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Hey guys,

I've got a question for y'all on your "buying philosophy."  I'm not trying to be judgmental at all, I'm just curious and would like to know how others feel about it.  I've only just recently gotten into sidearms compared to my long guns, but I have a similar philosophy with them, too.  

I guess you could say I've been very... conservative buying handguns?  

My first was a Beretta 92F from 1984 (she's older than I am), because I wanted to practice with something identical to my issued weapon, and therefore the handgun I will most likely be carrying in a force on force confrontation, and thus the most likely sidearm to save my life should it come to that.  I'll tell you this, I didn't like it at first, I've got smaller hands and it is a big gun for what it is, but nevertheless, I wasn't given much choice in the matter, so I trained with it, shot it, and learned its ins and outs, and it's grown on me, and I've warmed up to it a lot, and the big, ugly Beretta is one of my favorite pistols now, despite its limitations.  

After reaching a good level of comfort with the M9, I decided that I did want to branch out into a different pistol, a pistol that I had chosen myself, not one that was chosen for me.  I wanted a service pistol in a better caliber than 9mm, that was basically my only requirement.  Something with more "punch."  Now, I did come from a shooting culture, growing up in the Northeast, such things were just not common in suburban New Jersey.  What this meant is that I did not have dad, or grandpa, or uncle whomever filling my head with stories of this legendary gun or that legendary gun, and had few preconceived notions about I don't like this or I don't trust that.  So, when I went looking for a new pistol, I cast the net far and wide, as "standard" calibers, I settled on wanting something in either .40 S&W or .45 ACP.  I rented several different kinds of guns in the process, everything from Glocks to Beretta 96s and HK45s.    

And this is where my question comes in, to tell the truth, I plain old just didn't like the Glocks.  Very quickly the choices for me boiled down to the Beretta 96G-SD, the HK 45 and single stack 1911s.  While I know the ARFCOM way is "buy one of each," to me, this was going to be a major purchase and investment, and I needed to make the right decision, because this next pistol would dictate pretty much every future purchase I would make.  

At the very least, I usually insist on having one nearly identical backup to any primary weapon, in case one is in need of maintenance, or breaks down for whatever reason, I always have two "primary configuration" weapons at my disposal which I try to rotate between every once in a while (for example, I have two M4s configured the same way, the only difference being one is a 14.5" SBR, and one is Title 1 with 14.5" barrel and pinned FH).  So purchasing this handgun would at least put me in need of a second.  It would also effectively lock me into my caliber choice, and future platforms.    

For a good long while, the 96G-SD was the front runner, though I would have preferred it in .45 ACP, the fact that the manual of arms would be identical to the M9 was one of the biggest things that it had going for it.  

In the end, though, I ended up going the 1911 route, because it fit me best, believe it or not, my appreciation for the history and "classicness" of the ol' JMB warhorse came after I had decided to go with it as my sidearm platform.  To me, believe it or not, the M9 was, at the time, my idea of the "classic Army pistol" because it was what I had seen the most of and knew best.  

But now I find myself in this situation:

I refuse to buy anything other than an M9, 92FS, or 92F in 9mm.  I've often considered a 9mm 1911, but until the Army lets me carry one, I won't get one, because if I'm shooting 9mm (not my choice pistol caliber) I will be shooting it in a Beretta, no point in developing muscle memory for any other pistol, other than familiarization to be able to operate something else.  I've worked in a shop before, so I'm able to use and operate a wide variety of handguns, but when I'm payin' for the ammo to train, 9mm = M9.  

i settled on the calibers i would buy shortly after i decided to get into shooting.  i relized the sky was the limit, but my pocketbook wasnt and that with finite calibers out there, but infinite that could be made i made my list.  now if a new caliber happen to pop up, i may decided to add it, but i would have to justify it and how it fits into what i have or dont.

