Beginner-does first gun really have to be a .22?

No contest.

The stainless 67 will be easier to take care of and show less wear. If you mar the finish, scotch brite pads and maybe a little metal polish will fix/touch up most "oops's"


The blue 15 has a more "classic" look, but will show wear, particularly if it gets carried a lot.

Some of us find a well worn blue revolver to have a certain charm though. ;)

EDIT TO ADD: I personally find nothing offensive about "honest wear" on a blue revolver.
 
I shot a.9mm a couple times at the range but got a g23 (.40sw) as my first. Yeah theres a little more snap but since its my only gun I'm used to it now easily.

Sent from my Desire HD using Tapatalk
 
first pistol

No one has mentioned it, but you might consider a good quality Black Powder revolver.

For pure fun nothing can beat a black powder Remington New Model Army 1865 replica (my personal preference). I was 20 and all of my friends had modern pistols but I was prohibited from purchasing one.

So I bought the replica and continue to shoot it to this day. On the range all my buds wanted to shoot it and I got to try out all of theirs.

I'm not sure of your local and state regulations but most jurisdictions do not regulate Black powder firearms.

The slow rate of fire gives you time to evaluate your efforts and improve your shooting skills.

What ever you get, find a coach to teach you proper gun handling and solid marksman ship.

Remember one shot one kill.
 
You don't have to own a .22, but you really want to have frequent access to one or several. You want to shoot a lot and for two reasons, the .22 is the very best for this without question:

1. price of rounds is 10% of any other cartridge
2. recoil does not induce 'the flinch'

OF COURSE it's possible to do without, but you are increasing the likelihood many times over that you will teach yourself bad habits that will make your shooting suck.

If you have a range where you can rent .22 pistols or revolvers (or both), or if you have friends you can shoot with, then by all means skip the purchase (for now). Start with something with true self-defense capability.

I've got a standard answer for the popular question "if you can only have one gun" that seems to make so much sense when you're laying out hundreds of dollars for your first gun.

IF you MUST choose based on opinions of others, and you MUST buy without learning any more about it, and you MUST do with just this one gun for an unknown period...

There is only one choice, and that's a medium framed all-steel .357 revolver with a 3" or 4" barrel from one of the top three manufacturers. Used is fine, take the trouble to read how to check out a used revolver and do it.

Then use .38 Special for all your shooting, until you feel sufficiently competent with it like that. For practice and even many actual uses, .38 is fine. It does however allow you, if you need it, to go up a significant amount of power. There is nothing written anywhere that says you must use .357 Magnum ever, but because you got the revolver chambered for it, you can if you need to. And that's a requirement for the 'only one gun' just as is the ability to conceal it (leaving out rifles and shotguns). There are jobs "only one gun" must be capable of, and this is the number one choice by a mile.
 
thank you

Ida,
I appreciate your comments, but if I really have NO intention of ever shooting
.357, why is it a "must" to purchase a .357 if I could only have one gun??

Its seems a S&W Model 67 or 15, .38, would be great fun to own and shot for
a LONG time!! I do NOT hunt or ever intend to hunt and a .38 revolver is
MORE that enough for general home defense, if I chose to set up the gun
for that purpose.

To me, .357 rounds are too loud and crazy for my tastes.

This gun will ONLY be for fun recreational range shooting, so I really dont see
why a .357 is a MUST.

So, at this point, my first purchases will be a .22 and .38 revolver, than down
the road a 9mm pistol, probably Beretta 92fs, PX4, CZ 75.
 
nice!

Unless you plan on shooting LOTS of HOT .357's (Expensive and noisy) , I believe the model 67 or 15 to be a superior gun to the 686 or GP 100 for general range use

There's something that's just "right" about a superb .38 Special with adjustable sights. Much more " sleek and sexier" than the clunky L frame 686 or GP 100's. Plus no need to worry about the "crud ring" in the cylinder.

With the money you save by getting the 67, you can put towards a nice .22 Model 17 for cheap trigger time, on the same platform.


This is the best advice I have read!!
 
I personally did not become a truly good pistol shooter until I practiced Bullseye with a .22. If you can locate a good DA 22 revolver such as a Colt or S&W, great, otherwise I advocate a centerfire auto with 22 conversion unit.
As others have said, the low cost of 22 rimfire ammo encourages practice and the absence of recoil and muzzle blast allows for better development of proper shooting habits.
 
nodule, you're on the right track. There is never a need to shoot .357 Magnums unless you're up against a black bear or something. To shoot .357 regularly requires a large, barrel-heavy gun that is harder to handle and aim.

Go with the excellent Model 67 and never look back. I have .357s but the one I keep by my bedside is a K-frame .38 like the 67. It handles and shoots like a dream.
 
I asked the very same question right before Xmas; re: buying my 18 year old son his first handgun...
The replies were pretty well split...

I can tell you this. He (and I) have a lot of trigger time behind our rifles, used for target shooting. Twice a month, like clockwork...we love it.

I felt this was a major consideration in "bypassing" the .22 and getting him a 9mm. (CZ-75B on the advice of this forum). While a handgun is certainly different than a long gun, trigger control- is trigger control.

