Firearm Hobbyist Catch-All

LiquidMantis wrote:
Thin_J wrote:

How experienced are you? Shoot handguns before? Own others? Etc. Hard to help without knowing what you want or what you're used to :P

I don't have much handgun experience really, other than spending part of summer shooting a .22 revolver with rat shot rounds to pick off water mocassins living in a culvert that my dad's construction company was replacing. I grew up in rural Texas though so I've shot .22, .22 mag, .30-30, .30-06, and .308 rifles as well as some 20 gauge shotgun.

Paleocon wrote:

Actually, the P229 is a better gun all the way around than the P226. You won't lose much in sight radius and ergonomically, the 229 is vastly superior.

Yeah, I need to get to the range and rent them so I can get my hands on them. I don't have huge mitts but I do wear a large glove. I'm also left-handed so I'd have to see how the decocker and mag release fit.

The Sig of any type is not an ideal handgun for a lefty shooter.

If I were to recommend a lefty friendly gun to start out with, it would probably be the HS2000.

I'll bring my CZ and 45LC revolver so we can shoot that also.
What do you want to accomplish with the pistol?

World peace, maybe finish my degree, get the kids setup for college.

I want to make holes in things with lead propelled at high speeds of course.

Okay well we could make something that does that :).

Wasn't sure if you were wanting a future CC, backpacking carry, home defense, or target pistol.

I was considering the possibility of getting my CCW permit, which is one reason I had wanted to look at a P229. CO is open carry too, at least where not countered by county. But mainly target practice.

So add me to the list, as unusual as it seems: I'm a die-hard liberal, I live in MA, and I've just finished my Class A (concealed carry) permit application, to be dropped off at the police station tomorrow.

At this very early stage, I've fired a .22LR competition-built Ruger, a .22 S&W revolver (which I was bullseye accurate with and loved), and a 9mm Sig, which I also liked. My intention is to purchase a Mossberg 12-gauge for home defense, however, rather than a pistol.

I just read an article recently that stated that lefties are the fastest growing gun owning demographic largely because of the locavore hunting/dining trend.

Ooooh, due to personal bias I thought you meant left-handers, not just liberals, and was wondering if you were equating some correlation between left-handers and liberalism.

Paleocon wrote:

I just read an article recently that stated that lefties are the fastest growing gun owning demographic largely because of the locavore hunting/dining trend.

That's an interesting stat. At least in my case, I see the possession of a firearm as being for a single reason: its ability to effectively harm a human being in a situation that I hope never arises.

LiquidMantis wrote:

Ooooh, due to personal bias I thought you meant left-handers, not just liberals, and was wondering if you were equating some correlation between left-handers and liberalism.

Maybe. I've been a lefty shooter and a (moderately) liberal person my entire life.

Also, don't discount the Springfield XD series. I've owned mine for 3+ years and like it.

As a last thought, if you think finding a weapon is tough , wait til you start looking for left handed holsters. It won't be easy to buy "of the rack". Most gun stores have a very limited selection.

TheHipGamer wrote:
Paleocon wrote:

I just read an article recently that stated that lefties are the fastest growing gun owning demographic largely because of the locavore hunting/dining trend.

That's an interesting stat. At least in my case, I see the possession of a firearm as being for a single reason: its ability to effectively harm a human being in a situation that I hope never arises.

For me handguns have many purposes. I'm about to go backpacking where there has been recent mountain lion attacks, and now bear warnings.

Sorry, I worded my reply poorly: handguns can absolutely have multiple purposes, and there's no judgment implied there. I am interested in a firearm for only one of those purposes, and I hope it never gets taken from the rack to meet it.

Picked up my first gun last week. CZ 858, nice "AK-47" look, but legal to own up here in Kanuckistan. Ammo's cheap too, so fits the bill.

I was about to aquire a Springfield XD40 from a buddy for cheap, but he let his PAL run out and now has to reapply before we can do the papers ... oh the waiting !

HantaXP wrote:

Picked up my first gun last week. CZ 858, nice "AK-47" look, but legal to own up here in Kanuckistan. Ammo's cheap too, so fits the bill.

I was about to aquire a Springfield XD40 from a buddy for cheap, but he let his PAL run out and now has to reapply before we can do the papers ... oh the waiting !

A Czech rifle and a Croatian pistol? Now all you need is a Serbian shotgun.

I bought a PPQ. I shouldn't have... but I did anyway.

Haven't shot it yet though. In hand it feels very similar to the P30 from H&K, but with what would seem to be a much nicer trigger.

Only bummer: I now have yet another handgun with 35$+ spare mags. Oops.

Thin_J wrote:

I bought a PPQ. I shouldn't have... but I did anyway.

Haven't shot it yet though. In hand it feels very similar to the P30 from H&K, but with what would seem to be a much nicer trigger.

Only bummer: I now have yet another handgun with 35$+ spare mags. Oops.

You can afford quite a few mags for what I could pay you for your safe queen rifle, you know.

TheHipGamer wrote:

Sorry, I worded my reply poorly: handguns can absolutely have multiple purposes, and there's no judgment implied there. I am interested in a firearm for only one of those purposes, and I hope it never gets taken from the rack to meet it.

No, I understood what you were saying. I was just stating it's multi purpose for me.