I won't customize a Beretta I train with, no adding "D springs" no trigger jobs, no Brigadier slides, though I'd love to do all those things, as I'm a tinkerer, this is part of what attracted me to 1911s, I can tinker with them and really make them mine, while Berettas, for me (and me alone) should remain stock, i.e. as issued, the most I will do is change grips and other user-level maintenance, no functional modifications.

                     i dont customize other then adding hogues/pachmyrs.  i live by ...if it aint broke......one of my shooting buds, loves to tinker or shoud i say FU his guns.  once i found this out, i swore to never buy a gun from him.  whenever he tinkers with his toys, he can never figure out why he has issues afterwards.  i have bought customized used guns since i find that the people that dump the $$$ into the guns rarely get the $$ out and i can usually get them at a cheap/reasonable price if i like it or want it.  

I won't buy anything in .40 S&W.  Not because there's anything wrong with the caliber, again, I've been very tempted to purchase 96G-SDs when I've seen them up for sale.  But it's got two strikes against it, first, the railed frame, which was attractive when I first considered it, now that I've committed my resources to a platform makes it incompatible with most Beretta holsters, and it was never going to be compatible with 1911 holsters.  I'm a big fan of modular accessories, needless to say, and cross compatibility.              

   i wont get a 40 either.  its just becasue the 10 was out before the 40  and thats what i choose to get.  its unfortunate since there are more 40s out there now too.

Also, buying a .40 caliber pistol would require me to have to stock a third caliber and two additional loads, a practice FMJ load, and a defensive load, which would complicate my logistics, nothing as annoying as driving forty five minutes to the range to find you've brought the wrong ammunition.  It hasn't happened to me, but I've had it happen to friends who complicate their supply lines with a million different calibers, it's a lot easier to accidentally grab a box of .45 GAP instead of .45 ACP when it's mixed in with five different calibers than to accidentally grab the 9mm when you meant to grab the .45 ACP.  

I'm also a spare parts whore.  When people ask me how many guns of a particular type I have, the answer is typically "x and a half?..." because I always have spare parts on hand, and probably enough to put together another functional weapon without even knowing it, so I'm very very cautious about moving to any different platform because of the outlay to have spare parts on hand, and having to add another maintenance schedule.              

    im opposite.  although maybe i should buy some spares.  but i have alot of different handguns to choose from so if one goes TU, theres another.  i aslo have several in the same caliber/mfg.   just an FYI, ive been shooting/buying guns since the late 70s and ive only had a handful of breakages.  so from my experience, it wasnt a big deal. at the time it was, but it wasnt something that sending it back to the OEM or Cert repair center couldnt fix.

Finally, I'm reluctant to get attached to anything with a different manual of arms than my primary platforms, which at this point is either factory DA/SA Beretta or SAO 1911.  I know both systems intimately, can do maintenance on them, and have little confusion switching between the two, even with the opposed safeties, and even then I very much dislike the fact that if I fire a string with the 1911 first, I very occaisionally fail to let the Beretta trigger off far enough after a shot to allow it to reset.                

 if you feel comfortable in this stick with it.  i chose to know/try/buy as many different platforms as i could after i invited a local LEO to shoot.  when the LEO asked were the safety was on my revolver, i chose right there to learn/try/buy/shoot as many different platforms as possible.  

By now, it should be obvious where I got my introduction to "gun culture," and where my mentality for it comes from, again, I'm not claiming my way is the only way, or even the best way, it's my way, and even then, it's really not, it's the way I've been taught by an organization that hasn't always made the best decisions, but it makes sense for me and for my resources.  

So, I ask, does anyone else have a similar philosophy when it comes to their purchases?  Or am I an oddball here, and I should go out and buy about twelve more varieties of guns in thirteen more calibers?  Anyone that has an opposite philosophy, and lots of variety care to offer insight on their mindset, and why they like the variety?  Tools in the toolbox, I just like it that way, ect.?                

  do what you want.  i follow/buy what i like not what others tell me to.   i will LISTEN/READ about possible issues/flaws with future purchases, but will take them with a grain of salt.   here is what i buy/collect in terms of calibers.  22LR, 9mm, 357mag, 10mm, 44mag, 45acp/LC,  223, 30m1, 7.62x39, 30/30,308, 30-06  i may or maynot have a gun in those calibers,but iirc, i do.   i like the variety to learn what each gun has in terms of features and such and how they differ.  i like some of the odd units too, but they have to be in the calibers i have.  some odd/unique are.  Daewoo DP51, Spectre, CZ99 and Cougars.

