Your first purchased handgun and why

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Wedge

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What was your first handgun that you purchased (as opposed to given as a gift) that you selected and why did you get it? What did you learn after that first purchase?

My first handgun was purchased after MANY months of deliberations. I wanted the ultimate gun, one that could do anything, and ended up purchasing a .45 Colt/.45 ACP Ruger Blackhawk. The price was right (after some coupons and discounts I ended up getting it below cost), but the gun was definitely not the perfect gun.

Pros:
It shot .45 Colt which basically meant it could be loaded up to .44 Mag levels
It shot .45 ACP which meant I could shoot "cheap" (compared to .45 Colt)
It was concealable under a flannel or a Carhartt

Cons:
It shot .45 Colt which basically meant I needed to start reloading. After spending $60 on some Cor-bon ammunition it didn't take long to figure out that anything heavy needed to be loaded on my own. This isn't necessarily bad but I was on a budget and didn't realize how expensive .45 Colt ammo was.
.45 ACP was cheaper, but still cost about 20 cents a shot.
It was concealable under a flannel or a Carhartt. Basically it was useless as a CCW (though I did carry it on occasion, mostly because it was cold and I could)

I bought the gun to target shoot, hunt, carry in the woods and thought possibly CCW. Well the CCW part was a big maybe and turned into a definite no way. Target shooting was fine, but got expensive and then after I got the reloading equipment became much more enjoyable (and more accurate). I never really hunted with the gun, only carried it with me hunting, I never sat down with just the pistol and said I was going to hunt with that only.

Being my first gun, I really love it and still have it. I reload for it and occasionally bring it to the range. But it ended up not being what I really wanted. I should have prioritized more. What I thought I wanted was something uber powerful, like a Dual quad-cab diesel and what I really needed was a Subaru Outback. I got tired pretty quickly of loading up the Ruger only loads and just save some of those for when I do take it with me hunting...my loads are almost all standard .45 Colt pressure with a 200gr. LSWC to reduce the felt recoil.

Target shooting ended up being top of my list and the cost/time for producing ammo really started to get to me. Plus I could realistically only shoot so much heavy stuff before fatigue set in. Second was the desire to have a sidearm in the field but not necessarily for hunting with. Third was the impossibility of CCW.

Like I said I love the gun, and love the versatility of the caliber but it really wasn't a necessary caliber for me.

A friend of mine went one step further and bought a Ruger SRH in .454 Casull. His thinking was he could shoot .45 Colt "cheap" and have the .454 loads for hunting. This was his first handgun.

Both of us went into this thinking we needed the biggest and baddest gun out there with the mindset that we could always download. In the end we would shoot downloaded ammo 95% of the time. The guns were expensive reminders that you need to prioritize and quit lying to yourself.

I bought a 9mm as my second handgun and have shot that more in 3 months than I shot the Ruger BH in 3 years. My friend bought a snubby .38 special and did the same. Turned out that target shooting and CCW were more important to me (and him) than having a hunting handgun that you only use once or twice a year. The Blackhawk is still awesome and I will never part with it, but it was a poor choice as a first handgun.

So what stories does everyone else have about their first? Was it the right choice? What did you do different on the second.
 
I was not looking for the ultimate gun, but mine boiled down to a choice between the:
Beretta 92 FS
Browning Hi-Power
CZ-75B

I was looking for something a beginner could control that could be used for home defence. What I read seemed to indicate that the 9x19 would be adequate.
The CZ-75B was not to be found in my area at the time and I wanted to be able to handle what I would buy, so that was off the list.
I was iffy on whether or not a single action would be right for a first gun. I now think it would be if the person stays aware of their trigger finger, as everybody should be anyways.
I ended up getting the Beretta 92. I have found it to be reliable and durable. Thousands of rounds through it.

I don't know how much looks had to do with it, they are all good looking guns.
I have now owned all three. I see that my choices were all good guns.
Had I known then what I knew now, my list of potential guns would have been larger. Of this list, I would have gotten the HiPower first - it simply fits my hand better so I am more consistantly accurate with it.
I might have gotten a 1911 if I knew more about recoil, but I was iffy on the subject then.
 
