Revolver recommendation for self defense?
956600
Bound's hubby here:\n\nI am not personally familiar with the Bersa line, but small, lightweight handguns generally equate to heavy recoiling firearms. Before you discard your Bersa, try a box of Remington or Remington UMC .45 Full Metal Jacket round nosed ammo. I would bet you attempted to fire Blazers with hollow-points! I would bet the farm that your Bersa was not "throated" to feed hollow points!\n\nNow, a reliable revolver for self defense. First and foremost, do not penny-pinch when your life is on the line! I own 1 Colt revolver and 6 Smith & Wesson revolvers. I would limit my selection to either of these manufacturers, only because I have confidence in their products! Colt revolvers are rather rare these days, so you are narrowing the field to Smith & Wesson. I would suggest either a J-frame or K-frame Smith & Wesson revolver, with a barrel of no more than 4". Do not consider an alloy frame revolver, because the light weight of the revolver with amplify the perceived recoil of the gun. \n\nMy recommendation in a J-frame Smith would be either a Model 36 (blued steel) or Model 60 (stainless steel) Chiefs Special with 3" barrel ...both are 5 shot revolvers with target sights and chambered in .357 Magnum ... but you can use .38 Specials in it. \n\nMy recommendation in a K-frame would be a Model 64 (Stainless steel) with either a 3" or 4" barrel or a Model 67 (Stainless steel), both chambered in .357 Magnum, but capable of shooting .38 Specials.\n\nGood luck!
29719
Many people prefer semi-automatic handguns for home defense. I prefer to use a good old-fashioned six-shooter. They don't hold as many bullets, but they won't jam on you nearly as often as a semi-automatic will. You can also buy "shotgun" shells that you can use in a revolver. That way if you have to shoot in the dark, you won't miss...
251314
First.. dont buy a cheep gun.. because thats what you'll get..A CHEEP GUN..if your going to target shoot only a smaller one is fine.. longer the barrel the more accurate it will be..Guns like "GLOCK" are lighter than others but there automatic..a little harder to learn on..So i would say a long barrel "RUGER" 22 It will hold its value also..I shoot a "Colt" 45 acp and am going to get a "GLOCK" 45..
761822
Kahr is a good company and has a loyal following with its users.  (As does Glock as previously mentioned).  Find one that best fits your needs, and hand and enjoy!
551672
Model 22, would be my choice of weapons, however most police departments issue a 9mm Glock. (Can't remember the model number)  Price is around $500.00, US.
835106
Bound's hubby here:\n\nPersonally, I would avoid the new generation of Short Magnums, Super Short Magnums, and Ultra Magnums ... for two reasons ... first, the availability of ammo (especially near deer camps) and second, the designers intend these new rounds to replicate the performance of the original magnums in a shorter cartridge/action. \n\nI would strongly suggest a .30-06 Springfield or .270 WInchester for your hunt. With skill and practice, the .270 is sufficient gun for elk ... as long as the rifleman knows his limitations. The .30-06 should be the standard you go for. Any good rifle will do the job with the .30-06. Look for a Remington, Winchester, or Browning ... any of these rifles will be very reliable and affordable. Do not get cheap on a rifle and/or scope if this rifle will be either for a hunt of a life-time, or depended upon to put meat on the table for years to come!\n\nGood luck!
1112474
anything over 700 FPS will be great.\ncrossman makes a good one,\ni like pump or single pump spring load\ni don't like air cartridge\n\n\nhttp://www.compasseco.com/crossman_air_guns_air_rifle.htm\n\nhttp://www.airgunwarehouseinc.com/airgunrifles.html
953901
http://www.handgunsmag.com/ballistics/\nhttp://www.huntingmag.com/guns_loads/super_duper/\nIf you would add a little more detail in your questons it would make it easier to know exactly what you are looking for, I hope this helps.
831749
Bound's hubby here:\n\nThere's alot of advice here. I will add my two cents. I think your .357 will be adequate provided you have the right ammunition. The shortest barrel I would go with would be a 6 inch barrel (my preferred home defense gun is a 6 inch K38 with Hydra-shocks... it's not too long because no intruder is going to get close enough to grab it!). A .357 has it's limitations... I would keep my maximum distance to the distance at which I can keep 6 shots on a 6 inch paper pie plate. \n\nYour ammuntion: if you limiit yourself to factory soft points and jacketed hollow points... get a .44 Magnum. Your hunting round should be of a semi-wadcutter design. The flat part of the semi-wadcutter is called a metplat... the larger the metplat, the more shock you induce which is good for dropping the animal. You want the shoulders to be as sharp as possible. Your .357 with this type of bullet should be more than adequate for deer to 40 or 50 yards, and perhaps, smaller black bear. \n\nWhile I own a couple of .357s, I bought a Smith .41 Magnum for hunting. The .41 has greater muzzle energy than the .357, with less recoil than the .44. When you compare a .41 and a .44 the difference in wound cavity size is 0.019 inches in diameter. In many respects, from this angle, the .41 is a better hunting round than the .44. Therefore, I would suggest you give the .41 serious consideration as a hunting round. I have also assembled a handload I call a ".41 Special" that I found in the RCBS cast bullet handloading booklet that shoots like a .38 Special. That big revolver with a nice big hole in it, can be real intimidating if you're looking at it from the wrong end. \n\nIf you plan on handgun hunting give serious consideration to casting your own bullets and handloading your hunting ammunition. \n\nI would suggest you look at either an L-framed S&W .357 or an N-framed S&W .357 or .41. The new Smith L and N frames are factory drilled and tapped for scope mounts. Because you stated home defense, in addition to hunting I have not recommended Ruger's single action Blackhawks... only because (by design) they can not be reloaded quickly like a swing out cylinder revolver. \n\nGood luck.
