WTB 1st Handgun

[ShortMan]

When you said you wanted a Kel-tec PF9 I took that to mean you wanted a pocket pistol. Since Ruger only makes one pocket automatic and one pocket revolver you are limited in your choice of caliber, yes. But the superior construction quality of the Ruger makes it better choice for something your life depends on, which of course a pocket pistol is specifically designed for.

[007Fitz]

marked8: I will keep the PF9 in mind for sure. Want to see if i can hold and possibly fire one soon.

Kulprit: Not a problem at all. And thank you for the advice.

Gunder: Get it, got it, good!

CCFan: I am looking forward to my turkey day break, I am planning on shooting a 26 or 27, so after that I will know if I am truly interested in the Glock line. Thanks.

[007Fitz]

When you said you wanted a Kel-tec PF9 I took that to mean you wanted a pocket pistol. Since Ruger only makes one pocket automatic and one pocket revolver you are limited in your choice of caliber, yes. But the superior construction quality of the Ruger makes it better choice for something your life depends on, which of course a pocket pistol is specifically designed for.

I never specifically said I wanted any type of gun. I just threw out some options/ideas and guns I have been looking at that would give you all a clue in to what I was looking for. I am not necessarily looking for what is considered strictly a pocket pistol. For example, I am interested in certain smaller guns, however I want at least a 7+1 capacity, but if the gun I end up really liking and want hold 12+1, then so be it. I like such a wide variety I am just searching for what I can get for a good price and what I can efficiently use and enjoy. I am looking into the Glock 26/27 a lot and will be shooting one soon to see if I like it. I have also been looking into a couple different FNH 9mm and .40's. Then there are the smaller guns like the PF9 and SR9C that I have looked into as well. Basically interested in a lot, but I want a good price on a reliable gun. Brands aren't a huge deal to me, there are lots of people who say this is better than that, but plenty of others who say that is better than this. Therefore, I am simply going to test them myself and make the most educated decision I can make. Definitely want to make sure nobody else thinks I am simply looking for a pocket pistol. The concealability factor is not super high on my list right now, because I can't even CC as of now and I will mainly be either open carrying, not carrying at all, or using the gun at the shooting range for some good ole target practice.

[CowboyT]

Gunderwood gave you some good advice here, and you'd be wise to take it. However, I think there was a little misunderstanding of what I was getting at. Yes, I do have somewhat of a personal preference for revolvers, but that's sort of a side issue. What I was getting at was, don't let "oh, I look tactical, baby!" affect your firearm purchase. Nothing wrong with Glocks; they are very reliable. I like the SR9 precisely because it's basically a less-expensive Glock. What matters above all else is your comfort with the chosen firearm and your ability to shoot it well.

Here's an example of what I'm talking about.

A friend of mine and I did the "Intro to IPSC" day to see if we would enjoy doing this type of competition. In addition to the two of us, there were three others who had clearly spent some money. They had trick holsters, very elaborate web belts to hold said holsters, obviously expensive "black" semi-autos, etc. When they saw our "outdated" police trade-in revolvers and non-trick holster (also old police trade-ins), they were kinda turning up their noses at us. Swaggering around, looking all like they're Green Beret wannabes. They clearly were "tactical", see...and we clearly were not.



Time to shoot some metal targets. I'm up first.

POW-Ping!
POW-Ping!
POW-Ping!
POW...POW-Ping!
POW-Ping!

...and so on. I have very few misses.

My friend's turn. She steps up, a little nervous at first, misses the first six shots...and then settles in and hits every one after that for the rest of the competition. It was almost eerie watching just how accurately she can shoot.

Time for the "tactical" folks to step up. For all three of them, it basically went like this:

POW-POW-POW...POW-POW-Ping!
POW...POW...POWPOW...POW...POW-Ping!
POW...POW...POW...POW...POW-Ping!

...and so on. They couldn't hit squat...but boy, they sure looked cool trying! All they needed was some mirrored SEAL sunglasses.

And that's what I meant when I referred to "tacticool-ness". Make shooting well your first priority, no matter what you end up getting. I would've had similar results with either the SR9 or any of Gunderwood's Glocks, because (like him) I've learned proper shooting fundamentals. "It ain't the arrow, it's the Indian."

Since you're looking at semi-autos, a 9mm is an excellent choice. The ammo's cheap and plentiful, and the same goes for reloading components should you choose to do that later. BTW, a Beretta 92 is another very good choice of firearm. I shot one a month or two ago, and it feels almost like shooting a .22LR. Virtually no felt recoil at all, and parts/magazines for those guns are very plentiful.

