So, I'm Going To Buy A Gun And I'm A N00b.

[RedskinsTime]

The Glock will NOT fire w/o pulling the trigger...period

it is the people that put their finger on it that are a danger

twa is right. Glocks do in fact have a safety on the trigger itself. When the shooter pulls the trigger, a small button in the trigger is depressed, disengaging the safety and allowing the weapon to fire. Without pulling the trigger, the gun will not go off. Many law enforcement agencies switched to Glocks after extensive testing, including dropping the weapon off a building several stories high without a misfire.

[twa]

if you are dead set on a traditional safety, they are available mods for Glocks, but simply getting a different pistol would make more sense to me if you have that hangup.

Ardowling...ya think that thing has got enough stopping power?

[ardowling]

if you are dead set on a traditional safety, they are available mods for Glocks, but simply getting a different pistol would make more sense to me if you have that hangup.

Ardowling...ya think that thing has got enough stopping power?

twa, it is really fun to shoot, maybe if the weather warms up I can get a picture of the fireball when I touch off a .454 round, like I said earlier its a baby with a .45LC. And yea it will stop pretty much everything in the Northern Hemisphere:)

[Jumbo]

twa, it is really fun to shot, maybe if the weather warms up I can get a picture of the fireball when I touch off a .454 round, like I said earlier its a baby with a .45LC. And yea it will stop pretty much everything in the Northern Hemisphere:)

Where I grew up it used to be you always took your 44 mag and a Bowie when you went for a walk. Lately the 454 is more popular and there's a reason the Ruger folks gave one the name "Alaskan." Great for wolves and bears in a pinch.

A sawed off 12ga pump w/slugs works too.

[HailGreen28]

I would stagger load your shotgun with shot and slug. First that you fire is shot and then the next is slug. My saying is "don't make me shoot twice".

Inside a house, or relatively close, birdshot will kill. Even the wad might penetrate skin.

Never think that any shot from a gun is "less lethal". Almost nobody is the Lone Ranger.

[ardowling]

Where I grew up it used to be you always took your 44 mag and a Bowie when you went for a walk. Lately the 454 is more popular and there's a reason the Ruger folks gave one the name "Alaskan." Great for wolves and bears in a pinch.

A sawed off 12ga pump w/slugs works too.

Jumbo, the Alaskan would be my weapon of last resort, my SPX with Buffalo Bore slugs would be my choice against large animals with lots of teeth or horns (Moose).

Here is my .44 Mag, still would go with the SPX

[Jumbo]

No argument at all, ar.

But I could go on and on in one of these threads

[ardowling]

I'm with you, OT damn shame what happened with the Park Ranger up on Rainier:(

[War Paint]

[Madison Redskin]

As others have said, do your research, test fire a few "finalists" at a range, get instruction, and, for God's sake, don't do this.

FjDu5zwa4rM

[PokerPacker]

*red rider*

No way, he'll shoot his eye out.

[Dallsux]

Where's the best place to fire a few guns before I buy, and also to learn what I need to learn about using a gun? (I've already fired several and learned a few things at NRA headquarters in Fairfax, but that was through another organization and I imagine that doing it again would be rather expensive compared to other places.)

Try Clark Bros. Firing Range, in Warrenton (I believe). They can help you & probably answer any questions you have regarding your firearms needs.

[frostyj]

Try Clark Bros. Firing Range, in Warrenton (I believe). They can help you & probably answer any questions you have regarding your firearms needs.

They are good so is Blue Ridge Arsenal in Chantilly.

[Special K]

Well, at least you were sober when you started your gun thread.

[twa]

Well, at least you were sober when you started your gun thread.

Good memories

[No_Pressure]

I read the OP, I haven't read all 5 pages, sorry if I repeat things:

1. Factors to consider-

First and foremost ask yourself what this gun is for:

Do you want only to own a firearm for home and self defense?

Are you also interested in target shooting for recreation?

What type of home are you protecting? An apartment shares walls with other apartments. Weapons which have penetrating power would not be ideal. Perhaps you live in a home without many open spaces where a smaller weapon would be most useful.

Handguns such as a Smith & Wesson 686 which I own, are not ideal for home defense in an apartment or condo setting. Those bullets could easily kill your neighbors by accident. Rifles of course are out of the question. The .45 ACP fired by the 1911 colt and all of its derivatives will penetrate walls (albeit not as well as the .357) but the stopping power of the round is favored by many gun and self defense enthusiasts.

