Thread: Gun advice needed

Originally Posted by Bruno

One thing that puzzels me a bit: what does the price matter?

Price matters a lot to a single mom making minimum wage.

Originally Posted by joesixpack

Price matters a lot to a single mom making minimum wage.

Wouldn't it then make more sense to buy a second hand quality gun in good condition, instead of a new gun of lesser quality?

Originally Posted by Bruno

Wouldn't it then make more sense to buy a second hand quality gun in good condition, instead of a new gun of lesser quality?

Bruno has a very valid point, most of the guns I have bought over the years were used, if kept in good working order they will last lifetimes.

Originally Posted by Bruno

Wouldn't it then make more sense to buy a second hand quality gun in good condition, instead of a new gun of lesser quality?

Wait, I'm not sure where it was I said that she would ONLY be interested in a new gun. Certainly a used high quality gun would be considered.

The trouble I've seen is that good guns maintain their value pretty well. I don't see a lot of well made used guns selling for significantly lower than their new counterparts. Going by on-line auction sites like Gunbroker, there aren't a lot of bargains out there on used handguns.

Originally Posted by nun2sharp

Bruno has a very valid point, most of the guns I have bought over the years were used, if kept in good working order they will last lifetimes.

The used gun bargains I've gotten have been only because I was buying directly from a friend, not consignment through a gun shop. The fact that guns DO last a lifetime is why they hold their value so well.

My wife and I both carry a PA-63 with alloy frame in 9x18MM. I usually carry it in the small of my back in a IWB kevlar holster that I made. It has an alloy frame so it is fairly light for its size and it is darn reliable. Being a Walther PPK clone it is extremely reliable. Yes its a former Soviet Block gun but its built like a tank.

The good thing about this is My wife and my girls can shoot this very accurately. At 30 yards Holly can roll tin cans with hers. It is mild shooting and easy to handle. The problem I have with some of the little Kel Tek type pistols is they are not comfortable for me to shoot because
they are SOOOO small.

I almost forgot to add you can find these for around $200. maybe less if you shop around.

Originally Posted by joesixpack

The used gun bargains I've gotten have been only because I was buying directly from a friend, not consignment through a gun shop. The fact that guns DO last a lifetime is why they hold their value so well.

We have a little magazine here that's similar to Auto Trader but specific to the area and the people in it sell pretty much anything. There are frequently decent guns to be had at reasonable prices.
My carry gun, when I carry (work specifically prohibits weapons at work and knife has to have a sub 3" blade on it unless part of a leatherman type thing. Somehow pepper spray is OK b/c I saw a HR girl with some on a key chain so I keep that in my jacket pocket at work now.) is a Taurus PT-111. I purchased it used for under $300. After about 20 rounds I noticed a pretty significant feed ramp issue so I pulled it apart and gave it a quick look over and saw that it was something I didn't want to fix myself. I took it to the shop I picked it up from and because Taurus has a lifetime warranty they sent it back to Taurus for repair. Two weeks later I had it back in hand and the shop even gave me a box of ammo to use. I only paid shipping costs to Taurus.
Shoots far more accurately than I can. I'm not a huge fan of the SA/DA action with the crazy long trigger pull but I've put about 2k rounds through it in the last two years since I sent it back and haven't had a problem. I'm considering trading/selling for one of the Taurus .357/.38 special snub nosed revolvers. I don't plan to carry .357 in it often but for hiking in to fly fish or mountain biking in areas with heavy bear population it would be nice peace of mind to have a little extra "oomph" in there.

Also, have any of you seen this thing: http://heizerfirearms.com/technology.htm ?

Older thread, I know. But I'm selling my little PT-111 and smoking for something light and compact.
Right now I'm looking at the Ruger LC9, a Taurus ultralight .38, maybe a Kahr but I haven't handled one yet, or a Diamondback DB9.
Any of you have any hands on time with the Diamondback?

Originally Posted by bharner

Older thread, I know. But I'm selling my little PT-111 and smoking for something light and compact.
Right now I'm looking at the Ruger LC9, a Taurus ultralight .38, maybe a Kahr but I haven't handled one yet, or a Diamondback DB9.
Any of you have any hands on time with the Diamondback?

The DB9 is not a bad little gun to shoot, but most of still wish that Glock would make a single stack 9mm I've heard from several owners that specific production runs of the DB in the .380 version have had reliability issues, and that these have also cropped up in some of the 9mm versions. Mag catches failing, slides cracking... Even though there's a good chance you won't get one of the "bad" guns, this is enough to make me stay away from owning one.

You're obviously looking for a pocket gun, otherwise I would recommend a Glock 26 as a compact carry package, but unless you wear cargo pants with big-ass pockets all the time, it's just a little too fat for regular pocket carry. Of the ones you mention, I like the Kahr PM9 best. I like how it feels in the hand, it shoots well, and has a good reliability record. Be aware that it's one of these pistols with a "break-in" period - you'll want to get at least 200rds. through it to get the action nice and smooth.

I hate the LC9. It conceals well, but it's hard for me to get a decent grip on it, and I have to make major grip readjustments after every shot - due to its light weight, the pistol tends to be a bit jumpy. Either Kahr or DB9 are much better options in this class.

Another excellent but hi-$ pocket option is the Rohrbaugh 9mm... Probably more than you want to spend, but check it out!

The Taurus ultralight is basically the same size as a J-frame revolver. Haven't shot it, but when I carry a revolver (only as a backup gun), I'm very happy with my S&W 642 Airweight Centennial - IMO best of the breed. I just would not, if I can avoid it, want to rely on a 5-shot revolver as my primary carry.

My honest recommendation for a compact daily carry gun is the afore-mentioned Glock 26, or the XD compact in 9mm, or the SW M&P compact. These three are just a tad too big for most pockets, but are still very concealable, reliable, ergonomic shooters with good initial capacity. All three can also use the higher cap mags from their bigger brothers...

If it must be a 9mm and reasonable priced, I would consider this offering from Springfield Armory:

Springfield Armory

Reliable, easy to use (pull trigger, go bang), and most certainly available used if you a new one is too dear. Don't go less than a 4" barrel, IMO.