Armored farmer
Member
Hold on.....!
7.62x39 is cheap too!
Plinking gun.....that's not a 22
- Thread starter Antihero
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7.62x39 is cheap too!
entropy
Member
It ain't $2.99 a box anymore, but yeah, it's on a par with .223.
I would like to revise what I said above. Get a 9mm revolver...or pistol.
Oh yeah, I was planning on 9mm or 38spec. I own a few too so I'm already buying it.
I was more talking the actual gun. So say.....a full-sized very accurate 9mm $400 as a hard limit
I actually thought a s&w ez in 9mm would be kinda cool because it checks most of those and adds lightness.....but it's "defence gun" accurate.....not "accurate plinker" accurate. My wife loves it though. Since I have a soft spot for the 380 a considered that version but ammo is way more spendy.
I was more talking the actual gun. So say.....a full-sized very accurate 9mm $400 as a hard limit
I actually thought a s&w ez in 9mm would be kinda cool because it checks most of those and adds lightness.....but it's "defence gun" accurate.....not "accurate plinker" accurate. My wife loves it though. Since I have a soft spot for the 380 a considered that version but ammo is way more spendy.
9mm IMHO opinion isn't that fun to just plink with even in a full sized pistol. .38 Special factory loads are a little jumpy IMHO as well. I started to reload, just so I could find just the right plinking load, and factory rounds are not that cheap, especially if you are used to .22 // I have an older CZ-70 shoots .32 ACP that in all honesty is the most fun to shoot and plink with.
illinoisburt
Member
In my mind cheap plinkers are ammo you can shoot in bulk (like 100's per outing) without breaking the bank. For some time that role was filled by surplus which sadly has either dried up or been banned from import. For right now 223, 762x39, and 9x19 is available in steel and brass for anywhere 10 to 20 cents per round, which is honestly close or less than my bulk reloading cost.
That said, it doesn't mean there is anything wrong with shooting any other cartridges. I personally shoot a bunch of them. However when someone is looking for low-cost/high volume fun plinking my first instinct after 22 rimfires is going with these inexpensive military calibers.
Currently 7.62x39 can be had under $.20 each in case lots. 5.56 is more like $.30 per pew. I love plinking with the SKS.
Pelo801
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Looking at guns in particular in the $400 price range for good fun plinking. And I'll throw this in there too, with ammo cost a factor. 9mm is gonna be hard to beat. But I would say a hi power knock off of some flavor, like one of the FEGs, Arcus, or Kareens.
But I'll also throw this out there. I dont know how people get tired of shooting 22s. Get a 22 singl action revolver. Scatter some spent shotgun shells at 7-10 yrs and challenge yourself. Plus it's fun to watch them fly. Try setting up clay pigeons at 50 yards, shooting two hands off hand.
But I'll also throw this out there. I dont know how people get tired of shooting 22s. Get a 22 singl action revolver. Scatter some spent shotgun shells at 7-10 yrs and challenge yourself. Plus it's fun to watch them fly. Try setting up clay pigeons at 50 yards, shooting two hands off hand.
Zaydok Allen
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An all steel full size 9mm gets my vote. They are a lot of fun and then you get the joy of reloading ammo too.
Ignition Override
Member
To be the "devil's advocate":
Hitting a few metal plates --usually while standing still-- make my .22 M&P as fun as shooting the Sig P6, Walther P99 AS or CZ PCR.
Several .22LR "dings!" for the price of one 9mm round.
Maybe 9mm is more fun, but hitting a small plate from 25 yards, consistently, with any handgun is not always so easy for me.
Hitting a few metal plates --usually while standing still-- make my .22 M&P as fun as shooting the Sig P6, Walther P99 AS or CZ PCR.
Several .22LR "dings!" for the price of one 9mm round.
Maybe 9mm is more fun, but hitting a small plate from 25 yards, consistently, with any handgun is not always so easy for me.
Pat Riot
Contributing Member
This ^^^^ was my immediate thought when reading the original post. When I got to page 2 I realized I just assumed you were thinking of a handgun.
Perhaps a used Glock 17?
FFGColorado
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Preowned Glock 17...Maybe a police turn-in..I bought mine for $300...
Armored farmer
Member
You might be surprised by the amount of fun to be had on the cheap by spending an afternoon plinking 25 shots from a .45 flintlock.
40-82
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One of my favorite plinkers is a little Low Wall Winchester in 32 WCF. It requires relatively little outlays of powder, and I have one bullet that only requires 77 grains of lead, which goes a long way.
