School me on handguns

[Monkey Man]

Shifted to "Hobbies" 'cause that's where the gun-related stuff is.

Left a "redirect" in "General" that'll expire in 2 days; that way peeps who were aware of the thread but hadn't posted in it will be able to find it easily.

 

[SFW]

If you want a good general purpose handgun, Glock G19. That or a Sig P320 Compact. Because you live in Kalifornistan, you will be limited to 10 rounds. If you think you may encounter bear... I'm afraid that 10mm is gonna be your best bet. If bear are not a concern, a good 9mm will do just fine. I would highly recommend a polymer gun, as you can sweat all over them and not worry about it. My summer CHL is a Sig P365 and I switch to the Glock 19 in the winter months when I can carry outside the waistband while wearing a jacket.

 

[midnightlaundry]

MEH... Glocks are so vanilla and haven't really changed since their beginning. I have 2 and they work, but are plain like a family mobile..
But definately go with a quality auto loader. They are reliable and you have more shots per mag vs a revolver.
Look into an HK VP9. HK's are sexy.

 

[311splawndude]

MEH... Glocks are so vanilla and haven't really changed since their beginning. I have 2 and they work, but are plain like a family mobile..
But definately go with a quality auto loader. They are reliable and you have more shots per mag vs a revolver.
Look into an HK VP9. HK's are sexy.

Try a Glock 43x.

PS: My brother's 5 shot revolver is bulky - not a fan. I do like the Sig Ps and the S&W M&Ps but in the end the Glock 48 felt best in our (wife and mine) hands.

 

[midnightlaundry]

I already have a P365X. It's 12+1 and came factory with Night Sights..
It's the smallest and most comfortable Appendix Carry Rig I have.
No reason to replace it, unless I had money to burn..

 

[311splawndude]

They are sexy and I love the grip. Perfect cc firearm.
For home defense my wife preferred the Glock 48 due to full grip and longer barrel.

 

[sahlomonic]

I rotate between a 365XL and 320X Compact. Carried the 365XL for three years now and zero complaints, and zero failures; got the P320 about 6 months ago for cold weather carry.

 

[voodooradio1]

I should clarify my statement by saying that I meant that a revolver is a perfect first choice for new handgun owners and IMO a great platform to learn on. Training was implied but not stated. Train,train...and then train more.

Plus, and old school 357 is great for caving a skull in if you run out of ammo. Just feels nice in the hand.

 

[Mr. Willy]

Man, the idea of there being blanks in a gun in the heat of battle or when faced with a life threatening situation, one that could unfold in mere seconds, seems like a VERY bad idea to me.

 

[311splawndude]

Man, the idea of there being blanks in a gun in the heat of battle or when faced with a life threatening situation, one that could unfold in mere seconds, seems like a VERY bad idea to me.

What do you mean Willy? # of rounds?

 

[Mr. Willy]

What do you mean Willy? # of rounds?

The context was a revolver for protection while hiking out in the wilderness. Someone in the thread mentioned earlier if they had a revolver they’d load it with a couple of blanks and something else taking up three slots with only live rounds in the other three. Think it was to scare the animal off first without having to shoot it.

If that’s what they meant and I’m not misunderstanding, that’s a bad idea, imho.

A few weeks ago, I went out on my porch in the morning and thought I saw two big coyotes trotting through my yard. I grabbed my .38 and went to investigate. Turns out it was two pittbulls. I’ve never had pittbulls on this property in 37 years. It was weird. But when I went out to see what was up, when I noticed them at me neighbor’s fence and they noticed me, they came barreling at me. It felt very aggressive to me, like I was being charged. I lifted up my pistol and pulled the trigger. Nothing. Now the dogs are circling me. I’m yelling at them and one is giving me a look I perceive as threatening. They’re only about 20 feet away from me now. Pull the trigger again. Nothing. Now I’m starting to panic. They’re still coming towards me. I pull the trigger agin and finally get off a round. I didn’t shoot them because I saw they had collars on, and I was trying to scare them off. (My wife was pissed for me not killing them. I’ve got a 6 yo that plays in the yard. I don’t trust Pitbulls. At all.)