748007
Bound's hubby here:\n\nYour Abilene revolver is not as old as you may think it is. If I remember correctly, the Abilene line was introduced in the 1980's as a "replica" of the Colt Single Action Army. I do not remember anything glaring against the revolver. I could not attest to the accuracy. Like any .44 Magnum, I would hold off shooting magnum rounds unless I really had to. In the meantime, I would shoot .44 Specials. \n\nAs described $300 would be a very good price. If you are comfortable with what you see, then it is a good buy. \n\nGood luck.
404159
Great cartridge. Basically a souped up 44 special (longer case). While there are more powerful calibers available commercially, the 44 mag is an excellant handgun and rifle cartridge. I use if for deer hunting. Its effective range in a rifle is about 125 yards. In handguns, the 240 gr hollowpoint factory load is 1350fps with almost a thousand pounds of muzzle energy. Tell me that wont stop an advancing attacker.\n\nThe 454 Casull was introduced shortly after the 44 Remington Magnum in the mid to late 50's. The 475 Linebaugh is a wonderful little rig and briefly enjoyed the role as "most powerful handgun" status for a little while. Several other wildcat cartridges have come along and the big daddy of them all now is the Smith and Wesson 500.\n\nAll in all I'll keep my 44's for hunting and home defense.
1074589
Glock 23's are what I am issued now working for a City. While working for the local County department it was 9mm Beretta. Glocks are known for their ability to sustain wear and tear. There are only 35 parts on the glock 23 which is less than half the number of parts found in competing designs. It is a very easy unit to maintain.\nThere is no manually-operated thumb safety or de-cocking lever. It has a "Safe Action" trigger system. Basically it has an outer trigger and then a seperate inner trigger. The inner trigger must be squeezed to allow for firing which in itself is the safety mechanism and makes accidental triggering from holsters impossible. Ease of use and reliability I must say I prefer the glock over the Beretta.
792524
well, a little more information about what you want to do would be helpful, but here's a thought or two.\nWhen someone says "Double Action", I always thing revolver first.  As a first handgun it's hard to go wrong with a 4" .357 magnum revolver.  You can shoot .38 Special ammunition through it (.38 Spl is cheaper and less recoil) as you're getting started and developing your acuracy.  Once you're proficient you move up to the Magnum loads.  Either cartridge is adequate for self defense should that be a concern, and .357 can be loaded for hunting as well, if you want.  The 4" barrel will give you acceptable accuracy at pistol ranges without excessive recoil or excessive weight.\nIf you want a semi-auto gun it's a little harder.  You really need to handle, and preferably shoot, several different guns and see what fits your hand.  I generally advise AGAINST Glock for a new shooter.  Glock firearms do not have an external safety, and I at least am insistent on that with a new shooter.  The revolver doesn't have a safety either, but you can look at the cylinder and SEE if it's loaded, which you just can't with an auto.  Single action/Double action is less of a concern with an auto gun than with a revolver, and most DA autos are really DA/SA (first shot double, shots after that single).\nIf you go to test out Autos, I cannot strongly enough recommend you try a Browning Hi-Power, even though it's a single action pistol.  The generally best feeling, best shooting handgun I have ever owned is a Hi-Power.
855331
Depends on how much you want to spend.\n\nIf your price range is 100-200 Dollars I'd recommend a UTG Ak47 Warhawk or a UTG Mp5A4. These can be purchased from www.airsoftarms.com \n\nIf you're on the higher more professional end (like me) and your price range is 250-350$ I'd recommend going with an ICS Mp5A4 or CA G36C/K/KE. Any Classic Army, Tokyo Marui, or ICS AEG (Automatic Electric Gun) would suit. My first purchase was a CA G36C and I love it. I've never had a problem with it. I highly recommend a CA G36C. Any retailer has them. www.wgcshop.com www.airsoftarms.com www.precisionairsoft.com www.redwolfairsoft.com
163128
Trust me on this one - when and if the time comes to pull the trigger in self-defense, you'll never hear the shots go off. Buy the right handgun for your size and stature, and don't worry about the noise.
70296
#7 birdshot.  Minimal drywall penetration and good stopping power.  Only reason to move to 00 buckshot is if you are defending over a longer distance or in winter when bad folks might wear very heavy clothing.
1084547
Go with a glock, you can't go wrong with a Glock.  (Assuming that you are of a legal age to own a handgun where you live.  If not, you should really give all the guns to your pops so that he can keep them somewhere safe.)      \n\nGlock is reliable, affordable, and easy to maintain.  I put hundreds of rounds of various manufacturers through my glock and it never misfired of jammed on me.  Although my Beretta never misfired or jammed, it is a bit of a hassle to clean.  \n\nI've never heard of a glock 16... is there a such thing? \n\nAs you know, there are two schools of thought regarding bullet performance, stopping power and its effectiveness:\n\nFirst is, "The bigger is better crowd" which argue that the bigger the hole(s) the better terminal performance of the bullet. Indications of bigger is better are the caliber and the size of the wounds the bullet makes - entrance and exit wounds. This crowd general prefer a .45 caliber pistol.\n\nThe other school of thought argues that lighter faster bullets are better because they produce more energy. Energy is a by product of velocity, that is the speed at which the bullet travels. This crowd generally prefers a 9mm, .40 caliber or a .357.\n\nMy personal advice to you is that once the bullet gets bigger than a 9mm, One shot Stopping power exceeds 90%.  Beyond 90% Stopping power, couple more percentage advantage bigger calibar gives are really meaningless.\n\nI would say that Shot Placement - hitting a vital area - is more important than any other consideration when it comes to stopping an attack. For this reason, try out m9 and a Glcok 16 (If such thing exists) at a shooting range and choose the gun and caliber that you can shoot most effectively.  \n\nI hope this helps.