First Pistol Advice

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ssidesam

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Christmas is just around the corner and Santa has been fooled into thinking I deserve big this year.

Thinking of getting my first pistol. Intended use is plinking and casual target shooting. Price range is LOW (say under 500 plus tax). Pro's/Con's

-One of the 1911's in 22lr. Cheap to shoot. No recoil. I think 22lr pistols will all suffer from some degree of the ammo being questionably powered to cycle the action.
-Entry level 9mm semi. Still reasonably priced ammo just not as cheap as 22. Avoids fear of feeling like I outgrew the 22 pistol too fast?

Also can anyone walk me through the ATT process for getting an online purchase to my door. I work during the day so I'm assuming when the mailman tries to deliver I'll get a card to fetch my parcel at the post office. A buddy of mine said he bought this route and the firearms office were pretty mad when he contacted them to get the ATT to get to and from his Range - they were livid he did not ask for an ATT to take the new pistol from the post office to home. Seems a bit extreme but I'm new to Restricted rules.

Looked at a few pistols at Doctor Deals in Moncton tonight. What a garbage store. Staff got snarky when I asked to see a gun from the case. "Well.... you can buy it but we don't take them out of the case otherwise." He also told me that in the province of PEI your PAL counts as an ATT - I'm so 100% sure he's wrong about that. Most of his pistols were dirty and appeared used but he was trying to say they were new. Jokes on him. Cabelas it is.
 
I went through what you are going through about a year and a half ago. I bought a cheap 9 mm and a 22 around the same time. I’ve bought and sold a few since then and right now I the only pistol I have is a glock 19x. I started with the cheap 9mm and ended up getting rid of it to upgrade to my 19x. I love it, but, I keep looking for a 22. I think it’s a good idea to have both a 22 and a 9 mm. The 22 will be good for practising the fundamentals of sight picture, sight alignment, and trigger pull with minimal cost. With the 9 mm you can see where you are lacking on proper grip while practicing the other skills.

I had a sig sauer 1911-22 which I sold to afford the glock. Now I find myself wanting to find another one. The sights on it are garbage but they are affordable and it’s a full sized 1911. The one I had would eat any ammo reliably. I’ve also been looking at the browning buckmark and the ruger mk4 but they are more expensive than the 1911-22 and I’m debating whether or not it’s worth the extra money.
 
I recommend starting with a good, accurate 22LR -- by accurate I mean with adjustable sights that don't move in relation to the barrel. That rules out any model that has the sights on a moveable slide, like the 1911s, which just don't have the same accuracy potential. A new or used Buck Mark, Ruger, or S&W Victory would be fine. A friend of mine got the cheapest possible Buck Mark on sale last year for well under $400 and it is quite a nice pistol, with a very nice trigger. There are lots of debates about the qualities of that groups of pistols, and those of the older, all steel predecessors such as the S&W Model 41 (my choice), the High Standards, the earlier Brownings, and so on. With any of the 22s I've mentioned here you can get to the point, maybe in a year, where you can hit a 6" target or gong, or maybe smaller, reliably at 25 yards, and maybe even at 50 yards. That's rewarding and fun. You don't want to miss out on the satisfaction of doing that. Then for a centre fire pistol, 9 mm is a conventional choice. Others may have a different experience, but I nod when I read that most newer shooters will shoot more accurately with a 38 Spl revolver, like my beloved S&W K38 (in later years the Model 14). Being less popular than semiautos, good used revolvers like the Model 14 are well priced on the used market, and you can usually get one for well under $1K on CGN (always with adjustable sights). And 38 Spl is also very easy to reload (I use a Lee hand tool). You didn't suggest 45, and although I have a 1911 in 45acp, and prefer 45 recoil to 9 mm (there's more of it but it's less snappy), I wouldn't recomend it for starters. Personally I do not like any of the 9 mm polymer handguns I have tried and if I got a 9 mm it would likely be a CZ 75 or 85 or 1911. This advice is a bit off beat I suppose but that's my personal experience.
 
ssidesam said:
Christmas is just around the corner and Santa has been fooled into thinking I deserve big this year.

