As I was growing up my family was not really gun people so I did not have much to go on. When I decided to get my first handgun in January. I decided I needed and wanted a semi-auto. I ended up with a Glock 17 Gen4 and I was pretty happy.

I enjoy going to the range so I decided I needed a 22lr I went with the Ruger 22/45 MK III I was extremely happy with it. When I was growing up my father had a Ruger Security Six for HD. Being a kid I decided I wanted to be a Ruger guy so getting my first Ruger was a big deal to me.

When my grand father passed away I was given his Smith and Wesson 686 I decided even thought he didn't shoot it much. I was going to enjoy it and when I shot it I think of him.

I loved how smooth and accurate it was. When it came time to get my first CCW I decided I wanted a 5 shot revolver being a "Ruger Guy" I checked out the SP101 and the LCR. I liked the SP101 but at the price it was to expensive for what you where getting.

I decided to shift gears and look at the Smith and Wesson 637. I liked the feel, weight, looks, and price tag. I ended up walking out with a Smith and Wesson 637 and could not be happier.

Then at the local range I decided to shoot the Smith and Wesson 1911 beater they have. Thing is good mechanical shape but is ruff on the outside. I feel in love with that gun also thing was perfect. I decided I needed a 1911 I had to settle for a RIA 1911 Tactical I am very pleased with it. I Think owe Smith and Wesson a thank you for my 1911 addiction I now have.

I am a history buff always have been I like historic things special guns will I decided I wanted a Smith and Wesson 36 because it was the original chief special that police relied. I got lucky the other day and ended up finding a Chief Special I was not sure the date but the shape was great and the price was even better. I rolled the dice and got it turns out it was a 1969-1970 vintage. This was my first "Historic gun" (historic to me).

As you have read this I hope you have seen the pattern. I pretty much said I was a Ruger guy but I think I am a Smith and Wesson guy. There are many many models of Smith and Wesson I wish to own now. I think I owe Smith and Wesson a big thank you for helping me define my gun preferences and my love of revolvers. I always liked revolvers and 1911's and I always said I own them one day. The revolvers and 1911's I have shot have proven to me there my favorite platform hands down.

Anyone else have a similar story? Maybe you started out like I did.

You have already started down that slippery slope to which there is no end. My only advice is to get a second job while you are still young.

Very similar story.Had some friends in my early twenties that enjoyed hunting and that was the start of it.Started with Rugers,then Winchesters,Colts,Smiths....

Started with a Ruger Mark II. Next got a used Colt 1911. Then a Ruger Blackhawk. Seesawed back and forth between Colt and S&W for a while.
The last few handguns I bought were Smith .41 Magnums or snubnose .38s.
(Although there was that Remingtion 51 .380 in there).

Maybe there is no real long-term pattern around here.

All the things I want I need a 3rd or 4th job to support my hobby if I went unlimited

My dad had me toting and shooting at a very young age. I was always handling and shooting and cleaning what he had according to my ability. I listened to him and all the guys at the LGS and started to define what I liked and why. I have SAA clones, lever-actions, bolt guns, revolvers, semi-autos, cowboy to military, and single-shots. The older I get, the more I move towards double guns, over-and-unders, falling blocks, Cowboy style guns with History behind them, and the "refined" guns of gentlemen. My dad now has a Sterlingworth A.H. Fox with Pachmayr wood on it. It is beautiful and "floats" as you pull it up. My Browning B-25 (Liege, Belgium) Superposed was made in 1961 and I use it in the mud, crud, and nasty soup of great hunting. My 1911 National Match(pre-Gold Cup) was made in 1958, and wears Spiegel Malagassy Rosewood grips. It is a prized posession. My guns become more dear to me as I build memories of hunts with them. My 1976 Model 12 Winchester Y-series 12 gauge is responsible for a nice Rio Grande turkey in Colorado. 13 birds were on roost and getting nervous when the big boy presented himself. He looked like 35-38 yards over the canyon, but was a 65 yard shot with three pieces of shot in the head getting him. My Smith 41 is responsible for some very lucky shots in the wind at 65 yards on Ptarmigan in front of friends that previously poo-pooed a gun that costs so much. My Colt woodsman was acquired from an elderly customer of mine whose children wanted nothing to do with the guns that they grew up on learning to shoot. He asked and I paid a fair price and we are both happy. He was very glad to know that I would use it. One evening I stopped by with a grouse for him (thanks to the woodsman). He said he hadn't eaten grouse in nearly fifteen years. I hope California and his daughter are treating him well. This how I learned and came to appreciate guns. I'd have to say "I like guns with soul".

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