Choice of Pistol

[SlartyBartFast]

I might be behaving a little irrationally. So feel free to talk me out of it or encourage me.

At the club, members shooting pistols seem to have a great variety of pistols. Older GSPs, Pardinis, S&W 41s, and a host of others.

I was originally going to "start small". But didn't like the rather old fashioned advice of Buckmarks or Rugers. So I was thinking a S&W SW22 Victory.

But, I've received my bonus and raise for the year and have started thinking: Why not jump into the deepend?

There's a group that shoot GSPs and swear by them, and a group that shoot Pardinis and swear by those. One person does have both but falls more to the Pardini side.

The pistol I seem to really like from videos, pictures, and descriptions is the MG2. So, why not the MG2 RF-E? Why you might ask? Because I figure all the pistols seem to be great pistols, and everything I have held and shot will need a lot more experience from myself to become proficient. And I want to be different. I don't want to join on of the little cliques and I just don't see the point in starting small if I can afford the budget to get something really nice and different.

[Gwhite]

If you want to be different, get a Benelli MP90S. I have a Pardini, and I shoot the Benelli better. YMMV...

Also, consider service & parts. In the US, Matchguns basically has no factory support.

[hundert]

try before buy

some people shoot IZh-35 or Haemmerli 208 better than anything else and they are better guns than GSP, some like Pardini.
I personally can't shoot the Ruger at all.

again, try before you buy

[6string]

You're in a good situation with a club that has active members using high end stuff. Take advantage of it! Try the Walther and Pardini. (I prefer Pardini .... fwiw).
Hämmerli 208 or 208s is very nice if you like a more upright grip with the weight more in your hand than hanging at the muzzle.

Best regards,
Jim

[Rover]

I'm sure you'll find a member with something nice. Buy it!

[SlartyBartFast]

Also, consider service & parts. In the US, Matchguns basically has no factory support.

Yeah, I'm in Canada so yes service and parts may be an issue. But I've heard about problems with parts and service for all the high end guns. It's not like there's a huge market here.

Pardini is way out west in Alberta. Walther has a retailer in Toronto, but the distibutor is out west. Anschutz is in Nova Scotia.

Importing parts doesn't seem to be as awful as in the USA, so don't think Italy or Holland for Matchguns service will be all that much worse.

[SlartyBartFast]

try before buy

Certainly want to. Eventually someone may offer to let me try if I drop enough hints. They're more than willing to show them.

Got to dry-fire a Pardini during the club's show and tell day. Did really like it. But as I said I want to avoid the little cliques that buying one of the popular choices seems to entail.

But there's limited range time and it wold be an imposition to take that time away from them.

There's a summer picnic at an outdoor range in August. Might get a chance then. But fact of the matter is that I'll simply never get a chance to try many different guns.

[john bickar]

Are there any Norweigan pistols?

I can't imagine you'd be satisfied with a pistol that has no fjords.

[SlartyBartFast]

In a private message, I was told:
"You can't buy points. When you can group consistently within the 9-ring with any old crappy pistol, then invest in something serious. It will take about 20K rounds to get to that level."

Really? I know I can't buy skill and will need practice to get good. But an "old crappy pistol" will have it's limits. If I have the budget, why not buy a great pistol and put 20k rounds through that instead of putting 20k rounds through something that might be giving inconsistent results?

[David Levene]

If I have the budget, why not buy a great pistol and put 20k rounds through that instead of putting 20k rounds through something that might be giving inconsistent results?

From the shooting perspective there is no down side to buying the best pistol you can afford, obviously providing that it suits you.

There is no merit in deliberately buying a worse pistol than you can afford, unless it suits you better.

There's always the chance that you might not get on with a pistol but you're unlikely to drop too much if you want to sell a top-line pistol.

[J R]

There are also a newer walther SSP and SSP-E models which might be suitable.

I also do not believe there is any reason to get a "crappy" pistol if you can afford a proper good one.

Which pistol to choose might also be affected by which disciplines you intend to shoot.
I am not an expert but I would think that for example a GSP would not be the first option to shoot rapid fire with.

