Opinions derived from experience, what are those worth?Opinions are worth exactly what you pay for them
howlnmad says: This thread is one that makes me want to start another asking "What is the opinion of Hi-Point firearms?". That's when you get the best BS.
Opinions based upon experience are worthless? That is an oxymoron.....Yes, opinions derived from experience are more than worthless, but on the internet it's hard to weed out the people who talk from experience from those who talk from reading the internet.
For example, look at how many people bash hi point. Yes, I've owned them. Yes, they're cheap. They are indeed butt-ugly, but from my experience they're not that bad at what they were designed to do, which was get the bullet from A to B. The majority of people who actually own them don't have anything bad to say about the function of the gun, yet the internet is full of people who despise them.
Wonder how many opinion posts are pure B.S.?
There's so many posts with noob's asking: "I'm thinking of this gun" or "I just bought this gun", "WHAT DO YOU THINK?" I read so many of the responses, and wonder how much B.S. some of these people are full of.
You'll read 8 people in a row say how a particular gun in question is good, reliable, a good value, etc... Then, you'll have one person say how he bought 3 of these brands (Different models), and that they are all "UNRELIABLE". Sorry, but a) I think they are full of B.S. for making such a claim; and b) If the brand was Sooooo bad, why did they buy up to 3 of them???
If I am about to write a review or give an opinion on a particular gun; and I've seen an overwhelming amount of POSITIVE feedback; and I think my experience has been negative; the first thing I need to do is "QUESTION MY SITUATION". Chances are, it isn't the gun, if I appear to be the only one or one of very few with an issue. I saw a guy buy 3 of the SAME MODEL gun, and return all 3, because they didn't feed right. He was so mad by the 3rd one, he didn't want to return it. He sold ME the $350 gun for $100. Once I explained to him was limp-wristing was, and about breaking in a pistol properly, he got even angrier. Not because he felt stupid, but because he actually thought I was B.S.ing him to rationalize now owning a POS. Well, I took him to the range, and made him fire the gun. He had 3 of 12 round fail to eject or feed properly. He shot 3 magazines, and had 3, then 1, then 2 fail in each magazine. I fired 3 magazines (Same magazines), without 1 fail to eject or fail to feed.
Point is, there's a lot of people who give opinions, and speak/write on the forums like they are authorities and know what they are talking about. Especially when they mention: "I've had 3 of these" or "I've shot them many times". And yet, it's obvious from the overwhelming positive reports, that this person doesn't know what they are talking about. They should at least humble themselves a little and say something like: "I see a lot of positive opinions, but honestly, I've had problems with that brand. Maybe it's me and that gun, or maybe I bought from a bad batch". Stop telling people to RUN away from such a gun, or that you wouldn't trust your family's life on one.
Basically, this post is for all the new viewers, posters, lurkers.... Take the opinions of posters with a grain of salt. Wait til you have a large sampling of opinions before making a decision. Just because you read it on the internet, doesn't make it true. Buying a gun is a very important decision. Especially if it's going to be used for self/family defense. Don't be swayed towards or away from a gun without getting a lot of opinions and read reviews.
Also, most people don't honestly put enough rounds through a particular model to really get a good grasp on how said guns function.
Wonder how many opinion posts are pure B.S.?
I figure anybody who agrees with me is a highly intelligent, experienced shooter, who really knows his stuff.
Anyone who doesn't, doesn't know beans from apple butter.
Sam, yours is one opinion I always value!See, this presumes that all reviews are given the same merit -- and that just isn't so.
One review that is constructed well -- explains the test criteria, the goals of the shooter, the experience level of the shooter, the accuracy he/she was able to achieve vs. their accuracy with other guns, what exactly broke, jammed, or failed, and what the manufacturer said and did to fix it -- wipes out about a dozen contrary reviews.
Stuff like ...
"Danged gun is a piece of crap!"
"XYZ -R- deh GR8EST!"
"XYZs SUCK!"
"Me an my cuzint couldn't hit nuthin with it noways."
"A (insert common service arm) isn't anywhere NEAR as accurate or reliable as (insert other common service arm)!"
... and other brief, drive-by, fluff commentary might as well not even appear on the screen for as much credence as I can give them.
But a review that has some meat to it, uses proper grammar and more-or-less recognizable spelling, expresses cohesive thoughts, and doesn't run to absurd claims or emotional extremes will get my attention.
In other words, convince me you understand shooting and mechanical principles, that you had reasonable expectations of what the gun should and shouldn't do, that you were able to observe and describe clearly what was especially good or bad about the gun, and that you're not a hotheaded nut with an axe to grind, and I'll be about 10 times more likely to accept your review.
And two things I really do wish people would understand: 1) Honest, intelligent people can have contrary experiences with the same item. 2) Expressing an emotional adherence to the ultimate truth of your opinion makes your argument look weak and you look silly. The more viciously and bitterly you argue, the less likely others are to come around to your point of view.
And two things I really do wish people would understand: 1) Honest, intelligent people can have contrary experiences with the same item. 2) Expressing an emotional adherence to the ultimate truth of your opinion makes your argument look weak and you look silly. The more viciously and bitterly you argue, the less likely others are to come around to your point of view.
But a review that has some meat to it, uses proper grammar and more-or-less recognizable spelling, expresses cohesive thoughts, and doesn't run to absurd claims or emotional extremes will get my attention.