Looking at buying a Pistol

[SD_Prairie_Goat]

So title says it all.

Really don't know much about them in general....

What makes a semiauto pistol better than the others?

I'm probably going to go cheap because that's the way I am. Thinking about the taurus G2 pistol for $250ish or the Judge.

Honestly I was really leaning toward the judge, but I'm not sure what advantage it would really have. Starting to think maybe the increased capacity of the semi makes more sense?



Reason for ownership: almost exclusively protection at the house. I tend to keep the long guns all locked up so it would be nice to have something in a quick access safe while I sleep.

 

[Dsnow9]

I thought I wanted a judge until I held one. The best handgun is the one that fits your hand. If it’s not comfortable to hold it will suck to shoot. When it comes to a carry gun or hone defense that gun better feel like an extension of your body if you ever intend to use it.

 

[TOGIE]

glocks man

just pony up and buy a glock

 

[Deleted member 16014]

Really hard to pick a handgun off the shelf without shooting it. For general plinking for proficiency and personal protection it would be hard for me to stray from a full size frame, double stack auto...Smith and Wesson M&P, Glock, etc. Particularly in the moderate price ranges. I'd buy a used one that I could inspect without hesitation.

 

[44hunter45]

The best thing ever for the newbie handgunner is a range that rents guns. Go and shoot several. Shoot both range ammo and defense ammo through them.
You may end up with a $200 range bill, but you will not end up buying something you can't wait to get rid of or are afraid to shoot. If you have a Mrs, take her too.

I lean toward 1911's, particularly double stack ParaOrdnances. Ruger revolvers. I do like any brand of well made weapon with more steel than plastic. I have a Rossi .38 Spl that is surprisingly well built for the money.
For the money, currently, I like the Rock Island Armory 1911 clones.

 

[MO Betta]

Some gun shops have a range and will have an assortment of pistols that you can "rent" and just buy the ammo, you can swap pistols during the range time and find what you like and don't like. I did this when buying my girlfriend her first pistol, told the guy at the counter to let her try anything in the case she wanted, and asked him to help her so I wouldn't influence her decision. She really liked a Walther CCP so that is what we got her.

Edit: @44hunter45 is on the same track as I am.

 

[SD_Prairie_Goat]

All great points. There is a local range that lets you rent pistols I'm pretty sure. Seems like the best place to start honestly

 

[NMGuy]

Advantage of a semi-auto is the increased capacity and speed to reload. Would you rather have 5 rounds to put into a home intruder, or 18? That said, many people believe a revolver is more reliable since there are fewer moving parts.

I'll echo what's already been said, which is that it is best to handle the gun prior to buying. Lots of people, like Togie, love Glocks. I personally don't care for the feel or the safety system on them and would never buy one.

Now is not a great time to buy a new handgun as Covid and the upcoming elections have jacked prices up. Others would argue now is the best time to buy for fear of the November election results and what might happen come January.

Another thing to consider is availability of ammo. 9mm is available, but is more expensive than it was pre-covid. Other ammo types (.45ACP, .40S&W, .45LC) are at least somewhat more readily available.

I have a judge and it's been a great gun, however I'm currently shopping around for a semi-auto.

 

[WildWill]

The judge would fit your needs nicely, if it's going to sit in a drawer by your bed weights not really a issue. You could probably find a used glock pretty cheap to. A 410 000 buck ball is about the size of a 380 round and each round has 4. I wouldn't worry to much about high capacity probably won't be in a prolonged fire fight with a home intruder. I have the S&W copy of the judge and love it.

 

[Wildabeest]

I’ll second the M&P platform. One thing I like about M&P is that the .22 feels the same in the hand as the 9mm or .40 cal. If you’re just learning to shoot, working on form with the .22 and then working up to the 9mm or .40 cal is a great way to build confidence and not develop twitches early on. I’m talking the full sized versions here, not the CC (Shield) version. For CC, I prefer Sig P365.

For pure home defense, though, I actually like the Judge. But it’s not something I would see myself shooting a lot at the range, so I don’t own one.

 

[WVmike]

Advantage of a semi-auto is the increased capacity and speed to reload. Would you rather have 5 rounds to put into a home intruder, or 18? That said, many people believe a revolver is more reliable since there are fewer moving parts.

I'll echo what's already been said, which is that it is best to handle the gun prior to buying. Lots of people, like Togie, love Glocks. I personally don't care for the feel or the safety system on them and would never buy one.

Now is not a great time to buy a new handgun as Covid and the upcoming elections have jacked prices up. Others would argue now is the best time to buy for fear of the November election results and what might happen come January.

Another thing to consider is availability of ammo. 9mm is available, but is more expensive than it was pre-covid. Other ammo types (.45ACP, .40S&W, .45LC) are at least somewhat more readily available.

I have a judge and it's been a great gun, however I'm currently shopping around for a semi-auto.