[jerber]

In a private message, I was told:
"You can't buy points. When you can group consistently within the 9-ring with any old crappy pistol, then invest in something serious. It will take about 20K rounds to get to that level."

Really? I know I can't buy skill and will need practice to get good. But an "old crappy pistol" will have it's limits. If I have the budget, why not buy a great pistol and put 20k rounds through that instead of putting 20k rounds through something that might be giving inconsistent results?

Well...I think we all know who sent you the PM!!!!

As far as getting a pistol
Unless you just started the sport I wouldn't invest in any of those cheaper pistol like the Ruger
You're not going to like it knowing that there are better pistols out there
The question now is witch pistol to get?
That is something you will need to make the choice
The Pardini are very popular right now
But most other top pistols are just as great
Some of them fits better than others
I treated myself with the Benelli mp90 about a year and a half ago
And what a great pistol .
Great balance,grip,sight, and very easy to take down for cleaning. No tools required!!!
Good luck with your search
Also don't forget to look in the classifieds in this forum
You can find some great deals

[gwsb]

Yeah Jerber we do know who sent that and I had wondered why he had been so quiet lately.

As to the pistol to buy:
I don't have much experience with high end match pistols and it is true you can't buy championships, but you can skimp your way to mediocrity. If you buy the best gun you can afford you will know EXACTLY why you shot a nine and can correct for it. If you have crap you will shoot crap and not know why.

Also it has been my experience that high quality guns hold their value better than second tier guns. So if you want to sell, you will get a higher percentage of your money back than if you buy old crap and you might be lucky to sell it for a door stop.

[slofyr]

> ….Well...I think we all know who sent you the PM!!!!
> ….
> … Yeah Jerber we do know who sent that and I had wondered why he had been so quiet lately.

Lynch mob mentality.


I wish I had $10 from every noob wanker that showed up at the range with a match-grade pistol, and then quickly proved that it was waaay beyond their skill level. A purpose-built match pistol offers comfort and consistency, and in an experienced hand will make it easier to shoot with precision. As ‘most' of you know, precision shooting is about sights, trigger, grip, etc, etc, and a high-end pistol is not required nor will it offer the same programming to develop the skill. With enough money you can buy a jet, but nobody qualifies as a fighter pilot before putting in the hours in lesser aircraft. Cred and skill are learned and earned.

[Gwhite]

So how "lesser" of a pistol do you recommend? We had a local shooter who started out with a used Ruger Mark 1; fixed sight's, and lousy trigger, and so unreliable she couldn't finish a match with it. After struggling with it for months, a shooter took pity & loaned her a Hammerli Trailside & A) she started enjoying the sport, and B) her scores went way up.

With today's machining techniques, almost anyone can make a barrel that will shoot 10's all day long from a vise. What you pay for in a high end pistol is better and more adjustable ergonomics that allow the shooter to access the accuracy of the barrel more easily. Struggling with a cheap pistol that doesn't fit the shooter is dumb way to learn the sport. My wife was stuck with shooting S&W Model 41's in college, because that is what they had. She is five feet tall, and couldn't reach the trigger properly. She had to shoot it by dragging the tip of her finger on the side of the trigger. I bought her a Pardini, with extra small grips, and she is now one of the best bullseye shooters in the state.

If the OP can afford a high end pistol, there is no reason to recommend that he purchase a "lesser" pistol to start with. Especially because it sounds like he has the opportunity to try a few of the them and find one that suits him. If the trigger pull doesn't appeal, he can adjust it. If the balance or weight is off, he can adjust it. If the sights are too wide or two narrow, he can adjust them. As has been pointed out, if he decides to take up bowling, the re-sale value of a good match pistol will hold up better than a lower tier pistol.

[nick marshall]

>
I wish I had $10 from every noob wanker that showed up at the range with a match-grade pistol, and then quickly proved that it was waaay beyond their skill level.

What a strange thing to say.

Are you for real? noob wanker!

