Handgun Forums?

B

Buck268

Joined
Nov 5, 2006
Messages
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Well amoung the many wants I suffer from a possiblity of aquiring my first handgun has entered the list (though I'm not sure where). Anyways I know these threads are a dime a dozen in this forums, but I'm really just looking for some suggestions on good online resources for information - especially forums like this one for firearms.

The currect debate I must resolve is handgun vs assault rifle (would like both eventuall but $$ is always a factor!) as well as home/safe queen vs CPL and caliber. So yeah, I got a lot of reading, thinking and eventually some rental/shooting to do but I want to go into this with as much info as possible... Thanks!
 
I find so much difference of opinions on firearm forums, not all are incorrect, not all know what they are talking about. One approach that I do, is to go with the more experienced perspective.
One easy way is to search You Tube videos. There are lots of idiots out there, but you can still gain information. Sometimes they are hard to watch, or listen to, but you'll find some different perspectives. Just seeing the gun in action, in hand, and watching recoil can help. Gunblast.com is on You Tube, that guy has been around, and is hilarious. Hickok45 has lots of video's, and looking at those will help you find similar vids on the same gun or caliber.
I'm sure that most of your questions have been discussed somewhere, it's just finding those conversations and narrowing down your set of requirements. From that point, you may need to join a forum, as experts, etc..
What has amazed me is the frequent lack of agreement out there, including gun shops. I find the gun shops in my area to be not very informed about lots of products. It just depends on the intrests of the employee(s). I had a younger guy, at a gun shop, tell me that all speedloaders work the same as HKS speedloaders. A quick search on google shows that's not the case.
You're right about renting some guns, direct experience will be your best source for knowledge. Nobody can really describe the feel or the recoil of a gun to the same degree as shooting it yourself. I've got to shoot some friends guns, and in doing so I have a much better idea of what I like, and don't like. I like shooting a heavier pistol or revolver, for example. If I had not shot Glocks and S&W M&P's in various calibers, then I might still be reading about them and wondering. I've narrowed down my type of gun in doing so. And, I have found what I like and want, which can get expensive. I finally shot a 1911 recently, ooohhh yeah!
 
if you really want to improve your gun handling skills, and decide the competition side of practical shooting would be a consideration ... Brian Enos Forums..
 
GlockTalk has a lot of forums dedicated to other manufacturers. I've owned quite a few handguns and a couple of "assault" rifles, a good way to get extra info is to just put the gun's name in front of the word "forums". Within half an hour you'll have exploded diagrams, fixes for common issues, etc. Decide what your need is and go from there.
 
ar15.com is where I got most of my gun info. For the love of god stay away from their general discussion forum though. It's rank with bigotry and racism.
 
Suggest you consider WHAT will be your primary use of a new firearm..all firearms are just a platform to launch a projectile..some are purpose specific.

If you are new safe firearm handling is a MUST skill..you will own every bullet or shotshell you shoot and what it does.

Four basic rules are;

All guns are always loaded!
Never let the muzzle cover anything you are not willing to destroy!
Keep your finger off the trigger until your sights are on the target!1
Always be sure of your target!

I earned the $9.95 it took to buy my first gun at age 10 - a single shot .22 LR rifle. Might be a good start point but the $9.95 deal was in 1948.

Be safe and have fun.
 
If you are relatively new or inexperienced, going to a forum for information can be challenging. You don't know who is providing solid information from someone merely spouting unsupported opinion that can vary from unwise to just plain wrong. Sometimes, distinguishing between these two extremes is difficult enough for those who are experienced as no one knows everything about any particular topic.

Although it's not the best site for a newcomer to handguns (it's geared for the more advanced pistol shooter), this site does distinguish recognized experts from the members at large. The experts screen names are colored orange.

http://www.pistol-forum.com/
 
I have yet to start an account on AR-15forums or thehighroad but I've lurked them in the past and the people seem nice. I've had a great experience with thefiringline. Love that forum. I also am on GlockTalk but lately I haven't posted because of all the squabbling and pissing contests.
 
Forums on any subject are not generally a good place for information. What you get is mostly "my gun is the best." Usually, people pay no attention to what your wrote.
They only want to talk about their guns. Even gun magazines are not a very good source of info. Most of what is reviewed are products of advertisers and they don't want
to diss their products. The exception is Gun Tests and I don't care much for the people who do the testing.

You have to decide how much you can afford to spend and what you want the gun to do. If, as you say, you can rent handguns at a range, that would be an excellent way
to go as long as you realize that the guns there are usually beat to hell.
 
I agree with, determine what you want to do with the firearm. That will narrow your search quite a bit. I think the high road is a good forum. You could ask local firearms dealers about gun clubs in your location.
 
I like the High Road also. Good bunch of guys and everybody plays nice, mostly.

IMHO everyone should start out with a 22lr and nothing makes you shoot better than lots of dirt cheap practice, practice, practice.
 
UffDa said:
Forums on any subject are not generally a good place for information. What you get is mostly "my gun is the best." Usually, people pay no attention to what your wrote.
They only want to talk about their guns. Even gun magazines are not a very good source of info. Most of what is reviewed are products of advertisers and they don't want
to diss their products. The exception is Gun Tests and I don't care much for the people who do the testing.

You have to decide how much you can afford to spend and what you want the gun to do. If, as you say, you can rent handguns at a range, that would be an excellent way
to go as long as you realize that the guns there are usually beat to hell.
Click to expand...
I disagree. Sure there's usually a lot of BS being tossed around but if you're on the forum long enough you can get good info quicker(and cheaper) then you could doing the research on your own. There will always be fanboys but there will always be a good number of people who aren't. I've learned a lot from this forum about knives and yet I don't own a Busse or a Becker which are the two rampant fanboy clubs at the moment.
 
Shotgun said:
I disagree. Sure there's usually a lot of BS being tossed around but if you're on the forum long enough you can get good info quicker(and cheaper) then you could doing the research on your own. There will always be fanboys but there will always be a good number of people who aren't. I've learned a lot from this forum about knives and yet I don't own a Busse or a Becker which are the two rampant fanboy clubs at the moment.
Click to expand...

Of course you disagree. ;) Then, you support my position. :D
 
concho mike said:
I like the High Road also. Good bunch of guys and everybody plays nice, mostly.

IMHO everyone should start out with a 22lr and nothing makes you shoot better than lots of dirt cheap practice, practice, practice.
Click to expand...

What he said.++-KV
 
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