gr 1000&BuyNowOnly=1&Sort=4&PageSize=96
With gunbroker, make sure you go past the starred auctions to look at the normal auctions.
Picked up this 12 gauge Mossberg Maverick 88 last week and shot it for the first time yesterday. What a fun powerful gun! My first pump shotgun. Put around 75 rounds through it, mostly bird shot with some buckshot too. Took out a lot of targets haha!
NIGHTLORD40K
Member
75 rounds......my shoulder hurts just reading that!
Nothing wrong with your choices so far- all very reliable, practical, useful, and economical.
Are you thinking about a handgun yet, and if so, what are you leaning towards.?
Haha! Surprisingly my shoulder is not very sore at all. I watched a lot of videos and found my stance was all wrong initially when I first got the double barrel. Now that I changed my stance my shoulder doesn’t hurt at all. I put a Limbsaver pad on the double barrel and the Mossberg has a nice pad built into the stock.
Yep nothing fancy, just nice basic stuff that’s easy to operate and goes boom!
Yes. My wife and I signed up for a CPL course next weekend. I like the Ruger handguns like ECP and LCP II. Very small and easy to carry and conceal. I shot my buddy’s at his house on Sunday and it was nice.
My main concern with handguns is that we have two small children (8 and 10). Makes me more nervous than the long guns.
NIGHTLORD40K
Member
Ya, my Dad had several hundred long guns before he bought his first handgun for that same reason.
I actually had to switch from a long gun for home defense to a handgun when my kids got to be teenagers. It was simply too hard to keep a shotgun or carbine secure, hidden, AND accessible when curious teens might be poking around. My girls have been shooting since they were 7 or 8, are responsible and very respectful of firearms safety, but you never know about their friends. As a result, the long guns are locked up very securely, but impossible to access in a hurry.
My nightstand pistol safe is bolted down, concealed, and instantly accessible. Something to consider.
troy fairweather
Member
Looks like your enjoying the gun, I was looking at getting one of these before the corona happened. They were priced nice but now there probably more, hope I can find one someday. I wanted to do a trench gun build with it.
https://volquartsen.com/departments/mk_iv_parts/inventory_configurations/811 I bought one about 12 years ago, they never get old. If your 10/22 starts acting up, especially feed issues buy one of these.
So happy for you. I miss those early days when everything was so new and there was so much to learn. Fun and exciting times for sure.
I don't know if I could count how many hours of entertainment have been provided by a scoped 10/22 in my lifetime. There was always one around, and a quick stop at the store for a "bucket of bullets" would ensure plenty of plinkin time while we sat around doing nothing but talking or killing time in some other way.
I don't know if I could count how many hours of entertainment have been provided by a scoped 10/22 in my lifetime. There was always one around, and a quick stop at the store for a "bucket of bullets" would ensure plenty of plinkin time while we sat around doing nothing but talking or killing time in some other way.
Ya, my Dad had several hundred long guns before he bought his first handgun for that same reason.
I actually had to switch from a long gun for home defense to a handgun when my kids got to be teenagers. It was simply too hard to keep a shotgun or carbine secure, hidden, AND accessible when curious teens might be poking around. My girls have been shooting since they were 7 or 8, are responsible and very respectful of firearms safety, but you never know about their friends. As a result, the long guns are locked up very securely, but impossible to access in a hurry.
My nightstand pistol safe is bolted down, concealed, and instantly accessible. Something to consider.
I have our guns locked up in a safe in the bedroom. The key is hidden but easily accessible for me or my wife. It’s as accessible as I could make it safely with kids in the house.
Well see about the handgun stuff. Still haven’t got there in terms of feeling comfortable with them in the house. We’ve taught our kids about guns and showed them to them. But like you said kids are curious. I can’t picture my 8 or 10 year old being able to load a magazine in the rifles or rack the shotgun. But they could easily pick up a handgun.
I spent months hunting one down. Always sold out everywhere. They were going for $199-$249 a while ago. I paid $299 and was happy with that considering the circumstances. It’s an excellent gun though. Highly recommend it.
Thanks for the tip!
Yep all new to me! Lots to learn still!
It’s fun switching from the quiet .22 with the red dot picking off little targets like pill bottles to the 12 gauge and just blasting away at stuff haha! We filled up several 2 liter bottles with water and just shot them all to hell. It was awesome!
Dudedog
Contributing Member
Oh dear, another one,
I guess you didn't seek help in time
Hope you are enjoying them.
With some luck the ammo shortage we are in won't last to long, but be prepared for it to take a while, could be a long while.
I guess you didn't seek help in time
Hope you are enjoying them.
