Easiest Handgun to Own

[lefteye]

Ruger SP101 or GP100 in .327 Fed Mag with your choice of barrel length, or, for a few dollars more , an Ed Brown Executive Carry.

[Hal]

Browning Hi Power in 9x19

[pete2]

A Medium size Smith&Wesson or Ruger .357 revolver. Powerful, controllable, can use .38 Special if so desired. Won't jam and unless you're into big time competition you wont even ever have to tune it up. I like the L frame S&W but the Gp100 is also very good.

[Smit]

This is similar to asking which breed of dog is the best.

[foxytwo]

Most people will push their favorite brand. The best thing is to go to a gun store, hold a few guns and pick the one that feels right in your hand. The best thing to do would go to a range that rents guns and fire a few to get the feel of which one would be right for you. Would you pick a car brand just because a few people like it, or would you drive a few before buying. Good luck in finding the right pistol or revolver for your needs.

[Nathan]

Thanks Foxy. I have what I need and your post is accurate for a gun enthusiast, but many guns are bought without shooting.

Also, I would argue a bit with what feels good will shoot good. I have had guns which felt great, but I shot bad...Taurus PT101. I have also bought guns which shoot great, but initially felt bad in my hand. I think this is because it is all about how the recoil stroke happens, which can be ok with a bad grip.

With trigger time, I think most can shoot a 1911 well, but will they point naturally??

[Bob Wright]

MonsterB wrote:

That doesnt look very concealable Bob. great gun and props to you for carrying it but a ccw it is not.

This is a recent Sunday morning and I'm at church.



The Ruger is on my Wright hip.

I do not go out in public without a vest or light jacket, so its just as concealed as with a sport coat.

Bob Wright

[KMAX]

Bob: Good that you can and like to cc the Ruger SA. However not everyone dresses as you do. I could conceal a "Mares Leg" if I wore a duster all the time.

[Archie]

A fixed sight, medium frame, double action revolver in .357 Magnum.

A single action could do, but for 'casual' shooters, the double action is probably easier to use.

My personal preference is for K frame S&W revolvers, but I would jump on a Ruger Sxxx-Six revolver (any of them) in a second. (The Security, Service and Speed-Six revolvers were the predecessor to the GP100 series, for those who came in late.)

[Hal]

The Ruger is on my Wright hip.

I do not go out in public without a vest or light jacket, so its just as concealed as with a sport coat.

Bob Wright

I believe that goes w/out sayin..

Which side is it though?

[Crankgrinder]

I will say bob thats a good job concealing that ruger, cant even tell its there. Dont know what your relationship is with the church but in alot of places its a bold move also.

[Gaerek]

I carry in church all the time. We're a fairly small congregation (maybe 40 active), and I know of at least 5 others who do also, including one guy who's a detective with the local PD. It's becoming more and more accepted, especially after those church shootings 4 or 5 years ago.

[GregA]

Nathan,

I bought my first gun in 2005 at the recommendation of a local gun dealer for home defense. It was a S&W Model 686 with a 4 inch barrel. I bought it without ever having shot one before. Learned on it and practiced with it thru 2007, then it went into storage as did my shooting until this year. When I resumed target shooting a month ago I took it with me and instantly remembered why I enjoy this gun so much. It is reliable, accurate, easy to clean and I have never experienced a problem with it. Hope this helps.

[jimbob86]

Flame on but my vote also goes to Glock. Extremely simple and efficient, low cost of ownership and accessories, ease of maintenance, exceptional reliability, lightweight and high capacity, I dont think anyone beats glock in the ease of ownership role.

An sR9c beats the Glock for ease of ownership. Besides the better trigger and better ergonomics, it's about $200 easier to purchase.

[Nathan]

So, we have 1.5 pages of revolvers, a couple of Glock posts, and an SR9 post?

Edit: sorry I forgot the HP. Still surprised about all the revolvers.. Seems like the newb threads usually go Glock, XD, M&P in no particular order.

[Hal]

So, we have 1.5 pages of revolvers, a couple of Glock posts, and an SR9 post?

& one Browning Hi Power - please don't leave the best choice out

[stm74]

I second for the Browning Hi Power

[JimDandy]

The best choice? We have over 100 years of service from John Moses Browning's collaboration with Colt. For 100+ years(and counting), Uncle Sam taught everyone from farm boys picking the manure from between their toes to future presidents how to operate and maintain the things. Even after fool-hardily replacing the things, the guys on the sharp end of the sharp end still pulled them back into service. You don't get that track record by being finicky, or hard to maintain.

[James K]

Isn't this getting away from the OP's questions? He wants a simple, easy to use, reliable handgun. No years of experience with single actions, no "old west" rigs, nothing with too many buttons or gadgets, no seventeen way safeties. Just pull a trigger.

My suggestion is simple. An S&W Model 10, preferably an ex-cop gun for economy. Load it, forget it. It will work when needed unless the house falls on it.