Slytin wrote:

For me handguns have many purposes. I'm about to go backpacking where there has been recent mountain lion attacks, and now bear warnings.

On the backpacking note, what do you guys think are some good backpacking pistols? Need a good balance of weight and stopping power. Is a Glock G20 the best bang for my buck?

Are you planning on open carry, conceal, or both?
I'll throw in a FN Five-Seven light weight has a round take down whatever you need with 20rnd mags.

ELewis17 wrote:
Slytin wrote:

For me handguns have many purposes. I'm about to go backpacking where there has been recent mountain lion attacks, and now bear warnings.

On the backpacking note, what do you guys think are some good backpacking pistols? Need a good balance of weight and stopping power. Is a Glock G20 the best bang for my buck?

If you are concerned about bear, a Glock 20 is just going to piss it off. Nothing short of a .44mag is going to be up for the task.

Paleocon wrote:
ELewis17 wrote:
Slytin wrote:

For me handguns have many purposes. I'm about to go backpacking where there has been recent mountain lion attacks, and now bear warnings.

On the backpacking note, what do you guys think are some good backpacking pistols? Need a good balance of weight and stopping power. Is a Glock G20 the best bang for my buck?

If you are concerned about bear, a Glock 20 is just going to piss it off. Nothing short of a .44mag is going to be up for the task.

Yeah, and I don't even know that I'd be cool with that. I mean, if you're limited to a handgun, I guess, sure, though if bears are a legit worry I might go even crazier and lean .454 or .500S&W.

Of course, if Bear is truly a possibility I'd probably either be carrying a 30.06 or something bigger or just not going at all.

Yeah, bears are more about prevention. Black bears typically aren't aggressive. You're not going to see the mountain lion that attacks you. They're the one thing left on my wildlife "bucket list". I'm not too interested in checking that one off.

LiquidMantis wrote:

Yeah, bears are more about prevention. Black bears typically aren't aggressive. You're not going to see the mountain lion that attacks you. They're the one thing left on my wildlife "bucket list". I'm not too interested in checking that one off.

That's what I was thinking to, but If my buddy gets attacked by a mountain lion I don't want to run at it with a knife or a stick. You can read decent amount of articles about hand guns coming in handy against bears. They may not always shoot or kill the bear off but does send it running a lot of times.

Open carry in most places. Can't think of a real disadvantage to open carry out in the woods.

Interesting thought on the Five-Seven. 20 rounds of 5.7mm would probably weigh a lot less than 15 10mm rounds.

Edit: Whether it'll drop a bear or not, it'll provide some peace of mind. Plus, I get to buy another gun.
A long gun would be nice, but I'm not willing to lug one into the backcounrty.

FWIW, I've been hiking my entire life. Black bears really aren't aggressive. (Please don't kill wildlife unless you're planning to eat it, or it's actually, really attacking you. Seeing a bear or mountain lion isn't cause to shoot it. Which I'm sure you knew.)

Ug, I wouldn't want to lug around any gun.
Completely screw up my pack weight.

Bears are the reason for the mountain gun, a short-barrel revolver in .44 magnum or higher made with weight in mind. S&W adapted the 629 to this use way back when, and Ruger has their Alaskan.

Quintin_Stone wrote:

Bears are the reason for the mountain gun, a short-barrel revolver in .44 magnum or higher made with weight in mind. S&W adapted the 629 to this use way back when, and Ruger has their Alaskan.

Grizzlies? Sure. But not black bears.

TheHipGamer wrote:
Quintin_Stone wrote:

Bears are the reason for the mountain gun, a short-barrel revolver in .44 magnum or higher made with weight in mind. S&W adapted the 629 to this use way back when, and Ruger has their Alaskan.

Grizzlies? Sure. But not black bears.

While fatalities are not equal, it certainly isn't out of the question.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of...

Though I do hear where you're coming from. The black bears at our cabin are pretty easily deterred by clanging some pots and pans together.

I just love caliber hyperbole, and nothing brings it out quite as well as the old "OMG bears are Kevlar-furred machines of death!" conversation.

Shooting a bear with something smaller than a M72 LAW does not in fact "just piss it off". Unless you're dealing with a sow defending her cubs, the general reaction of a bear to the report of a gunshot is to run like hell even if you miss. Hitting one doesn't make it any more likely to decide it's just plain mad at you either, there's a reason trailing dogs are so popular on bear hunts. The tough buggers can sometimes wander a long ways before they bleed out from a poorly placed shot.

A 10mm round is roughly about 75% as effective as a .44 Mag (speaking in the broadest possible terms), and you get the benefit of 10 additional rounds without stopping to reload. Guns like the Glock 20 are rather popular in Alaska for wildlife defense, where they're not only dealing with the occasional bear but the much more frequent Angry Moose.

The real issue to consider is that you don't need a firearm to defend yourself from bears. Unless you're sneaking up on sows in the Spring the only part of the bear you're likely to even see is the big fuzzy brown ass as it runs away from you. I spent half my life to this point hiking and mountain biking in the mountains of California and Southern Oregon and have seen more bears than I can even count yet I still have all my original appendages. I've also seen two cougars and I'll readily admit those are a LOT more scary. While bears almost invariably run off as soon as they see you, the big cats sit there and watch you. It's incredibly unnerving.