Going to the range...
 

Howdy, all!

Me and some friends are going to the gun range later this week to take a lesson and fire some handguns. It's the first time I've ever done this, and I really look forward to it.

I have one simple question for y'all: I only have the financial resources to fire one gun. Which should i give a go?

I've done some searches, and it seems many people are fans of the Sig P229, and the Glock-17. Should I go with one of these, or something else?

The only real pertinent piece of information i can give you is that I've never done this before, but I hope to do it for a living someday; thus, the lessons. Anything you can offer in the way of advice is much appreciated. :D

There are fans of both guns and those fans swear by them.

From a price standpoint, the Glock will be a little cheaper to buy (if you are looking to eventually purchase), but the SIG is slightly better in terms of total quality (roughly on terms with a Berretta and H&K).

For plain old fun, I'd go with an M1911 of one type or another. I've had several, from one mfg or another. Colt, Llama, Randall. .45 ACP is a nice round.

It a nice and easy to maintain. Also, if you decide to go off on the modification road, there are plenty of things you can have done to it, or that you could do yourself.

If you're going for the first time snag a .22 like the Ruger Mark II. It's a great plinker, and you can fire as much as you want without breaking the bank.

Have fun, and always remember to keep your muzzle pointed in a safe direction.

Yeah! .22, that's loads of fun, too. I had a Ruger single-action .22 cowboy gun. It came with two cylinders, one for .22 Magnum and one for .22 long rifle.

I'd forgotten all about that one. Man that thing was fun. It was a great piece for plinking.

Either one is a great example of the type of friearm. Personally, for your first trip, I would also recommend a .22LR handgun or rifle. They are so easy and cheap to shoot that most anyone can have a good, inexpensive time. Additionally, without any worry of recoil whatsoever, those of sensitive temperment will not have to unlearn flinch reactions on down the line.

That said, I would suggest against going with something like a 1911-A1 regardless of its' popularity amongst shooters. It's manual of arms (ie method of operation) is more complex than the aforementioned Glock or Sig models, and thus better left to a later date.

If you can, each of you should rent something different and then swap back-and-forth so that everyone tries every one.

Start with a 22 and then go up to 9mm, .40, then .45.

cuervo knocked the words right out of my mouth :)

It's all the same, with differences to be noticed only by the individual

I put a few hundred rounds through a Ruger .22 auto first. Heaps of fun. I got used to aiming and firing, then moved up to a .357 (S&W 686).

I had a Dan Wesson .357 long ago. I really loved it, but found that most factory loads were too hot/loud and I never foudn time to reload as much as I needed to shoot. <sigh>

Shooting. Yet another hobby that will take over your life and wallet.

Thanks everyone for the advice. Used a colt .22 pistol to shoot a bit with and experiment... Found out that my left eye is dominant, though I'm right-handed. That kinda blew, but ah well. After a few hundred rounds, I went with a .40 S&W that was a blast to shoot.

Anyway, thanks everyone for the great advice.