Questions For First Handgun Purchase

man... bigmikey you are a pro at this. I can't think of anything you left out. I was about to suggest a S&W shield until you mentioned that an EMP was too small for you, that pretty much leaves double stacks. I would heavily recommend a springfield XD sub compact or XD compact. my personal preference is for the springfield XDM compacts but they are a $600+ gun and you would likely not want something that spendy for your first handgun.

another model which I have carried in the past and heavily recommend is the Ruger SR9 compact. quite accurate and very comfortable in my large meaty hands as well as in other people which I've let shoot with smaller hands.


both are in 9mm, if cheap is the name of the game, then 380 might not be a good idea, ammo is comparable with other larger calibers for price. also keep in mind that you'll want to put a fair bit of the ammo you plan on carrying through your pistol to ensure that it will not be picky and suffer failures with the ammo you'll be entrusting your life with. I recommend a minimum of 300 rounds through a pistol to test reliability before deciding to carry and at least 100 rounds of your carry ammo, which will be much spendier.
 
My .02:
A 4" S&W revolver in .38 Spl caliber. Fairly easy to grip and to shoot. Fairly safe in the hands of a relative newbie. Fairly easy to find, and fairly reasonable price-wise. Ammo is available in a large variety.

The SIG P232 is undoubtedly one of the finest looking handguns ever made.
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As so often happens, opinion expressed as fact.
And what do looks have to do with anything?
Not particularly useful commentary...:rolleyes:
 
[Orion...
My .02:
A 4" S&W revolver in .38 Spl caliber. Fairly easy to grip and to shoot. Fairly safe in the hands of a relative newbie. Fairly easy to find, and fairly reasonable price-wise. Ammo is available in a large variety.

Quote:
The SIG P232 is undoubtedly one of the finest looking handguns ever made.

As so often happens, opinion expressed as fact.
And what do looks have to do with anything?
Not particularly useful commentary...]

I normally look forward to your posts. Hmm... It's fairly simple, man. He asked about the P232. I stated an opinion of mine as far as the looks go...simply because it and the Walther have quite a following regarding their "sexiness". I do go on to say that the Walther and SIG are very comparable as far as quality, that their blowback design can lead to little more felt recoil, and that the P232 may be a bit large for it's caliber for today's standards. Fairly useful information that I would appreciate if asking. Besides, the post was directed at the OP, not you.

As an aside, I agree with your suggestion for a revolver. I ran out of time when I posted earlier...fun doing yard work all day in December...but I was going to tell the OP that my wife actually prefers revolvers to semi-auto's, hence the reason she has a Ruger SP101 that she loves, and would probably fit nicely in Mike's hand.
 
Honestly, if it's legal, I would carry as large of a gun as is feasible, due to the fact that a food truck would be an ideal target. Lots of cash, peaks and valleys customers, minimal defenses, often location makes it easy to be discrete....

This makes me think XD9 or XDM9 in a pancake holster or small of back holster.

Carry 2 spare mags and a light after dark.

Maybe your wife should get her own CW9 in a comfortable holster also.

Might want to consider a shotgun tucked away at one end should things get ugly.
 
For what its worth, I love my glock 19. I carry the same way and it always rides comfy. Nathan said about a large gun and if you can stuff a short barreled pump shotgun somewhere it wouldnt hurt your cause. But make sure everything is legal. I don't know why I feel the need to say that.
 
Sig 229 is probably the perfect ccw for most people. I also think some of the mid size CZs should be at the top of yoyr list. A CZ-75D , PCR will be the next handgun I purchase, and will be my CCW
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My CZ-75D PCR retired my Sig P228 to the safe fourteen years ago. Still carrying the PCR.
 
Time for a follow up question.
I have never been a brand loyalist in anything, whether it is jeans, shoes, cars, etc. Off brand jeans, however, are not likely to get me killed. The penny pincher in me is seeing brands like Bersa, Taurus and Canik going for quite a bit less than some of the more recognizable brands like S&W, Glock and Sig. I have found plenty of good reviews on these brands, and few, if any, bad ones (Taurus is the only one where I am finding bad reviews). What are your feelings on going with a less expensive brand?
 
If you're doing it right, you will spend the cost of the gun many times over in ammo and training. The actual price of the gun will be minimal in terms of cost of ownership. If you're going to buy the gun and put it in a drawer like so many seem to do, or worse carry it with no training, then it doesn't much matter what you buy.

There are substantial downsides to getting a cheap brand, especially if you plan to use this gun to save your life. Would you compromise you and your family's safety for money in other purchases?

Glock, Beretta, Sig, CZ, HK, S&W, Walther. Choose from these.
 
BigMikey76 said:
Time for a follow up question.
I have never been a brand loyalist in anything, whether it is jeans, shoes, cars, etc. Off brand jeans, however, are not likely to get me killed. The penny pincher in me is seeing brands like Bersa, Taurus and Canik going for quite a bit less than some of the more recognizable brands like S&W, Glock and Sig. I have found plenty of good reviews on these brands, and few, if any, bad ones (Taurus is the only one where I am finding bad reviews). What are your feelings on going with a less expensive brand?
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Bersa's the only one I have personal experience with, and the Thunder is an excellent line of pistols. I haven't tried any of their other guns.

I only know Canik and Taurus by reputation (excellent for Canik, terrible for Taurus), which I think you're already familiar with.

Both the Ruger SR9c and the CZ P-07 are outstanding pistols at the $450 price point. Others have already mentioned the Kahr CW9 for a single-stack option.
 
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