How many have more guns than they can use and why?

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I have quite a few guns and almost all of them serve a specific purpose. Since I compete and hunt I like to have options. They all get used, some just more frequently than others. I don't have any guns that I don't or won't shoot.

In pistol competitions there are different divisions where one particular style of gun is more competitive. So I have at least one per division.

3 gun matches are another source of multiple gun options. Depending on the Club the max range might be 50 yards, another club might have 300 yard targets. The divisions cause more possibilities for the right gun.

Camp Perry matches are another reason to own a specific gun.

Hunting provides many different opportunities as well. Deer hunting in Southern Michigan puts you into handgun, shotgun or muzzle loader choices. Northern Michigan adds rifles to the mix. So I have brush guns and long range guns. We also have varmints so a different gun is used during the day compared to night time. Then there is waterfowl and turkey.

Then there is the collector part of it. I really like S&W revolvers, Battle Rifles, Glocks, 1911s and just plain unusual stuff.

I also carry a gun everywhere it is legal to do so. So I have a variety of carry guns depending on the weather, attire and other factors I might consider when arming up.
 
I have more guns than I can take deer with, but all of my guns are at my range once in a while. I'll never buy a gun I won't shoot. That's just not how I do things. More power to the people who do though. They are the ones preserving these guns to be resold as collector's items someday.
 
In September I had a few family members in town. I got invited to go shoot some birds on a friend's property, and he was generous enough to invite my guests as well. Since my family had not planned on shooting they hadn't brought any shotguns.

While I really only shoot a couple shotguns regularly, I was able to enjoy a great day of hunting with my family because I own several extra shotguns.

That wasn't the first time I've been able to outfit a group of friends or family for an unexpected hunt. My enjoyment from those days is priceless to me and keeps me from selling off a few spare guns that I don't shoot much.
 
i have multiple inherited family heirloom rifles and shotguns including my Parker Bros damascus barrel that belonged to my gr gr grandpa. it will probably never be shot ever again. there are several others that are shootable but also will likely never be shot. only admired and held and wiped down and put back in the safe. i have more modern handguns than a platoon can carry. i can afford them and i like collecting them. the likelyhood of ever getting CCW where i live now is next to never. so why bother right ?
 
In my way of thinking, often challenged by many, if a gun sits on the rack (I don't have a safe) for more than a year why is it up there?
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No offense, but I find there are generally three types of people who think this way:

1) Fudds. Hunters who don't really understand RKBA or why anyone would want a firearm they don't use regularly to take game animals.

2) LEOs or others who don't have a particular interest in firearms beyond their purpose as duty weapons

3) Jealous people who can't afford very many guns.

This is America. Legal status notwithstanding, the only justification we need to own anything we want is the desire to have it and the funds to buy it. I won't judge you for only having a handful of firearms that you use regularly, but you don't get to judge me for having many guns that might fire 20 rounds in a decade.
 
if someone wants to collect more firearms then they will feasibly shoot, that's fine by me. I don't have much more to say about that kind of collecting than, say, if one's spouse is into collecting Hummel porcelain figurines by the crate load.

In fact at least with firearms, you can ask the question whether you have more guns than you can actually use. With other collectibles, like the aformentioned Hummel figurines, they just ... well ... sit there. :confused:

I have a friend with a very impressive collection of Mosin Nagants, more than he will likely ever, ever shoot individually. Every arsenal, year, country, etc.. Makes for one impressive man cave, bayonets mounted, stacked around the room. That's his collection, with a singular focus. A great budget collection as well (doubt he paid more than $100 for any one of them back in the day, and some are worth several, several times that now).

Another acquaintance has collected just about every U.S. infantry rifle from the rev war to present ... a veritable museum. He's got the bucks, so why not?

I do get worried when I hear about folks - whatever the collecting hobby - that tend to get in over their heads and "hoard" more than their budget (or available space) can bear. That's a different discussion, though.

All things in moderation, though what is "moderate" may vary substatially depending on ones circumstances and wherewithal.

And now, off to clean up after Turkey day lunch, where I have more dishes than I will ever get to wash. :neener:
 
yep, guilty, I want to make sure that my kids, grandkids, etc gets at least one long gun, one pistol, one..........:)
 
At first it was my collection of firearms. Things I would use to hunt or for personal defense. Then came children, so I needed a few more guns so they could shoot and hunt with me. Now grandchildren, so the cycle continues. Some day they will all go to good homes and then the new owners will cherish the firearm and the memories that go with it. Hopefully as much as I do with the guns my father passed to me.
 
