When you want all the guns, but can only afford one . . .

[Jason_W]

Only in America can having limitless choices cause anxiety.

Over the last few years, financial issues took a toll on my gun collection. I only retained two nostalgia guns from my childhood and two years ago I picked up a new Marlin 1894 in .44 mag. Now, I've squirreled away about $800 for something new. I have so many unfilled shooting niches that I just can't decide on what I want this year's gun purchase to be.

At some point I want a wheel gun to complement the 1894. That said, since I'm setting up the Marlin for close range, quick firing work with mild to moderate loads, I wouldn't mind having a long gun set up for longer distance shooting (of course then I have to play the optics game which is an additional cost). I also hear the siren song of a shiny new shotgun.

I do know that I greatly prefer wood stocks to synthetic and that I don't want to bother with semi autos of any kind since I'm in California. I don't currently hunt, but I'd like to again if the opportunity arises. I'm generally a fan of multi-purpose guns that are enjoyable as a range toy, but are also fine for hunting and/or defensive purposes if need be.

What a maddening first world problem to have

 

[Danoobie]

If you get a S&W 629, you'll have a Pistol Carbine Combo with the 1894 Marlin.
The added benefit of being able to carry ratshot, for snake encounters, hunting.

 

[.455_Hunter]

For $800, I would get a used Ruger Super Blackhawk in .44 mag, and then put the rest towards a used 870.

 

[Jason_W]

For $800, I would get a used Ruger Super Blackhawk in .44 mag, and then put the rest towards a used 870.

Great idea in theory, but I'm not sure my $800 (might be able to stretch that to $1000 if I can be patient) will go far enough here. There's a lot of extra fees (read penalties) associated with buying a gun here.

 

[stchman]

Move away from California. Where I live, $800 can get you 2 decent used guns maybe 3 if you negotiate well.

 

[Jason_W]

Move away from California. Where I live, $800 can get you 2 decent used guns maybe 3 if you negotiate well.

Not in the cards in the foreseeable future. Gotta work with the way things are.

 

[Legionnaire]

Were I you (and I'm not), my priority would be (1) long gun capable of hunting and long-range targets; (2) shotgun; (3) wheelgun. And I'd put the $800 into a single rifle/scope combo and start saving again for the shotgun.

WRT which rifle, I'd look for an older wood-stocked Remington 700 or Winchester 70 in a popular, do-everything cartridge. If hunting big game was the dominant logic, hard to go wrong with a .30-06. If mostly targets and occasional medium game, .243 Win at the low end. But 7mm-08, .308 Win., .270 Win would all be good candidates. .260 Remington might be my first choice for a do-everything rifle, but they are not as common in the older used-but-well-cared-for ranks.

You should be able to find a rifle already set up with a quality scope. No, it won't be the lastest-tech-HD-glass-first-focal-plane-glass-etched-range-finding-reticle model--but a quality 3-9X40 or 4-14X40 from Leupold or Burris or even Weaver is very versatile.

Something like this one, recently sold on Gunbroker for well within your budget: http://www.gunbroker.com/item/679829838

 

[Demi-human]

Savage in two fourty three, AND a Taurus fourty four. You are in America get both!

Gunprodeals and budsguns.

 

[Jason_W]

The .243 is a round I've been considering. Powerful enough for the little blacktail in the region, reasonably affordable to shoot with handloads, and it generates enough recoil to keep me in the practice of dealing with recoil, but not so much as to become miserable quickly.

 

[dirtman]

243 is a nice round but the 308\30.06 will offer you the advantage to hunt larger game. I have taken a few elk with my 308's, many many white tail and mullies as well as the odd song dog, skunk, rabbit or what ever else was needed. The bigger bore gives you more options when u get that oppurtunity to go on that unexpected hunt.... good luck....

 

[Jason_W]

243 is a nice round but the 308\30.06 will offer you the advantage to hunt larger game. I have taken a few elk with my 308's, many many white tail and mullies as well as the odd song dog, skunk, rabbit or what ever else was needed. The bigger bore gives you more options when u get that oppurtunity to go on that unexpected hunt.... good luck....

That's a point, but I reason that if I can afford an elk hunt, I can afford a dedicated elk rifle. If the rifle is mostly to be shot at the range, I'll go with lighter fare. It's why I'm going to start loading milder .44 mag loads as soon as I finish obtaining my reloading gear. No need to burn all that power just to poke holes in paper.

 

[Demi-human]

My love affair with firearms began with my Grandfather's thirty aught six. A nineteen fifty-four, seven sixty Gamemaster.

I would have suggested that particular caliber if not for the requisite of long range pursuits, inwhich case I prefere the six millimeter bullets for their cost economy over the thirtys. Specifically the six Creedmoor. But having a rifle in that caliber breaks the buget purely for the chamber.

Had one wanted a target only rifle, there is no better choice than the ubiquitous two-twenty three.

Oh, the choices!

