This file grew out of an exchange I had with an acquaintance who is interested in purchasing his first handgun. I thought the discussion might be of some general utility, so I've sanitized it somewhat and reproduced it here. I'll note for the reader that I am strongly influenced by the wound ballistics studies of Dr. Martin Fackler and by the writings of Jeff Cooper. Both of them favor guns that make big holes. I also favor designs that have been well-proven over time, and among handguns none have seen more service than those patterned after the Browning-designed M1911. With that in mind, here's the the file:
btw, I will be turning 21 later this month. When I can get a substantive amount of cash on hand I am going to look into the purchase of a handgun. I'm not too thrilled with revolvers either. What would you recommend along the lines of a moderately-priced 9mm or something along those lines?
In the first place, I wouldn't recommend 9mm. I have read too many stories about 9mm's failure-to-stop, with the possible exception of people who use Cor-Bon ammunition, but that can have hefty recoil.
Personally, I favor the M1911 style pistols in .45 ACP. The nose cavity in the hollowpoints is enormous, and a 230-grain bullet moving around 900fps just plain hits harder and does more damage than a 115-grain 9mm bullet that moves at around 1150-1200fps. Plus, due to its lower velocity and larger nose cavity, the .45 is less likely to overpenetrate and accidentally hurt an innocent person who happens to be behind the bad guy. The best commercial defensive load for .45 ACP is Federal Premium Hydra-Shok.
I own a Colt Gold Cup in .45 ACP that has been worked on by a local gunsmith. It's a sweet gun, but the purchase price of $800 and the labor I had done to it @ $250 is prohibitive for a college student. If I had to do it again, I probably would have purchased a 1911 from Springfield Armory (I think they can be had for around $450-$500) and had that worked on instead.
Another option that also works quite well at stopping bad guys is a gun chambered for .40 S&W. That caliber is sort of a cross between the velocity and compactness of 9mm and the size of .45 ACP, although it leans much closer to 9mm than .45. There are a large number of guns available that are chambered for it. The best commercial defensive load for it is 135-grain Cor-Bon Sierra.
There are a tremendous number of choices available to you. Generally speaking, any gun from a reputable manufacturer will be a good gun. Reputable manufacturers include Colt, Ruger, Glock, H&K, Springfield Armory, AMT, Smith & Wesson (they make semiautos too, although they are Glock clones), Beretta, Taurus, Sig Sauer, Walther, and Para-Ordnance. Used guns can be had for less money than new guns, usually, but take care to buy from a reputable dealer or someone else you trust so that you have recourse in case the gun was not well-cared-for.
And, like it or not, revolvers will be less expensive than semiautos, usually by a couple of hundred dollars for guns of comparable quality.
. They are piece-of-shit guns that jam frequently, are made from cheap metal, and often suffer from dangerous cracking problems in the slides and receivers.
How much were you looking to spend? To get a reliable semiauto, you're probably looking at a minimum of $400 for a new gun or for a used one that is in serviceable condition. You can easily spend more than that. To get a good revolver, you're looking at $200 for something like a Taurus 605 (which is a five shot .357 Magnum with a 2.25" barrel -- VERY concealable) or on up to around $450 for something like a Smith & Wesson model 66 in stainless steel with a 4" barrel.
There are a number of other considerations: how concealable do you need the gun to be? Single-stack semiautos (magazine has a single column of ammunition -- these are based upon the M1911) are narrower and less bulky than double-stack semiautos (magazine has a staggered double column of ammunition). How well does it fit your hand (aftermarket grips are available for most guns. A big rubber grip helps to fill your hand and dampen recoil)? Snub-nosed revolvers are more concealable than full-sized revolvers, but they kick more due to their lighter weight. Do you like the way the trigger feels (some of this is adjustable by a gunsmith, including weight and smoothness of pull and crispness of break)? What action type do you prefer (single action, in which the gun must be cocked manually for the first shot, but trigger pulls are light and short, or double action, in which pulling the trigger first cocks the gun and then fires it, but trigger pulls are longer and heavier)? How commonly available and how expensive is the ammunition (you need to practice in order to be good enough to save your life with the gun without endangering innocent people around you)? How much recoil can you tolerate?
A good value that I've seen in an extremely compact semiauto is the Glock 27, which is chambered in .40 S&W and holds 9 rounds in the magazine plus one in the chamber. The gun literally fits in the palm of a large hand. However, the grip is short (I can't get all the fingers of my hand on it) and the small, light frame will transmit more recoil. The other thing is that a lot of people don't like Glocks because of the ``weird'' trigger pull (length of pull is as long as a double action but the weight is the same as a single action). I saw one at Target World in Chalfont for under $500.