The 9mm round is seen by many to somewhat lack the stopping power of a .45 ACP. I wholeheartedly disagree with this assessment. I feel that if you're going to get a hand gun for home defense, you should look at something which either fires 9mm or at the maximum .40 smith and wesson. .38 is a decent caliber but I still wouldn't feel comfortable using a handgun in an apartment. A house? Fine. An apartment? No, that's not what I use.

A handgun would not be my primary choice for home defense. If I had to recommend any that I have truly enjoyed I would have to say that out of many pistols I've fired, the one which felt the best in my hand is my brother's EAA Witness. It is very similar to a beretta,

http://www.eaacorp.com/

You can find it on their website. They are listed as 500 dollars + - , and my brother has his in .40 SW, though it comes in all sorts of calibers. I have not met a lot of gun enthusiasts who know much about EAA, and I have yet to find one at a gun show since my brother bought his, which I suspect is not from a lack of demand but perhaps because they're nice hand guns. Everybody has different preferences however. I have an uncle who swears by his Walther and the thing barely fits in my hands.

I would recommend a shotgun. This is why I mentioned recreational use. I have a shotgun which I keep in a good place for home defense. I live in an apartment and would prefer to not shoot my neighbors in the event of self defense. Shotgun pellets are extremely unlikely to rip through the wall and hurt your neighbors. I do however enjoy skeet shooting. When I went to buy a shotgun I wanted something which could fit both needs. I ended up getting a cheap pump action 5 shell .12 gauge shotgun. I keep birdshot for skeet shooting every now and then, I keep buckshot in the event of an emergency.

If this is purely for home defense start looking at something like the Remington 870:

http://www.remington.com/products/firearms/shotguns/model-870/model-870-marine-magnum.aspx

The Remington website of course has mostly hunting variations but I've actually fired the 870 marine magnum, my uncle has one. If home defense was all I was going for this would be what I would choose. They have different stocks including some with pistol grips if you're into that sort of thing.

Then there is of course the Mossberg 500.

http://www.mossberg.com/products/default.asp?id=5

You really cannot go wrong with that shotgun. At all. I've heard great things about it.

In Virginia here is what you need to know:

If you buy it for home defense just keep it locked or hidden away in your home somewhere and you're fine. You can stroll into a gun show and guy a firearm with some quick paperwork and a phone call to the FBI or ATF or whoever the hell it is they call to make sure you aren't a felon.

Then once you get and pay for your firearm, you perhaps buy some ammo and walk out of the show with it. Its as easy as that.

I believe that Virginia has an open carry law but it isn't necessarily well known and for all I know it has been changed since I last learned about it. To be safe I would recommend you transport all firearms unloaded and in a good case regardless of what the law is. Many sellers at shows will sell the firearm with a case, and if they don't you can always go and buy one somewhere else at the show.

While transporting your firearms most states require that you keep the guns and ammunition separated: The shotgun in its case goes in the trunk, the ammunition rides in the cab with you. If you own a station wagon or something of that sort put the ammunition in the glove box or on the floor of the passenger seat and put the shotgun in the case in the back. As far as I remember this is the way to transport firearms through Maryland, Pennsylvania, Virginia, and almost every state in the nation with the exceptions of I believe New Jersey and Massachusetts.

I know that in Maryland and PA keeping a loaded firearm in your car is considered concealed carry which isn't allowed without a permit. I have the feeling that in Virginia open carry is extended to your vehicle but don't take my word on it, always be as safe and cautious as possible and look up the laws for yourself to be sure before going out and buying a gun. I imagine there is no worse feeling than being pulled over by the cops with a gun which is being improperly transported.

I was pulled over once in Arizona for speeding while on my way to go shooting at a public range area out in the desert outside of Flagstaff. The police officers were extremely cautious as soon as they noticed I had a mountain of ammunition sitting on the passenger seat next to me. I explained who I was, where I was going, and what was in the car. I gave the cops permission to go into my trunk. What they found were 4 World War 2 bolt action rifles which were in individual cases and stored with the bolts separated from the guns. Once the cops were satisfied they were asking if they could take the guns out and have a look at them- they had been looking in to buying some Mausers or Mosin-Nagants themselves. Suddenly we were all good friends and I left with a warning. I can't imagine how poorly it would have ended up if I were a negligent gun owner.

To summarize:

If you're living in an apartment I would suggest buying some sort of tactical shotgun. I would recommend buying it at a gun show, transporting it home, and only taking it out anywhere to go to the range (which I would suspect is a waste of time since you don't need any marksmanship to fire a shotgun). Sure you would need to be comfortable operating and firing it, but don't expect to hit anything with great precision unless you're firing slugs, which I wouldn't recommend using indoors for self defense.

