Buying first handgun

Ponytail

Ponytail

New Member
Larry Gude said:
...and a certain Ron Paul fan around here proved that very fact to me by putting freaking craters in my plate rack one nice afternoon.

:lmao:
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:lol:


The 50's are way too expensive, and quite frankly, just not any fun to shoot for very long. I can shoot my Super Redhawk with 280 and 300 grain bullets, all day, and not wake up the next day with joint pain.

I've shot the DE 44 mag, and I love that gun. Just a phenominal frame for that caliber. Easy shooter. Easy, easy...with open sights.

For my Super Redhawk, I couldn't hit the broad side of a barn with it till I got the Holosite put on. Now it's a fun plinker. :biggrin:

The .44 makes the nieghbors at the range jump everybit as high as someone shooting a .50 DE. I know that for a fact. Add some hot ammo to throw a bit of flame in 3 directions for an extra attention getter. :lmao:
 
J and M

J and M

Member
Ponytail said:
:lol:

The .44 makes the nieghbors at the range jump everybit as high as someone shooting a .50 DE. I know that for a fact. Add some hot ammo to throw a bit of flame in 3 directions for an extra attention getter. :lmao:
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The 50 DE in an indoor range will rattle your fillings loose! :shocking:
 
R

RadioPatrol

Guest
smilin said:
I tend to buy weapons that I'm interested in firing. I shoot a Marlin lever action for that old west experience, but my favorite has to be a Hawkins black powder. It doesn't kick as much as pushes you back. We actually got up to three shots a minute once (before my SF bud forgot the powder!).:lmao:
I'd like to get one of the old revolvers, something like a Navy Colt or Dragoon.
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I have a Colt Navy .44 (CVA) and .36 (Navy Arms)

they are fun shooters ............ I used to "carry" mine every where

:whistle:

Fairfax Police did not know what to do with it when they found it in my 78 VW Camper in a box between the seats ......... :lmao:
 
jackers

jackers

New Member
I bought a Springfield XD.45 from The Tackle Box. Believe it or not, they were just a little more expensive than the stores I checked. I think they were only $15 more expensive than Bass Pro in Baltimore.

Anyway,
I like the XD lineup for a number of reasons
- Reliable, you could stuff a cat down the barrel and the thing won't misfire!
- High capacity, 14 .45 rounds, nuff said
- Stopping power, there is a huge debate about what has more stopping power, the .45 or the 9mm. Since it was for home defense too, I decided upon the caliber I felt most comfortable with
- Lightweight, even with the 13 round clip it feels lighter than my buddies 1911. With the 10 round clip I can definately feel the difference
- Saftey, I like how it doesn't have a hard safety. It has the double trigger (GLOCK style) but an additional rear grip safety as well. You have to have a propper grip on the handgun to operate it. I think that is the best way to go for home defense. If someone broke in my home in the middle of the night I would probably be pretty disoriented. Last thing I want to be doing is fumbling over a safety.
- Fun to shoot, I shot the M9 Service Pistol (9mm) in the Marines and thought it was really snappy. The recoil seemed different at each shot. The XD .45 just feels solid. Just a heavier, solid recoil I guess.
- Price, pretty cheap considering some of the others (H&K, Sig). I am trying to think back but it was somewhere under $600.

Anyway, it is a great gun. There are a lot of reviews on the net. Very reliable, guaranteed for life, and fun to shoot. Springfield has a great reputation and great customer service.
 
AK-74me

AK-74me

"Typical White Person"
jackers said:
I bought a Springfield XD.45 from The Tackle Box. Believe it or not, they were just a little more expensive than the stores I checked. I think they were only $15 more expensive than Bass Pro in Baltimore.

Anyway,
I like the XD lineup for a number of reasons
- Reliable, you could stuff a cat down the barrel and the thing won't misfire!
- High capacity, 14 .45 rounds, nuff said
- Stopping power, there is a huge debate about what has more stopping power, the .45 or the 9mm. Since it was for home defense too, I decided upon the caliber I felt most comfortable with
- Lightweight, even with the 13 round clip it feels lighter than my buddies 1911. With the 10 round clip I can definately feel the difference
- Saftey, I like how it doesn't have a hard safety. It has the double trigger (GLOCK style) but an additional rear grip safety as well. You have to have a propper grip on the handgun to operate it. I think that is the best way to go for home defense. If someone broke in my home in the middle of the night I would probably be pretty disoriented. Last thing I want to be doing is fumbling over a safety.
- Fun to shoot, I shot the M9 Service Pistol (9mm) in the Marines and thought it was really snappy. The recoil seemed different at each shot. The XD .45 just feels solid. Just a heavier, solid recoil I guess.
- Price, pretty cheap considering some of the others (H&K, Sig). I am trying to think back but it was somewhere under $600.

Anyway, it is a great gun. There are a lot of reviews on the net. Very reliable, guaranteed for life, and fun to shoot. Springfield has a great reputation and great customer service.
Click to expand...

I have one too, the 5" tactical in .45, I paid $560 NIB from a local dealer, which still sucks IMO, some parts of the country they sell for~$500. I think it is a decent design I just don't like how big it is. I have pretty big hands and I have to adjust my grip to release the mag which makes mag changes super slow.

