Buying a handgun.

[ShawnKirkpatrick]

Hey, I just wanted to see what kind of handguns everybody has/carries. I'm now planning on buying a Glock 21 .45 cal. This gun has always appealed to me but I always just put off buying it or spending money on something else........ Thank you spyderco!!! haha. But yeah, That's the only handgun I will have. But I do have a 20 gauge I bought back when I was 12, And my .22 LR my grandpaw gave me. Picture are fine to!! :D

[Dr. Snubnose]

Has 27 Handguns...Carries Two Sp101 Rugers a S&W 340PD (in my avatar) all in .357 mag. and a NAA mini-mag in .22mag....For work I carry a Sig P220, P226,Colt1911, Remington Marine Model 870 12 ga. That's just the carry part...Doc :)

[psychophipps]

It's very tempting to go with a big ol' phatty .45ACP as your first gun, but I advise against it as a person that went that route myself. .45ACP ammo is expensive at also twice the cost of 9mm, even in premium ammunition for carry, and the terminal effects between the service calibers is negligible at best with the top-notch loadings.

I suggest that you pick up a Glock 17 or 19 instead. These are hands-down spectacular 9mm handguns (they're typically cheaper than the 21), and they will serve any purpose you might have for them from plinking, to gun games, to tactical training. Twice the shooting for the same buck pays huge dividends when it comes to chances to get in some trigger time as well.

Just sayin', because I dug myself that hole a while back and have yet to look back once...

[ShawnKirkpatrick]

It's main purpose will be just for a safety gun, If somebody breaks into my house, or for if the world get's even more screwed up, or I have to take out a couple of those coyotes that like to come close to my house and dogs, I have a reasonably sized gun and don't have to haul around a big ole' shotgun. I hardly ever just go shooting for fun, I just need something with some big stopping power and leaves a fairly big hole. I haven't shot my shotgun in a year (If that tells you how much I shoot) and even the time I did it was only one or two shots. So that's why I settled on the .45.

It's very tempting to go with a big ol' phatty .45ACP as your first gun, but I advise against it as a person that went that route myself. .45ACP ammo is expensive at also twice the cost of 9mm, even in premium ammunition for carry, and the terminal effects between the service calibers is negligible at best with the top-notch loadings.

I suggest that you pick up a Glock 17 or 19 instead. These are hands-down spectacular 9mm handguns (they're typically cheaper than the 21), and they will serve any purpose you might have for them from plinking, to gun games, to tactical training. Twice the shooting for the same buck pays huge dividends when it comes to chances to get in some trigger time as well.

Just sayin', because I dug myself that hole a while back and have yet to look back once...

[Dr. Snubnose]

It's main purpose will be just for a safety gun, If somebody breaks into my house, or for if the world get's even more screwed up, or I have to take out a couple of those coyotes that like to come close to my house and dogs, I have a reasonably sized gun and don't have to haul around a big ole' shotgun. I hardly ever just go shooting for fun, I just need something with some big stopping power and leaves a fairly big hole. I haven't shot my shotgun in a year (If that tells you how much I shoot) and even the time I did it was only one or two shots. So that's why I settled on the .45.

Shawn, seems to me you know what caliber performance you want in your handgun for your needs.....45 ACP Two thumbs up from me on that choice...Thing is you really need to think about the platform for delivery. You're thinking a Semi-auto, bigger ammo capacity, fast rapid delivery, but are you thinking about all the possible malfunctions and failure to fire because of bad primers, Jams, ammo sensitivity and failure to eject spent cases due to a low powder charge....etc etc. Then how bout all that practice you are going to have to put in on various clearing malfunction drills. And all the new manual of arms you have to go through to operate a semi auto safely. What about a Revolver? hmmm only 5 or 6 bullets,No Safeties to remember to click off while under stress and lose fine motor skills, Point and Pull...it goes bang. More reliable, 99.9% of the time you pull the trigger it goes bang, regardless of what ammo you feed it. And if it doesn't you just do what's natural...pull the trigger again.... (people do that with semi- auto as well when they don't fire, but those guns don't go bang.) A little practice it will even make you a better semi-auto shooter.
What good is a semi-auto with 8 rounds going to do for you when a Coyote is attacking one of your dogs and it jams on the second round you fire....Me I'd rather have 5 or 6 for sure than maybe a possible 8, if I was standing in your shoes. Plus IMHO I believe the .45 ACP Revolver is one of the best tools for serious defensive work....Just my thoughts with a slanted view.....Doc :)

[Gunslinger]

I've had a Glock21sf for a while now.
Fantastic handgun.

[BAL]

Glock 21sf is about as good as it gets. I have a couple glocks and the 21 will be the next one that I buy.