Jet fighter pilot. Get real. It's a bloody pistol.

[SlartyBartFast]

I wish I had $10 from every noob wanker that showed up at the range with a match-grade pistol, and then quickly proved that it was waaay beyond their skill level. A purpose-built match pistol offers comfort and consistency, and in an experienced hand will make it easier to shoot with precision. As ‘most' of you know, precision shooting is about sights, trigger, grip, etc, etc, and a high-end pistol is not required nor will it offer the same programming to develop the skill. With enough money you can buy a jet, but nobody qualifies as a fighter pilot before putting in the hours in lesser aircraft. Cred and skill are learned and earned.

Well I had thanked you for your input privately. Didn't name you here either, so you could have remained anonymous. But seems that you've chosen to out yourself and claim the title of forum troll.

So, as a "noob wanker" I'll simply politely ask you to piss off and ignore your suggestions and look for help from the less paternalistic and demeaning of the group. Because it seems your suggestion isn't aimed at being a good suggestion for a inexpensive introduction to shooting, but as what you see as my assigned place in the pecking order.

Maybe you might like to explain just how shitty a pistol I need to buy to match my "noob wanker" status? If I buy the top-of-the-line Ruger based 6" Volquartsen Scorpion is that too far above my station? Does it have to be a sub $600 gun for me to be worthy of it?

Or perhaps you might like to explain why a better pistol will be so "waay beyond my skill" and why that fact will result in me shooting worse with the match grade gun than I would with a sufficiently shitty gun. As someone who hasn't thrown enough lead downrange to be sufficiently proven in your eyes, I must simply be unworthy of the comfort, consistency, good trigger, good sights, and everything else that a good gun brings with it.

Heck, I should ask the club what they're thinking allowing every noob that joins to use the Walther and Feinwerkbau match air rifles. I'll hazard a guess that the Anshutz sporting rifles might be sufficiently old that it's not too demeaning to all you seasoned and proven shooters to see the noobs shoot them.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
/snark and sarcasm

In all seriousness,

Talking with one member of the club, I was told he had a Buckmark for years and had maxed out his performance and consistently got the same midling scores. Then before getting bored he was convinced to buy a Pardini. Immediately, according to him, jumped his score up and has been slowly improving since.

Putting a lie to the claim you can't buy points and making me wonder how good a shooter this gentleman could have been if he bought the superior gun long before when he could first afford it and not so much later.

So as I wait for my restricted firearms possession and acquisition license to arrive I have about $3000 (Can) to spend on either a rifle, a pistol, or both.

As the club has .22lr Anschutz sporting rifles and two .22lr Anschutz match grade rifles, and two match grade air rifles, the only need/want that I immediately need/want to fill myself is a .22 pistol.

And as I've said, I was incredibly impressed with the Pardini for comfort, balance, weight, and trigger feel. But I'm not much of a follower and like to stand out a bit.

[SlartyBartFast]

Jet fighter pilot. Get real. It's a bloody air gun!

Well, it's a .22lr.

But, I wonder if in the estimation of Mr. Cred&Skill I should be working myself up through air guns before I have enough cred as a "noob wanker" to touch a target class firearm.

I know I can hit a target with other peoples Glocks, Berrettas, Rugers, an Uzi and a couple of others at moderate distances in 9mm, 40, & 45.

So I think I want something that anyone would be happy to pick up as my own first pistol.

[SlartyBartFast]

As has been pointed out, if he decides to take up bowling, the re-sale value of a good match pistol will hold up better than a lower tier pistol.

Thanks for the input. I already bowl, and have my own ball and shoes.

The equipment for shooting is going to be more expensive, but it's cheaper each week to shoot .22lr than it is to bowl the league games. And my bowling scores really have plateaued.

[David M]

Buy the best that you can afford to buy, a good quality pistol will hold its value.
Buy something that has a local dealer and is in current production, so support and parts are no problem.
Buy a pistol that fits you, try and shoot a number of different pistols, they all fit and feel different.
Then go and find a club with a coach and learn to shoot 10's.