Determining the right gun for me

[bigcraig]

Actually cold weather does not bother me a bit, ask Coach and rhino, I shot the last USPSA match last Sunday wearing shorts, t-shirt and a hoodie. (I took the hoodie off when it was my turn to shoot.)

The problem is, is that Eagle Creek range is shut down for the winter and my "home" club is in Martinsville. Thats a bit of a drive just to throw a small number of rounds down range.

Shoot me an IM later this evening, I may change my mind and go to the range tomorrow.

 

[antsi]

Definitely agree with try before you buy. Most of the differences between one handgun and another are matters of personal preference.

One major suggestion I will make, though: in your original post you mentioned three separate purposes for your handgun. It is possible to get a gun that will be useable for range/training, home defense, and carry - but there will be some compromises involved. For this reason, you may want to consider two handguns, or possibly a "convertible" handgun.

For learning to shoot and developing a good skill set, there is no substitute for a .22
Considering the volume you want to shoot to begin learning, you will save enough $ in ammo costs alone to justify the purchase of a .22 handgun. Additionally, most of the bad habits new shooters pick up are the result of reacting to recoil. If you buy a defense-power handgun and shoot it enough to learn, you are very likely to learn some bad habits along the way (besides the $ of shooting all that expensive ammo).

To some extent, you get a similar benefit if your main handgun is a .357 magnum and you practice with .38 special - reduced recoil and expense for high volumes of practice shooting, then reload with the heavy stuff for some practice and for self defense.

The .38/.357 combo also has the advantage that your "low power range/practice gun" has the same grip feel, same sights, and same trigger pull as your "serious business" gun. This option basically restricts you to revolvers. Try shooting some revolvers and if you find one you like, this is a great option.

There are some ways to accomplish the same thing in semiauto. SIG-Sauer makes a .22 that operates the same as their defense handguns. Buying two SIGs right off the bat will be pricey, though.

If you wind up liking the 1911 pattern pistol (think US Army .45 from WWI and II), you can get a .22 caliber conversion kit (barrel, spring, slide, and magazine). This way you could "convert" your primary self defense gun to a practice gun and back.

Probably the best combination of .22 and defense-caliber pistol for $ value is the CZ 75b. This is a very high quality all-steel high capacity 9mm semiauto pistol, and CZ also makes the "Kadet" .22 conversion for it. Last time I was looking, you could get a 75b for about $450 and a Kadet upper for about $200. For the money, it would be hard to top this combo for learning to shoot and for home defense should the need arise. Depending on your carry method, you could probably also conceal the 75b if you decide to go that route in the future.

 

[Pami]

There are some ways to accomplish the same thing in semiauto. SIG-Sauer makes a .22 that operates the same as their defense handguns. Buying two SIGs right off the bat will be pricey, though.

That is precisely why I ended up getting the SIG Mosquito -- it is almost identical to the P226 and was purchased with the plan to upgrade to the 226 from the get-go to minimize the learning curve from a .22 to a 9mm.

You could get a used Mosquito for $200, and the used P6/P225s aren't much more, so for $500 you could have two guns that are made by one of the most recognized and reliable firearms manufacturers in the world.

Mosquitoes are very picky about their ammo. OTH, you learn to deal with FTF/FTEs very efficiently. Although with the P226 and the P6 we had, neither one ever FTF or FTEd that wasn't intentional or stupid operator error.

 

[antsi]

You could get a used Mosquito for $200, and the used P6/P225s aren't much more, so for $500

That would be a very nice "brace of pistols" to get started with.

The P225/P6 is fairly light and slim, and would be reasonably concealable.

Truckerman could probably find that combo for about the same $ as the CZ75/Kadet combo I suggested above. Again, that would be a lot of quality shootin' iron for a pretty modest outlay.