Yes, but mostly because I really like Enfield #4s/#5s.

And quite frankly, if people had not butchered so many in the past, I would have been less aggressive in wanting to provide a safe, protected home for extra examples.

The reason to seek a second M-1 is because the Politburo, which controls the Senate and W.H. tried for a while to block imports from Korea.
Also, because there might be no more going to the CMP (mo' money).
 
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Currently, I have only 3 guns and use them all several times a year.
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That is not high usage. Change a few things and you won't shoot them at all. The fact is you don't need to shoot them at all. Consider them a resource.

My first thought when I read this was... you have a long way to go.
 
I too have more then I really need, BUT every one has
a purpose when I bought it!
I'm prepared. ....
It's my right and I'm sticking to it.

Lateck
 
Jeeze, I was sitting around while ago trying count up in my head just all the ones that have a bayonet for them......
 
I only have two hands, so I suppose I do have more than I can use. I own what I own because it is my preference andit is protected from governmental malum prohibitum legislation by 2A.

With plentiful food and a problem free life, so far, I have never needed a firearm that I own and hope I never do need one.

Thankfully the founding fathers recognized and set forth protection against the insidious effects of peaceful prosperity on cultural attitudes toward the tool we know as the firearm.

Sent from my VM670 using Tapatalk 2
 
I am an accumulator, not a collector. I thought I had a good reason every time I bought a gun, but here I am with too many to shoot.
 
First, let me say that I know it is your right to own as many guns as you like and I agree with and support that.

I have a friend with 62 guns. He could not list them all and doesn't even know where some are stored. That is the most of anybody I know personally. In my way of thinking, often challenged by many, if a gun sits on the rack (I don't have a safe) for more than a year why is it up there? Unless of course it is just beautiful, rare, sentimental, or otherwise a collectors item.

Just wondering how many of you have more guns than you can actually use?

I do realize that some consider this private information and respect that.

Currently, I have only 3 guns and use them all several times a year.
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How do you define use? Actual shooting is only one aspect of enjoying a firearm for me.

I don't have to shoot guns to enjoy them. Some are relics, some are sentimental, some are rarities, some are interesting, some are classics, some are beautiful. Between the 3 generations that have been shooting and accumulating in my family, the guns we shoot regularly are greatly outnumbered by the ones we don't shoot often. It doesn't make them any less desirable to us.

I can't begin to tell you how bored I'd be if I only had 3 guns and only was able to shoot them several times a year.
 
I probably don't have more guns than I can use but I certainly do have more guns than I do use.

Of course, if you consider pulling them out, pawing them, oiling them and wiping them down to be use as in that I enjoy it - well then, not so much.

Even putzing with long term projects that have not been and may never be shot by me provides relaxation and enjoyment.

Hell, ask a fella who buys/collects clocks or watches if he needs all of them to tell the time...:D
 
My brother had three guns.... a 22 rifle, deer rifle, and pump shotgun. It was all he needed and never really lusted for more guns. He never really wanted a handgun and didn't need a bunch of redundancy in his selection of firearms for hunting. He wasn't into target shooting and wasn't particularly interested in accumulating lots of "things".

My guess is that is precisely what you own. How about it Hokmike?

Folks here can pick at people for not wanting bunches of firearms, but if you see no need for them, why own them?
 
A lot of people have things they don't use because they like to have them.

Many guitarists have tons of guitars - many of which they don't play.

Many golfers have lots of clubs, many of which they don't use.

Many readers have a shelf full of books, many of which they haven't read.

Why should shooters be any different? To many having things as conversation pieces or just to show your appreciation is reason enough to own something.

Personally though I don't harp on any major skills (because my shooting ain't worth bragging over :)), I take great pride in being able to identify and operate just about any gun anyone shows me. That comes from owning and maintaining lots of weapons.
 
22-rim fire you are close. I own a great deer rifle, a 22 MWR rifle, and a .40 semi auto pistol. I want to pick up a .22 pistol and perhaps a tactical shotgun. If I could find a Vietnam era AK at a fair price that would satisfy my gun longings. I do unfortunately have two other expensive hobbies to stretch my limited income. I might add that I have talked to my state Representative, state Senator, and the Governor on behalf of our gun rights. When he was in office I likewise addressed the issue with President Clinton. All I can say is that locally I feel and have been promised RKBA support. Not bragging here, just sharing and encouraging others to make their voices heard. My OP should in no way be construed as a challenge to those who own lots off guns. Really, it is just a question for conversation. I like to talk ANYTHING guns. Thank you for your question.
 
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