That it's a single shot helps. A long session, and you shoot only so much. A lever or pump, by their very nature, wants to run.
It's a boy's rifle, probably sold for about ten dollars, when it came off the line in 1910. Hours plinking and roaming around with that little rifle, and it's like recapturing a childhood that never was, that ought to have been.
I do love .22 rimfires, but there is something about the little dinkies: the 25 WCF, the 32 WCF, maybe the 22 Hornet, and countless others that would never make the cut in a glint-eyed realist's survival battery that just do something for the imagination.
The oddities of handloading for them just make them that much more appealing.
That it's a single shot helps. A long session, and you shoot only so much. A lever or pump, by their very nature, wants to run.
It's a boy's rifle, probably sold for about ten dollars, when it came off the line in 1910. Hours plinking and roaming around with that little rifle, and it's like recapturing a childhood that never was, that ought to have been.
I do love .22 rimfires, but there is something about the little dinkies: the 25 WCF, the 32 WCF, maybe the 22 Hornet, and countless others that would never make the cut in a glint-eyed realist's survival battery that just do something for the imagination.
The oddities of handloading for them just make them that much more appealing.
theotherwaldo
Member
.36 or.44 cap and ball revolvers.
.45 or .50 flintlocks or C&B single-shot rifles or pistols.
Air guns of all sorts.
.45 or .50 flintlocks or C&B single-shot rifles or pistols.
Air guns of all sorts.
Riomouse911
Member
As Illinoisburt stated, I also see a plinking afternoon as a couple of hundred rounds, often at targets of opportunity and/or at fun targets at distances that I normally wouldn't try...just to see if I can hit it.
In cases like that if a .22 or .22 mag pistol/rifle combos aren't fitting the bill, the 9mm pistol/rifle or /.38-.357 revolver/rifle combos are what I would grab and go with, too.
Stay safe.
In cases like that if a .22 or .22 mag pistol/rifle combos aren't fitting the bill, the 9mm pistol/rifle or /.38-.357 revolver/rifle combos are what I would grab and go with, too.
Stay safe.
Olon
Member
Better yet a 357 revolver with a 9mmr conversion
BullRunBear
Member
I prefer revolvers and single shots and hand load. If you need to get a new-to-you revolver, get a used S&W model 10 and load up 38 wadcutters. I don't recall the exact numbers but when 22s went high and were tough to find, I could load 38 specials for a lot less. In my case, I used a 357 blackhawk and an old 357 Contender with a 10 inch barrel. Tons of fun. And I don't have to pick up brass from the ground. I didn't have the Ruger Single-Six in 32 H&R mag during the shortage or I would have been loading 32 longs for it. Those 32 longs are addictive, the cast bullets are cheap and a pound of powder goes a LONG way.
I was happy to see the suggestions for traditional black powder shooting. I thought I was about the only one who started shooting more BP stuff to stay active at the range. A full afternoon of shooting with a 50 caliber flintlock might be thirty shots or less. There's a similar pace with cap and ball revolvers. A new Pietta Remington 1858 repro is under $300, especially on sale. A brass frame Colt style is even less. Of course you spend more time chatting with other shooters (and their kids). That cloud of smoke and aroma draws other shooters like children hearing the ice cream truck in the neighborhood.
Jeff
I was happy to see the suggestions for traditional black powder shooting. I thought I was about the only one who started shooting more BP stuff to stay active at the range. A full afternoon of shooting with a 50 caliber flintlock might be thirty shots or less. There's a similar pace with cap and ball revolvers. A new Pietta Remington 1858 repro is under $300, especially on sale. A brass frame Colt style is even less. Of course you spend more time chatting with other shooters (and their kids). That cloud of smoke and aroma draws other shooters like children hearing the ice cream truck in the neighborhood.
Jeff
Armored farmer
Member
Of course, a single stage reloader, dies, powder, dippers, primers, bullets, and a reloading manual ...makes a plinker out of any gun you own.
Fact!
Fact!
ApacheCoTodd
member
With two pages of comments, I'm sure several have noted - but, why not repeat - sounds like you need a 9mm or .38.
There are few hand gunning pleasures greater for me than my wadcutter guns either in semi-auto or revolver.
Then too, the price can drop dramatically with a low-tech reloading outfit if you shoot enough.
Another option is to find a local re-loader to get a *deposit* on your empties with and buy his reloads. Try to find someone that either competes, at least, on an amateur level or supplies competitors.
Todd.
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