Glock model 19 was my first(pistol and firearm).

Wanted a Glock due to their reputation for reliability.Seeing so many policemen carrying glocks was definitely a factor.It was a reliable and enjoyable pistol for the time I had it(traded).

Some downsides.At the time I purchased it, it came with 10rd mags.These caused "last-round nose dive" jams.Got the standard capacity(15rds.)mags after the ban and it was 100% reliable.

I'll eventually pick up a G26 to replace it as a main carry pistol.
 
Since getting a permit in NJ, where I used to live, was such an ordeal, I didn't want to waste it on a small caliber, such as a .22LR. I opted to get a Dan Wesson Pistol Pack, as my first HG. I got the .357 magnum in high gloss blue steel. The pistol pack consists of the frame with 4 different length barrels, 2 grips-1 combat 1 target, there is a foam lined attache case, with the foam cut out so everything fits in it, 4 extra front sights, a feeler gauge to set the gap on the heavy vented barrels, and a wrench to assemble-disassemble the barrels. The barrel lengths are 2.5, 4, 6, and 8.75 inches.

I love this gun, I didn't find any problems with the recoil, not even with the short barrel. It is one hefty chunk of iron. The gun can be used for hunting, target shooting, home defense, concealed carry or just collecting it for it's sheer beauty.
I will part with it, when I move on to better pastures.:)
 
4" Colt Python because I wanted a .357 revolver so I could shoot either .38 or .357 and I got the Python because I just thought it was/is the sweetest .357 ever made.
 
Ruger p-89, because my fiance had an ex stalker that came after her at her workplace with a fireplace poker.:fire:

Main reason for purchase was middle price range and 9mm was "it" in the day/age. Not the best of criteria, but it is still around and shot regularly.
 
Vektor SP2. Basically, it was A) 50% off due to distrust of the Vektor name thanks to the CP series; B) centerfire, powerful enough to defend myself if needed; and C) Kerry was getting really close in the polls.

Downsides? It's .40, so the mag capacity is 11 and the ammo costs as much as .45 ACP without the extra punch. Spare parts cannot be found. A poor refinishing job (more like de-finishing) has left the pistol less than pretty, but just as functional.
 
Browning Challenger II in .22. I wanted a .22 to learn the fundamentals and for cheap target shooting and plinking. It was not a defense gun, so when I could afford it I bought a Browning Hi Power 9MM which was my first centerfire pistol.
 
My first HG (Not including a couple of .22's given to me and my siblings by my father) was a Ruger P95 - I wanted a gun that was small enough to CCW and also at least a 9mm - Of course the sticker price was a HUGE factor. That gun taught me alot - I took it to the Chapman Acadamy a few years ago and it stayed with me through the whole thing -No problems with it at all. Alot can be said about how unreliable Ruger's P-series was, but I dont have alot bad to say about the P95. Even though I have moved on to bigger and better things (Sigs- H&K's - Smiths - even a Glock or two) I still have that gun - I dont shoot it much anymore and probably wont. But its a nice reminder of where I started. Maybe someday I will pass it on to my son.
In the meantime I gotta hit the Range - I finally got my first full size 1911 the other day - seems like a long way from the big blocky 9mm I started with - Maybe ill pull it out someday soon and just look at it - just for old times sake.
 
My first purchased handgun was an S&W 22A. I hadn't shot much other than annual qualifications in the Reserves for about 30 years and wanted an inexpensive way to de-rust any shooting skills I may have once had. I started with an inexpensive handgun that is inexpensive to shoot. If I decided that I didn't want to shoot much, I wouldn't spend a great deal. I've since purchased two rimfire handguns and a 9mm.

I'm going to the range in a bit. The bag will have 3 rimfires and the 9mm. Most of the ammo downrange will be rimfire. I shoot for fun and rimfires do that very nicely for me.
 