I also tell people to get the one that they feel is the best for them. Revolvers are simple, work every time, and I have many. I prefer Semi auto's for carry though, due to the capacity and ease of reload. To me the Glock is as close to the reliability of the revolver as you can get.

You can't beat the 45 for SD, but I have full confidence in the newer 9mm SD ammo and carry a Glock 26. Glaser Slugs, Hornady critical defense, Winchester JHP and Speer gold dot just to name a few. 9mm is cheaper to practice with as well.

Good luck on your new gun.

[mkd]

i recently bought a pistol for ccw and after contemplating all the options i went with the 9mm.i carried a colt 45 as an mp for 16 months in the service and didn't want the weight or size for a conceal carry gun. i ended up buying a cz p01 in 9mm and the only drawback i didn't consider was all the accessories for the cz pistols are hard to find.the gun is highly regarded as reliable and accurate and has a real good feel to it. here it is with my 800 afck!

[alerin]

I say go for it, great gun plus .45acp is one of my favorites. I love my glocks, have four of them, but for myself when it comes to a SD, my edc is a S&W M&P J frame in .357 and in house a S&W 627(8 shot) also in .357.

[JLS]

There's a lot of good comments here. I want to draw your attention to Doc's suggestion though.

You admitted that you're not likely to practice much. Glocks are very reliable, but unless you practice malfunction drills, a semi-auto is perhaps not what you need. Revolvers have served well for a long time and will continue to do so for...ever. There are excellent reasons for that.

If you're sold on a semi-auto, here are a couple of thoughts. .45 ACP is a great round, but it's expensive and a little tough to learn shooting with. That being said, Glocks are wonderful defensive handguns. The 21's, even in the SF variety are a bit big in the grip for most folks. The XD/XDM .45 or M&P .45's are substantially smaller in the grip if you must have a semi-auto .45.

What I recommend to most people who are committed to practicing is either a Glock or S&W M&P in 9mm. Either one offers a lot for the all-around handgun.

What I recommend to people who want a gun, but will rarely practice is a 4" .357 Mag revolver loaded with .38 +P. It offers simplicity, reliability and power.

[r small]

Smith J frame. Easy to carry. Simple to use. Reliable.

[ChrisM]

Glock 23 here.

[Adriaan]

If i could buy a gun (legally), then i would buy a FN five-seven. How ironic it's a Belgian gun and as a Belgian citizen i even can't buy it...

After some nutjob cases in my country, like the guy that trew some grenades into a crowd and opened fire upon them, politicians tuffened the gun and weapon laws even more.

Hehe democracy at it's finest...

[defenestrate]

The Taurus Judge revolver fires .45 ACP and .410 shotgun shells...

[usmc1371]

Please dont take this the wrong way. Any gun is only as good as the guy holding it. If you only shoot a few times a year and you Know you only shoot once and a while by all means get a wheel gun. I am not knocking the glock as I have a G35 that I abuse in IPSC matches and it runs like a swiss watch. I would trust my life to that gun and it has proven extremly reliable over the last 10K+ rounds. I carry a springfield 1911 and have for 12 years, if it wasn't 100% reliable it would have been replaced long ago.

My point is I shoot thousands of rounds a year and train on a regular baises thus I like my autos and they have Proven reliable.

If you happen to have large to huge hands and the G21 fits you good and you don't mind spending 40 cents every time you pull the trigger and are willing to put the time into learning how to shoot the glock the way it was meant to be, then go for it. The 9mm glocks fit almost every one's hands and cost less to shoot, if you don't want a revolver I advise you go with the G17/19.

[vic]

The Taurus Judge revolver fires .45 ACP and .410 shotgun shells...

no it doesn't, it can chamber .410 and .45 colt

the new smith governor with chamber both of those and .45 acp

[vic]

Shawn, seems to me you know what caliber performance you want in your handgun for your needs.....45 ACP Two thumbs up from me on that choice...Thing is you really need to think about the platform for delivery. You're thinking a Semi-auto, bigger ammo capacity, fast rapid delivery, but are you thinking about all the possible malfunctions and failure to fire because of bad primers, Jams, ammo sensitivity and failure to eject spent cases due to a low powder charge....etc etc. Then how bout all that practice you are going to have to put in on various clearing malfunction drills. And all the new manual of arms you have to go through to operate a semi auto safely. What about a Revolver? hmmm only 5 or 6 bullets,No Safeties to remember to click off while under stress and lose fine motor skills, Point and Pull...it goes bang. More reliable, 99.9% of the time you pull the trigger it goes bang, regardless of what ammo you feed it. And if it doesn't you just do what's natural...pull the trigger again.... (people do that with semi- auto as well when they don't fire, but those guns don't go bang.) A little practice it will even make you a better semi-auto shooter.
What good is a semi-auto with 8 rounds going to do for you when a Coyote is attacking one of your dogs and it jams on the second round you fire....Me I'd rather have 5 or 6 for sure than maybe a possible 8, if I was standing in your shoes. Plus IMHO I believe the .45 ACP Revolver is one of the best tools for serious defensive work....Just my thoughts with a slanted view.....Doc :)