Anyways, I'm done rambling for now, oh, and an SGS compensator on an M9... is technically "user level maintenance."

~Augee

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So, I ask, does anyone else have a similar philosophy when it comes to their purchases?  Or am I an oddball here, and I should go out and buy about twelve more varieties of guns in thirteen more calibers?

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Do you want logistical simplicity and training continuity?  Do you collect "representative firearms" of different types?  Is there a theme to your collection?  Do you like guns and want to buy anything that strikes your fancy?

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Thanks for the responses so far guys, BTW, who's the one who thinks pie is for commies?  

I'm not trying to change my way of doing things, or trying to get approval, I will most likely continue on doing things the same ol' way.  

I'm just curious about *you* and what your pistol buying/caliber stocking philosophies are, I guess the "do I need a Hi Power" thread got me thinking about, because while I would love to have a Hi Power, it's not one of *my* supported platforms, so I would probably pass, unless, you know, someone were to offer one to me for $100 or something, if they did that, I'd probably even buy a Glock !  

We're all enthusiasts here (or at least I *think* that's a reasonable assumption), but we don't all need to think alike to share interests, so I'm just wondering what thought processes everyone goes through when stocking their collections?  is it neat/nifty?  do i want it? will it fill a void in my collection?

Do you want logistical simplicity and training continuity?  no   .Do you collect "representative firearms" of different types? yes/no Is there a theme to your collection?#1 22LR, #2 CZ, #3 9mm, #4 45acp  Do you like guns and want to buy anything that strikes your fancy? yes/sometimes As I've said, for now, I vote for the first, but it's not the only way, and it's not the right way, it's just my way.  What's yours?

~Augee

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Yep –– right down to the choices for his 2 primary defensive platforms.

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Yep –– right down to the choices for his 2 primary defensive platforms.

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I'm just curious about *you* and what your pistol buying/caliber stocking philosophies are, I guess the "do I need a Hi Power" thread got me thinking about, because while I would love to have a Hi Power, it's not one of *my* supported platforms, so I would probably pass, unless, you know, someone were to offer one to me for $100 or something, if they did that, I'd probably even buy a Glock !  


~Augee

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Finally, I'm reluctant to get attached to anything with a different manual of arms than my primary platforms, which at this point is either factory DA/SA Beretta or SAO 1911.  I know both systems intimately, can do maintenance on them, and have little confusion switching between the two, even with the opposed safeties, and even then I very much dislike the fact that if I fire a string with the 1911 first, I very occaisionally fail to let the Beretta trigger off far enough after a shot to allow it to reset.  

~Augee

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This is why I sold my Browning Hi Power.
Trigger reset on my Glocks is so short and "snappy" that I was really screwed up when switching back and forth between the BHP & the Glock.
I have standardized on .40 S&W Glocks, as that is what I am issued and the only thing I am authorized to carry, on and off duty.
Strangely, I have no issues switching back and forth between my Glock and my Colt NM Gold Cup - the trigger reset is similar, I can slingshot the slide without fear of engaging a slide mounted safety (M9) and since I shoot high thumbs, the safety offers no issues for me.
The other handguns I own (S&W Model 19, S&W Model 49, S&W Model 10, and Colt Police Positive) are all substantially different enough that I have not developed any training scars.
Additionally, since I am saddled with the NY1 trigger mod. on my Glocks, shooting double action revolvers has helped me to improve my trigger control on the Glock.

Also, just a final comment - if you standardize on one platform, and become really good with that platform, it will translate over to any other gun you pick up.
The fundamentals of marksmanship apply across the board, irregardless of platform, but IMO it is best not to confuse yourself with 6 different manuals of arms.