That's a bad habit to get into!
I know, I had to say it just because he said "no one". LOL
Very good habit!
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I think I want to buy a handgun, not sure what route.
- Thread starter Higgins909
- Start date
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I know, I had to say it just because he said "no one". LOL
Very good habit!
Texas Heat
Active Member
I recently purchased my first handgun and couldn't be happier. I'll tell you what I got at the end of this reply but I am very lucky to live near good gun shops that aren't trying to make a sale and want you to be happy. They sent me to a gun range that does free rentals with range fee and ammo purchase. I was looking for a cc gun first. I did all the online research so I had a good idea of what guns I wanted to try. I had a list of the order I wanted to like them in. I was surprised by some and disappointed in others. I had all the big names ready to go. I can't even remember how many I fired. I had all the big names...Glock, S&W, Sig, Springfield, HK, Ruger, CZ, Beretta and even a Taurus. I fired multiple guns from each brand. Some were excused because of size for carrying. Some made way too much effort to be small and it was annoying. I also decided to go 9mm for the increased capacity and ease of shooting. I figured I would be shooting this gun most since I am not a competition guy. The double stack guns hold a lot more ammo and the added thickness was negligible. Long story short, try them all. It doesn't cost you anything in the long run and you get exactly what you want.
Now for the gun I ended up with... My first choice was to be a Glock guy with a Glock 19. If that didn't impress, I was going to go over to Sig. Next choice was S&W, then Beretta . It turns out I am a Glock hater. I don't hate what they are or their ability but they don't feel good in my hand and if that isn't one of the most important parts then I don't know what is. The Sig stuff was fine, nothing wrong with it. New gun I wanted had recalls and didn't want to deal with it. S&W I actually dislike the way they fire. I don't know how to describe it other than it felt too snappy. It felt like a cap gun, not very smooth. I couldn't believe my favorite gun ended up being a Springfield Armory. It was way down the list. It just felt perfect in my hand and disappeared on my waist. I actually came back another day just to be sure. The SA XD9 Mod2 SubCompact ended up mine. The price was great and they had a promotion for 4 free mags, a holster and mag holster. I am so much more accurate with this gun in my hand than any other of this size. I may look at the CZ SP01 for my full size but nothing came even close to my XD9. One understanding is that I really like it with the extended mag it comes with. It fits much better that way. The standard mags will all be getting Pierce grips to extend the grip.
Now for the gun I ended up with... My first choice was to be a Glock guy with a Glock 19. If that didn't impress, I was going to go over to Sig. Next choice was S&W, then Beretta . It turns out I am a Glock hater. I don't hate what they are or their ability but they don't feel good in my hand and if that isn't one of the most important parts then I don't know what is. The Sig stuff was fine, nothing wrong with it. New gun I wanted had recalls and didn't want to deal with it. S&W I actually dislike the way they fire. I don't know how to describe it other than it felt too snappy. It felt like a cap gun, not very smooth. I couldn't believe my favorite gun ended up being a Springfield Armory. It was way down the list. It just felt perfect in my hand and disappeared on my waist. I actually came back another day just to be sure. The SA XD9 Mod2 SubCompact ended up mine. The price was great and they had a promotion for 4 free mags, a holster and mag holster. I am so much more accurate with this gun in my hand than any other of this size. I may look at the CZ SP01 for my full size but nothing came even close to my XD9. One understanding is that I really like it with the extended mag it comes with. It fits much better that way. The standard mags will all be getting Pierce grips to extend the grip.
Early on, I bought an XD9 Service model. It was (and still is) a good pistol from the beginning. In fact, it's the pistol I used to take the Texas Concealed Carry (LTC) test with (349/350). I did the Powder River Precision trigger upgrade and have since put on some Truglo tritium night sights. It's a keeper and now does duty as a home defense (night stand) gun. I don't have experience with the subcompact model but think you'll not regret your purchase. They're good reliable pistols and reliability is a primary consideration for CC.
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Higgins909
Active Member
I got my first gun, hope all is well. G17 Gen 4. Was really torn between it and the M&P 9 full size. Was I supposed to get any paper with my gun saying what I bought? I just got a basic receipt. It does have the serial on it, but that's it. The guy that walked me out had papers, but brought them back in. I'll have to take a better look inside the case later.
No papers besides the receipt. The G17 will serve you well.
There are benefits to living in Texas.
Just hang on to the receipt; put it in the box the gun came in. You may want to keep the box also. Not sure why, but some folks seem to put a lot of value on the original box the firearm came in. (Should you ever contemplate selling it, at some point in the future).
That is a little misleading. You don't need proof of ownership. Treat the receipt like the one you got with your sox. It doesn't do anything for you.
I know what you meant JRB but it didn't come out properly in text.
That being said, keep some pictures of the gun and serial number in a safe place incase it gets stolen.
I sold my glocks after shooting the Beretta PX4 for the first time. I have three of them now. Fantastic pistols in my opinion when you are ready for another.
What triggers do you have/prefer?
I've got a 45 model with D trigger
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The most important thing is to find something that feels good to you. Each person is different, and each handgun fits a person differently. Secondly find a pistol that is reliable. You want to make sure it goes "boom" when you need it.
A nice trigger and fancy sights are an asset when you are at the range trying to make small holes in paper. At night, when some nutcase is walking around in your home; it is a much less important issue. If a pistol fits your hand correctly, you will find it will be everything you need it to be. At close range most of the self defense ammo available today is more that adequate. I love my 1911A1 45 ACPs, but I carry a 9mm Glock 19.
A friend of mine is a retired Fort Worth police detective. During his years at Fort Worth, he was involved in two active shooter instances. When I ask him what it was like, he tells me he really can't remember most of the details. He said he was fixated on the muzzle of the other guys pistol. He said it looked like a cannon pointed at him. He said he doesn't remember getting a sight picture or squeezing his trigger. Each time he fired multiple rounds, but he couldn't tell the investigators how many he had fired. He said when a person is put in that kind of situation, the body goes into automatic self defense mode. Training and being familiar with your pistol is critical to your well being. It also lessens the chance that some innocent bystander will be hit in the exchange of gun fire. You may be justified to use deadly force on a perp, but there is no protection under the law for shooting an innocent bystander. If I ever use my carry weapon, it will be as a last resort.
A nice trigger and fancy sights are an asset when you are at the range trying to make small holes in paper. At night, when some nutcase is walking around in your home; it is a much less important issue. If a pistol fits your hand correctly, you will find it will be everything you need it to be. At close range most of the self defense ammo available today is more that adequate. I love my 1911A1 45 ACPs, but I carry a 9mm Glock 19.
A friend of mine is a retired Fort Worth police detective. During his years at Fort Worth, he was involved in two active shooter instances. When I ask him what it was like, he tells me he really can't remember most of the details. He said he was fixated on the muzzle of the other guys pistol. He said it looked like a cannon pointed at him. He said he doesn't remember getting a sight picture or squeezing his trigger. Each time he fired multiple rounds, but he couldn't tell the investigators how many he had fired. He said when a person is put in that kind of situation, the body goes into automatic self defense mode. Training and being familiar with your pistol is critical to your well being. It also lessens the chance that some innocent bystander will be hit in the exchange of gun fire. You may be justified to use deadly force on a perp, but there is no protection under the law for shooting an innocent bystander. If I ever use my carry weapon, it will be as a last resort.
Agreed! Do I want to use my handgun? Yes, I hate targets without holes that much. Although I train for it, I hope I never have the opportunity to use my gun against another human.
I have a Wilson 12# on one of my compacts and the D in the fullsize and second compact.
