Pistol

[wyogeorge]

I am new to practical shooting I was wondering,what is a good pistol to get that I will be able to use in all classes of practical shooting and three gun? Caliber/frame? Thank you any help would be appreciated. I would like to buy only one if that is possible.

George

[CareyH]

Any pistol that makes you happy. as long as it is 9mm or larger. There is pretty much an ipsc class for every type of pistol out there, and 3 gun is pretty much run what you brung the only exeption being and open class pistol(electronic dot sight, compensator)

[SA Friday]

If I was going to own only ONE pistol to shoot competitively with (blasphomy, I know) it would be a Glock 35(40 S&W). It can be shot in three different divisions of USPSA, one division of IDPA, and one division of steel challange, 3 gun, and be 100% competitive as long as you do your part.

The advantage of 40 S&W over 9mm is in the USPSA scoring system. The minimum diameter bullet that will score major in Limited and Limited 10 divisions is .40, and it can still be shot (but scored minor as every pistol is) in Production division. Ammo is only a fraction more expensive over 9mm, especially if you reload. Read the USPSA rules at www.uspsa.com (http://www.uspsa.com) to get a better picture of how scoring works.

Glock is cheap, easy to do your own work on, and very reliable. They are rugged enough to put 100,000 rounds through and still be just as accurate and reliable as the day bought as long as you maintain it. Clean it twice a year, change the springs out as needed (at least once a year), and feed as necessary. The mags are cheap and reliable as the sun rising.

[rtr]

Do you already own a pistol? If so what is it?

Most likely it'll work fine to start competing with, then you can get a feel for what kind of competition you like best, try out some guns of other competitors and decide based on that. Buying a fancy gun before you have even tried the competition it is intended for can be a big waste of money.

[wyogeorge]

I have a G32 357 sig. Ammo is really hard to find and kinda expensive when I do. I do reload rifle ammo but never have pistol. Is it that much different? What bullet do most people shoot? Wad cutter,fmj or what? I have been doing some reading that glocks do not like lead bullets. Is this true? Sorry for all the questions. I just am wanting to know kinda what I am getting into before I move forward in getting involved. Thanks for all the help.

[rtr]

Bring your G32 out to a match, you'll need a holster and some magazine holders and 4 mags or so.

Do a little shooting, talk to the other shooters, check out their guns, then decide what to buy.

[55fmj]

I agree with what has already been said but would like to add that you may want to consider reloading for the pistol. Especially if you plan on shooting more than just an occational match.

[Dinosdeuce]

The Walmart in Falcon has .357 sig. Don't know the price.

[wyogeorge]

Where is Falcon?

[SA Friday]

Just east of CO Springs.

Oh, ya, 357 Sig can be a PITA to reload too.

[Dinosdeuce]

Where is Falcon?


At the intersection of Woodman Road and Meridian Road on the south side of Woodman. They are open 24 hrs. If you like I can stop by tomorrow after work and check for you.

[wyogeorge]

I don' t think I will have time to drive down there. Thank you anyway though.

Why is the sig a pain to reload?

[SA Friday]

357 Sig is a 40S&W case necked down and loaded with a 9mm bullet, essentially. So, you have a necked pistol case to reload, and that doesn't give you much neck to use to get good constriction on to the seated bullet. Everyone I have spoken to about reloading 357 Sig has related if the neck doesn't cause a firm enough seat on the bullet, you get instant set-back when the round is chambered. This is also a problem with some rifle rounds that have very short necks too. It's compounded when combined with a much shorter case of a pistol and the feeding of a semi-auto handgun. Straight wall cases are easier as one has constricting material all the way down the side of the bullet to cause enough friction to stop set-back.

With this said, I know a few who reload 357 Sig regularly and have it down to a science. I would NOT recommend it be attempted with a first-time reloader though. Cut your teeth on straight walled pistol rounds and established rifle rounds and get a solid understanding on the techniques required before moving on to a more difficult round like this. The potential to kaboom the gun due to set-back is much higher with this round, IMO.

[SA Friday]

Oh ya, where do you live? Let us know and we can tell you where the nearest shooting match should be. If it's one that I regularly go to, we can probably set a time and place for you and I to get together and do a basic safety course with you and I could loan you the gear needed for the safety course and match.

As my wife regularly reminds me, I have more than enough equipment for shooting[Beer]

[wyogeorge]

I live up in Laramie Wy. The closest mathes to me are greeley or boulder. I am going to try and make it to the 3 gun shoot this month. Just to look around. I have been reloading rifle for a long time but never pistol. Thanks for all the info. I would love to get together at a match.

Thanks
George

[rtr]

See www.ecouspsa.com for match schedules. I think the closest match in Colorado would actually be Weld county.

[Justin]

Your pistol would be fine for shooting IDPA, IPSC or 3 Gun.

FWIW, if you shoot a bunch of matches and decide to go with something else, NRAhab has a good post about pistols usable in multiple forms of competition. (http://gunnuts.net/2009/05/01/multi-platform-competition-guns/)