You made the decision to buy a gun, now what? There is about a million different types and styles to chose from. We are in a great age of guns. Almost everything on the market is excellent. So much of the choice is personal style and preference.
Be prepared to spend $300 at least. Sometimes you can find a steal of deal below that, but normally anything below that number is not worth buying. You can find some good used guns for that price and can get something new for around $500. These prices only go up. There are some great handguns on the market for $3,000, but that is like giving your teenager a Ferrari so he can learn to drive.
Picking a handgun is like picking a vehicle to drive. We start with what you want the vehicle for. So what are you going to use the handgun for? Since this is a self-defense blog, I’m assuming you want one to protect yourself.
What caliber should I chose? There are millions of pages of print on this, but I’ll make it super simple. Get a 9mm for your first gun. It’s enough of a round to be serious in self-defense, but it kicks less, has less noise, and is cheaper the other popular or not so popular self-defense rounds.
What type of gun? Generally we think either auto-loading pistol or revolver. Auto-loading pistols are what most people are using now and I suggest you get one. It has less recoil and a little less of an explosive feeling in your hands. With a revolver there is a little gap that allows some of the powder to escape out the sides when fired. The auto-loader has everything go out the end of the barrel. Neither is dangerous.
Where is the gun going to stay? If you are going to leave the gun in the house for protection there, you want a full size or duty gun. Something a police officer would carry. It’s a little big to carry concealed, but the bigger the gun generally (to a point), the easier it is to shoot, the less felt recoil there will be, and the more ammo it holds. If you are going to carry it everyday go with something that is compact. They look kind of like a duty gun’s little brother. For your first gun stay away from the subcompact, pocket size, or mini guns. They are extremely hard to shoot well, recoil a lot, are really loud, and hard to hang onto while shooting. They are nice to carry because of their size and weight. After you have been shooting a while and want something else then you can figure one of these tiny guns out.
Make and model comes down to personal preference and hand size. Every gun has a little different feel when you pick it up. The best way to test this is go shoot a bunch of guns. If you can buy some instructor time or take a beginners class that would be best. Most instructors have lots of guns for you to try. If you can’t get a class and want to buy one first, ask the gun store clerk how to hold a handgun. A proper grip is as high up as you can so the top of your hand is stopped by the bump that comes out. If the gun fits right, when you put your finger on the trigger your forearm and the gun will be in a straight line. There will be multiple guns that work, pick up everyone in the 9mm area and find out which one feels the best for you.
A little warning about gun store clerks, some of them are extremely knowledgeable and good at their job, others are like used car salesmen. Just trying to get you to buy whatever they have in the case.
If you have any questions or want some more help, e-mail me or leave me a comment and I’ll answer them all.
Stay Safe,
Ben
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