Regrets, I've had a few...

I

Independent George

New member
I'm coming up on two years as a gun owner, and it astounds me how much gear I've ended up buying and regretting: different models and types of holsters, belts, grips, magazines, etc. I even have a couple extra guns which, while I plan to keep, I'd have much rather put the money to something else.

What do you wish you'd done differently?

Here's my list:

1. CZ RAMI BD: I love the gun, but... it's fatter and less comfortable to carry than my PCR, and bigger & harder to conceal than my Kahr PM9. I wish I'd saved the money and put it towards a Sphinx.
2. Ruger SR22: I should have either (a) gotten the one with a threaded barrel (even though cans aren't legal in Illinois, threaded barrels are, and I probably won't live here forever), or (b) gotten a 22/45 for a superior plinking toy.
3. Various OWB and IWB holsters - too many to list and count here, including concealment holsters for the aforementioned RAMI before I realized it's not the holster that I don't like.
4. Cocobolo and thin aluminum grips for my CZ PCR - Sometime after I realized I preferred carrying my PCR over the RAMI, I decided I needed the thin aluminum grips because they didn't grab my clothing as much, and printed less due to the thinner profile. Then I got them and realized they negated the awesome ergonomics that drew me to CZ in the first place. Then I decided I needed the cocobolo grips because they were (a) roughly the same thickness as the factory rubber grips, (b) less grabby than the rubber grips, and (c) gorgeous. Then I got them, and realized that while the palm swells were the same thickness as the rubber grips, the thumb/finger indents above them were not as pronounced, making the whole thing uncomfortably thick in my hands. So $150 later (including shipping), I'm back to the OEM rubber grips, which are as comfortable as I remember.
 
It's all about trial and error. Ive bought and sold more guns than I can count, in the process I learned what I like and don't like, same goes for gear. I now know what I prefer and what I don't and what works for me and what doesn't.
 
Everyone has regrets. I just downloaded a document from buds gun shop about things you can't have in Illinois and I have no regrets from not moving there.
 
Two years! Not enough time to have ANY serious regrets! :D

You gottta be able to look back and remember the S&W Model 27's and 29's and Pythons you could have bought for under $300. The genuine Colt 1911's that went for under $200. Magazines for $1 each at gun shows ($10 for an even dozen).

Of course now that I posted this somebody even geezier than me will post about even MORE attractive deals that I missed out on.

Ah well.
Good luck.
 
Don't touch that mouse, my friend, just push back from the keyboard & take a breath. Keep the plastic in your wallet and that feeling of great need will soon pass.
Yeah, I own a lot of extra impulse purchased stuff too.
 
I don't regret one single thing I've bought or used over the years. When I was very young, I vowed I'd learn everything I could about the handgun, and master the shooting of the same.

Each gun I bought or traded for was a lesson and experience in my schooling. Not only in firearms, but in friends I garnered in the instruction and shooting of those guns. Many friends I've made over the years still call me "friend" even though we may, or may not, shoot together.

If I had to do it all over again, I hope I'd make the very same decisions. This from over sixty years of handgunning.

Bob Wright


P.S. DaleA: Does this make me "geezier" than you?
 
I have a great method for not buying a bunch of gear: a wife who would use it to kill me :p.

My wife has been frustrated for years that most of my hobbies tend to require gear, and my guns are nowhere near the most expensive of my hobbies. I have about 5K worth of investment in cycling, 2K+ in golf, etc. To be fair, I have only been buying guns for a few years, and I only own 4 (2 handguns and 2 .22 rifles) so they will undoubtedly run up a tab that matches or exceeds the others, eventually. The up side is that my wife's frustration makes me a very careful buyer. I do lots of research and try to make every purchase count, because I know that if I don't like the holster I just bought, I'm stuck with it for a while.
 
My only regret is that I didn't get out of New Jersey sooner! I can only imagine how much cool gear I would have now if I had been in Missouri for the past 40 years!
 
...but then again, too few to mention.

Yep, over the past sixty years or so, I've sold some guns and passed on a few that I wished I hadn't but, for the most part, it has all sort of "evened out". But I never cease to be amazed by the quantity of leather that has accumulated over the years in my "holster drawer"...:o
 
Does this make me "geezier" than you?
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Well I sure won't fight you for the 'honor'. I'm just at the point where I get startled when I see something I studied in school as a 'current event' is now in the 'history' classes.

