Turtle Woodwork

I only buy guns that have good reliability which is #1. They also ones I’ve typically gotten some comfort with brand wise.

 

Morning Mollie

 

Morning folks! Craft show today!

 

Hell 22LR isn't bad. Light, cheap and no recoil. Should give better shot placement

 

Also good morning

My parents both have one of these. Really nice and reliable...
https://www.smith-wesson.com/product/m-p-22-compact

 

RE Poll:

Ok, this is one of those topics that I'm pretty passionate about and from everything I've read in this thread so far is that you're a relatively new pistol shooter looking for suggestions on what frame you should carry. Let me put it this way, and this is entirely subjective, pistols are like shoes. There's wide toe-box, narrow, dress shoes, high/low arch, running, hiking, cowboy, sandals, crocs, flops, etc.. I can keep going. Basically, would you buy a pair of shoes based solely on what someone suggests on the internet without trying them on first? I'm suggesting that you find a range that will allow you to rent pistols to demo on the range and go from there. Find out which brand, style, etc that fits comfortably in your hand and you can reliably present, grip and shoot easily. Bear in mind that the pistols you rent from the range are more than likely very well worn in and will behave a bit different than a pistol straight out of the box. I suggest a minimum of 250 rounds through a new weapon before it "breaks in" but others suggest upwards to 500 rounds before the weapon system is considered broken in. Some pistols have adjustable backstraps so if you find one that checks all the boxes but it doesn't quite fit comfortably in your hand, check to see if it comes in different sizes. When it comes to caliber, this is another heated subject amongst passionate enthusiasts. My view is this, train enough with your pistol that you can reliably put shots on target in the A zone of a standard IPSC target at 7-12 yards. If you can reliably put rounds in that zone, anything from .38 special to .45ACP or .50AE will drop or make the target rethink their actions. Another thing to consider is where you plan on carrying it. I highly recommend carrying on-body instead of off-body like in a purse or backpack. I carry mine up front inside the waistband in a Tier1 Concealed holster. I have the large wedge too which helps to press the pistol into the stomach to help reduce printing. Some people carry on their hip or appendix but I prefer in front where you can do a surreptitious draw if the situation requires it. I also suggest looking into taking defensive classes from a variety of instructors. You'll get multiple perspectives and as a bonus, you'll get more reps on your own pistol. Lastly, dry fire. If you're concerned about your firing pin, pick up a snap cap in your pistols caliber and practice drawing, presenting and trigger press with your snap cap. There's an exercise I like to perform which involves putting a coin behind the front sight post while you pull the trigger. Do this when you're practicing your trigger presses ensuring that the coin stays on the pistol. This is a bit harder if you choose a revolver. Bottom line, take suggestions from the gun range, rent all the pistols in a variety of calibers, shoot all the targets, and get all the training.

-J

Almost forgot, before buying your pistol, research holsters.

 

Concur

 

Not much I can add to this^. As with any decision, there are all the trade-offs to consider.

One exercise I read about and used when selecting my first pistol was to pick a point in space, close your eyes, and try aiming at that spot with your eyes closed. Open your eyes and see how close you are. Glocks just don't feel right in my hand, and that exercise showed that it was probably not a good choice for me despite their popularity.

I ended up choosing a compact Springfield Armory in .40, although if I were to do it again, I'd probably just stick to 9mm for cost and availability. In a zombie apocalypse, you are much more likely to run across 9mm than any other caliber. But, porque no los dos?

I much prefer shooting a full-size frame over compact. Compacts are just a lot more squirrely, but easier for CC.

 

Very nice!

 

I guess I should add when it comes to .22LR. When it comes to defensive rounds, I would steer away from the 22lr due to its size, kinetic energy transfer and its velocity. The 22 is a very fast round and in many studies, have zipped right through human analogs. Additionally, I believe it was an FBI report that said something along the lines of criminals that were shot with a 22 often didn't even know they were hit until much later. With that said, getting a 22 pistol is a nice cheap way to get repetitions on the frame of your choice as some manufacturers have drop in barrel and frame conversion kits to turn your 9mm into a 22 for training purposes for example. When you do ultimately settle down on the caliber of choice, buy a few different boxes of your defensive hollow-point of choice. To save money on those rounds, I wouldn't be concerned with what hollow-point to run until after your break-in period. I personally run a 9mm due to the amount of rounds I can carry on a compact frame. I also carry an additional magazine in a T1C Agis Elite side-by-side holster. 9mm is cheap enough to not break the bank when it's range day and small enough to carry a lot. To quote John Correa from Active Self Protection (who was quoting someone else) "You cant miss fast enough to win gun fights, but you can be slow enough to get hits." So that's why I like the 9mm, more chances to get hits in a highly stressful situations. I heard a story where a police officer carried about 120 rounds in magazines on-body when he was on duty because of a situation he got into earlier in his career. For civilian defensive carry, most interactions last anywhere from 7 to 15 seconds because criminals tend to scatter when the gun comes out as they want victims and not defenders. I used to carry a 45 which offered an 9+1 magazine then I switched to my current 9mm which I run a 15+1 magazine. Meaning there's 15 rounds in the magazine and 1 in the chamber. I carry ready to roll which is why it's important that your holster completely encompasses the trigger and trigger guard so you reduce your chance of a negligent discharge. I hope this helps.

-J

 

Looks Foggy…

 

It was. Very much so, but the sun came out and chased it away.

 

Thank you!

 

Morning Mollie

 

Good morning!!!

 

I definitely appreciate all this input and I'll check in to these things. Just had a really busy couple weeks so I've been behind. I'm not familiar with any ranges around here, but I'm sure I know some people who are.

 

Evening!

 

Ms. Mollie