Where to buy the gun? There are discount places such as Boyer's True Value in Slatington, but the service will be minimal. Then there are more full-service dealers in which the salespeople will be more knowledgeable and will take more time to help you, and can give you after-sale support. You will pay more at such dealers, but you'll get more knowledge-wise. If you know what you want, go discount. If you don't, then go to a larger dealer. It is considered highly sleazy to tie up a salesman's time at a larger dealer and then go buy the same gun from a discounter. If you use the dealer's services, pay for them or else he may not be around to help you next time.
Safety: please consult my introductory page at http://www.users.fast.net/~behanna/gunintro.html. I have an extensive write-up of the four rules of gun safety as promulgated by Jeff Cooper, who perhaps more than anyone else invented combat handgun training in the United States. It's a wetware issue, not a hardware issue.
Since we're on the topic, there are people who will claim that Glocks aren't safe because they have no safety lever, or that single-action semiautos aren't safe, or that ``condition one'' carry (round in the chamber, hammer cocked, safety ON, also known as ``cocked and locked'') isn't safe. These people know NOTHING. Any gun that is treated with its proper respect and whose owner obeys the rules on my gunintro page is a safe gun (note: this includes keeping the gun out of the reach of children and unauthorized adults -- hiding it isn't good enough. It should be locked away when it is not under your direct control). No gun (except the poorly-made shit that I warned you about above) is inherently safe or unsafe;
NRA's Basic Pistol course is a good place to start getting acquainted with guns and shooting. NRA's Home Firearms Safety is another good course. If you're up for the drive, the most economical place to take them is from the Bucks County Sportsmen's Coalition, which offers both courses combined into one for only $25 [as of Nov. 1996]. You need to show up on a Friday evening for class and on the following Saturday morning for range work (yes, you get to shoot, and you don't need to bring your own gun). There is an additional fee if you do not supply your own ammunition (lead only -- no jacketed ammo).
When you practice, wear hearing and eye protection. An ejected brass casing from a semiauto can rebound off the wall of a port at an indoor or outdoor range and land on your head or strike you in the eye. Splatter from the backstop, or side-splatter from a revolver that is being fired next to you can also strike your eye. Hearing protection should be obvious. Centerfire guns (the only ones useful for self-defense, IMHO) make a noise well in excess of 100dB when fired (magnums are up around 130-140dB). Especially if fired in a confined space like an indoor range, the noise exposure will damage your hearing.
Most commercial ranges have loaner safety glasses and earmuffs available if you're just plain too broke to afford them, but it's nice to have your own. You never know where the person who wore the stuff before you has been.
Ammunition: practice ammunition doesn't have to be the expensive stuff. I would shy away from reloads unless you know personally that the person doing the reloading is VERY conscientious and careful, as a mistake can injure you and damage your gun. Note that most manufacturers' warranties are voided by using reloads precisely because the manufacturer has no control upon how careful the person who does the reloading is.
Defensive ammunition is another story. The Hydra-Shok I recommended for .45 ACP goes for about $15 for a box of 20. The Cor-Bon I recommended for .40 S&W goes for around $17 for a box of 20. That's cheap if it saves your life, but it's too expensive to practice with. Shoot a handful of rounds occasionally both to use up old stock (although ammo will keep indefinitely) and to keep yourself familiar with the strike point and recoil of the ammo (different ammo works better or worse in different guns. Guns usually have a ``favorite'' bullet weight [shorter barrels like lighter bullets] and powder charge for which they function the most reliably and accurately. Unless you reload, you have to try a number of different brands to find the one that works best in your gun). My recommendations for defensive ammo are the same as Massad Ayoob's recommendations, which he has based upon actual field performance of the ammo in stopping bad guys, and upon post-shooting autopsies.
I carry Hydra-Shok in my .45 and Cor-Bon in my .357 Magnum, for reference.
I also highly recommend that you read the book In the Gravest Extreme, by Massad Ayoob (available from Police Bookshelf in Concord, N.H. and at gun shows and larger gun stores). I don't agree with everything Ayoob says in there, but it is an excellent primer for someone who is considering buying a gun for self-defense. The book is somewhat out-of-date (1980) regarding choices of handguns (Ayoob considers only the M1911 pistol and the .38 Special revolver), which have gotten much better since then, but the basics of the advice are very sound. It's one of the best ten dollar bills you'll ever spend.
If you have any questions, don't hesitate to ask me in email. There is a tremendous amount to learn about guns, as with any other endeavor, and you can get as deeply involved into it as you care to do. An excellent place to start is the rec.guns website: http://www.recguns.com/. The FAQ is hyperlinked for easy navigation and is in outline form. You can navigate to your areas of interest easily.
-- Chris BeHanna