I guess my only real claim to fame was passing on a new Model 27 for $300 in 1978. After thinking about it I went back to get it but, of course, it was gone.
 
Regrets? Sure. The ones I bought that I shouldn't have; the ones I didn't buy that I should have, and the ones I should have kept but didn't. That pretty much covers it.
 
Other than holsters, which a box full is par for the course, I only really had one regret and that was selling a p2000 years ago because I hated the LEM trigger. I should have bought a V3 back then. I rectified that recently and got a v3 p2000 and couldn't be happier.
 
It's taken a lot of trial and error for me to find holsters for the guns I carry; a cardboard box full of rejects is evidence of that. I've sold a number of guns that I wish I hadn't bought in the first place, some because I wanted to eliminate a caliber of ammo to stock and some, like a Smith J-frame, because it just hated shooting it.
 
I dunno. Sorry you have regrets. Myself, my tastes change from time to time. There are some firearms I have that sit in the safe rarely used during certain "eras" of my life. Eventually I come around again and seek them out, and enjoy them.

Right now one of my favorite guns is a little Ruger 22 revolver. That has rekindled a "revolver era". It's just a whole lot of fun!

Maybe put the CZ away or something for awhile, and see where else your tastes and curiosity take you. You might come back and find out how much you like it, all over again.
 
Just wait..... only a few years?? way more "regrets" on the way, that's half the fun.

Talk to any long term gun guy or gal and you'll see a whole box of holsters that are basically new other than scuffs from being in the box. Myself, I have 3 of those boxes at home and two more in storage. Same for magazines and other must-have doo-dads.

Wait until you are desperately trying to figure out what gun those 3 lone magazines go to that you found in an old unused range bag ....:p
 
My only regret is trading my first gun to my brother for a knife in 1968. I could have given the J. C. Higgins single shot rifle to my grandson. It cost $10.88 new. My brother gave it to his son and it was destroyed in a house fire.
 
I have a great method for not buying a bunch of gear: a wife who would use it to kill me
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Ha. That's where the modern day of the internet is useful. The kids buy so much stuff on Amazon etc. that I can sneak in gear stuff all the time. Guns I buy in cash only! Not like she really cares, its just that she has no interest at all until... there is a bump in the night.

But the one I regret buying was the Smith & Wesson Shield. Waited for it and ordered, but ended up selling. Just did not like it. But that is what Armslist and Gunbroker are for. To many types of guns. I have found some good buys on there.

Oh, and Illinois is coming around even though they were the LAST state to have ccw. Bunch of useless politicians. Although, are there any useful ones in the first place!!
 
After 45 yrs or so of handgun ownership....sure there were some things I might do differently...but its all part of the learning curve.

For the most part...extra holsters don't count if they still fit guns that I have ( but I've only invested in good holsters over the last 20 yrs or so ...and I've purchased only Kramer leather horsehide holsters out of Tacoma area)...and while I have things like a paddle holster for my 1911 that I don't like, I still keep it... I may change my mind and wear it someday.

Every gun I've bought over the years...was something I knew I wanted and was a long term deal ( like a S&W model 27 revolver, or a Wilson Combat 1911...)...or something that was just too good a deal to pass up ../ like an Ed Brown Kobra carry 1911 for about $ 1,200 I think when they were first out...( and as it turned out, I didn't like the bob tail frame - but I sold it for a profit / and I bought a new Les Baer monolith that I never liked too much - but I gave it to my younger son a couple of years ago ..as part of his starter collection..so its not a waste...)....and a few guns like that..../ but I research things, don't really react to much that is new ( for the most part my collection consists of guns I love...older numbered S&W revolvers ( 19's, 27's, 29's, etc ), a few Sigs - 226's, X-Five, 239's and a few 1911's mostly Wilson and a couple of Kimbers...)....some will be passed on to the adult kids in the family...many I'll keep forever.../ and for the most part, I would change very little...if I did it over.
 
There's lots of good advice on this thread - too much to thank each of you individually - so let me just say right now that I appreciate it.

Yeah, regret might be the wrong word to use, but I had an opportunity to make a Sinatra reference, and I took it. I've no regrets on that front, at least...

I'm really not unhappy with any of my firearm purchases, and plan to keep them (it's always nice to have backup options in the event of an unexpected boating accident). It's all part of the learning curve of any new hobby. I just wish that learning curve wasn't so darned expensive...
 
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