Also, this may just be me, but when I was growing up I wanted to collect WW2 firearms for the longest time. My parents didn't want any guns in the house, and though I often got to look at my grandfather's rifles when I was over at his house, I didn't have my own rifle until I was 18 and living in Arizona. I drove out to a gun show, bought a Mosin-Nagant bolt action rifle, and before I ever took it out shooting or loaded a round in it I learned everything I could about it from a hands on perspective.

I learned to disassemble and clean the gun. I learned what all the parts were and what they did (like there were many parts on that thing to begin with, crafty Russians) and I actually just sat around on the couch while watching TV, messing around with working the bolt, looking down the sights, pulling the trigger, etc. I wouldn't say I was playing with the gun, I was getting acquainted with the firearm. Then when I went out shooting much later that day, I felt like at the least I wasn't making any mistakes.

I already had a good concept of firearm safety. Honestly, if you don't know that you should always keep your loaded firearm pointed down range or at the ground, never point it at someone else whether it is loaded or not, don't put your finger on the trigger until you're ready to shoot, fire the gun in a controlled manner, don't do stupid dangerous bull**** like moving around and hip firing, etc. you should probably never have a gun in your hands to begin with. Most sensible people don't need classes to teach you not to be a careless idiot with something that can kill you at any moment if you don't use it properly and treat it with respect.

Anyway I've ranted long enough, good luck in your weapon search.

---------- Post added January-3rd-2012 at 02:02 AM ----------

As others have said, do your research, test fire a few "finalists" at a range, get instruction, and, for God's sake, don't do this.

FjDu5zwa4rM

Jesus christ who the **** does that?? God I still feel uneasy looking down the barrel of a rifle with the bolt disassembled and a light at the other end to look at the rifling much less a loaded firearm that just failed to fire correctly. God damn.

[Cept One]

Revolvers are great choices due to the higher degree of reliability and they are easier to maintain. They are harder to shoot however and require a good deal of practice to become proficient. You can't go wrong with either S&W or Ruger... I would stay away from Taurus tho they have tons of issues with timing and lock up.

A handgun would not be my primary choice for home defense. If I had to recommend any that I have truly enjoyed I would have to say that out of many pistols I've fired, the one which felt the best in my hand is my brother's EAA Witness. It is very similar to a beretta,

http://www.eaacorp.com/

You can find it on their website. They are listed as 500 dollars + - , and my brother has his in .40 SW, though it comes in all sorts of calibers. I have not met a lot of gun enthusiasts who know much about EAA, and I have yet to find one at a gun show since my brother bought his, which I suspect is not from a lack of demand but perhaps because they're nice hand guns. Everybody has different preferences however. I have an uncle who swears by his Walther and the thing barely fits in my hands.

The EAA Witness is a clone of the CZ 75 series of pistols. I have a CZ 75 P-01 and love it. Ergonomics are fantastic, great balance, extremely reliable. I highly recommend it

I would recommend a shotgun.

+1

a couple of things to think about if the OP decides to go with a shotgun... the Mossberg because of where the safety is positioned (top/rear of the receiver) it is great for left handed shooters but if you ever decide to upgrade to a tactical m4 style stock it is much harder to access than the Remington 870 's traditional safety (located on the trigger guard). Both are great shotguns.

Mossberg

Remington

[Burgold]

First thing, sign up for a safety class. Learn how to shoot, take care of, and use the weapon.

Second, given what I know about you the super soaker might be the ideal weapon. It may be a little too powerful though.

Seriously though, there seems to be good info in this thread what I would contribute is be very serious about this decision and learn everything you need to be responsible, careful, and prudent as a gun owner. Remember, that there's a very high percentage of gun injuries that are self inflicted. You have a right to own a gun, but you also have a duty to yourself to know how to own a gun.

[Elessar78]

First thing, sign up for a safety class. Learn how to shoot, take care of, and use the weapon.

Second, given what I know about you the super soaker might be the ideal weapon. It may be a little too powerful though.

Seriously though, there seems to be good info in this thread what I would contribute is be very serious about this decision and learn everything you need to be responsible, careful, and prudent as a gun owner. Remember, that there's a very high percentage of gun injuries that are self inflicted. You have a right to own a gun, but you also have a duty to yourself to know how to own a gun.

+1. Please learn how to load ammunition, as well.

