Do you prefer the guns or the shooting?

[DMK]

You enjoy forcing answers from folks to questions which they wouldn't ordinarily consider as relevant? Like those political poll-takers who demand answers from carefully contrived and worded questions which aren't really connected to the way things are really occurring?

In college we called it "critical thinking". A way to learn something about yourself.

Obviously, you can shoot without guns, but I still think most folks have a slight preference towards either the shooting activity or the guns themselves.

The poll shows a pretty even split, plus a couple of folks that are either smart alecs or lurking anti-gunnies.

When that target comes in off of the 25 yard line with the center blown out of it, bystanders and fellow shooters will often nod in acknowledgement, but very few ask what type of handgun was used.

I'd be one of those. "What gun were you using" was the first thing that popped in my mind.

 

[fastbolt]

In college we called it "critical thinking". A way to learn something about yourself.

yourself ...

For me, the funny thing has proven itself to be that the less interested I've become in guns for the sake of owning guns ... the more of them that I've been acquiring.

When that target comes in off of the 25 yard line with the center blown out of it, bystanders and fellow shooters will often nod in acknowledgment, but very few ask what type of handgun was used.

I can understand that ...
As an instructor I've become much more interested in the ability of the shooter to demonstrate good skills than I have in whatever weapons they're using. Part of that is from working with lots of LE shooters who are issued different weapons. If they had little choice in what they were using, then we worked with it, or around it, as the case may be ...

I'd be one of those. "What gun were you using" was the first thing that popped in my mind.

I can see that point of view, as well, since sometimes if the shooter's abilities, skills and performance is the same with different platforms, then the weapon itself may become a point of casual and friendly interest. Lots of folks like it when you take an interest in their personal selection of a firearm or weapon.

 

[Bezoar]

Owning the gun is better then shooting it. Some days it just to depressing to go shoot, but its always fun to sit down, run a silicone rag over a barrel and remember what each and every nick and scratch on the stock and barrel came from.
Cleaning is extremely relaxing, hunting is a pain as most of my hunting is done in winter.

 

[Stevie-Ray]

I enjoy the guns more than shooting. While I'm quite proficient at shooting all my guns, I prefer the mechanics of the tools, the upgrading, (tacticalizing?) the camaraderie of the gun culture, especially at work. I love shooting but I wouldn't be interested in selling my guns if we could never shoot them again.

 

[Kimber1911_06238]

both.....i love interesting or new guns, who doesn't like something new? i can have fun shooting an old .22 or the newest gun hot off the assembly line

 

[The Canuck]

You missed one... Both!
I prefer to shoot and then maintain. Its a package deal for me. The shooting hones my skill and ensures the firearm is functioning reliably. The cleaning and maintaining allows me to check the firearm for anything that may eventually go wrong (cracks in the frame, bent slide rails, unusual wear, etc...)

 

[M99M12]

Had a rough time, but I had to pick shootin' 'em. All but one gets shot every now and then. But I have met a few safe queens.

 

[Sistema1927]

I love guns.

I love handling them (my wife calls it "fondling" )

I love cleaning them.

I love tweaking them.

I love reloading for them.

I love shopping for them.

I love showing them off.

I love teaching about them.

I love carrying them.

I love shooting them.

I love what they represent.

I guess that I just love guns, and since the shooting is just a part of the passion I voted that I love the guns.

 

[DMK]

I can see that point of view, as well, since sometimes if the shooter's abilities, skills and performance is the same with different platforms, then the weapon itself may become a point of casual and friendly interest. Lots of folks like it when you take an interest in their personal selection of a firearm or weapon.

Actually, I don't pay much attention to how other folks at the range shoot, as much as what they are shooting. There's one guy who always seems to bring the most interesting toys, like 1950's match rifles, target pistols in odd calibers, stuff you don't see every day.

Come to think of it, I don't even know if he's a good shot.

 

[TheFringe]

I voted owning rather than shooting for a couple reasons:

First is that I am a novice collector and very new to guns. Second reason is that in my limited experience with (Seattle area indoor) ranges, I have to say I really do not care for them. Full of gang members, Rambos, etc. The uncomfortable atmosphere combined with the loud environment in these ranges forces me to travel many, many miles to enjoy the limited opportunities I have available to actually shoot. As I am not fortunate enough to have any friends who own property nearby, I now have to hike a ways into a national forest to shoot, and rarely at that. I do enjoy the serenity and learning at my own pace while not having to be embarrassed after shooting more than a couple flyers (!)