Anyway, I’d forgotten that I’d killed an armadillo in the yard not long before that and I used two rounds. I only had 4 rounds, not 6 like I thought. When I finally pulled off that first live round at those dogs, that’s the only thing that stopped them coming at me.

I’m saying that in the heat of battle, seconds can mean life or death.

Here’s a video of it. Sorry for the crappy quality. This is an indoor camera we have set up to watch out my bedroom window. (My neighbor put a telephone pole across our driveway. So I have to keep an eye on that POS.)

 

[Mikeyboyeee]

Glock 42 (.380) https://us.glock.com/en/pistols/g42

Now some may argue why not get the 43 (9mm) instead. They think .380 is not manly enough, or some stupid shit like that LOL.
Anyhow I have fired both extensively, 9mm has too much rise/recoil in this small, and light weight category, the .380 is way better balanced, and better at getting back on target.

If you want a 9mm get the G17, it's larger but so fucking easy, and effortless to fire.

The G42 is my daily conceal carry.

Reading your other posts, that makes sense. I never reco 380 as a defensive round (does not not meet FBI min penetration, but when I do, it's for women

 

[311splawndude]

^ Nice collection for sure CrazyNutz. Wow.

I can see why you prefer the Glock 42. I actually got a 48 and my son just got the 43x. I really like the narrow body.

The context was a revolver for protection while hiking out in the wilderness. Someone in the thread mentioned earlier if they had a revolver they’d load it with a couple of blanks and something else taking up three slots with only live rounds in the other three. Think it was to scare the animal off first without having to shoot it.

If that’s what they meant and I’m not misunderstanding, that’s a bad idea, imho.

A few weeks ago, I went out on my porch in the morning and thought I saw two big coyotes trotting through my yard. I grabbed my .38 and went to investigate. Turns out it was two pittbulls. I’ve never had pittbulls on this property in 37 years. It was weird. But when I went out to see what was up, when I noticed them at me neighbor’s fence and they noticed me, they came barreling at me. It felt very aggressive to me, like I was being charged. I lifted up my pistol and pulled the trigger. Nothing. Now the dogs are circling me. I’m yelling at them and one is giving me a look I perceive as threatening. They’re only about 20 feet away from me now. Pull the trigger again. Nothing. Now I’m starting to panic. They’re still coming towards me. I pull the trigger agin and finally get off a round. I didn’t shoot them because I saw they had collars on, and I was trying to scare them off. (My wife was pissed for me not killing them. I’ve got a 6 yo that plays in the yard. I don’t trust Pitbulls. At all.)

Anyway, I’d forgotten that I’d killed an armadillo in the yard not long before that and I used two rounds. I only had 4 rounds, not 6 like I thought. When I finally pulled off that first live round at those dogs, that’s the only thing that stopped them coming at me.

I’m saying that in the heat of battle, seconds can mean life or death.

Here’s a video of it. Sorry for the crappy quality. This is an indoor camera we have set up to watch out my bedroom window. (My neighbor put a telephone pole across our driveway. So I have to keep an eye on that POS.)

Wow man. Those pittbulls were not joking around. That's why I'm not a revolver guy and why blanks would be pointless. That situation could have been worse.

 

[Floyd Eye]

Not enough info from the OP. What is it you are expecting to do or expecting this handgun to do for you ? Where do you live? Warm or cold climate? What is your budget ?

 

[Strandberg Junkie]

When I purchased mine the store had a ton of very cool stuff to choose from.
Noticed the owner had a Glock 19 on his hip.
Asked why, out of all the awesome hardware he had to choose from, a boring Glock?

Simply said it's the most reliable and dependable one in the store and if he ever needed it, it wouldn't let him down.
Good enough for me.