As far as stopping power in handguns that is a myth, a .45 makes a slighter bigger hole than the 9mm, both will take someone down with a hit to CNS other than that though it is all about the bleed out, which bigger hole wins in. Most people weigh the pros and cons of the 2 based on bigger hole vs. in general higher capacity. The XD45 provides both although by doing so, like I pointed out earlier, makes the grips too beefy to do fast mag changes IMO.
 
clevalley

clevalley

...
My office-mate has the .454 Casull he bought form our boss as a "coversation piece"... then he went and bought the .500 S&W when it came out because it was the biggest one out there - he shot it 5 times and sold it :lmao: What a dip!
 
itsbob

itsbob

I bowl overhand
jackers said:
Anyway,

- High capacity, 14 .45 rounds, nuff said
- Fun to shoot, I shot the M9 Service Pistol (9mm) in the Marines and thought it was really snappy. The recoil seemed different at each shot. The XD .45 just feels solid. Just a heavier, solid recoil I guess.
- Price, pretty cheap considering some of the others (H&K, Sig). I am trying to think back but it was somewhere under $600.

Anyway, it is a great gun. There are a lot of reviews on the net. Very reliable, guaranteed for life, and fun to shoot. Springfield has a great reputation and great customer service.
Click to expand...

How big are the handgrips?? My 645 has a 10 shot capacity (single stack) and it's not very comfortable unless you have gorilla hands like mine..

I agree with the kick of the 9.. I shot the German MP5 (machine Pistol) and thought it was totally uncontrollable, liked the .45 Grease Gun a LOT better.

I can get an accurate second shot off a lot quicker with the .45 than I could the 9... I'd still like to see what difference getting it ported would make, but I don't want to cut up my gun to find out I don't like it.
 
itsbob

itsbob

I bowl overhand
Thankful said:
Thanks for the good info. Now what type of night sights would you put on a 9mm or .45?
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What do you mean by "night sight"??

A flashlight holder? Personally wouldn't go with a flashlight.. makes for a great aiming point for an armed adversary..


Tritium Blades? Change the factory fixed sights for adjustable rear sight, with tritium front and rear blades.. I think a good choice.. Line up the three glow in the dark dots and you're in business.

NIGHT SIGHTS - Tritium


Aimpoint? If you aren't planning on carrying it, a good choice..
 
Larry Gude

Larry Gude

Strung Out
No it's...

AK-74me said:
As far as stopping power in handguns that is a myth,
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...not.

You are more shot getting hit with a .45 over a 9mm or a .40.

All things being equal, bullet type, fps (850-1000 or so) standard powder charge, 5" barrel, a 9mm makes the plates go down. The .40 makes them go down a bit harder. The .45 makes them go down even harder.

If I had to be shot with a handgun, I'd prefer to get hit with the smaller choice.
 
Larry Gude

Larry Gude

Strung Out
I do...

AK-74me said:
I I just don't like how big it is. I have pretty big hands and I have to adjust my grip to release the mag which makes mag changes super slow.
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...agree that a double stack .45 is an awful lot to put in our hands. Double stacked nines aren't much better.

1911's just fit SOOOO nice.
 
M

Magnum

Should be Huntin
Larry Gude said:
...agree that a double stack .45 is an awful lot to put in our hands. Double stacked nines aren't much better.

1911's just fit SOOOO nice.
Click to expand...

Thats why I am hesitant on getting the XD .45. It's just too wide. I mean I can get a good grip on it but it just have that "right" feel
 
Larry Gude

Larry Gude

Strung Out
Important...

LOL said:
What is a good gun?

Where in Southern MD can I buy one?

General shooting, not for sport shooting or hunting.
Click to expand...

...consideration; There is a term known as 'limp wristing' that applies to auto's and it MATTERS if you ever need the gun to fire (self defense). You MUST practice and be aware of this or you may not get a second shot in an emergency.

What happens is you do not hold the weapon firmly enough to make it function properly. The first round fires, the slide comes back only part way, not fully, and strips the next round on it's way back into battery (ready to fire) and jams the next round as there was not enough time for the round to get into the chamber. Or the fired round doesn't clear and gets eaten by the gun. Point being you now have to clear the round which is not good if you need to be shooting.

It WILL happen. It has NOTHING to do with your size or strength. Women can hold an auto just fine to prevent this, big guys can mess up.

Now, point is this rarely happens with 9mm's. The physics just work out nice. It happens more frequently with .40's and even more so with .45's.

If you practice a bit, have it happen a couple times, learn to not flinch and learn a proper grip and stance, you'll will be fine. You just need to be aware of it if an auto is the way you're gonna go.
 
M

Magnum

Should be Huntin
One time I pulled out my .45 for a few of my cousins to shoot it. With one of my cousins the gun kept jamming... It never jambs :confused: After 3 times I fired off the rest and it worked fine. I had him hold it up and figured it out:lmao: He had his right index finger one the slide release and was pulling the trigger with his middle finger. With the pressure on the release when the slide came back it was binding:lmao:
 
T

Thankful

New Member
itsbob said:
What do you mean by "night sight"?? UNQUOTE

Titanium sights are the ones I'm used to but I had a friend who had them and they "wore out" (didn't glow) and they had to be replaced within 5 years. Just wondering if anyone had any good recomendations. I don't want to have to keep re-investing in the same gun.

I'm comfortable with my accuracy with 9mm and will most likely stay with that for the home defense. I'm thinking if I add the night sights I'm sure I can comeup with a bigger hole than I would with the .45 in a high stress situation for the stopping/bleeding out.
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AK-74me

AK-74me

"Typical White Person"
Larry Gude said:
...not.

You are more shot getting hit with a .45 over a 9mm or a .40.

All things being equal, bullet type, fps (850-1000 or so) standard powder charge, 5" barrel, a 9mm makes the plates go down. The .40 makes them go down a bit harder. The .45 makes them go down even harder.

If I had to be shot with a handgun, I'd prefer to get hit with the smaller choice.
Click to expand...

Based on the info. held within this link, (the links within this link too) it seems that most experts disagree. Your analogy about knocking down steel plates doesn't exactly translate to humans. I agree a 230 gr. bullet will probably knock a steel plate down with more force than a 115 gr.

AR15.COM
 
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