How long Does It Take ?

[mrt949]

How long does it take you to decide if a type of pistol is suited for you?
For me about 3 to 4 range sessions with each type of firearms to decide.
The money you spend in rentals and ammo is cheaper in the long run.

[Robk]

For me, it is only a matter of fit into my hand. If it feels good, than it can go on the wish list or be bought right away. I am not a caliber snob, nor do I mind recoil. Each gun has its own quirks and each will find a niche in my colletion into which it will fit.

[Bob Wright]

If it has a cylinder, fires, and puts the bullet exactly where I want it, it suits me. Doubly so if it is a single action , blue/case hardened.

Bob Wright

[KMAX]

Sometimes first sight and or touch, sometimes years. I have been looking for years for a poly framed gun that I actually like. I have a couple, but they are just tools. I don't admire them as I do my 1911, Hi Power, S&W 642, or even my Taurus 65. I am still looking though. Haven't found a 40 cal I like yet either. Just my opinion.

[Zhillsauditor]

Takes a range trip for me. But I'm a gun slut; I like them all.

[Crankgrinder]

I know how long it takes me to figure out if one doesnt suit me thats for sure.

[chadio]

It has taken over a year for me to really warm up to my P226.... changing the sights and grips were a big factor. I now prefer it over most anything.

My Browning Buckmark .22 ~ now that was an instant hit with everyone, me included.

Instantly liked the 1911 in my Navy days...

[45_auto]

How long does it take you to decide if a type of pistol is suited for you?

What do you do if it's the issued departmental carry weapon and you decide that it's not "suited" for you?

Do you quit your job?

[UtopiaTexasG19]

I think that over the years gun forums have created a atmosphere where the minute details of shooting have been discussed ad nausium to the point some think that a particular pistol has to weigh an exact amount, have a particular feel and pointing angle and if you don't get a warm fuzzy feeling when you caress it in your hand it's not the right gun for you. If you practice enough you can become proficient enough for defense with just about any pistol. Like a poster said above, if it fires and puts the bullet exactly where I want it, it suits me. I have all 16 pistols I have bought over the last 45 years and am pretty good shooting all of them and they range from a Colt .45 SAA with a 1901 build to S&W wheel guns to Glocks. On the other hand my best friend has spent thousands of dollars in the last 3 years buying and selling pistols looking for the Holy Grail pistol of his dreams. He always gives me a dirty look when I mention to him all the mental m*sterbation he goes through at every new pistol buy.

[mrt949]

Years ago tried the 1911' s felt ok but you were always tweaking mags & springs. Next was GLOCKS didn't fit just right , then the small polimer pistols .Ok but not the real deal after a long time I found out the simpler the better .No manual safetys just the feel of steel a revolver love them or leave them. Man i could have saved a bunch of money but it was fun.

[anothernewb]

Agree with others here. It's easy to tell one that is absolutely wrong, but it's kinda hard to tell if one is just "okay"

Myself - I try to be objective. I'll give it a couple hundred rounds.

If I find myself making excuses for it after that, or I find that I don't want to pick it up and use it, or if it doesn't inspire confidence, It's probably not right.

[giaquir]

You have one of the most powerful
tools for research-The Internet.
I research any gun I'm interested in buying
and then make an informed decision
at time of purchase.
years ago when I bought my Remmy 270,
I had to research the old way.Magazines,articles,
ballistic info,friends etc...
I find the old research method time consuming
but one can get a more intimate knowledge of the
firearm without sifting out Tom ,Dick and Harry's
5 shot opinion.

[edfrompa]

It has taken me a lifetime. It is easier now with the internet. But without it, it was guess and by golly. Now at least you can see what the good and bad are in every firearm, well almost.

[Salmoneye]

I have never 'rented' a gun...

Don't even know where to do such a thing around here...

Over the decades, I have purchased 'more than one' gun, simply on what I viewed in 'Gun Digest', catalog ads, et cetera...

[Mezzanine]

If im on the verge of buying a new handgun i just ask to hold it every time i go in for ammo or what have you in my local sporting goods stores. If i really wanna test my hands fit i buy an airsoft exact replica of it, same size, different weight, same safety, mag release, no decocking lever but its 20 dollars at most, i consider it a good deal. After i got the 226 i felt like i put a thousand rounds down the barrel of one already. Except it was much heavier and the trigger was a bit more firm than the plastic counterpart.

[m&p45acp10+1]

About as long as it takes me to get my wallet out of my pocket.

If I see one I want at a decent price my wallet comes out. If it is more than I can afford at the time I will save enough to put it on lay away.

[orionengnr]

At this point in my life, I can get a pretty good idea by doing a little research and one in-person handling. I've made a few questionable choices (mostly related to a "can't beat it" deal, but no really bad ones.

Once I have it in my hands, one range session gives me a good first impression...and you know how those are. Very, very few times has a first impression been reversed...actually, I am trying hard to think of one example, and so far coming up blank.

Once you know what you like and what works, you will find it pretty easy to filter any future purchases...and I don't mean that you have to stick with your traditional choices.

What do you do if it's the issued departmental carry weapon and you decide that it's not "suited" for you?

Do you quit your job?

Well, since my employer does not pay me to carry, or pay for my carry choice...that is a moot point.

[serf 'rett]

1. Hold it, feel it, sight it, operate controls, check trigger.

2. Then research - mostly the net and other gunners.

3. Process takes three months to three years, depending on available cash flow.

Disclaimer: Really good deals may only take 5 minutes.

[loose_holster_dan]

if you're taking 3-4 range trips, assuming $15 per rental, that's $45-60. why not just buy used without trying (just holding)? if it's not for you, sell it. you aren't going to lose out more than $50 on a used gun if you resell it quickly.

[L_Killkenny]

In some ways it must be nice to have the ability to try guns before you buy. Around here? Good luck. In other ways what a pain in the rear to make multiple trips to a range just to decide. Frankly, I can tell 99% of what I need to know buy educating myself before hand and handling a gun without firing. I've never bought a gun I fired first. Sure I made some bad choices when younger, don't think any amount of shooting before hand would of prevented that. I was just young and dumb. But 3-4 trips to the range seems a bit obsessive. You sure you're not Liam Neeson in Taken?

[joyrock]

I have never fired a gun before I bought it. I have never rented a gun. Of all the guns I have bought over the years, most were impulse buys. My CZ-75BD, I have read everything about it, before I got it. And I like ALL of them. I got lucky a few times, like my 1940 Llama in 9mm Largo (I LOVE it). My Star Megastar in 10MM is a tank! I bought my K31 from a dude, and it took 5 seconds for me to make up my mind to buy it. I got my CZ-2075 on a whim. That's how I buy guns......probably not the best way, but it works for me.

[chris in va]

I lucked out with my CZ 75bd. It was my third handgun and I kept it for ten years. My P01 is the only gun I've found good enough to replace it.

[muddymustang]

If I can afford it & want it, I get used to it no matter if I have to file the sights. Love em all

[Ozzieman]

For me, it is only a matter of fit into my hand.

Robk said it best.

[dahermit]

I take a completely different tack. I do not think that any gun fits my hands, etc. So, I never consider that aspect of buying a gun. What I believe is, if you practice enough with the gun in question, you will eventually adapt to it. The military has been demonstrating the truth of that statement for years. There was only one handgun...the 1911 .45, and only one rifle, the M1 Garand.
If you cannot adapt to those guns (as an example), you have not practiced enough with them.