First firearm -- must I try before I buy?

[barnbwt]

I didn't try out my first firearm. Granted, it was a .308 Remignton 700, so I was fairly sure it wouldn't be God-awful. Just make your first buy a new "safe" one; that is, something common, with lots of reviews, and loved by all. If a pistol, the comfort of the grip is about 90% of the equation (especially if it's a poly pistol; I'm convinced the grips are the only differenciating factor at this point). I personally don't own a 1911--I'm a bit daunted by the ridiculous selection and feature-sets out there--so I can't imagine trying to choose one for a first gun. Stick with a simple feature set on a widely reccomended model, and all should be well . There's nothing wrong with buying a gun because it looks cool, either.

Odds are most new guys (you sound like you've tried many, though) really don't know what to look for when buying a rifle/pistol in person at this stage in your journey (I know I didn't), so a widely endorsed choice is a safe bet. Once you start to learn what you like, you can start to experiment with more diverse choices, and form opinions on what is the "most awesomest" caliber, platform, or what-have-you like everyone else here

TCB

 

[holdencm9]

Agreed. And I also agree about asking first, although any store that won't let you dryfire a centerfire gun that you're seriously considering purchasing might not get my repeat business (but to each his own).

I agree with you. Especially centerfire. But I won't even ask at the store. I used to ask and got so many 'uhhh, isn't that why you asked me to take it out of the case?" type responses I stopped asking. Maybe at gun shows the etiquette is different.

With rimfire I will still ask, just because. Even though I know a half-dozen clicks on the firing pin won't be the worst thing in the world. But they always say yes.

 

[KTXdm9]

I prefer to shoot a rental first before buying. If not that, then at least hold the gun to see how it feels in my hand.

 

[CFletch08]

I have a few times, with mixed results.

A .45-70 Handi-rifle bought as a handloading testbed, turned out to be fantastic.

A Stoeger Coach Gun Supreme that somehow fit me to a tee out of the box.

A Beretta 90-two that I like, but doesn't really fit my relatively small hands all that well.

Overall, I would recommend shooting it at a range. I didn't and it would have saved me from buying a pistol that felt good, until a few hundred rounds caused me to realize that I, not having bought a handgun before, had a gun that was almost big enough to be uncomfortable in my hand when shooting.

 

[flatlander937]

I went through the exact same thing... I shot nearly every firearm that interested me in the rental case at my local range over the course of about 3 months. I knew I wanted a 1911 as I shot a Kimber, a Para, and a Sig 1911.

I really wanted a Colt though for the historical significance(I got one of the "100 years of service" rollmarked 1991 Commanders) after reading this book... which is a fantastic read... I read it cover to cover in about a week... which is very unusual for me:

http://www.barnesandnoble.com/w/1911-the-first-100-years-patrick-sweeney/1021147698

That said, after that I haven't shot the guns that I bought(or even anything like them). I bought a Ruger 22/45 and most recently a Kahr CM9... and I absolutely love them both... I shoot the CM9 better than my 1911... it's truly a great gun for myself. I think I shoot a smooth DAO trigger better than a crisp 1911 SA trigger.

edit: I don't really know what advise to give you other than go with your gut, dry fire it after asking the dealer if it's OK to do so, have fun and prepare to empty your pockets for more guns immediately afterwards I am starting my own collection of everything I deem "cool."

 

[Fishslayer]

If you've fired a 1911 the RIA Tactical is not going to be significantly different. Unless of course you're firing a $2K+ high end 1911.

The RIA Tactical is about as good as it gets for $500-ish. And customer service in Nevada gets almost unanimous high marks from owners. I wouldn't know. My RIA Tactical has been chuggin along for about three years or so & no problems. It's exceeded my expectations in every way.

 

[exavid]

If you've never had a firearm before you might want to consider the lowly .22 like a Ruger Mark series or Browning Buckmark as well as the 1911. Reason being is that you can get a lot more .22 ammo for a buck than a .45. Most people who have a .22 tend to shoot it a lot which is excellent practice. The cost of hundreds of rounds of .45 is not insignificant.