Personal firearms philosophy

[William]

I want to switch from a philosophy of collecting many guns to consolidating to two firearms. I don't hunt.

1) Sidearm -- 9mm/.45 cal semi auto, currently Ruger P-95 DC in 9mm

2) Evil* black gun -- military in 5.56

I am thinking AR-15, 5.56; but I don't want to build my own. I prefer US made, w/flash suppresor and nice rails for standard accessories. Want a rifle that I will be happy with for a very long time. Top end $1500.

Suggestions?

*To Democrats and other unintelligent people.

[sniper7]

You need to expand more.

you need a shotgun, a carry gun and a home defense gun ( I guess these could be the same...but why!!)

at a minimum, you need 3 guns.

handgun, carbine and shotgun.

get a nice .45, find something you like. 1911 would be a great choice, but others will say glock, others will say XD45

shotgun, a nice 12 gauge. most guns eat anything, just get something that shoots 2 3/4 and 3" shells. can't go wrong with a tactical 870

rifle, get an AR. nothing evil about them. People swear by Colts, others by Noveske, others by LMT. pick and choose. they all work great.
Have at least 5-10 mags at a minimum. 500 rounds of ammo would be the very minimum.

this is the bare minimum in my opinion.

[blackford76]

I agree with Sniper. A 1911 .45, I prefer Kimber, but that is a personal choice. A 12 ga., I have Mossbergs, AR, I have S&W, Bushmaster, and a DPMS. If you can get reliable mags, a Ruger Mini-14 is an alternative. If you hadn't specified U.S. made, an AK 74 would be good too, and by far cheaper to shoot.

[William]

I agree with Sniper. A 1911 .45, I prefer Kimber, but that is a personal choice. A 12 ga., I have Mossbergs, AR, I have S&W, Bushmaster, and a DPMS. If you can get reliable mags, a Ruger Mini-14 is an alternative. If you hadn't specified U.S. made, an AK 74 would be good too, and by far cheaper to shoot.

Have an SKS now. I know not as sweet as an AK, but I am feeling patriotic these days.

[Aloha_Shooter]

What do you intend to use the rifle for? That should guide your purchase. I wouldn't advise going with the AR if you intend to do any long-distance shooting but most people don't. If you want ease of use and ammo/magazine compatibility, consider the Beretta 92fs/C-4 Storm combo. Of course they have limitations but there's something to be said for using the same ammo and mags between both your pistol and carbine (and the Storm is a fun plinker).

If you don't intend to get into a heavy firefight, consider the perfect companion to a 1911A1 would be an M-1 Garand ($995 plus $22.95 S&H gets you a Select Grade M-1 Garand delivered to your door!). You can feed it with CMP Greek surplus ammo -- $75 plus $8.95 S&H for 192 rds, again shipped to your door. Of course, all M-1 Garands in CMP inventory were built in the US although many have been loaned out to allied countries for a bit.

If the 8-round clip is too limiting for you, you can always get a service grade M-1 Carbine for anywhere between $495 and $674 plus S&H. As both a gun enthusiast and computer geek, I think there's something rather cool about carrying an IBM carbine. Then you can buy 15- or 30-round mags and load it up with their new manufacture Aguila ammo ($155/500 rds plus S&H). The downside to both these options is that the CMP is bogged down so you're looking at 6 months or so before delivery.

[gnihcraes]

three guns seems a little limiting. my opinion.

if this helps with the decision: don't all of you run at once, but there was a "new" bushmaster M4 at the pawn shop yesterday... $1200 i think, but they wheel and deal now and then. (it looked new to me... not a scratch on it)

(i don't work for them... just a customer now and then)

Edgewater
303-232-7254
2551 Sheridan Blvd.
Edgewater CO 80214

[William]

You need to expand more.

you need a shotgun, a carry gun and a home defense gun ( I guess these could be the same...but why!!)

at a minimum, you need 3 guns.

handgun, carbine and shotgun.

get a nice .45, find something you like. 1911 would be a great choice, but others will say glock, others will say XD45

shotgun, a nice 12 gauge. most guns eat anything, just get something that shoots 2 3/4 and 3" shells. can't go wrong with a tactical 870

rifle, get an AR. nothing evil about them. People swear by Colts, others by Noveske, others by LMT. pick and choose. they all work great.
Have at least 5-10 mags at a minimum. 500 rounds of ammo would be the very minimum.

this is the bare minimum in my opinion.

Did not mention that I plan on keeping my 12 gauge Remington 870 Express. Not tactical but reliable and without a plug holds a few shells.

On gunbroker it seems most of the complete AR-15s come in two price ranges: $800 or $1500 with a few in between. I am thinking I want the latter.

[Marlin]

Heck, I have guns I don't have ammo for and ammo I don't have guns for....

[Bailey Guns]

I let my youngest ride my Harley and play with guns unsupervised.

Course...he's 24, has an endorsement and he's done 4 combat tours.

[bjl913]

just 3 guns? I just walked into my house with 4 that i didnt have posession over 24 hours ago! bought 2 a couple weeks ago. didnt get anything last week though... had to buy holsters and such!