---------- Post added January-3rd-2012 at 08:13 AM ----------

Jesus christ who the **** does that?? God I still feel uneasy looking down the barrel of a rifle with the bolt disassembled and a light at the other end to look at the rifling much less a loaded firearm that just failed to fire correctly. God damn.

The other thing that scares me about guns, are kids with guns. I live in the country and a young 'un walking along the road with a rifle isn't an uncommon sight. My 12 year old nephew is allowed to shoot by his dad, so he comes out shooting with us. I'm pretty confident that he's well trained by his dad, but he still waves that thing around a bit too much for my taste (even though he's emptied the darn thing, he shoots a kids' size .22).

[LadySkinsFan]

I went to the Mossberg website and looked at the .500 and liked the SP Home Defense model. I think I liked the grip on the pump slide (or whatever it's called) and it would give me a bit more stability. I'm pretty small. Looks like I need to visit a gun store! You all know how we women love to shop! :evilg:

[AsburySkinsFan]

for God's sake, don't do this.

HOLY CRAP!!! That dude needs to be a Darwin Award Honorable Mention, what a moron! NEVER...EVER look down the barrel of a gun. What the heck did he think he was going to see!?

[Larry]

Question from somebody who's massively ignorant.

I'm seeing a pretty much unanimous endorsement of a shotgun for defense. And I certainly assume hats good advice, because that's what I've been hearing from various sources for like 40 years.

BUT, I'm seeing a lot of comments along the lines of you don't have to aim the thing.

Granted, what I know about shotguns comes from my dad and brother, who were competitive trap shooters. But I a shotgun REALLY the wide area weapon that I think people are implying?

I figure in a home defense situation, the furthest you will ever shoot someone us maybe 30 feet. And maybe 6 feet.

How big is the shot pattern from a shotgun at 30 feet? Six inches? A foot? Three inches?

Granted, all of those numbers are a bigger shot pattern than a half inch. But that hardly sounds to me like "can't miss" or "you don't need to practice, cause marksmanship isn't important".

[SWFLSkins]

Like twa said, are you willing to use it?

sweet pic

Jeez Jumbo kinda cumbersome carrying around that private on your back? hahah

Seriously, get two guns, a shot gun and a small 9mm.

[SWFLSkins]

Question from somebody who's massively ignorant.

I'm seeing a pretty much unanimous endorsement of a shotgun for defense. And I certainly assume hats good advice, because that's what I've been hearing from various sources for like 40 years.

BUT, I'm seeing a lot of comments along the lines of you don't have to aim the thing.

Granted, what I know about shotguns comes from my dad and brother, who were competitive trap shooters. But I a shotgun REALLY the wide area weapon that I think people are implying?

I figure in a home defense situation, the furthest you will ever shoot someone us maybe 30 feet. And maybe 6 feet.

How big is the shot pattern from a shotgun at 30 feet? Six inches? A foot? Three inches?

Granted, all of those numbers are a bigger shot pattern than a half inch. But that hardly sounds to me like "can't miss" or "you don't need to practice, cause marksmanship isn't important".

Two other factors in a why a shotgun is good in a home defense situation, ****ing noise, chic-chic- pretty much scares anyone away with any sense. Second if you fire it at someone, near someone- in another room or out of view, they know what they hear. They hear the fear. Nothing other than an high caliber automatic weapon is as intimidating sound wise. And crap flys when it hits, fire a hand gun and you are shooting, a shot gun, you are spraying.

[AsburySkinsFan]

BUT, I'm seeing a lot of comments along the lines of you don't have to aim the thing.

Granted, what I know about shotguns comes from my dad and brother, who were competitive trap shooters. But I a shotgun REALLY the wide area weapon that I think people are implying?

I figure in a home defense situation, the furthest you will ever shoot someone us maybe 30 feet. And maybe 6 feet.

How big is the shot pattern from a shotgun at 30 feet? Six inches? A foot? Three inches?

Granted, all of those numbers are a bigger shot pattern than a half inch. But that hardly sounds to me like "can't miss" or "you don't need to practice, cause marksmanship isn't important".

First, yes...you do have to aim it, but depending on range of target and the choke the pattern can be very tight or it can spread quite a bit. Compare that with a 9mm (or any handgun) that sends only a tiny diameter slug toward the target.

Here's a video that shows the spread at different range. This starts with 30 yards, so unless you live in an open warehouse this won't mean much inside a house.

Now compare those spreads with the moron who almost blew his head off, I'll have to look at the video again, but I'd bet it's safe to assume that he was less than a yard away from the barrel.