What is the most frivolous reason you ever bought a handgun?

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  • IndyDave1776

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    While I had always had an interest in handguns, as a child, my grandpa would talk about them a little, I would see one with extreme rarity, and never fire one. As it were, my interest was sorting itself out into something serious at about 12 years old and as it so happened, every week when helping my mom with the grocery shopping (or in my case cart pushing/grocery carrying) I would walk past the magazine rack displaying among other products, the then-current Guns & Ammo annual which so happened to feature the then-new Smith & Wesson 645 on its cover. Every week, I walked slowly and salivated as I passed. OH GOODNESS DID I WANT ONE OF THOSE!

    Fast forward to 21, that S&W was out of production, I really didn't care for the replacement, and I was becoming a believer in the 1911 and a disciple of the sainted John Moses Browning--and had a professor who was also a gun dealer (and aware I was on the prowl for a 1911) offer me one he had bought for a friend who decided it recoiled too hard (!) and traded it back for a .38. As a result, I became the proud owner of my first handgun. Quite a few have come and gone in the mean time, but that one will be here when I die. One principle which has set in to my buying is that I generally won't buy a gun without a present or projected purpose for it and have parted with some after the purpose or likelihood of a purpose had passed.

    Fast forward again to 38. I was a relatively new INGO member and within a week or so (I know this is hard for you to believe) had made at least 50 of what qualify as quality posts, and another member listed for sale *drumroll* a Smith & Wesson 645 for which I had no particular need, and no reason for buying other than the nostalgia of all that salivating as a kid, making it the most frivolous purchase I have yet made.

    So then, does anyone else have a frivolous handgun purchase story?
     

    DoggyDaddy

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    Dave, I had a similar fascination with the Colt Python when it first started showing up on the covers of gun mags too. Never bought one, but if I were to buy one today, given what their prices have done, it would be a frivolous purchase indeed!
     

    doddg

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    I barely even remember the guns/rifles (vastly mostly .22s) purchased from 1975 to 1990ish, but since May I have been serious about buying about 25 guns (sold half those).
    But, standing in line at the 1500 Gun and Knife Show at the Fairgrounds in the late 80s, a guy near me in line had a Colt Mustang .380 Pocketlite for sale with a total of 4 mags in the original box.
    It took all the money I had brought with me for buying/selling/trading, but I bought it on the spot just b/c it was a Colt and I knew the price of $275 cash was a good one.
    I was not interested in anything but .22s and small pocket guns (.22, .25s; I had a Beretta .25 tilt-up barrel I wish I'd kept). I did have a .38 snubbie for CC, but don't remember the brand.
    I have not purchased any .380 since then, but I did love it so much I did not sell it when I divested myself of all my guns/rifles around 1990 (also kept a little NAA 5 shot single action .22 magnum).
     

    Mgderf

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    I went home for lunch one day, a rarity for me.
    I went upstairs to my apartment and began looking for something to eat, when all of a sudden came a smashing, crunching, metal-on-metal scraping.
    I ran to a window and looked out to see a car against my car on the curb.

    I got a settlement from the insurance company that allowed me to pay off all my current bills for the month with enough left over for a brand new Taurus Raging Bull .454 Casull with an 8-3/8" ported barrel.

    I had no intended use, other than deer hunting, but didn't really need it.
    It's taken a few deer, but mostly sits in the safe.

    I like it a lot, and shoot it occasionally.
    I'll never get rid of it.

    BTW- The car was "totaled" but I gave the insurance company $50 to keep it.
    Without doing ANYTHING to it, I drove that car for another 3 years.
     

    Mark 1911

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    I can honestly say that I don't need more than one. I don't compete, although I do enjoy shooting a lot. I don't have as many as I used to, and I've had some pretty cool handguns. But still, I have or had just about all of them because I simply "wanted" one of those.
     
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    I definitely have my fair share. Playing video games like call of Duty sparked my interest in surplus guns like the M1 Garand, Lee-Enfield, and Makarov pistol.
    Hickok45 hooked me on Glocks and S&W revolvers.
    James Bond started my interest with the Walther P99.
    Lethal Weapon, Die Hard, Hickok, and Call of Duty probably persuaded me to buy a Beretta 92FS
     

    Bigtanker

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    I worked at Kay's Merchandise around 1998. I worked the gun counter. We had just got a 10" MKII Ruger in. I really didn't think I needed it but I really wanted it. That long barrel jusy seemed so cool. So for a little over $200, I brought it home.

    It started out as a frivolous purchace but time has shown it was the best buy I ever made.
     
