What’s one thing you wish you knew sooner?

btnh6668 said:
For me it would definitely be cheap rifles. Back when i started i wasn't knowledgeable at all. In fact most of my learning came from this very forum. When i started i had zero experience with guns. So at the start i wasn't really into any of the guns i am into now. I would have definitely bought way more rifles at the start instead of handguns. Saiga rifles were $500, mosins were $75, sks $250, Cmp M1's were $550, m1 carbines were $600-700, mak 90's were $500, Wasr10 were $399.....ahhhh it hurts even typing this. I would have done it all different that is for sure.
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I feel that pain
 
B.Boston said:
So I’m new here, and generally new to firearms as well. I’ve been to the range a handful of times, completed my Mass Firearms Safety Course, and applied for my LTC. I’m currently waiting for a call from the PD to come pick it up.

What’s one piece of advice or tidbit of knowledge you wish you learned sooner? Help out us newbies learn from your experiences and grow into better gun owners!
Click to expand...
Do not buy cheap garbage guns because they are cheap. Buy a good one - one - and learn it well before moving to an another.

Find what you like the best - precision rifles, or shotguns or pistols. It takes time and there is no reason to hurry.
 
paul73 said:
Do not buy cheap garbage guns because they are cheap. Buy a good one - one - and learn it well before moving to an another.

Find what you like the best - precision rifles, or shotguns or pistols. It takes time and there is no reason to hurry.
Click to expand...
Exactly. Ps I do own a yeet cannon
 
paul73 said:
Do not buy cheap garbage guns because they are cheap. Buy a good one - one - and learn it well before moving to an another.

Find what you like the best - precision rifles, or shotguns or pistols. It takes time and there is no reason to hurry.
Click to expand...
+1 figure out what you like before you spend the big bucks on fancy gear
 
B.Boston said:
So I’m new here, and generally new to firearms as well. I’ve been to the range a handful of times, completed my Mass Firearms Safety Course, and applied for my LTC. I’m currently waiting for a call from the PD to come pick it up.

What’s one piece of advice or tidbit of knowledge you wish you learned sooner? Help out us newbies learn from your experiences and grow into better gun owners!
Click to expand...

If you buy a hot tub and it affords some privacy, after two glasses of wine most of your friends wives/girlfriends will think nothing of stripping down and jumping in.

Also guns are like wine a good one is the one you like.
 
B.Boston said:
What’s one piece of advice or tidbit of knowledge you wish you learned sooner? Help out us newbies learn from your experiences and grow into better gun owners!
Click to expand...
  • S&W and Glocks are low-low tier guns. Pretty much everything else(Beretta 92, SIG 320 and 365, H&K VP9, CS 75 P-01) is an order of magnitude better. The only guns worse than S&W and Glocks are ones made in Turkey(ex. Canik).
  • 40S&W is a great second cartridge mostly because "sissies" got rid of it so they would look "manly". As a result, during ammo shortage, this caliber is the last one to disappear from shelves. The used gun market for 40 caliber pistols is very solid.
  • 22 cal pistols are only useful to you for the first visit to the range and to introduce friends to shooting. It is not useful or even comparable to regular guns.
  • If you ever decide to get more than one firearm, get "classic must-haves": 1911 in 45 cal and 10/22 Ruger rifle clone(or original). These firearms are out of date and are not useful at all. That said, there is something very special about a gun that's been in use for over 100 years and a rifle that taught millions of young men and women how to shoot a rifle properly. Every time you will shoot these firearms, you will feel yourself becoming part of their amazing history.
  • Don't bother buying rifles(bolt or semi) in MA: you can't use them anywhere. You can't hunt with them and there are only a handful(less than 5) of ranges with more than 300yd lanes.
  • If you want long guns, get two shotguns: a Mossberg 590 Tactical for home defense and an over-under like a Browning Citori. This will cover you for every type of non-handgun shooting you can have in MA.
  • Don't bother with gun shows in New England: they're useless
  • Don't buy long guns in MA, CT, or RI. Go north and save yourself a LOT of money. Just make sure they're legal to have in MA.
  • Take a course in Gun Laws before you venture outside of a gun range with a gun. These are a must due to a complete lack of understanding of laws by the majority of gun owners.
  • Go Trap/Skeet shooting: it's the most fun you can have outside with your pants on. Don't leave it for last. Go do it first!
 
Wish I took one of Len’s classes to understand MA laws before “researching” on the forum. Also never passing up a good opportunity; laws in MA will rarely expand our rights. What you can buy and own today may not be possible tomorrow.
 
