School me on handguns

I bought a S&W Shield Plus a few months ago. Love it. I’d also look into Glock (tried and true, no safety) and a simple .38 or .357 revolver if you want no fuss. Honestly, someone breaks into my home or if I need it fast, I’m grabbing my .38 first. Quick, easy, dependable. But for light and compact micro 9mm, the Shield Plus is awesome.
 
any striker fired glock style will work. DO NOT GET a gun with a manual safety unless your prepared to train with it extensively. Stress induced situation you will pull the gun and wonder why it's not firing....then your done. All because of the safety. Just my .02 cents...
 
JackBootedThug said:
any striker fired glock style will work. DO NOT GET a gun with a manual safety unless your prepared to train with it extensively. Stress induced situation you will pull the gun and wonder why it's not firing....then your done. All because of the safety. Just my .02 cents...
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This why I always suggest a good revolver unless a person is familiar with firearms and has trained with it.
OP, if I were looking for a pistol for that application, I'd look at a .357 revolver with a 4" barrel and load it with .38 special +P rounds.
 
JackBootedThug said:
any striker fired glock style will work. DO NOT GET a gun with a manual safety unless your prepared to train with it extensively. Stress induced situation you will pull the gun and wonder why it's not firing....then your done. All because of the safety. Just my .02 cents...
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Better yet, don’t by any gun, regardless of function, without training with it regularly.
 
Findthetone1 said:
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.
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I agree. A revolver is the best in this situation. There’s no way to mess it up. I’d go with a .357 for defense against wild animals.
 
I was leaning towards revolver was going to load 1 blank 3 birdshot and two live rounds . Seems pretty standard for that application. Thanks for all the suggestions !
 
Will you be carrying it while hiking or just something to keep at camp? A beefy 357 is a heavy thing to carry especially if you have to conceal it.
 
Dyllheaven88 said:
I was leaning towards revolver was going to load 1 blank 3 birdshot and two live rounds . Seems pretty standard for that application. Thanks for all the suggestions !
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So your wanting a judge? I would not shoot a mountain lion with one unless it was foster slugs....imo....I'll disagree on the revolver though. Get a glock and and some underwood or buffalo bore penetrator's (not the super hot stuff that could blow your pistol up) and go from there. Once you load it your g2g. FTF...tap-rack-reload....imo...
 
Chubbs said:
Will you be carrying it while hiking or just something to keep at camp? A beefy 357 is a heavy thing to carry especially if you have to conceal
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Nice I hadn’t thought of that ! My original idea was leave at the camp , then hike with mace ,
 
Dyllheaven88 said:
Nice I hadn’t thought of that ! My original idea was leave at the camp , then hike with mace ,
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In that case It’s probably safer to leave a DA revolver sitting around than say a Semi auto with no safety. In that case I’d look at something around 686 size. Women and kids can shoot 38’s with ease and you have the option to use 357’s as well.
 
Dyllheaven88 said:
Nice I hadn’t thought of that ! My original idea was leave at the camp , then hike with mace ,
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Not. Sure. If. Kidding.

But serious my main advice is in 3 main areas (and I am not an expert).

1. Go to a store and put some of these in your hands. In other words, go with what is comfortable to hold and operate. Better yet, a firing range that has lots of handguns to try. Don't go just by what we say, what the internet says, and reviews and YT 'experts'.
2. Get at least a 9mm. Even that may not be enough for a bear in 1 shot.
3. Practice. Practice. Practice. And go through a conceal carry course and as many other courses as you can afford. Get full metal ammo for practice, and hollow points for defense.

I personally recommend the Glock 48 due to how thin it is. The Glock 43x is even smaller.
 
JackBootedThug said:
So your wanting a judge? I would not shoot a mountain lion with one unless it was foster slugs....imo....I'll disagree on the revolver though. Get a glock and and some underwood or buffalo bore penetrator's (not the super hot stuff that could blow your pistol up) and go from there. Once you load it your g2g. FTF...tap-rack-reload....imo...
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One of your 10mm would do the trick but that's not a 1st timers gun.
 
Equally important - get a holster. Handguns/pistols should always live in holsters unless they are being used or cleaned. Don't ever have a handgun riding around loose in a bag, pocket, under your seat, glovebox, etc. Never. Doesn't matter much about the brand at first, but don't do nylon holsters, and make sure it effectively covers the trigger guard. Reduces the chance of an ND (I refused to use the word 'accident' here) by an infinite amount.

Also equally important as has been mentioned before - get training, and fully understand the 4 basic/universal gun safety laws. Owning a gun is more than just owning a gun.
 
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