 

[Floyd Eye]

When I purchased mine the store had a ton of very cool stuff to choose from.
Noticed the owner had a Glock 19 on his hip.
Asked why, out of all the awesome hardware he had to choose from, a boring Glock?

Simply said it's the most reliable and dependable one in the store and if he ever needed it, it wouldn't let him down.
Good enough for me.

View attachment 176389

Totally fair assessment. However, if like me you don't care for Glock grip angle or Glock triggers you can say the exact same thing about a VP9 or Walther PDP or M&P Shield. The only Glock I ever liked wasn't even a Glock. It was a Shadow Systems with the 1911 grip insert.

 

[voodooradio1]

I should clarify my statement by saying that I meant that a revolver is a perfect first choice for new handgun owners and IMO a great platform to learn on. Training was implied but not stated. Train,train...and then train more.

I understood what you were saying and what you meant, just wanted to stress the training part a bit more.

 

[CRAIG4FSU]

NorCal mainly worried about mountain lions lol

9mm +P or bigger and of course “training”.

Also, what can you actually own in a handgun out there?

 

[Clig Herdunkachuk]

Totally fair assessment. However, if like me you don't care for Glock grip angle or Glock triggers you can say the exact same thing about a VP9 or Walther PDP or M&P Shield. The only Glock I ever liked wasn't even a Glock. It was a Shadow Systems with the 1911 grip insert.

100%. I personally like 1911/single action type pistols.

As for the OP of this thread:

When I went through MP training in the Army we went through a module where you were in a room and one of the people in the room were going to come at you. You did not know who and you did not know when. You were supposed to unholster your side arm and engage the target before he got on you.

I was amazing how many times the assailant disarmed the MP before they could engage them.

Point of that lesson was how easy it is for that sidearm to do nothing for you and even be turned against you.

That is for people who knew what was going to happen. Now think about it this way. It is 3am. Dark outside. You are asleep and awakened by someone in your house. You don’t have formal firearms training. This is a sub-optimal scrnario and the odds are not in the homeowners favor. Your worst day at the range is the best you can hope for.

Friends of mine who are inexperienced with firearms and ask me about a home defense firearm, I steer them towards a pump action shotgun. You rack that shotgun and most people will turn and go in fhe other direction. It has less penetration and doesn’t require the precision a hamdgun requres should you have to discharge a round.

Just my $0.02.

 

[Floyd Eye]

100%. I personally like 1911/single action type pistols.

As for the OP of this thread:

When I went through MP training in the Army we went through a module where you were in a room and one of the people in the room were going to come at you. You did not know who and you did not know when. You were supposed to unholster your side arm and engage the target before he got on you.

I was amazing how many times the assailant disarmed the MP before they could engage them.

Point of that lesson was how easy it is for that sidearm to do nothing for you and even be turned against you.

That is for people who knew what was going to happen. Now think about it this way. It is 3am. Dark outside. You are asleep and awakened by someone in your house. You don’t have formal firearms training. This is a sub-optimal scrnario and the odds are not in the homeowners favor. Your worst day at the range is the best you can hope for.

Friends of mine who are inexperienced with firearms and ask me about a home defense firearm, I steer them towards a pump action shotgun. You rack that shotgun and most people will turn and go in fhe other direction. It has less penetration and doesn’t require the precision a hamdgun requres should you have to discharge a round.

Just my $0.02.

With all due respect, the racking shotgun sound scaring people off is one of the most dangerous shotgun myths there is. I do agree an 18.5" 500 is a hell of a HD weapon. I am a self professed shotgun junkie though. I've spent many, many years training with them. I have more of them than I feel comfortable talking about.
If someone makes the choice to use a shotgun as a HD weapon it is imperative that they train hard with it. Adrenaline pumping through makes the simplest of manipulations a lot more difficult. I am also a training junkie. Regardless of what gun(s) you choose, training hard and often is important.