With that said, I bought my wife a Ruger 22/45 for her birthday (again, on the advice of the forum) and damn, I love that pistol! So much fun to shoot, accurate, and damn near free ammo! If you can swing a .22 for trigger time, and another weapon for SD, I'd do it. I found that, unlike shooting big centerfires at the range- where 100 rounds would be a long day, it's really easy- and expensive- to go through 200-300 rounds of 9mm in a single range session. Just my beginner $.02, YMMV...
 
I love shooting .38 special. I shoot .38 special out of my .357 75% of the time. However, .357 is fun to shoot and the option to do is nice. I see no reason to limit yourself to a .38 special only revolver when they are the exact or nearly the same price. Who knows, maybe there will be a shortage of .38 special in your area and .357 is cheaper or the only thing available. Or maybe you will enjoy shooting .357, I know I do. I would also bet that .357 revolvers have better resale than .38 special.
 
This gun will ONLY be for fun recreational range shooting, so I really dont see
why a .357 is a MUST.
Click to expand...
It isn't a must. What you are getting, is what I would call "reflex answers".

Goes like this.

Poster one: I'd like a revlover.

Poster two: Gets 686, you can shoot .38's AND .357's

Poster Three: No buy a GP 100 , yeah .357's, best of both worlds.

Fact is, it ISN'T the best of both worlds. You'll have a gun that's heavier and bulkier than it needs to be for what you want to do (from reading your posts) AND you'll have to deal with cleaning up the crud ring as well. For the purposes you have stated, I think a dedicated .38 Special revolver is more in line with what you're looking for. There REALLY is something special about the .38 Special revolvers.

Maybe some people haven't spent enough time with them.

A nice older used Model 67 will be a much better bargain, and a real sweetheart of a revolver. A genuine classic.
 
Its seems a S&W Model 67 or 15, .38, would be great fun to own and shot for
a LONG time!! I do NOT hunt or ever intend to hunt and a .38 revolver is
MORE that enough for general home defense, if I chose to set up the gun
for that purpose...

This gun will ONLY be for fun recreational range shooting, so...at this point, my first purchases will be a .22 and .38 revolver, than down
the road a 9mm pistol, probably Beretta 92fs, PX4, CZ 75.
Click to expand...

You've made a very good assessment of your intended applications and reached a solid conclusion. Get the .22 and the 67 (or whatever .38 you decide upon) and go enjoy it. You've gotten all and more than you need from THIS thread.

And when you get ready to buy the 9, come back and ask if you should get the 9, or some other caliber! And then step WAY back from your computer because the posts will REALLY be rolling in (it's not enough, you need bigger, if you haven't already guessed how that's going to go...)

Again, enjoy...
 
first gun

I learned to shoot with a .177cal BB gun (pistol) I was like 8-9 years old. I learned sight picture, trigger control and gun safety. In most states I don't think you need a permit to purchase a BB gun or air soft gun and there god tools. just a thought. It's saves money. You learn the shooting skillls you can then most to a larger caliber of your choice. My frist issue weapon was a S & W combat master peace .38 cal. I say start shooting where you are comfortable with what you plan to carry or can afford.
 
First or last?

Dunno if your first should be a 22, 44, or 88.

But, for me, if limited to just one, a handy size .22 or .357 would be just about as good as its likely to get.
 
ever?

if I really have NO intention of ever shooting
.357, why is it a "must" to purchase a .357 if I could only have one gun??
Click to expand...

Well....."ever" is a long time. Plans and intentions change. The .357 chambering gives you options.
Pete
 
Well....."ever" is a long time. Plans and intentions change. The .357 chambering gives you options.
Pete
Click to expand...

If the O.P. were to buy a nice used model 67 or 15, he could always trade up to a .357 if he decided he actually needed one.

I've been shooting for many years now, and honestly don't need a .357 Magnum. Yes, I still have one (Colt Python),and I've shot plenty of hot magnum rounds, but I'm just as comfortable with a good .38+P (or standard pressure for range use) in one of my other revolvers as well. A sweet .38 Special target gun, like the 67 or 15 is truly a wonderful thing, and likely a bit more accurate than the .357 shooting .38's because the bullet doesn't have to jump the gap inside the cylinder. No crud ring to deal with either. and less expensive to buy. WIN-WIN-WIN.

. Older K frames aren't exactly going down in value, and he might even make money on a trade. I know I certainly did when I traded in my model 19's. ;)
 
Ida,
I appreciate your comments, but if I really have NO intention of ever shooting
.357, why is it a "must" to purchase a .357 if I could only have one gun??
Click to expand...
As I said, this is the standard answer I give when the question comes up. It comes up so often that I've had plenty of opportunity to think out a good answer. Look again at what I said:

IF you must choose based on other people' opinions.

IF you must live with this choice for an unknown (presumably long) time.

IF you do not have the opportunity to learn and decide for yourself.

those criteria don't exactly fit your situation. But IF you were limited this way, then my advice to go with the .357 would make more sense than a nearly identical revolver that is severely limited in capability. There is nothing at all wrong with a good old classic Military & Police. That's pretty much the definition of a revolver. But you lose a great deal of potential power and what you gain for it is... just about nothing, if you go with an old K frame.

So no, I'm not saying you "MUST" do anything. It's advice. Take it for what it's worth.
 
Thanks

I understand....but, honestly, why would I need "a great deal more power" of
the .357?
To me, something about that statement seems unnerving. Its almost as if you are
anticipating some sort of a situation/or violent attack.
 
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