That said, I just returned from rural Eastern Washington State (300 miles one way) where I was lucky enough to be invited to a friend of a friend's backdoor range. Spent 2 full days shooting some of my arsenal that I normally just clean and caress. Shot skeet for the first time with my Benelli M4 12 gauge, and with some help sighted in my new Bushmaster M4A3 and Kel-Tec PLR-16 .223 pistol. Brought my nice Russian SKS and Thompson 1927 Semi-auto as well. (Thompson shoots really straight and is now very reliable after some gunsmithing. Was the neighborhood 'favorite.') I was welcomed by the resident homeowner and all his gun-folk neighbors, all the while picking up many good shooting pointers. This was no beer party. Safety was stressed at all times. What I would give to do this on a regular basis !

If I had this kind of access all the time I would have voted 'Shooting' but since this unfortunately was a rare treat, I had to vote 'Owning' instead.

 

[FreshTapCoke]

I picked guns. I like shooting more than any single one of you on here. But I love the mechanics and art of firearms that much more.

 

[[email protected]]

I would rather shoot, but hate to clean but it has to be done.

 

[eastwood44mag]

Collector with a flinch, so definitely prefer the guns.

 

[slow944]

My guns work the same as my golf clubs; they are both a lot of fun to use, but I like the shooting aspect of the sport as well as playing a round of golf with friends.

 

[f4t9r]

I like to have my Cake and eat it too !!!
They go hand in hand , got to have the guns to go shooting.
So I like tinkering with the guns and enjoy shooting them. I am not so crazy about cleaning , but it must be done sometime

 

[JohnBT]

I do not like guns.

There's no like about it.

John

 

[Big Calhoun]

I'm also with the 'both' crowd. No question that a day of shooting beats a day in the office, even if it is just punching holes in paper. But taking care of my guns and looking for a deal on the next 'want' is equally relaxing.

 

[2bigfeet]

Its all about the toys (guns) and all the secondary accessories that go with them. Shooting second. I love competitive shooting, but you have to have the toy factor otherwise you have 99% less to talk about... "Nice score... what else ya got?"

Guns are one of life's great little distractions.

 

[Lightsped]

I'd say I prefer the guns a bit more as shooting can get kind of expensive....

 

[45Badger]

I checked "shooting" but only because "the guns" was cluttered with too many activities.

My wife says I'm the Imelda Marcos of guns. I guess it's retail (I prefer used!) therapy followed by loud noises

 

[Gord]

Shooting.

I don't own guns I can't shoot, whether for reasons of fragility, ammo availability or rarity. Hell, even the Remington M1867 gets a box of .45-70 cowboy loads occasionally.

Incidentally, it's the one gun I wish I could find a modern counterpart for - single-shot rolling-block .45-70 that isn't ugly as sin, with apologies to Quigley.

The history (and research thereof) is a really cool aspect of owning it and a few Mosins, with plenty more milsurps to follow, but the fact remains that I wouldn't own them if I couldn't shoot them. I want to pick up a K-31 badly, but with GP-11 costing so much (and it just doesn't seem right to shoot commercial ammo through such a beautiful, purpose-built piece of precision craftsmanship instead of its accompanying ammo) and getting harder to find, I just don't know.

On a similar note, I love the look of deep blue and walnut, but I know that marring or scratching them up will make me feel like crap - so I tend to gravitate towards stainless and synthetic.

 

[Geno]

Much of my firearms ownership is "dic"(k)tated by the illegitimates in Washington. In celebration of the Dim-wit-ocrats' speaker (although I wish AmeriKa had I speaker), I purchased my AK47. Now, keep in mind, I have never really wanted an AK desperately, but the dimwits desperately hate AKs, and frankly, that makes me love AKs!! Next, in celebration of Hildathebeast and her pack-of-fool-friends being anti .50 BMG, I just bought a .50 BMG upper for my AR15!! Now, keep in mind I have a fused neck. The chances of me personally tolerating firing that beastly .50 BMG is quite unlikely. It isn't about me!!! It's about my 12 year-old daughter, and my future grandchildren...now they have a .50 BMG!!! In closing, most of what I purchase, I purchase to assure that item (hated as it may be) as a possession for my family, and my descendents.

 

[ROMAK IV]

I like the guns better. You get to a point where you have too many guns to be able to shoot them regularly.

 

[JKimball]

Good Poll! My initial reaction was, "Who would like guns more than shooting? Don't we get guns so that we can shoot them?" But the more I thought about it, I had to vote for the guns themselves, because the most important thing to me is what the gun represents - the ability to preserve life and liberty, and I suppose guns can do that without ever having to fire a shot.

Having said that, I love skeet, IDPA, and 3-gun, as well as good ol' fashion plinking and target shooting.

 

[Hardtarget]

I prefer the shooting, but I have several guns that I rarely ever shoot. Seems the same guns go to the range every time. If I never got to shoot I would probably only have two or three.

Mark.