First handguns

[JoshuaTree]

If you don't mind a 'wheelgun', try the Ruger SuperRedhawk in 44 Remington Mag. Get the 9 1/2" Stainless setup (comes with scope rings). Everyone should own a piece of hand artillery... It shouldn't feel 'small', even to you.

[LeeNetworX]

Originally Posted by Ninjakel

Apoc doesnt need guns, he has hamhocks for fists

I just had the funniest freaking visual with that.

[inetd]

There are a number of CC holders in Canada (authorization to carry, ATC, here,) but they're generally only issued to people working in the wilderness. Bush pilots, trappers, prospectors, etc.

I own a W. German made 9mm Sig, an American made .40 Sig, and a Norinco 9mm Sig copy. Excellent, extremely reliable guns. Weren't issues popping up with their 1911s, though?

Good to see you're taking the time to see what fits best in your hand, apoc. That's the way to do it, especially for someone with hands your size.

I'll play the devil's advocate and ask, why stop at a handgun or two? How about an AR15, IWI Tavor, or a Norinco type 97- $850, just in time for Christmas! Every Canadian gun owner needs a vz58, ammo's cheap and if you buy the longer barreled version it's non restricted, take it hiking for some plinking fun!

Check out Canadian GunNutz if you haven't already, especially their pistol/revolver section:
http://www.canadiangunnutz.com/

[Papa_Complex]

Actually there are a large number of people who carry illegally in the north, because the odds of them ever being caught are vanishingly small. they legally own the guns, but don't use them in the licensed fashion.

[inetd]

haha, well I assumed we were talking about the legal ones. That being said, it's not exactly limited to the north.

Btw apoc, you had to get fingerprinted out that way?

[Apoc]

inetd, i just became a member at canadiangunnutz. And I have no intention of stopping anywhere, just for the moment, I want a 1911 style handgun, and a polymer handgun. Im considering 9mm polymer because of the cheap cost of bullets. (1000rounds, 199.98 here), from there I can start reloading. I want a pistol I can shoot a lot for now.

Im still horny over the STI GP6 though.

[fnfalman]

I'd say fuck all of those choices.

The Czech CZ-75B is the shit. Old World craftmanship. All steel construction. Not to mention a price that doesn't break your wallet.

[OTB]

I have a couple of favorites, depending on the shooter. For newb, I like to train basic shooting skills with a double action medium frame wheelgun with a 4-6" barrel. Load it, close the cylinder, pull the trigger, it goes BANG! every time.


I have a Smith 66 and a Python which have served me well for 30 years.
Big frame guns are too heavy to handle for most beginners; small frame Smith's and Colts chew up a new shooter's hands making them flinch. Some of the imports are OK values, but I have yet to find one that doesn't need a lot of action work to make them shoot well.

I have a Star PD for daily use. It was my comp gun for years but my eyes aren't good for it anymore. For those of you worried about alloy frame/steel slide longevity, this gun has somewhere in the 10-15000 cycles on it, it is still tight and shoots almost as well as the day I got it back from the 'smith.

The biggest problem new shooters seem to have with pistols is the plethora of levers, buttons and various action types (DAO, DA, SA, Safe Action, DA with Decock; ad infinitum...). I've been on too many ranges near newbs who've had AD's and every one of them was a newer shooter with an autoloader.......

When the counter guy brings a newb on the range and starts explaining to the guy how to load the mags and work the buttons, I pick up my brass, box up my stuff, pull in my targets and call it a day.......

[fnfalman]

Originally Posted by OTB

I have a couple of favorites, depending on the shooter. For newb, I like to train basic shooting skills with a double action medium frame wheelgun with a 4-6" barrel. Load it, close the cylinder, pull the trigger, it goes BANG! every time.


I have a Smith 66 and a Python which have served me well for 30 years.
Big frame guns are too heavy to handle for most beginners; small frame Smith's and Colts chew up a new shooter's hands making them flinch. Some of the imports are OK values, but I have yet to find one that doesn't need a lot of action work to make them shoot well.

I have a Star PD for daily use. It was my comp gun for years but my eyes aren't good for it anymore. For those of you worried about alloy frame/steel slide longevity, this gun has somewhere in the 10-15000 cycles on it, it is still tight and shoots almost as well as the day I got it back from the 'smith.

The biggest problem new shooters seem to have with pistols is the plethora of levers, buttons and various action types (DAO, DA, SA, Safe Action, DA with Decock; ad infinitum...). I've been on too many ranges near newbs who've had AD's and every one of them was a newer shooter with an autoloader.......

When the counter guy brings a newb on the range and starts explaining to the guy how to load the mags and work the buttons, I pick up my brass, box up my stuff, pull in my targets and call it a day.......

OTB knows his irons here.

It's very hard to beat the simplicity of a double-action revolver. People tend to forget that not everybody is going to use their uber modern 20-round magazine pistol for combat. It's like owning a MotoGP race bike without even having a track to ride it on.

I would start a beginner out with a .22LR handgun (either my Ruger or Browning .22 pistol) though I really need to add a .22LR revolver to the inventory just for this purpose. Then after a few session, depending on how quickly the person grasps the concepts of basic marksmaship, I'd graduate the person up to a Smith&Wesson K-frame (my Model 19) but load it with .38 Special instead of .357 Magnum.

Wheelguns are much more accurate than a typical auto pistol and easy to shoot. It instills the confidence in the beginners by not having a massive recoil when loaded with light rounds, the trigger pull is short and light, the fixed barel contributes to easy accuracy. It's like riding a Ninja 250 and rail on it after a few session instead of starting out on a Ninja ZX10 and spend the next three months pissing in your pants.

[OTB]

Originally Posted by fnfalman

OTB knows his irons here.

It's very hard to beat the simplicity of a double-action revolver. People tend to forget that not everybody is going to use their uber modern 20-round magazine pistol for combat. It's like owning a MotoGP race bike without even having a track to ride it on.

I would start a beginner out with a .22LR handgun (either my Ruger or Browning .22 pistol) though I really need to add a .22LR revolver to the inventory just for this purpose. Then after a few session, depending on how quickly the person grasps the concepts of basic marksmaship, I'd graduate the person up to a Smith&Wesson K-frame (my Model 19) but load it with .38 Special instead of .357 Magnum.

Wheelguns are much more accurate than a typical auto pistol and easy to shoot. It instills the confidence in the beginners by not having a massive recoil when loaded with light rounds, the trigger pull is short and light, the fixed barel contributes to easy accuracy. It's like riding a Ninja 250 and rail on it after a few session instead of starting out on a Ninja ZX10 and spend the next three months pissing in your pants.

YES! Drop me a line if you ever get out in my neighborhood..............