Jim

[pete2]

The answer is always gonna be the medium size S&W or Ruger revolver. I can't believe anyone thinks otherwise. Read the man's original post and be open minded about what he's looking for. A good D/A revolver is the only thing that meets all the requirements. Anything else is gonna be second on the list. Sorry Glock guys.

[Webleymkv]

I'll also cast my lot with the revolver crowd and specify a medium frame Ruger or S&W DA revolver in .38 Special or .357 Magnum with a 3-4" barrel. As for why, let's refer to the criteria:

easy to learn

Revolvers are nothing if not simple. There are no safeties to fiddle with and no need to manually chamber a cartridge in order to make the gun ready to fire. Likewise, if one wishes to verify the loaded/unloaded status of the gun all that is necessary is to open the cylinder and look at the chambers.

requires minimal complex thought...hard to forget

See the previous qualifier. DA revolvers have one of the simplest manual-of-arms available and thus have the least that can be forgotten.

easy to clean

The simplicity of a revolver again shines through here. While some semi-autos may be quite easy to disassemble and reassemble, revolvers need not be disassembled at all for normal cleaning and lubrication. Simply open the cylinder, unload the gun if necessary, clean the bore and chambers, wipe the gun down with oil (not necessary with a stainless gun) and you're done.

runs dirty

Unless the gun is grossly out of spec or has been shot with copious amounts (as in hundreds of rounds) of very dirty ammunition without being cleaned, revolvers very seldom malfunction from being dirty.

reliable OOTB and after 1000 rounds with no parts changes

Unless the gun is subjected to a quality control issue or damage from an outside force (such as a sight blade getting bent or broken because the gun was dropped), good quality revolvers can typically run just fine for decades and thousands of rounds without any parts (including springs) needing replaced. Also, the only "break in" period normally encountered on DA revolvers is that some have their triggers smooth out a bit with use.

paper plate at 25 yards accurate

The fixed barrel of a revolver makes them inherently accurate. 1" groups at 25 yards with ammo that the gun likes is not particularly rare.

easy to shoot fast doubles on that same plate at 7 yards

So long as the gun and grips match the shooter and the ammo doesn't create an excessive amount of recoil, this isn't unattainable. Part of the beauty of a revolver is that the shape and size of the grip is more customizable than that of a semi-auto because it is not constrained by the size and shape of the magazine. The DA trigger does present a bit more difficulty than a SA semi-auto trigger, but with good instruction and practice that difficulty is in no way insurmountable.

drop safe...not CA test, but in practice

Both Ruger and S&W revolvers have built in features that make them drop safe (transfer bar on Rugers and sliding hammer block on S&W). Neither gun is going to go off by itself when dropped.

meaningful SD or HD caliber

.38 Special is a perfectly adequate self-defense cartridge and .357 Magnum even more so. There is a wide variety of good hollowpoint ammunition for both cartridges and ammunition for either can be found at nearly any establishment that sells handgun ammunition.

could be CCW'd

While certainly not a pocket gun, a 3-4" barrel medium frame revolver isn't particularly difficult to carry IWB, OWB, or in a shoulder holster.

popular enough to never worry about parts, finding a gunsmith, etc.

Both S&W and Ruger have been in the DA revolver business for a long time and both have sold millions of revolvers. Common parts (both factory and aftermarket) can easily be found from usual suppliers like Brownells, Numrich, and Midway. Also, just about any competent gunsmith can work on a Ruger or S&W DA revolver.

[LockedBreech]

I prefer semiautomatic guns, but that's because I'm scrupulous about maintenance. If I wanted a gun I could take out of the drawer 6 months later with no doubt that it would fire, I'd choose a quality .357 Magnum or .38 Special revolver from Smith & Wesson or Ruger. My top choices would be the Ruger GP100 4", Smith & Wesson 686 4", Ruger SP101 3", Smith & Wesson Model 60, Ruger LCR, and Smith & Wesson 642, in descending order of size.

My grandpa's old Colt Python isn't a safe gun, we shoot it and my dad tucks it under his truck seat on long trips, and sometimes it does nightstand duty. Every time I take that gun out of its leather it so obviously is ready for action. Revolvers give you a great deal of confidence in their steadfastness.

[Deaf Smith]

Overall my GP100 3 inch 'Canadian' .357.



Very strong, easy to disassemble, accurate, powerful, and as simple as can be.

But as runner up..

My S&W 66-3 and 686-3!



Any of them will do to ride the river with.

Deaf

[wayneinFL]

I do not go out in public without a vest or light jacket, so its just as concealed as with a sport coat.

That doesn't work for me.

Glock 19/23 is better for CCW, IMO. For most people.

Less likely to rust in saltwater, too. Ask me how I know.

[Bob Wright]

How in the World do you conceal even a Glock in your swimming trunks?



Bob Wright