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What Was Your First Handgun

44K views 514 replies 475 participants last post by  bradsvette 
#1 ·
OK what was your first handgun and what happened to it.

My first first handgun was a Colt Gold Cup NM in 45acp. I got it in 1980 and still have it.
It was blued when I got it and within a month or two I had it Hard Chromed, had a professional trigger job done hammer bobbed and polished and the front sight replaced.
 
#55 ·
First handgun was my issued Beretta M9A1 and I loved it. If I can find a good deal on one I'll probably pick one up considering I have over 10 mags for it sitting around and I spent 8 years of my life training and shooting with it. First purchase (and last Taurus) was the PT1911 right when they came out, I call it my "naive 1911" because it was my first and didn't realize their was a difference in quality, fit, finish, etc. between the different ones.
 
#56 ·
My first handgun I bought was a Colt King Cobra blued 4" .357 Mag. My first handgun I was issued was at 17 years old, either a Beretta M9 (shot at Fort Benning) or Colt 1911 (issued at Fort Ord).

I still have the Colt King Cobra. I remember I paid less than $350 for it. Now I cant find them for sale often and when I do they want a Python price. Several thousand rounds were shot through it, hogs killed with it, and my kids were taught to shoot with it. The only issue was a thin ring of metal that went around the fireing pin hole area broke off, but it still works.
 
#57 · (Edited)
I suspect my first handgun will also be the most unusual one on this list. One of dad's friends who knew how I loved guns gave me this H&R Handy Gun .410 pistol with the 12" barrel - for my 7th birthday in 1933. I loved it - so much fun to shoot - was only chambered for a 2 1/2" shell and, barrel having no choke, the effective range for getting any game (rabbits) was only about 20 yards.





So - it came as a jolt the following year - 1934 - that the ATF - in all their wisdom (spelled GOVERNMENT AGENCY POWER) somehow decided that little .410 pistol was as dangerous to our society as the Thompson Submachine Gun that required registration and a $200 (depression day dollars) fee. In fact, - today is more regulated since if one pays enough money and invests so much time, the "Tommy Gun " can be legally registered, bought, or sold - whereas, if a Handy Gun is found in anyone's possession, there is no legal way it can be registered and the fine is $10,000 for that possession.

I've posted that information before and, inevitably, there nearly always seems to be at least one other "poster" who think they know better and there is a legal way to register one now - I have communicated with a dedicated collector on the east coast who has written a book on this gun as well as tried to get the law changed so these guns (also in 28 gauge) legalized - with no success. The Handy Guns have been reclassified as "Curio & Relic" guns but remain strictly on the list that requires special registration and restriction.

If you are a US Government Agency with power, you need to exercise that power.

The other inconsistency of the restriction on .410 pistols with short barrels is that there are several models on the market - even revolvers - that shoot .410 shells - legal because they also fire 45 colt ammo and, thus have rifling in the barrel - some with barrels only a couple of inches long.
 
#59 ·
First gun was a Montgomery Wards WesternField 20 ga. I got for Christmas when I was 14.




First handgun was a Russian Makrov 9x18.


Still have bot.


Mak has been promised to my daughter.
 
#66 ·
My first handgun was a Browning Buckmark .22. Still have it. No plans to ever get rid of it. It's a lot of fun to shoot, and it's pretty dang accurate.
 
#70 ·
First pistol was a Glock 22 in .40 S&W I picked up about 2-2.5yrs ago now. Fairly new to handguns but have been shooting rifles/long guns/shotguns since around 7 or so.
 
#74 ·
My first handgun was a Llama comanche .357 in 1967. I couldn't afford a s&w so this looked just like one. It started me collecting hand guns because it shot so well. It wound up getting stolen along with 23 other hand guns in 1982. Never found any of them and the kid that stole them went to the pen not telling where any of them went. Wish I had them all back.
 
#76 ·
My first handgun was a Charter Arms .38 special snub nose that I traded for back when I was only 15-16 years old. I was scared my dad would find it so I traded it off again. That was a long time ago.

The first handgun I ever bought...was a Taurus 66 .357 6" barrel. That was the first gun I ever GAVE away. Then I bought a Llama Minimax :mummy: that would jam at least one shot out of every magazine. My best friend at the time thought it was the shiznit...so I GAVE it to him..."HERE, take it!!!" As far as I know, he still has that monstrosity. Then there was the time I bought a Raven arms .380 out of a pawn shop. :barf: Yep....gave it away.

This was all before I had access to the Internet and at that time I just bought what I thought was a good deal instead of researching and buying something that actually had some quality to it. A NIB pistol for $89.99 to me...was a smoking deal. I had no concept of quality. I thought a gun was a gun was a gun.

I think the first gun I ever bought that I actually cared enough about to sell for money...was a Ruger P89.
 
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