Stupid question - What is a pretty gun?

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camslam

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I'm curious about something. I often hear that Glocks are "ugly guns" and on this forum there is no shortage of those comments.

I'm just curious, what do people consider to be "pretty guns"?

I know beauty is in the eye of the beholder, but I just want to get some sort of baseline for the difference between and ugly gun and a pretty one. No sarcasm intended on any of this, I genuinely am curious what guns people think are pretty and why.
 
the Winchester M-70 Featherweight
the Mannlicher full-stock carbine
the Winchester M-12
the Savage 99
the Luger
the PPK
the Colt Peacemaker

I'll stop while the list is still manageable...

OK, I'll edit to add that these guns and others I find beautiful are graceful with smooth, curving lines, lacking hard, angular or sharp lines and edges. An almost feminine beauty, if you will. I realize that function has a sort of beauty all its own, and in fact I own several I consider somewhat less than pretty, that are otherwise outstanding guns. But from strictly an aesthetic standpoint, I find Glocks ugly. In fact, I find them so ugly I would not consider owning one no matter what their service reputation is.
 
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I would consider a hi point pistol to be a classic definition of an ugly gun while a M1 is considered pretty. Pretty usually means engraving,nice wood, flowing lines, or a classic presence (no ugly 1911s). Ugly can mean clunky,squarish,lumpy, or just not quite right looking. Polymer guns can be considered ugly by some, I personally don't like the lines on a Glock. I don't mind shooting them though.
 
Glock,HK USP, G3, G36, HK416, Lee Enfield, Mauser 98k (i think it is) K31, just about any Marlin lever action

those are on the top of my mind
 
IMO

Swedish Mausers. You can see the craftsmanship.

Pretty gun = Usually some hand fitting, polishing, etc. involved. Blued with wood.

Ugly Gun = Modern manufacturing techniques. Castings, moldings. Hitech finishes. Polymers. Emphasis put on ease of manufacture.
 
Thanks for the responses, but can people please expand on WHY these are pretty guns.

What you consider to be a pretty gun is good, but the reasons for it are more the point of the thread. Mostly for future posts as many of you have listed a reason.

Thanks,

Camslam
 
I've always thought the 92 fs was a pretty gun. Then the 1911 too. I always thought they both had their own styling. Like the cuves in the beretta and the more "tough" less curvy look of the 1911.
 
Must be wood & steel.....color it anyway you like, plastic looks cheap because it is cheap.

Pretty guns have finishes taken to the next step from their bland utilitarian counterparts. A shiney turd is just a shiney turd unless it blends function, design, workmanship, and materials into a work of art.
 
a smith&wesson 6"model 27 with smooth factory target grips is a pretty gun to me. i've seen lots of rifles with beautiful grained wood stocks on em..
 
Plus one to what Clipper said.
I like history. Lots of history. The gun has to be one thing. Caliber, lines, action, all working together. They have to make sense. I dunno, it's weird.
I think that Mosins are really gorgeous. Mausers I think are ugly and too machinelike. Late-build SMLEs are pretty. Early ones seem too bogged down with "gadgets" (*cough* volley sight *cough*). Garands are beautiful.
I'm also a big fan of symmetry, or cohesive asymmetry. I think AUGs are ugly. They seem too spacey. Like an overdone laser-gun. I think that AKs are beautiful not for how they look, but because they have attitude. Real big attitude. Desert Eagles are one of the few types of pistols that I think are pretty, mostly because they have a nice symmetry to them. I hate the asymmetric ejection ports on most pistols. For pistols, double-action revolvers are the most beautiful. The cylinder releases on most of them are serious eyesores to me, though. Especially the S&W kind. I think Colt DAs are ugly, because of their releases. Mini-14s would be really pretty if they didn't have that ghastly end to their forestock. Arisakas are beautiful, too. The oft-forgotten Winchester M1895s are gorgeous. Especially the carbines. M1917 Enfields are some of the most beautiful bolt-actions there are. SAFN-49s are good-looking, but not without their eyesores (Magazine, augh!!! It's not even removable on most of them!). Tok rifles are really pretty. Very few subbies qualify for pretty in my book, but the PPSh is really good-looking. And the Sten just works aesthetically, making it beautiful. The P90 is a good-looking gun. I like the Vz. 61 Skorpion. The UZI has a businesslike attitude to it, making it appealing. Thompsons rock. MACs also have that cohesiveness that make them attractive. The G3 is cool, but that stinking cocking handle is a blight to the frame! The M16 and HK416 are pretty, but they have that freaking forward assist that is so ugly to me. I like Mossbergs. I think the Browning BPS Combat Model is probably the most beautiful thing to ever alight on the planet. I like the Atchisson AA-12 concept, but I think the firearm is, quite possibly, the ugliest thing ever conceived.
There.
Now you know what I think is beautiful.
 
To me, the Browning HiPower is the "prettiest" gun I own. The lines are sleek, it is ergonomic, it has great balance, it isn't "clunky". It's the difference between my aunt's old Rambler and a Porsche. It has panache. It has style.

Springmom
 
classics are rare nowadays

Guns in past ages were designed with an eye to aesthetics as well as function; or at least that's the way it worked out. Luger P-08s, Colt single actions, almost anything from the hand of John Moses Browning (I especially like the clean, elegant lines of his .22 auto rifle)--they had individual style and class. The last design I really thought pleasing was the S&W N-frame. The Python would have been OK without that precious vent rib. I confess I like the lines of an HK P7, too.

Modern guns are built for function and nothing more. They're dead reliable, MUCH cheaper (priced a SAA or Luger lately?), and ugly as hell. The first two are good things, and for actual carry, worth the trade.

Modern guns are like modern cars; Better mileage, easier maintenance, more reliable, and they all look alike.
 
Borrowing a quote from my Father, "The ugliest woman (gun) I ever saw was beautiful!"

I love personification. Most men tend to personify their firearms as a woman. So, the quote fits..."She's a beauty!" They're all beauties!

Doc2005 :D
 
Some things, the lines and/or utility/ergonomics just can't be improved on. The proportions of a Model19 with a 3 or 4" barrel are perfect to me. Same with the barrel length, angle of mag well to slide of a 1911. A Winchester Model97 just seems to say "use me". Just my opinions.
 
HK MP5
Colt M4 Carbine
Benelli M1 & M1014
Remington M24
Saco M60 E4
HK G36K

Oh wait that's my X-mas list:D
 
Belgium Browning HiPower.
Gov't Model of 1911
S&W Model 10
S&W Model 24
Winchester Model 67
Winchester Model 70
Winchester Model 94
Winchester Model 52
Winchester Model 97
Winchester Model 12, especially 28 gauge
Winchester Model 42
Winchester Super X Model 1
Winchester Model 23
Winchester Model 101
Ithaca 37
Ithaca Auto Burglar
Stevens 311
Steven's Favorite
NAA Mini Revolver

Yes, I was raised on Winchesters, Colts for slide guns, Smith's for Wheels ;)
 
Colt Python - Pretty
Walther PPK - Sexy
SA 1911 Mil-Spec Stainless - Handsome
Beretta 92 Inox - The Girl Next Door (Not the hottest, but still very attractive.)
Glock - The Wife (Pretty enough to marry, good enough to be the mother of your children, and always dependable.)
 
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