Agree with this. Buying a pistol in my opinion is all personal preference like a lot of other things. Go to a gun store and handle the ones you think you may like to buy. I originally wanted to buy a Smith & Wesson M&P but when I held it in my hand and shot my buddy's that he has, I didn't like it at all the way it felt in my hand and the way the trigger broke. I orginally had a Springfield XD in .45 and it was nice just to big to carry and the ammo was more expensive than 9mm. This is all pre-covid as well. I currently use a Springfield XDS mod 2 in 9mm which I use as a carry and home defense pistol. If you're wanting something with capacity Sig Sauer just came out with their P320 mk17/mk18 which allows you load up to 16 rounds I believe. Also comes with night sights and has a nice coating on it for what that's worth.

The other thing to mention is some semi auto pistols use a hammer which allows for double and single action use which basically means on the first shot the trigger pull is ungodly heavy then the follow up shots are a little lighter. A lot of pistols nowadays are striker fired which means there is no hammer to fall when the trigger is pulled and the trigger pull is consistently the same with every shot. This as mentioned before is all preference. I like striker fired pistols Sig P320, Springfield xd/xds but I also like 1911s.

 

[sluggo6850]

So title says it all.

Really don't know much about them in general....

What makes a semiauto pistol better than the others?

I'm probably going to go cheap because that's the way I am. Thinking about the taurus G2 pistol for $250ish or the Judge.

Honestly I was really leaning toward the judge, but I'm not sure what advantage it would really have. Starting to think maybe the increased capacity of the semi makes more sense?



Reason for ownership: almost exclusively protection at the house. I tend to keep the long guns all locked up so it would be nice to have something in a quick access safe while I sleep.

Message sent

 

[Ben Lamb]

Lots of good advice in here, and I think the bst is go window shopping, hold a bunch of them, rent some if possible and see what you like and fits best in your hand.
Taurus quality control can be hit or miss. I tend to not want to trust my or my family's life to something I don't trust 100%.

I've had GLocks & M&P's (currently have an M&P 40). No trouble with either of those and they went bang every time I pulled the trigger. So do my double action revelovers, be they Ruger or S&W.

I'm all about getting a good deal on a gun too, so with your caveat of being frugal, I'd say go look at used guns. For $350-400 you can get a great plastic pistol with low miles and a stellar reputation.

 

[HandgunHunter]

Lots of good brands and options and a lot of it is personal choice.

If your intent is to buy it as a defensive tool don’t go cheap here. $500-600ish gets you into quality handguns and some of those may be upper shelf on the used rack.

since you are completely new.....look at what LE is using. They have spent a ton of money figuring out what gun is a good fit for their large departments.

 

[SD_Prairie_Goat]

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[TOGIE]

my comment was very subtly tongue in cheek, cuz that's what glock guys tend to say. though i am a believer.

i have two M&Ps and one glock

i totally thought i was an M&P guy for a long time, i guess i still am cause i love them, but then i shot my buddy's G26 and all of the sudden i was grouping really tight and consistently compared to just generally good target hitting with the M&Ps. so i went and bought a glock

i'm half and half i realized apparently, i shoot glocks really well, which was sad, cause i wanted to be an M&P guy through and through.

 

[Ben Lamb]

I'm in the same camp, @TOGIE, but I'm too cheap to go buy another pistol. Thinking I might sell the M&P & replace it with a G23. I just shoot it better.

 

[Don Fischer]

I am not a semi auto fan with CF handguns, I strongly prefer DA revolver's. But for carry and home defense I like semi auto's. Two things abut them. For carry my Shield c9 is very small and easy to hide, fits my hand and carry's a bit more ammo than a DA. In the house I have a Ruger P-89. Heavier than my Shield, harder to hide away but it does carry a lot more ammo, about twice as much. Someone mentioned fasted reloading, isn't that the truth. I tried a speed loader in a DA years ago and while faster than loading one at a time, a lot slower than a semi auto's clip! I don't think either the Shield or the Ruger are good looking but love looking at my DA's. I don't shoot them that well either but at ten yds, a watermelon is in serious trouble, good enough. Something I believe to be true is that the overwhelming vast majority of people with gun's for protection will never have to use them but for home defense the more shots without reloading the better for me.or concealed carry, I want it easy to conceal and light to carry around. Sometime I do carry that Ruger and the weight is always noticeable. And being longer and heavier than my Shield I'm always wondering it someone can see it! Nobody ever has but it's a mind game with me

 

[huntin24/7]

The glock 19 is a sweet shooter and durable. Literally just qualified with my new glock after carrying a different weapon for 13 years. It’s a very nice shooting gun and easy to take apart and put back together. Recoil with the 9mm is light too.

 

[TOGIE]

I'm in the same camp, @TOGIE, but I'm too cheap to go buy another pistol. Thinking I might sell the M&P & replace it with a G23. I just shoot it better.

to try and justify it (luckily i wasn't married yet) to myself, i bought the g43, cause i have the M&P 40 and the M&P bodyguard, and i didn't have a not dinky or a not massive concealed carry

so now i feel rounded out

i keep mentioning to my wife i need a revolver, she just says if you say so. and then i look at my hunting budget and realize that's next year wyoming bull tag

i will say though, i shoot the bodyguard surprisingly well