help in gun selection
I just started shooting last year and am now on a woman's 22 cal. pistol league. I'm ready to start shooting a larger cal. pistol but I'm not sure how to go. I bought a Ruger SP1 357 with a 2 1/4" barrel which shoots 38 cal. ammo. WOW, the first time I shot it, it really scared me, what a kick! I have arthritis in my hands so would like a gun with minimum kick that I can carry while riding horses, so don't want a hugh one. Any suggestions?
I have a Dae Woo DP51 9MM Parabellum that someone gave me but I think it is going to be too much gun and I prefer a revolver. Is the Dae Woo worth anything to trade at a gun show?
I have a Dae Woo DP51 9MM Parabellum that someone gave me but I think it is going to be too much gun and I prefer a revolver. Is the Dae Woo worth anything to trade at a gun show?
0
-
Hi,
Welcome. I am kind of new myself. Not to shooting but to this forum.
Here are a couple of things for you to consider.
While revolvers are simpler, therefore in my opinion safer to use, a semi auto by it design will have less recoil. There are many semi's that come in small and medium sizes. Revolvers tend to be a little larger.
For revolvers, which I prefer, the model and caliber you used is excellent. A slightly longer barrel would reduce noise and felt recoil slightly. Maybe putting a rubber grip on would help also.
Flinching, your reaction to the noise and kick, will diminish with practice. In fact, some people enjoy have a handgun "alive" in their hands.
If you have wrist pain with a .38 fired out of .357 you may have to go to a .32 or smaller caliber. Many people will tell you that they are NOT adequate for personal defense. I think they would be OK in a pinch, but certainly not preferred.
Maybe a ruger single action in .32?
I regret that I cannot offer you a value for your gun.
Sako Fan0 -
Hi Kathleen, and welcome to the forum. The DaeWoo you speak of is a fairly scarce pistol, but not worth a great deal of money (a guess would be around $250 if it's in good shape). It is, as I recall, an all steel gun, so the added weight in addition to the lowered felt recoil due to the operating system should make it a bit tamer than you would think. The Daewoo's are also built to a somewhat smaller Asiatic standard, as your average Korean tends to be a bit smaller than your average American. Thus, with it's smaller grip, you might be surprised.
Anyway, you might want to consider a Ruger SA in 32 H&R Magnum. Rounds are a little expensive, but they should give a serious performance advantage over 32 S&W or 32 ACP. Keep in the back of your mind too; the heavier the pistol, the more recoil it absorbs for you by virtue of it's weight. Since you might be shooting this from horseback, I have an odd choice for you to mull over that is polar opposite of the direction you are heading at this time. Unless you are planning to go the CAS route, I would assume that snakes are your first concern. There is a series of revolvers made byMagnum Research called the BFR series. These are big, heavy, large caliber (up to 45-70!)pistols that have interesting features that would fit the mould I speak of. One chambering they offer is 45 long Colt/410 shotgun. These guns are in the 5 lb. range, and unless you have good gunleather (like you would on your pony), carrying them around is a serious effort. If home defense is your wish, load it with high end COMMERCIAL 45 long Colt loads and fear nothing walking. The weight of the gun will give you the perception that you are shooting about a 38 special load like your Ruger GP, when in reality, the terminal effect on target is very effective. You would not be carrying the gun around, so fatigue from the heft should not be an issue. When you are horsebackriding, load it with 410 bird/pest shot and get yourself a nice scabbard type holster for your saddlebag attachment. It is a WHOLE lot easier to hit a snake (or about any other aggresive varmint for that matter)with a small shotgun than it is a single bullet. Also, again, the recoil will be minimized due to the weight of the gun.
As I said, these are odd suggestions with what you told us earlier, but the obvious answere is not ALWAYS the best.
"When I cease learning...I'm dead"(Me)
"When I was 14 I used to marvel at how ignorant my old man was...by the time I was 21 I was truelly amazed at how much the old bugger had learned in the intervening 7 years!" Samuel Clemens
"History is written by winners"(Patton)
"You get a lot farther with a kind word and a gun than you do with a kind word alone!"(Al Capone)
"There is nothing lower than the human race...except the French" (Samuel Clemens)0 -
I think I am repeating what has just been posted, but I will amplify a bit.
Just be aware that any large caliber gun is going to kick more than a .22. That's unavoidable. After a while you get used to it.
Also, there are .38s, and then there are .38s. A lightweight snubnose .38 (or .357) with a short barrel is going to be louder and recoil significantly more than a heavier model with a longer barrel. A short barrel revolver like yours is a good gun for defense, but its not a good "first" large caliber gun because of the blast, and difficult in aiming such a short pistol. In general, the larger/heavier the gun, the less recoil (and the more pleasant to shoot, assuming you can handle the weight).
Also, there are .38s and then there are .38s. The +P defensive ammunition can really be a handful. On the other hand .38 wadcutter rounds are generally loaded low for target work. I don't know what exactly you shot, but you might try starting out with weaker ammunition then building yourself up to more.
Another very important thing to consider is GRIP. If the grip doesn't fit your hand well, the recoil is much more unpleasant. One of those nice rubber recoil-absorbing grips from Pachmayr, or Hogue can really make a lot of difference, and they are relatively inexpensive (just $20 or so). Considering that you have arthritis, this is well worth looking into. Lots of aftermarket grips are available for popular revolvers.
Finally, the question is really, what do you want to use the gun for? If you just want to shoot targets, or go plinking, or even shoot small game outdoors, you might as well just stick to a .22! (I'd recommend a Stainless Ruger for outdoorsy things). You can get hypervelocity rounds which pack about 30% more power than the ammo you use for target shooting, you could even use it for defense, as a last resort. In fact, hot-loaded "specialty" .22 LR ammo is just as powerful as the lesser auto rounds like .32 ACP.
If you want a gun primarily for defense, I'd actually suggest trying out that 9mm automatic a couple times before dismissing it. You might find it more pleasant than the .38 snubnose.0 -
While riding the gun would be for bears, mountain lions and being in Montana, the new problem of wolves. I guess with the wolves and mountain lions a shot in the air might be all that's needed but we have a big problem with bears. I don't think the 22 cal. would do much for them. I'll try out the 9MM before I sell it. Thanks for all the help! 0 -
quote:Originally posted by katnbiff
While riding the gun would be for bears, mountain lions and being in Montana, the new problem of wolves. I guess with the wolves and mountain lions a shot in the air might be all that's needed but we have a big problem with bears. I don't think the 22 cal. would do much for them. I'll try out the 9MM before I sell it. Thanks for all the help!
You're welcome.
If you are REALLY worried about bears and mountain lions, you're looking at this the wrong way. If you just want to scare the damn things, you don't even need a gun. How about a blank pistol or air horn?
Presumeably you want a GUN because you are afraid you might actually have to shoot. If so, you'd want a shot capable of killing the animal, not merely making it angry! A .38 or 9mm would be fine for a wolf, but woefully inadequate for a bear. Yes, I'd rather have that than nothing, but I'd say the LIGHTEST pistol appropriate for bear/lion protection would be a .44 magnum, and even that's probably a bit on the light side!
Forget the pistol entirely, and get yourself a carbine (short light rifle). I'd suggest a lever-action .44 magnum as being a reasonable choice for this purpose (there are many others that could work too). You can hang it in a scabbard off your saddle. Not only will the rifle be significantly easier for you to shoot accurately than any pistol, it will also be much more powerful than a pistol you could likely handle. Plus the recoil against your shoulder from a heavier gun held by both hands won't seem nearly as unpleasant as the comparable recoil from a pistol in your hands.0
Please sign in to leave a comment.
Comments
5 comments