Thinking of getting my first pistol. Intended use is plinking and casual target shooting. Price range is LOW (say under 500 plus tax). Pro's/Con's

-One of the 1911's in 22lr. Cheap to shoot. No recoil. I think 22lr pistols will all suffer from some degree of the ammo being questionably powered to cycle the action.
-Entry level 9mm semi. Still reasonably priced ammo just not as cheap as 22. Avoids fear of feeling like I outgrew the 22 pistol too fast?

Also can anyone walk me through the ATT process for getting an online purchase to my door. I work during the day so I'm assuming when the mailman tries to deliver I'll get a card to fetch my parcel at the post office. A buddy of mine said he bought this route and the firearms office were pretty mad when he contacted them to get the ATT to get to and from his Range - they were livid he did not ask for an ATT to take the new pistol from the post office to home. Seems a bit extreme but I'm new to Restricted rules.

Looked at a few pistols at Doctor Deals in Moncton tonight. What a garbage store. Staff got snarky when I asked to see a gun from the case. "Well.... you can buy it but we don't take them out of the case otherwise." He also told me that in the province of PEI your PAL counts as an ATT - I'm so 100% sure he's wrong about that. Most of his pistols were dirty and appeared used but he was trying to say they were new. Jokes on him. Cabelas it is.
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Get a reliable semi-auto such as an M&P, glock, or even a Girsan MC28.

I would not want to start with a .22 handgun. People have all sorts of opinions, but I wouldn't listen to most.

If you want to learn fundamentals, nothing wrong with a revolver even, but I have heard really good things (on this forum) about the Girsan MC28. Can be had brand new for around $300, and is a serviceable pistol.

I would try to goto a gun store and handle as many pistols as you can, and see what best suits your hands/grip. Striker fired semi's are mostly all the same, aside from ergo's and sights/grip angle.

Better yet is to goto the range and try out another members glock or whatever , and see what you can handle well. Speaking about your bad experience with the LGS, I would avoid at all cost. Any ass hole who won't let you physically handle the gun they are selling you is not worth your time.

Yes you can start with a $400 GSG 1911 .22 , but you WILL outgrow it really fast. Why buy a capgun when you can own the real thing!:cool:
 
The M&P 22 is a great shooter and will give you practise for a larger caliber duty gun like a 9mm or 40 S&W since their size is virtually identical.
 
I'll speak first about your ATT issues then delve in the pistols.

As of post C-42 (2014) If you possess a restricted firearm you are automatically issued an Authorization to Transport (ATT) that is electronically attached to your license. This ATT allows you to transport a firearm for target shooting; taking a firearm home after a transfer; going to a gunsmith, gun show, a Canadian port of exit; or a peace officer or a Chief Firearms Officer (CFO) for verification, registration or disposal.

In your 2 specific cases, if you purchased a restricted firearm online and it gets sent to the post office; you do not need an ATT from the post office to your house as you are authorized (after a transfer) to transport it from the place of acquisition (post office) to your home as long as you stay in the same province.

Automatic authorization to transport — transfer

(2.2) Subject to subsection (2.3), if a chief firearms officer has authorized the transfer of a prohibited firearm or a restricted firearm to an individual who holds a licence authorizing the individual to possess prohibited firearms or restricted firearms, the individual must be authorized

(a) to transport the firearm within the individual’s province of residence from the place where the individual acquires it to the place where they may possess it under section 17; and

(b) to transport their prohibited firearms and restricted firearms within the individual’s province of residence to and from the places referred to in any of paragraphs (2.1)(a) to (e).
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What the Staff at Doctor Deals means is that back in ye olden days of pre-2013 you needed a binder full of paper detailing your ATT conditions and what not with you as you transport your firearm (ATT paper, Registration certificate, PAL). Now a days the ATT "paper" is electronically attached to your license so you only need to physically carry your PAL and Registration certificate.