A Walther P-22. I wanted something I could learn about guns on, with minimal recoil and price. The ammo is dirt cheap and the gun itself was $270.
 
First purchased handgun:

Was a Hi-Point .380 :rolleyes:

Why?

Because it was cheap. I didn't know much about guns. I'd been given a Beretta 92, a Beretta cheetah, a .32 Magnum revolver at 19, and I figured they all did the same thing... At the time I made about $400/week after taxes - I didn't want to spend an entire 2 weeks pay on a gun, or even a weeks' pay for that matter.

What did I learn?

Don't buy cheap guns...

My first trip to the range with my new toy taught me everything I ever needed to know about that. When I compared my Berettas side-by-side with that Hi-Point, I knew I had messed up pretty badly. The trigger felt like it weighed 20 lbs., and the amount of jamming, misfeeding, and other types of failures was just unbelieveable. Out of every 9-round magazine, that thing would fail in one way or another at least 2-3 times.

I got lucky. I bought it when they were fairly new for $100 NIB, but I was able to sell it to someone I didn't like for $90. Since then, I only buy quality.

Thank you, Hi-Point! :neener:
 
first purchased handgun was an original Colt M1911, made in 1922. Was kind of a quick decision, I was at a flea market where I occasionally visited for record hunting (those 12" vinyl things). There was an older couple there (probably in their 70s or 80s), who had the M1911 and an original trapdoor springfield.

I bought both (on different vistits). The Colt .45 because of its reputation, and at the time I was an avid Mickey Spillane reader :)

over 20 years later, still have the colt,
but no longer have the trapdoor... DOH !!!!
 
S&W Model 13 4" in .357 magnum.

It was what I could afford at 21. I would have preferred a Model 19, Python, or a Colt 1911. That M13 always worked perfectly. I'm still sorry I sold it. :banghead:

Oh well, I now have a M19 4" and a Colt 1911. Still looking for an affordable 4" Python almost 30 years later.

Matt
 
Embarassingly enough, a Jennings J-22.:eek: Only thing I could afford in 10th grade. Yes, I could legally carry it back then, too. Got rid of it some time later, and my first centerfire handgun was a Charter Arms Off Duty .38 snub. Nobody else could hit the broad side of a barn with it, but I could use it fairly well.:)
 
Star Firestar 9mm is about all I can tell you about it. About the size of a Glock 26, metal instead of polymer.

I bought it because my uncle had taken me out shooting for the first time when I was around 16 and that was what I shot. He died of a heart attack before I turned 21. His 2 pistols mysteriously disappeared after he died and I was supposed to have gotten them. So in his memory, I bought one that was identical to his as soon as I turned 21.

I still have it, but it hasn't seen the light of day in a few years. I was just thinking about it taking it out and shooting it the next time I go to the range.
 
My first handgun was a Ruger P85 which I quickly traded in on Norinco 1911. The P85 was clunky and mags were high. With the 1911 I could parts easily and mags were only a few bucks back then for USGI. 230gr ball surplus is always to be found, ( now I roll my own). I still am and will always be the owner of some sort of 1911 today I own 2 colts but love to find another Norinco! John Moses Browning had a great time tested design!
 
first gun---- taurus tracker .357 6" barrel.
why----'cause I didn't know any better.
I liked the power and the look but I didn't know anything about triggers or those ribber grips which ripped after about 500 rounds.
 
First purchased handgun - Sig P220STw/ Doctersight, fully worked over by TJs. I did quite a bit of research online first and wanted a reliable, all metal, accurate, and good looking gun. I've never sold a gun and don't regret a single purchase.
 
My 1st purchased? handgun/firearm? 1st off, I wish I knew people that would give me guns...what a wonderful world this would be! :D I've had to buy all my guns starting w/ a Taurus 380 - mostly because it was cheap and it fit my hand well.
That was about all it did well - sold it a year or so later & bought a real gun...my HK P7M8 which I consider my 1st real gun :cool:
 
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