[007Fitz]

Haha, yea I got the idea that he misunderstood you a bit as well. I understand what both of you were getting at though. I definitely understand and that is my intention, I was raised to do things the right way. For example, I like to go to the gym, and I may not be a big guy, however I lift properly, and it annoys me when some little twirp comes in thinks he should be curling a 35 or 40 when clearly he shouldn't be and he is throwing out his back doing so. It might make you look cool and feel good pick up that 35 pounder for some bicep curls, but you look like and function like a complete idiot when you are actually doing your exercises. Anyways, figured that was an irrelevant, but accurate comparison of the same idea.
I have looked into the beretta 92, not sure how well it would carry, but its a maybe. Most of them I have seen have been maybe a little above my price range though. Who knows, still just searching, I have a few guns in mind that I like the looks of, reviews of and the talk about them. So I want to look into them. Glock26/27 is one obviously. Maybe a G19. I like the FNH 9mm and .40. I like some Walther's but again they seem to be a little above my price range. I have looked into the Ruger's as well for a similar but cheaper alternative to the glock. Wanna get my hands on them obviously, so I'll update my wants list after that.

[gunderwood]

but if you're going to run out and get magazine extensions for the 10 round magazines, just stick with a 19.

+1

This (i.e. the opposite), I've never understood.

[gunderwood]

@CowboyT 10-4 and agree, but I have to harass you old-school wheel gun types. You think this is the wild west or something!

[007Fitz]

Wyatt Earp Tombstone style.

[CowboyT]

@CowboyT 10-4 and agree, but I have to harass you old-school wheel gun types. You think this is the wild west or something!

Yeah, I know.

Waitasec...you mean I don't have to carry around that black powder horn everywhere? Man, that's gonna put a crimp in my tacticool image....

[007Fitz]

black powder horn

[gunderwood]

@CowboyT 10-4 and agree, but I have to harass you old-school wheel gun types. You think this is the wild west or something!

Yeah, I know.

Waitasec...you mean I don't have to carry around that black powder horn everywhere? Man, that's gonna put a crimp in my tacticool image....

I guess you don't need to keep going hunting so you can make those buck skin leggings either!

[CowboyT]

Yeah, not the way things went yesterday, unfortunately. We didn't see a thing out there. But next hunting trip will be more like Emperor Palpatine said to Luke Skywalker:

"And now, young Bambi...you will die...."

Fortunately, that's all we had to deal with out in the woods, no 2-legged predators. A Beretta 92-sized gun isn't too hard to conceal if you have the right holster for it. At this weekend's Chantilly show (just ended 9 minutes ago), some folks were demo'ing a holster that was comfortably concealing a full-size 1911 (a real gun, not just the plastic mock-up). The guy was pretty skinny, and the jeans he was wearing weren't baggies or loose-fit. I tried it out and yep, it works. Pretty easy to get out, too, after you practice with it a bit.

[FatAndy]

You can take this for what its worth, but I was in a similar position earlier this year, with the exception of being over 21 and not having too burdensome budget constraints. I took an NRA course, and then hit the message boards scouring for information about what my first firearms purchase should be. Early on, I was swayed by those awfully convincing people at RugerForum.net, and found myself first with a Ruger Mark III and then a GP-100 revolver. Both are great guns for shooting at the range, and my GP definitely serves a purpose as a home defense weapon, but it's a little large for CCW, so I got into Kel Tecs, and picked up a PF-9 for CCW, as well as a Sub-2000 folding carbine, mainly because it seemed like the kind of gun that would tick off Nancy Pelosi and Dianne Feinstein.

At this point, I've spent quite a bit of money on new firearms in a very short period of time, and I have lots of toys that each have their own function, but I've also come to realize that I could have been more economical in my decision process. 9MM ammo is significantly cheaper than everything except for 22LR, and it is very easy to find, unlike some other calibers. A good double stack compact 9MM pistol could have functioned as a home defense weapon as well as a CCW. Most compacts now have extended magazines, which make them great range toys. I'm not going to recommend a specific model, but if I could start over again, I would definitely chose one of the 9MM compact pistols that have extended magazines.

[gunderwood]

You can take this for what its worth, but I was in a similar position earlier this year, with the exception of being over 21 and not having too burdensome budget constraints. I took an NRA course, and then hit the message boards scouring for information about what my first firearms purchase should be. Early on, I was swayed by those awfully convincing people at RugerForum.net, and found myself first with a Ruger Mark III and then a GP-100 revolver. Both are great guns for shooting at the range, and my GP definitely serves a purpose as a home defense weapon, but it's a little large for CCW, so I got into Kel Tecs, and picked up a PF-9 for CCW, as well as a Sub-2000 folding carbine, mainly because it seemed like the kind of gun that would tick off Nancy Pelosi and Dianne Feinstein.

At this point, I've spent quite a bit of money on new firearms in a very short period of time, and I have lots of toys that each have their own function, but I've also come to realize that I could have been more economical in my decision process. 9MM ammo is significantly cheaper than everything except for 22LR, and it is very easy to find, unlike some other calibers. A good double stack compact 9MM pistol could have functioned as a home defense weapon as well as a CCW. Most compacts now have extended magazines, which make them great range toys. I'm not going to recommend a specific model, but if I could start over again, I would definitely chose one of the 9MM compact pistols that have extended magazines.