nothing bad to say about revolvers at all, but if you train with the semi auto and practice with the defense rounds you want to use and it runs them reliably then it's a pretty old argument to say that a modern semi auto pistol like the 21 or any of the quality alternatives, m&p whatever is not a reliable solution, and you get a lot more capacity and faster (for most people reloads) than with a revolver, and the glock he's looking at and most of it's competition don't have thumb safeties to worry about anyway.

revolvers and modern semi-auto's are both awesome, both reliable

[racer88]

If i could buy a gun (legally), then i would buy a FN five-seven. How ironic it's a Belgian gun and as a Belgian citizen i even can't buy it...

After some nutjob cases in my country, like the guy that trew some grenades into a crowd and opened fire upon them, politicians tuffened the gun and weapon laws even more.

Hehe democracy at it's finest...

That really sucks. I happen to LOVE FNH guns. :cool:



My EDC is a G27, though. (Also own a G19 - my first pistol and a G23.)



Got a new holster for my G27 recently. Love the customized kydex!

[Dr. Snubnose]

There exists a couple of problems when it come to the offerings from various companies that have the .45LC/.410 Shot combination. Are you ever going to load up your defensive firearm with .410 shot other than to have some fun at the range and to see what those little pellets will do to paper. (very cool little holes) Well as you already know the human body is not made from paper. The .410 shot is a great defense against snake, but against another two legged dangerous animal it's a whole new ballgame. Unless you use the gunfighter Q-tip technique of sticking the barrel in someone's ear before dropping the hammer. Well....You say I could always shoot the .410 Slugs not shot. Hey that's an Idea! Specially if you buy a gun like this. (which BTW I'm not suggesting). The .410 slugs are roughly the equivalent in power range as the .44 Magnum when coming out of a longer tube. So they should have the power to get the job done. My feeling though is if you want a .44mag then buy a .44mag, they will be more accurate than shooting .410 slugs through a short barrel. So we are left for .45 Long Colt...Great round, Big old bullet moving at slower speeds with lots of power to make big holes in the target, less the recoil of the .45ACP round, making follow up shots easier and the same for hits on targets.
The problem with the .45LC/.410 config. is that the shotgun slug or shot is made for a smooth bore long gun, the .45LC needs twists, turns, spirals called rifling in the barrel to spiral the projectile on a straight trajectory to it's intended target.
Ok the point is this, the .45LC will have to jump a section of the barrel, called the head space, before it can pick up the rifling. The barrels are made this way to also accommodate the .410 shot/slug rounds. What this causes is the bullet to wobble as it leaves the barrel, and at even 21 feet the effects can be readily seen on a paper target of what is called key-holing, which means your bullet is hitting target flying sideways. On the target paper you will see a hole but also the paper target torn or ripped horizontally. No the bullet is not more effective if it hits sideways cause it's bigger, It is indeed less effective as the penetration into the body will be greatly decreased, and will it also prevent a hollowpoint bullet from expanding say from .45 of an inch (45 caliber round) once opened in soft tissue can expand to .75 of an inch or larger depending on the ammunition. So hitting sideways and not expanding as designed translates to a serious flaw with regards to stopping power. Bottom line if you want to shoot .410 shot/slugs...get a shotgun.... .44mags...buy a .44mag and if you want to shoot .45LC, buy a gun chambered for that round...you'll be much happier and better armed.....Doc :)

[Dr. Snubnose]

nothing bad to say about revolvers at all, but if you train with the semi auto and practice with the defense rounds you want to use and it runs them reliably then it's a pretty old argument to say that a modern semi auto pistol like the 21 or any of the quality alternatives, m&p whatever is not a reliable solution, and you get a lot more capacity and faster (for most people reloads) than with a revolver, and the glock he's looking at and most of it's competition don't have thumb safeties to worry about anyway.

revolvers and modern semi-auto's are both awesome, both reliable

Not to argue, but maybe that has been your experience with semi-autos as far as being reliable...It has not been my experience, I probably have more exposure to issues revolving around the semi-auto's reliability, as I am a certified Law Enforcement and Civilian Firearms Instructor.
I see it everyday, I own 17 semi-autos and there is not a one of them in the bunch that has not jammed at one time or another...guess that's why I carry a revolver on my own time.....Doc :)