My Personal view is .22's are fun and cheap and allow you to have a lot more trigger time than a 9mm handgun. Nearly any .22lr pistol will work but I have a personal fondness for the GSG 1911-22 which is admittedly not for everyone.

For cheap 9mm handguns there are surplus CZ 75/85's kicking around retailers for about $500-600 and beretta 92's (European style heel release I believe). I would recommend the CZ 75/85 since I like their full steel frame and DA/SA action they are pretty nice for being surplus pistols, magazines aren't that expensive and they can be used in the more modern CZ SP01 and Shadow lines if you want to get more fancy.
 
IMO a 22 is just too boring for a first pistol. I started with a centre fire and got into reloading right away. Or if you can afford it, 9mm can be had for as little as $12 for a box 50.
 
sig 1911 22 with the accuracy upgrade kit about 5 all in great fun
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AlexisCreek said:
I recommend starting with a good, accurate 22LR -- by accurate I mean with adjustable sights that don't move in relation to the barrel. That rules out any model that has the sights on a moveable slide, like the 1911s, which just don't have the same accuracy potential. A new or used Buck Mark, Ruger, or S&W Victory would be fine. A friend of mine got the cheapest possible Buck Mark on sale last year for well under $400 and it is quite a nice pistol, with a very nice trigger. There are lots of debates about the qualities of that groups of pistols, and those of the older, all steel predecessors such as the S&W Model 41 (my choice), the High Standards, the earlier Brownings, and so on. With any of the 22s I've mentioned here you can get to the point, maybe in a year, where you can hit a 6" target or gong, or maybe smaller, reliably at 25 yards, and maybe even at 50 yards. That's rewarding and fun. You don't want to miss out on the satisfaction of doing that. Then for a centre fire pistol, 9 mm is a conventional choice. Others may have a different experience, but I nod when I read that most newer shooters will shoot more accurately with a 38 Spl revolver, like my beloved S&W K38 (in later years the Model 14). Being less popular than semiautos, good used revolvers like the Model 14 are well priced on the used market, and you can usually get one for well under $1K on CGN (always with adjustable sights). And 38 Spl is also very easy to reload (I use a Lee hand tool). You didn't suggest 45, and although I have a 1911 in 45acp, and prefer 45 recoil to 9 mm (there's more of it but it's less snappy), I wouldn't recomend it for starters. Personally I do not like any of the 9 mm polymer handguns I have tried and if I got a 9 mm it would likely be a CZ 75 or 85 or 1911. This advice is a bit off beat I suppose but that's my personal experience.
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^^^^Good advice pay a little more and you will be glad later so you don't get in the trade up merry go round
 
Well I just ordered the Sig 1911 22 from Al Flaherties. On sale right now for 350 plus tax with free shipping. It's a sore #### deal - you just can't beat it.
 
I splurged a bit and got the Beretta 92FS .22. It's the same size and and has all the same controls etc as the 9mm version and so far eats any ammunition I've thrown at it. I really like it for a cheap pistol to work on my technique. And I also got a Girsan MC28 which was inexpensive and worked pretty well to get started.
 
I started with center fire pistols; never shot an of them well until I got a .22 and shot it a lot. Before I had the .22 I almost gave up on handgun shooting. I'm not kidding. Buy a good one, not a pot metal 1911 look-alike.
 
Nothing wrong with getting a used pistol. You can get a high standard for $500 or less and that’s a quality target pistol. Your first gun should always be a 22cal. Buy quality bullets and it’s still cheep to shoot 3 or 400 rounds a week.
 
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Trigger-fingered said:
Nothing wrong with getting a used pistol. You can get a high standard for $500 or less and that’s a quality target pistol. Your first gun should always be a 22cal. Buy quality bullets and it’s still cheep to shoot 3 or 400 rounds a week.
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I have two High Standards; you are correct. About as good as it gets for a .22
 
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