 

[DAP90]

Out of curiosity, what are the two nostalgia guns you kept? if neither is a handgun, that's the direction I'd go.

I assume the potential shotgun would be for bird hunting? If not, I'd skip it. Clay games are expensive and small game can be done cheaper with a 22lr. Home defense can be handled with the 44 rifle same as a new shotgun.

 

[Sav .250]

When in doubt............slow your roll. Weapons aren`t going anywhere .

 

[Jason_W]

Out of curiosity, what are the two nostalgia guns you kept? if neither is a handgun, that's the direction I'd go.

I assume the potential shotgun would be for bird hunting? If not, I'd skip it. Clay games are expensive and small game can be done cheaper with a 22lr. Home defense can be handled with the 44 rifle same as a new shotgun.

The nostalgia guns are braztech .410 and an old 870 express interest 20 gauge. Upland game is covered. The 20 is my lucky bird gun, I'd hunt with that over anything new. Every ding and dent is a memory.

 

[Jason_W]

My love affair with firearms began with my Grandfather's thirty aught six. A nineteen fifty-four, seven sixty Gamemaster.

I would have suggested that particular caliber if not for the requisite of long range pursuits, inwhich case I prefere the six millimeter bullets for their cost economy over the thirtys. Specifically the six Creedmoor. But having a rifle in that caliber breaks the buget purely for the chamber.

Had one wanted a target only rifle, there is no better choice than the ubiquitous two-twenty three.

Oh, the choices!

To put that in perspective, long range for me means anything over 100 yards. Back home it was uncommon to be near a shooting range that even had a been out farther than that.

 

[DAP90]

The nostalgia guns are braztech .410 and an old 870 express interest 20 gauge. Upland game is covered. The 20 is my lucky bird gun, I'd hunt with that over anything new. Every ding and dent is a memory.

In that case, definitely a handgun for me. I might even try handgun and 22lr rifle if I could find two I liked within the $800 budget.

 

[Demi-human]

A fourty four magnum is perfectly at home between one and two hundred yards. As you already have one, you could do well to purchase a nicer handgun. A Ruger Bisley Comes to mind.

 

[CapnMac]

My whole life I've had the problem only being able to buy one gun at a time, despite wanting far more than that.

The .243 idea, above, is a good one. Mild (enough) recoil, good for light game, and decent enough for rodent control.
Now, if a step up we re wanted, the .270 might be a better choice than the .308. Maybe. Possibly. Perhaps.

 

[Mn Fats]

I read you have a rifle and at some point you want a wheel gun to compliment it. Yep, get a revolver! Ruger SBH or a used S&W will be well within your budget with $$$ left over for an 870 or a 500.

 

[NIGHTLORD40K]

Yep, Super Blackhawk, or, If your lucky\patient, a Redhawk or 29/629.

 

[rskent]

I don't want to bother with semi autos of any kind

My favorite wheel gun is my 4” S&W 629. Sweet trigger out of the box. Super accurate. One of the few guns that I have had for a long time and never even thought about modifying or changing in any way.

If you reload a 44 mag is tough to beat.

 

[bannockburn]

I vote for a .44 Magnum revolver as well. At your price point you should be able to pick up a S&W Model 629, a Ruger Super Blackhawk, Redhawk, or Super Redhawk.

 

[huntsman]

Define your needs and meet them first.

When I was young and poorer I met my needs with just bare minimum of guns and over the years I've added a few specialty guns. but still have maintained my focus on needs, even though as an older man I may not use my guns as much as in the past.

 

[Jason_W]

The more I think about it and after a recent range session, I'm pretty sure I'm going to sell the 1894 and absorb the loss in comparison to what I've put into it. I'm trying to like it, but it's just not nearly as fun as pre-Remlin 1894C I had. Sunk cost fallacy etc.

I'm ordinarily a fan of having a short barreled, defensive 12 ga in my safe, but the issue with that is, they're just not that fun to shoot at a range. Shotguns in such configuration are fun when blasting water jugs and old fruit/veggies etc., but I imagine that firing comparatively expensive buckshot and slug loads into a piece of paper until that paper is gone (5 or so shots) wouldn't feel very rewarding.

That narrows things down to a rifle/handgun combo. Total Budget will be $1200 to $1400 after all taxes and punitive fees.

For the handgun, I'm not super picky. Any centerfire that goes bang reliably and can be shot for fairly cheap to facilitate the building of fundamentals will do. It just has to fit my hands well.

For the rifle, I'm being super picky and nothing out there seems to meet my requirements. I want a short-ish barreled rifle in a chambering that offers moderate recoil so that I don't forget how to deal with recoil. It should have backup open or aperture sights so I can shoot it while I save for a decent optic, and above all, I want something that is balanced for offhand shooting. My first performance goal as I get back into shooting is to be able to consistently put hits inside an 8" circle at 100 yards from an offhand position. Getting there will eat a lot of ammo.