I'm always cautious about any gun specific board. If you go to a SIG forum, guess what the greatest handgun ever made is? Same holds true if you go to a 1911 forum or a Kel-Tec forum or a Ruger forum or a Colt forum, etc. Once you have a pretty good idea as to what you are looking for (e.g. Ruger 9mm semi), then the specialized boards can provide valuable and detailed knowledge. It's like asking the Corvette club if you should buy a Corvette or Porsche...

Usually the extended mag grips are on sub-compacts not on the compacts. E.g. G26 vs G19.

[FatAndy]

Usually the extended mag grips are on sub-compacts not on the compacts. E.g. G26 vs G19.

Great point. I always get tripped up on what constitutes a compact versus a sub-compact.

Also, what are the really small 9's (Kel Tec PF-9, Kahr PM-9) classified as? Pocket pistols?

[007Fitz]

Compact=small and compact
Sub-Compact=below that, even smaller and more compact
PF9 is classified as a Sub-compact gun
Pocket pistols are generally much smaller, usually topping out at like 4 or 5 shots. The pocket pistols are really small guns, don't even know any models to name, but yea you get the idea.
I am looking for a compact or sub-compact 9mm though. The only other gun I am considering is the G27 or FNH FN40.

[gunderwood]

Compact=small and compact
Sub-Compact=below that, even smaller and more compact
PF9 is classified as a Sub-compact gun
Pocket pistols are generally much smaller, usually topping out at like 4 or 5 shots. The pocket pistols are really small guns, don't even know any models to name, but yea you get the idea.
I am looking for a compact or sub-compact 9mm though. The only other gun I am considering is the G27 or FNH FN40.

The Ruger LCP is a pocket pistol.

[007Fitz]

Yea but I/we were mainly talking about 9mm or .40. The ruger lcp would only hold maybe 4 or 5 9mm bullets. It holds 6+1 .380, but that is a smaller bullet obviously. The next smallest gun that is single stack like the ruger lcp is (correct me if im wrong on that) and holds 9mm is about 4.1' tall and it holds 6+1. Thats an additional .5 inches of height needed to house the same number of bullets. Which is why pocket pistols generally aren't a topic when it comes to the caliber I am searching for. So i should have said I don't know any pocket pistols to name within the criteria I am searching for.

[CowboyT]

You can take this for what its worth, but I was in a similar position earlier this year, with the exception of being over 21 and not having too burdensome budget constraints. I took an NRA course, and then hit the message boards scouring for information about what my first firearms purchase should be. Early on, I was swayed by those awfully convincing people at RugerForum.net,

Yeah, they do love their Rugers, don't they? But among revolvers, I can't think of any other company that makes 'em as tough, for the money.

and found myself first with a Ruger Mark III and then a GP-100 revolver. Both are great guns for shooting at the range, and my GP definitely serves a purpose as a home defense weapon, but it's a little large for CCW,

There's a reason some folks call it the "Super Redhawk .357M". The GP is a heavy beast.

so I got into Kel Tecs, and picked up a PF-9 for CCW, as well as a Sub-2000 folding carbine, mainly because it seemed like the kind of gun that would tick off Nancy Pelosi and Dianne Feinstein.

That right there is reason enough. No more explanation is necessary!

At this point, I've spent quite a bit of money on new firearms in a very short period of time, and I have lots of toys that each have their own function, but I've also come to realize that I could have been more economical in my decision process. 9MM ammo is significantly cheaper than everything except for 22LR, and it is very easy to find, unlike some other calibers. A good double stack compact 9MM pistol could have functioned as a home defense weapon as well as a CCW. Most compacts now have extended magazines, which make them great range toys. I'm not going to recommend a specific model, but if I could start over again, I would definitely chose one of the 9MM compact pistols that have extended magazines.

Gotta agree with you there. If I had to stick with just one firearm that would "do it all", it'd be one of the plastic 9mm Para's for the reasons you stated. Hollow point ammo makes 9mm firearms viable BG-stoppers, too.

There are two HD firearms that I think every household should own:

1.) a handgun in an easy-to-get, economical cartridge (e. g. 9mm Para or .38 Spl), and
2.) a 12- or 20-gauge shotgun loaded with buckshot.

[gunderwood]

Yea but I/we were mainly talking about 9mm or .40. The ruger lcp would only hold maybe 4 or 5 9mm bullets. It holds 6+1 .380, but that is a smaller bullet obviously. The next smallest gun that is single stack like the ruger lcp is (correct me if im wrong on that) and holds 9mm is about 4.1' tall and it holds 6+1. Thats an additional .5 inches of height needed to house the same number of bullets. Which is why pocket pistols generally aren't a topic when it comes to the caliber I am searching for. So i should have said I don't know any pocket pistols to name within the criteria I am searching for.

The LCP was only to point out what a pocket pistol is like. There is a 9mm pocket pistol, but it is quite pricey. http://www.rohrbaughfirearms.com/products .380 has a good bit of kick, so I imagine a 9mm would be quite stout for that size/weight pistol. .380ACP and 9mm shoot the same diameter bullet. Typical .380ACP loads use lighter bullets because of .380ACPs limited power capacity. 9mm is 9x19mm, while 380ACP is also know as 9x18mm. 380 is basically half of regular 9mm.