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    littletommy

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    My Ruger Alaskan was about the only frivolous purchase I've made. I'm a Ruger guy, and when they introduced that gun, I just had to have it! The gun is pretty much my favorite, but it generally stays in the safe most of the time. It is literally and figuratively a blast to shoot, and always brings a smile to whoever I let shoot it. I have actually carried it on some bear country hikes, so I guess it does serve some purpose, and, for some reason, I tend to shoot it better than some of my longer barreled hand cannons.
     

    Haven

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    Over the past 20 some odd years I have gone shooting on occassion with CameraMonkey. I always complained about his Glocks. I shot them ok, but didn't like the feel. He let me shoot his dad's old Ruger, and I love that thing. Then last fall he talked me into getting my own gun finally. I rented a bunch of guns, tried them out and found I liked the way the HK VP9 felt. A few weeks later, I ended up picking up a CZ 75B. The only reason I picked up the CZ is due to a book series that I loved. The series came out in the 90s (80s?) from Japan, and set in Chicago. The main character drove one of my favorite cars, and shot a CZ 75. I don't have the car (Shelby Mustang 1967 GT 500) yet, but I have a newer version of the gun. The author was right, the gun shoots like a dream.
     

    churchmouse

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    Just about every gun I buy ends up being frivolous at some level.
    Buying the gun is justified by the "I need this really bad" gene. You know, the same gene that drive the spouse to own 35 pairs of shoes (that you know of).
    Then comes the fondling. The mind engages. The Brownells/Midway USA search begins. Funds are allotted. Parts are in the mail before you know it. Anticipation comes. Mail box is checked daily even when you know the shipping sucks but you look anyway. Then :wow: the packages arrive. You make the time and arrange everything on the bench. Hours or days later (depending on how deep you let yourself fall down the rabbit hole) you have your prize.
    You are now completely upside down in what ever you purchased. There is no way you will ever recoup this investment but damn this one is so freaking cool.....:)
     

    churchmouse

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    Over the past 20 some odd years I have gone shooting on occassion with CameraMonkey. I always complained about his Glocks. I shot them ok, but didn't like the feel. He let me shoot his dad's old Ruger, and I love that thing. Then last fall he talked me into getting my own gun finally. I rented a bunch of guns, tried them out and found I liked the way the HK VP9 felt. A few weeks later, I ended up picking up a CZ 75B. The only reason I picked up the CZ is due to a book series that I loved. The series came out in the 90s (80s?) from Japan, and set in Chicago. The main character drove one of my favorite cars, and shot a CZ 75. I don't have the car (Shelby Mustang 1967 GT 500) yet, but I have a newer version of the gun. The author was right, the gun shoots like a dream.

    You will need some lottery winnings for that particular car...:):
     

    Thor

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    Could be anywhere
    Because...well, it's sitting right there...it's kinda cool and you have the cash. You like the history, or you always wanted one of those because of movie/book X. Or, you know...Red Dawn. Et cetera, ad infinitum.
     

    Twangbanger

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    The psychology researchers are telling us happiness is about "experiences," and so money can indeed buy happiness, if the purchases are tied to same. I want them all, so my current countermeasure against recreation (as opposed to "business") gun frivolity is to only buy ones that allow me to have experiences. And a gun sitting in the safe getting fondled twice a year does not count as an experience, for me. Does the purchase allow me to compete in a type of match I don't currently have the ability to participate in? Then it enriches my life and it gets bought. (Or does it allow me to do "better," and so on and on down that rabbit hole).*

    It may not be useful for some, but for me it has really helped me better prioritize my spend decisions, and prevents me from accumulating stuff whose only feature is that it goes bang.

    * but if it can be used to kill neighborhood varmints, it goes to the top of the list. Heh heh. That's my escape clause...
     

    Haven

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    You will need some lottery winnings for that particular car...:):

    yeah I know. Even if I find a broken body, and restmod it, the cost is still pretty high. Oh and no Elenores, I don't like the look of them.

    Hell, the reason I picked up the book was the car on the cover. Later in the series the main character explained why she liked the gun.
     

    Bapak2ja

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    First one was a S&W 640-1. I had no need or use for it, but it felt good in my hand and I liked the way it looked.

    Second one was a Savage 62. No need for it; just saw it for $99 and thought I could not pass it up.

    Still enjoy them.
     

    Osprey

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    My biggest sin/vice is gluttony and I don't mean eating. Whatever the reason, once I lock onto something, I buy...buy...BUY! No reason no wanting no need but just because. Then, when I lose interest, I get rid of it. I am the epitome of the word frivolous. And wow...I need to STOP!
    Anyway - my first handgun was a Raven .25 when Don's Guns were giving them out on a promotion (I bought the first gen Glock 17 and I was hooked). Yup, that was decades ago. Since then I have been doing the above but luckily, I have better self control...for now.
     
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