With some luck the ammo shortage we are in won't last to long, but be prepared for it to take a while, could be a long while.
peeplwtchr
Member
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Ditto. If you start getting alot if led fouling, you got a first gen barrel, they were defective. I had to send mine in for replacement last year. Also, even with Gen 2 barrel, use copper plated rounds. Great gun though.
BreechFace
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@cdahl383 Welcome to the fold! Kuddo's to you and your wife being open minded and for your friend to provide a great introduction to a good many types of firearms. You and your wife will enjoy your new hobby, and be sure to ask any questions you may not know here, this is a great group that can help you avoid problems, solve problems and create problems with finances! 
230RN
2A was "political" when it was first adopted.
10/22: One of my favorite recommendations for home defense for folks who aren't really into guns.
As you can tell from dumping the 25 rounder, that can be quite intimidating to an evildoer. And you're bound to connect with a couple of them even if you're not a 600 yard iron clanger.
But:
EVERY GUN IS ALWAYS LOADED.
DON'T POINT IT ANYWHERE YOU CAN'T FIX THE HOLE.
Terry, 230RN
As you can tell from dumping the 25 rounder, that can be quite intimidating to an evildoer. And you're bound to connect with a couple of them even if you're not a 600 yard iron clanger.
But:
EVERY GUN IS ALWAYS LOADED.
DON'T POINT IT ANYWHERE YOU CAN'T FIX THE HOLE.
Terry, 230RN
peeplwtchr
Member
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Even with all the weaknesses i.e. rimfire ammo, low grain weight, length of the rifle/maneuverabilty etc., there is no recoil, it probably won't damage your ears as much if you had to fire inside, lower drywall penetration, and the mags hold alot. Also, the learning curve is far far less than proficient pistol shooting, which takes more training than 99% of shooters think. Also, they look like ARs (At least my S&W 10-22 does). The intimidation factor may be enough to avoid ever having to fire a shot at a life threatening intruder. I agree with this as a solution for non-gun people who want a home defense plan Z, which is ALWAYS what pointing a gun should be.
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Thanks everyone! I love our 10/22, it’s a fun gun to shoot! But I think we’ve already become gun people now as we have the 10/22, Ruger PC Carbine, Stoeger coach gun, and now the Mossberg Maverick 88. So now we have quite a selection for target shooting or home defense. Wish I would have gotten into the gun world sooner in life!
bannockburn
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cdahl383
Congrats on the your new found interest in all things firearms! I always started my kids, family members, and friends out with a .22, be it a 10/22 or a handgun like a Ruger Mk.II, a Beretta Model 70S, or a S&W Model 34. The latest Ruger Mk.IV or a Browning BuckMark make for great .22 starter guns. All who have shot the .22s have all transitioned quite readily to centerfire pistols and revolvers (9mm. Browning Hi-Power or a .357 Magnum/.38 Special S&W Model 686); just have to take your time about it and concentrate on the fundamentals.
I also have a Maverick 88 for home defense and have a longer spare barrel for it if I ever want to do any recreational shooting or hunting with it. Same with a 20 gauge Winchester Model 1300 I have. Also if you're using the 10/22 for home defense you might want to consider a folding stock, like those from Choate or Butler Creek, to make it a bit handier to use in close quarters.
Congrats on the your new found interest in all things firearms! I always started my kids, family members, and friends out with a .22, be it a 10/22 or a handgun like a Ruger Mk.II, a Beretta Model 70S, or a S&W Model 34. The latest Ruger Mk.IV or a Browning BuckMark make for great .22 starter guns. All who have shot the .22s have all transitioned quite readily to centerfire pistols and revolvers (9mm. Browning Hi-Power or a .357 Magnum/.38 Special S&W Model 686); just have to take your time about it and concentrate on the fundamentals.
I also have a Maverick 88 for home defense and have a longer spare barrel for it if I ever want to do any recreational shooting or hunting with it. Same with a 20 gauge Winchester Model 1300 I have. Also if you're using the 10/22 for home defense you might want to consider a folding stock, like those from Choate or Butler Creek, to make it a bit handier to use in close quarters.
Yep the .22 is a nice caliber to start with. Virtually no recoil.
At this point with the guns we have id probably grab one of the shotguns for home defense. But I know they make tons of aftermarket stuff for the 10/22. All I did to mine was add a red dot scope.
Nice collection of guns there!
spraay
Member
Excellent choice for a first gun. I have one of the takedown models and I really like it. SO many accessories and parts. And when it's available, .22LR ammo is as economical as it gets.
Deanimator
Member
Commission M1888 rifle cut down to short rifle length (probably) for the Turkish Forestry Service.
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