Forbidden Donut

Two questions.
1. Do have a caliber preference?
It appears you want a .45. Good choice, that will be my next purchase. The three choices you chose are all good, although I would select Sig, USP, Glock, in the order. Nothing wrong with any of of them, I just find the Glock to be horribly uncomfortable to grip and shoot. The Sig is by far the most comfortable and easiest to shoot. My daily carry pistol is a Sig 228 and I don't think if I would choose much else over it. My next purchase will be a SA 1911 Operator in .45.

2. Do you plan on carrying concealed or just having it in your home?

I carry a compact Sig and it pushes the limits of size for concealed carry because of the thickness. The 220 won't be much different, only its even larger then the 228 I carry. The USP and Glock are both huge. Concealed carry with either will be difficult.

Ask more questions.

1. I don't really have a caliber preference. So any other suggestions would be appreciated.

2. I won't be carrying it on me concealed. I plan on having it in my car though.

I work at clubs on the weekends so this is so I won't get robbed at the end of the night when I come home from the club.

I don't know what to get really. I don't even know what my criteria should be. should I get something light with little recoil and holds a lot of rounds or something that would drop someone on their ass with one shot.

If you don't know a whole lot about firearms, I'd suggest getting a Glock. A Glock 19 or 17 would probably be your best bet, with the only difference in the two being the size of the gun, the 19 being a little smaller. I recommend the Glock 19 over the 17 size wise, for anyone other then a pro line backer. Glocks in general are about as simple as pistol as you can buy. Breaks down and cleans easily. Every time you pull the trigger it goes bang, no matter what. Very few moving parts and no manual safety so it stays consistent and makes you have to think less. 9mm is an easy to shoot caliber, it's not as expensive as most other calibers so you can practice more often for the buck, which is the key. Also gets you more rounds in the gun then a larger caliber.

I suggest getting your concealed carry license. Even if you don't play on carrying on yourself, the permit makes transporting it and keeping it in your car much easier. In some states having it in the car and not locked up in a container is breaking the law. Having the permit allows you to say, keep it in your glove box if needed. Not hard to get in most states, about $100, good for probably 5 years and completely worth the effort.

Yeah, I would look into the licensing well before you buy the gun. Depending on where you're going to be while keeping the gun in the car it might be easy, or it might be next to impossible. I would look into that well before buying the gun. I would also learn to handle and fire a handgun before even considering keeping on in your car, nevermind using it to insure your safety after leaving a club.

wut caliber is a 228? how different is it from a 226? I don't see a 228 any more in sig's site.

I'm bout to hit a gun shop up and check these all out. From everyone I have asked so far they say the sig is their favorite to shoot. but a glock and usp are good as well. just the usp cost a bit more. some people don't like the feel of the glock. but I'll find that out for myself.

You don't need a gun that feels the best in your hand since you aren't going to be using it that regularly. Phey was pointing you in the right place with the glock.

This is because its absolutely going to do what you want it too when/hopefully if you have to. I have a sneaky suspicion that once you get it and test it out and have some fun, there is going to be a period of time where it sits in your car for months at a time. I would feel way more comfortable with a glock in that situation than another gun.

Don't worry about looking for a 228. For your purposes, a 229 in 9mm is the same weapon. A 229 is a compact version of the 226.

Like I said above, I recommend the Glock 19 for what you want to use it for. As a plus, its the least expensive of all the guns.

One other thing to consider. When you buy your gun, I suggest buying a nice holster to go with it. It doesn't matter if you plan on ever wearing the holster. It's a matter of the holster being a nice level of safe redundancy when it's sitting in your glove box or console in your car, preventing something from hitting the trigger. It's also useful for protecting the gun from normal wear and tear. I can make some recommendations on that also. You will probably be better off buying a holster online then at a gun store, but I'm also a holster snob.

Asking other people for firearms advice is like asking other people for car advice.

Your best bet is to try a bunch of different firearms and buy the one that feels "right" to you, and fits your specific needs.

I would not recommend buying anything less then 9mm for fairly obvious reasons, but the 9 vs 45 debate is a dead horse I won't beat here.

I do recommend getting your concealed permit though.

Good luck, have fun, and for god sakes take some courses if you're going to be carrying a firearm around.

I own a glock 17. It's small, but I got it because when I'm carrying it, it's concealed and fits nicely. I don't have huge hands, so the size didn't bother me too much. Very easy to disassemble like Phey said. Definitely would recommend it. Just make sure you're smart with whatever you get.

How much experience do you have with guns? Have you ever owned a gun? Have you fired a gun before?

I only ask because it seems like you don't know much about guns (from the little information I could gather from this thread), and it would be entirely irresponsible and disturbing if you went out an purchased a pistol without first getting someone to show you the ropes. Owning a gun is a huge responsibility, and simply assuming that you will always have good judgment isn't sufficient.

As a gun owner, I am very frustrated and worried about the cavalier attitudes that the people in this thread exhibited. Buying a gun is potentially the most serious purchase you could ever make in your life, and it only takes a simple mistake due to inexperience to kill yourself or someone else.

Yes it is. Its a right to own and carry, not a privilege.

At least according to your constitution, unless I'm missing some finer points.

Note that I agree completely with your arguments, but am merely using them to be snide.

I didn't say that the law shouldn't allow him to get a gun, I simply said he is being reckless if he is even considering purchasing a gun without proper experience and knowledge. Just because something is a right doesn't mean doing it in an irresponsible way is condonable (e.g. the KKK's exercising their free speech rights).

Well said.

shooting ranges on the weekends during college. even though it's been about 5 years since I've done that. and the place I'm gonna purchase from offers a 4 hour class which I was going to take. and yes, I know it's dangerous.

Man, sheeyit. I've seen a tiny-ass 22 roundnose drop a n---- plenty of days man. Mothafuckas get up in like a pinball--rip yo ass up. Big joints tho? Big joints, man just breakin bones and say fuck it...



I don't have anything valuable to say...

Note: Regarding being able to "take someone down", a 9mm would do you fine in the majority of situations. A well placed shot would probably do it, and if not then it will definitely knock them back and if necessary use a second.

9 mm is the worst round imo. Lacks the stopping power of the bigger rounds, and lacks the clip capacity and light recoil of the smaller rounds. It's a poor compromise. If you want stopping power go with a 1911 in .45, if you want something that's easy to shoot and you can get off multiple shots faster go with something smaller. 9 mm though, meh.

Yes, for stopping power I must agree. A .45 is the way to go. Big slow moving chunk of lead, and does a fairly good job of transferring the energy of the bullet to the target. If I am not mistaken it was originally designed to stop someone cold.

If memory serves it was specifically Philippine warriors they wished to stop cold. Couldn't let them get close enough to chuck one of those damnable spears at us!