Sammy said:
  • S&W and Glocks are low-low tier guns. Pretty much everything else(Beretta 92, SIG 320 and 365, H&K VP9, CS 75 P-01) is an order of magnitude better. The only guns worse than S&W and Glocks are ones made in Turkey(ex. Canik).
  • 40S&W is a great second cartridge mostly because "sissies" got rid of it so they would look "manly". As a result, during ammo shortage, this caliber is the last one to disappear from shelves. The used gun market for 40 caliber pistols is very solid.
  • 22 cal pistols are only useful to you for the first visit to the range and to introduce friends to shooting. It is not useful or even comparable to regular guns.
  • If you ever decide to get more than one firearm, get "classic must-haves": 1911 in 45 cal and 10/22 Ruger rifle clone(or original). These firearms are out of date and are not useful at all. That said, there is something very special about a gun that's been in use for over 100 years and a rifle that taught millions of young men and women how to shoot a rifle properly. Every time you will shoot these firearms, you will feel yourself becoming part of their amazing history.
  • Don't bother buying rifles(bolt or semi) in MA: you can't use them anywhere. You can't hunt with them and there are only a handful(less than 5) of ranges with more than 300yd lanes.
  • If you want long guns, get two shotguns: a Mossberg 590 Tactical for home defense and an over-under like a Browning Citori. This will cover you for every type of non-handgun shooting you can have in MA.
  • Don't bother with gun shows in New England: they're useless
  • Don't buy long guns in MA, CT, or RI. Go north and save yourself a LOT of money. Just make sure they're legal to have in MA.
  • Take a course in Gun Laws before you venture outside of a gun range with a gun. These are a must due to a complete lack of understanding of laws by the majority of gun owners.
  • Go Trap/Skeet shooting: it's the most fun you can have outside with your pants on. Don't leave it for last. Go do it first!
Click to expand...
My BIL goes Skeet shooting weekly. I plan on tagging along with him soon!
 
Sammy said:
  • S&W and Glocks are low-low tier guns. Pretty much everything else(Beretta 92, SIG 320 and 365, H&K VP9, CS 75 P-01) is an order of magnitude better. The only guns worse than S&W and Glocks are ones made in Turkey(ex. Canik).
  • 40S&W is a great second cartridge mostly because "sissies" got rid of it so they would look "manly". As a result, during ammo shortage, this caliber is the last one to disappear from shelves. The used gun market for 40 caliber pistols is very solid.
  • 22 cal pistols are only useful to you for the first visit to the range and to introduce friends to shooting. It is not useful or even comparable to regular guns.
  • If you ever decide to get more than one firearm, get "classic must-haves": 1911 in 45 cal and 10/22 Ruger rifle clone(or original). These firearms are out of date and are not useful at all. That said, there is something very special about a gun that's been in use for over 100 years and a rifle that taught millions of young men and women how to shoot a rifle properly. Every time you will shoot these firearms, you will feel yourself becoming part of their amazing history.
  • Don't bother buying rifles(bolt or semi) in MA: you can't use them anywhere. You can't hunt with them and there are only a handful(less than 5) of ranges with more than 300yd lanes.
  • If you want long guns, get two shotguns: a Mossberg 590 Tactical for home defense and an over-under like a Browning Citori. This will cover you for every type of non-handgun shooting you can have in MA.
  • Don't bother with gun shows in New England: they're useless
  • Don't buy long guns in MA, CT, or RI. Go north and save yourself a LOT of money. Just make sure they're legal to have in MA.
  • Take a course in Gun Laws before you venture outside of a gun range with a gun. These are a must due to a complete lack of understanding of laws by the majority of gun owners.
  • Go Trap/Skeet shooting: it's the most fun you can have outside with your pants on. Don't leave it for last. Go do it first!
Click to expand...
God I hope this is a joke sam
 
dgrantdoherty said:
Thats a hard lesson. But right
Click to expand...
that was so, but, now not quite so at all. i went over all that with Nikon DSLR glass 5 or 6 years ago.
Sweet spot for most scopes now is from $600 to $1200, but, there ARE cheaper exceptions.
primary arms, athlon, swampfox - there are budget options now that use same/similar chinese cut lenses and are quite useable.
i posted about it, as i went over a heckload of those this year, for fun. 2 in $200-$300 category that worth its glass were 4-12x40 vortex diamondback and 4-14x44 PA FFP.
PA 3-18x50 FFP scopes are great, in a $400 segment.
whole vortex viper pst2 line is great and is under $1k level, majority of people will not be able to blind test `em and see any difference from $2k razors.

one got to be realistic now of where actual lenses get cut and who supplies them, as most higher end brands use same OEMs and same components anyway.
 

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