Advice on 2 handguns

stargazer65

New member
Thinking about picking up a .22 for inexpensive practice and a larger one for HD and less frequent practice. My question is would you recommend that they both be the same type (either pistol or revolver). One thought is they should be the same to make the skill sets similar, the other thought is one of each for variety. More than two handguns is not likely in the near future for me.

Oh, and don't tell MemphisJim that I'm talking about "pistols and revolvers". It drives him up the wall I hear.;)
 
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Very good idea, Stargazer, and one often recommended here.

Interesting pairings might look like this:

Ruger .22 Single Six
Ruger .357 Blackhawk

S&W 617 .22 revolver
S&W 686 .357 revolver

Glock model 19 or 23 in 9mm or .40, with an Advantage Arms conversion to shoot .22 on it as well.

CZ-75 in 9mm or .40, with a CZ-Kadet conversion to shoot .22 on it as well.

Any various 1911 .45acp pistol (Colt, Springfield, etc) with a Marvel .22 conversion kit.
 
I choose the "variety" option. The .22 for exactly as you said "inexpensive practice" and have a 9mm for HD. Amongst a couple other beauties for HD if needed :D
 
Yes I think either 2 revolvers or 2 semi-autos is a good idea.

I personally would choose the glock, XD, or M&P you like best and pair it up with a Ruger MkIII 22/45 (grip angle a little closer to the HD guns) or maybe a Buckmark for the .22.

The S&W 617 is a fantastic little .22 but you could easily end up paying more for it than a 66 or 686 in .357.

I owned an Advantage Arms .22 kit for the Glock 29 and 30 and was very disappointed - - the trigger pull with the AA upper on the gun was horrible compared to the Glock upper. If you just wanted to blast away it wouldn't make any difference, but if you are practicing your trigger work, it sucks. Do NOT expect the AA kit to mimic the feel of the action on your Glock.
 
Some good recommendations thrown out. I'll just add to also look at the SIG P-series Classic .22s. Get a P226, P229, or P220 chambered in .22lr plus a bigger-bore slide/barrel assembly, all for around $850 to $900 - just a little over the cost of the bigger-bore counterpart alone.
 
I wonder if you know what you are getting into. January one of this year I owned nine handguns. Today I own twelve and seem to be slipping deeper and deeper into this "thing".
 
My 2 centavos worth of opinion is that it doesn't matter. Feel of the gun may be different but sight and trigger control skills transfer from one gun to the other and personally I like to mix up my shooting so no matter what gun I end up having to shoot I have fired a similar one enough to be familiar with it pistol or revolver. Both have their pros and cons. What feels good in your hand and what puts a bigger smile on your face. Go with that.

Now on the contrary side if a person is only going to get 2 long guns a center fire and a rim fire I heartily recommend similar actions, lever actions for both or bolt action or semi or pump, you get the idea. Color me strange but I have seen and have done it myself, get used to one kind of gun then pick up a lever action and short stroke it or a semi auto after shooting bolt and can't find the safety.

Might not be a big thing if you are rabbit hunting but might be a heart breaker if you just let a world class deer walk away from you while you squeeze a trigger to death and nothing happens. Not that I would ever do any....well once.
 
I wonder if you know what you are getting into. January one of this year I owned nine handguns. Today I own twelve and seem to be slipping deeper and deeper into this "thing".

Can't happen with me:), pockets not deep enough for an expensive hobby like building a gun collection.

What feels good in your hand and what puts a bigger smile on your face. Go with that.

Sounds like a reasonable thought. I'm not locked into which specific model of .22 and larger caliber.
 
Whatever you do, steer away from Beretta's entry into the .22 world. I'm pretty sure it's called the Neos. My Uncle bought his the same day I bought my Xdm 9, so we went from the gun shop to the range. Quick clean and lube, and full magazines. First off, that Neos is uglier than a truckload of homemade sin. It's heavier than my 5" Xdm, and it would FTF/FTE about once or twice every other mag. Not to mention that if you have man sized hands, the safety when in the safe position, gouges the hell out of the upper part of your hand. So if you carry it looking for woodchucks, get a holster. By the way 500rds through the XDm, and no problems.
 
i say go with the best you can find in both (your budget and whats available) and not worry with the pairing. I just dont see where having similar guns are going to make that much of a difference, you practice with both, and you get competent with both and thats that.
 
I don't know how much experience/training you've had, but heres my two cents. Practicing at the range with a .22, be it revolver or auto is not going to help you defend yourself/home if your HD gun is a 9mm or .357 magnum.
I say put the purchess of the .22 on hold and by some real firepower.
I personaly carry a Springfield XD40 and an S&W 640-3 .357 magnum as a back-up peice. This is a combo that can't be beat, but regardless what you buy I strongly urge you to take defensive pistol /self-defense classes, and put as much time in at the range as you can. It might just save your life.
 
I say put the purchess of the .22 on hold and by some real firepower.

I understand your view, but my 12 gauge is sufficient firepower for home at the present. I still plan to get a .22 as my entry into the handgun arena, and a larger caliber later. I just haven't decided whether to get 2 "twirlies" or 2 "sliders" or one of each yet.;)
 
I got a .22 so that I could work on accuracy and drawing from the holster and placing shots, and have a much cheaper alternative. The skills still carry over to whatever I am carrying as well.
 
I don't know how much experience/training you've had, but heres my two cents. Practicing at the range with a .22, be it revolver or auto is not going to help you defend yourself/home if your HD gun is a 9mm or .357 magnum.
I say put the purchess of the .22 on hold and by some real firepower.

I'm gonna have to disagree with this and put my two cents in for the benefit of newer shooters out there following this thread. Practicing with a .22 is extremely beneficial to SD/HD shooting, especially if the two platforms are similar as the OP intends. Not only can you afford more range time with .22 ammo, but you still get the benefits of learning trigger control, sight picture/alignment, and follow through. This is not to say that one should not practice at the range with larger calibers. The two are not mutually exclusive.

If you read the original post, stargazer65 intends to purchase two firearms -- a .22 for training/plinking and a similar bigger bore gun for HD/SD. This, IMV, is a very wise way to go about getting into the handgun scene.
 
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