Thread: Seeking beginner's pistol recommendations

Here is my primary personal carry weapon - 1911 Kimber - All match grade - removed the crimson trace grips and replaced with rubber combat grips. Don't need a laser with this one.

Originally Posted by Suticat

I really enjoy my Beretta 92f. I've had it for quite a few years and it has never let me down. I even taught my 86 year old mother in law and 95 pound wife how to shoot it. Still trying to figure out if that was smart or really dumb on my part...


This ones not mine but it looks exactly like this. Mines all locked up right now.

That's what I have right now. It is pretty heavy for carry though.

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I had a Beretta 40 cal DAO. Same pistol but the larger caliber. The DAO trigger was so bad that I sent it to Beretta in VA IIRC and paid a bunch of $. Wasn't much better when I got it back. Sold it and moved on. Glad I never ran into any ninjas

Originally Posted by pcm

Yeah, I haven't looked at any single stack models in any line (but I should). Might be interesting to see how a thinner grip feels. I agree on the light trigger, I just didn't care for the heavy DA pull on the Sig P229, which shouldn't be an issue with the ones I'm looking at now.

Those little pocket guns are a handful and require more focus on proper grip to shoot well.

My personal method for learning DA trigger pull was a S&W 642 some snap caps and hundreds of repetitions of dry-fire. Like taking some swings with a weighted bat in the on-deck circle. It took a long time to shoot DA smoothly and I still ended up lightening the trigger on that snub after about 10 years of trying to shoot it with the stock 15 lb trigger.

I'm looking initially for using the pistol for home protection and for recreational shooting

The two, while not exlusive to each other, could well be very different.

Home protection: Go BIG or go home... the smaller the firearm, the more likely it is that you will actually have to use it in a nasty situation.

Rarely does a perp challenge a large bore firearm being pointed at them. Would YOU be willing to threaten someone pointing a 12 gauge double barrel shotgun at your face?

As for recreational shooting..... anything is fine, whatever you like is what you will enjoy the most. However, it would be better if you enjoyed using the same firearm you intend to use for self defence, for recreational use. It's always a good idea to be well versed and comfortable with your weapon of choice for self defence.

It is vitally important that you be comfortable with your firearm of choice when confronted with bad people. It is also vitally important that you realize that the more threatening your firearm is to a perp, the less likely you are to have to actually use it to defend yourself by fireing it.

IF it were me.... and I was fixated on having only ONE firearm to serve all purposes, I would go as large a caliber as I could handle. If I had the luxury of having several arms, I would be able to chose one for self defence and one for "fun" or many for fun as case may have it.

My ultimate choice for self defence inside my house? A loaded 12 gauge auto inside a wall with scored drywall near the front door, ready for anything.

It has always been the case that when someone threatens you, demonstrating an overwhelming ability to do that person harm, will usually calm the situation down. If it seems close to a fair fight to the bad guy, he's likely to try. Rarely will he throw a punch if threatend with a Thermo Nuclear device!

The ultimate self defence weapon is the one you never have to use...... When someone is wounded, they can claim all sorts of stuff.... If they are dead, it's only YOUR side of the story that gets told. If they back off and walk away, nobody else gets involved except for the cops, if you call them.


The sign in the gun shop I used to work in stated: "Shop lifters will be shot, survivors will be shot again!"

During the time I worked in that gun shop, only ONE attempt was made at robbing us during business hours. That perp spent 3 months in the hospital before spending time in the penitentiary.





Honestly, I hope the time NEVER comes where you might have to deal with this sort of situation, but it is ALWAYS a matter of intimidation, so make sure you are waaay more intimidating than whomever wishes you harm and you will likely walk away with zero shots fired and no explaining to do.

Regards

Christian

Good advice. My initial thoughts are to use the handgun for multipurpose, especiallyat the range, so I can practice. Over time I suspect it'll be like RAD, and I'll have a few more specialized. I suspect I won't meet all criteria with my first purchase, but I'll try to make a reasonable choice. If it's anything like razors, my second one will be my favorite.

Originally Posted by pcm

Good advice. My initial thoughts are to use the handgun for multipurpose, especiallyat the range, so I can practice. Over time I suspect it'll be like RAD, and I'll have a few more specialized. I suspect I won't meet all criteria with my first purchase, but I'll try to make a reasonable choice. If it's anything like razors, my second one will be my favorite.

PCM - You're right. One handgun is not enough. Then you get to thinking, "Do I have enough firepower when I need it?" So I have presented you with a couple of options here. For your long range needs - AR15 w/6X16 scope and front laser (green), For home protection - Tristar 12 ga. semi auto tactical shotgun, use .00 buckshot, For personal protection - a nice 1911A1 will work fine, and for your last chance option a double barrel .32Auto derringer will fit in your pocket. My wife thinks I'm paranoid. I say I'm prepared. This is just the tip of the iceberg...

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I'll chime in on trigger pull.
Buy a gun that fits into your hand and can have the trigger pull changed. Some manufacterers are harder to rework or no aftermarket triggers are made for them.

I have many guns that have had the triggers reworked to the pull I want for that gun.
Some have 3 lb pulls, others 4lb, some 7-8 lb. the thickness of the grip effects my finger pull effort. Thick grips , or double stacks, get reworked to have less pull.

The engraving on that barrel inspired me to show a picture of the end of the barrel of one of my derringers.