Young kids are very impressionable. I was always drawn to firearms even though my parents were not. Maybe fighting in the Pacific my dad was “done” ? My mom just didn’t like them, at all.

Anyway for some amazing reason, (I liked guns,) my mom took me to a firearms museum that had so very many firearms, from many periods. Of all those represented the stocked Mauser C96 “Broomhandle” just totally knocked me out. I don’t know what it was in my @10 yr old brain but it totally blew me away. I could never forget it and I always thought about it. I did get a nice one but it took almost 30 yrs since I first saw one.

My P08 “Luger” squirt gun was pretty cool too and I also ended up eventually getting a “real” one.

I’m sure many of you were impressionalized, (not a real word,) (( yet,)) by a firearm that you eventually just had to have and did.

What was your first real love/infatuation firearm that you eventually got?

Jim

As a kid I didn’t really think much beyond my cap Guns and squirt guns. My dad never had a big collection of guns until later years but he had some super cool ones like his Python in the 60’s, his Colt Ace, P38, 1903 Springfield and Smith model 15. My first experience shooting a gun was sitting on his lap in 1953 with him holding his 1903 to his shoulder as I pulled the trigger. My ears are still ring from that but it started something I’ve never gotten over.

My dad used to acquire the major gun publications (Gun Digest etc.) and I used to go crazy looking in the handgun section of guns being currently produced. I think from the pictures back in the 1950s and early 1960s I just got smitten with the N frame Smith & Wessons, particularly the Highway Patrolman. It took waiting until I retired, but now I have 3 of them. One is stock, one was nickeled post-factory and one the prior owner put a 2x Leupold scope on. Wishes do come true sometimes.

There was a gun shop in my hometown and I went to school with the son of the owner. It was a shop kids were welcome in so I made several visits there with my dad as a young child in the 80s. I turned 8 years old in 88 and remembered seeing two beautiful youth sized rifles behind the counter. On was blue and one was stainless. I remember asking the lady working what the beautiful rifles were. She replied 22lr pumps by Rossi. The price was $159. I told my dad I would love to have one. He replied something to the effect that maybe we could work out something. I did hunters safety at 10 years old. I ended up buying a Marlin 30/30 at 11, a 10/22 at 13, and owned several shotguns before I was 16. I never owned one of the little pump Rossi’s, but I still remember how beautiful and handy those little pumps looked to an eight year old.

When I was 12 I wanted a Marlin Papoose. I ended up saving up about $200, and a family friend that worked the gun counter at Walmart begged me to spend my money on a 10/22 instead. I still think about the Papoose 22s.

I watched all the early 90s cop movies and wanted a Beretta 92. Years later I became a MP in the Army and remembered looking at my Beretta one night wondering why I wanted one of those pieces of s***.

My dad was a bilateral amputee from birth defects of his legs, so he never hunted or fought in a war. We never had guns in the house. The only thing I had was a Daisy BB pistol. The first gun I ever fired was a friend's 20 gauge shotgun when I was in high school, and my parents never knew about it. I'm sure if they had, I would have been grounded for the rest of my life.

So naturally, the first gun I ever bought was a 12 gauge shotgun for bird hunting, but I was already in my 40s. Never owned a handgun until I was about 55 years old. My recently new found love is S&W revolvers. I'm fascinated by their history and versatility in terms of the different ammo they can shoot. I now have 5 and I know I'm not done. My wish gun right now is a good S&W 22 LR.

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What could possibly go wrong?

I grew up in Wyoming in the ‘50’s. Westerns were the rage on TV at the time and I watched ‘em all. Seemed like most of them took place practically in my back yard, and I knew a number of older folks who were around as young people in the 1880’s and ‘90’s. Some of their stories were better than the TV shows (although I realized in retrospect that some of their tales may not have been 100% true). Anyway, it was only natural that I would most want to own a single action Colt and Winchester lever action rifle. I’ve owned quite a few of both over the years but I still enjoy finding some new variation of either to add to the collection (when I can afford to).

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Everybody could shoot

We never had any guns in the house when I was a kid but I always wanted a Thompson SMG like SGT. Saunders had on “Combat!”. I’ve never touched one although I did have M1911A1’s, M16A1’s, and M60 MG’s issued to me in the Army.

Savage 24 410/22..

Really wanted one my Dad told me no its impractical not a rifle or a shot gun.

Found it under the tree at Christmas.

I've always liked Thompsons. When I think of submachine gun, a TSMG is the picture in my head. They just look and sound cool! Years ago, I got to shoot an M1A1, it was too cool!

The one I'd want would be an M1928A1 - it is machined goodness.

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Thread Killer.

Red Ryder 200 shot range model air rifle with a compass in the stock and this thing that tells time . . .

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Wisdom comes thru fear . . .

My first gun was a Beretta 92FS, and Lethal Weapon had absolutely nothing to do with it. *cough*

But I have to say my first "infatuation" was with custom 1911s. Between my dad and me we subscribed to probably half-a-dozen gun magazines back in the 90s, and I always looked forward to the latest write-up on some custom 1911. One in particular that sticks in my mind was a two-tone Commander built by Kim Ahrends.

I did end up getting a Colt Series 80 Govt Model in the mid-90s and had some custom work done on it. Later on I inherited my dad's Series 70 Gold Cup, which had been worked over by King's Gun Works. Between the two of them I've probably put at least a few thousand rounds through them over the years.

Recently my interest in 1911s has been renewed, and I find myself looking at 1911s. I've always preferred DA guns for carry, but lately have been carrying my Govt Model and thinking about getting another 1911 when finances and availability make it possible.

And one of my favorite quotes from a movie: "Sure I know what love is. It's what happens between a man and a .45 that won't jam."

When I was a kid one time my dad and I were watching a certain tv show. I asked my dad what kind of gun is that. He said it’s a “45”. That was it for me, I could Just picture myself wearing a Hawaiian shirt, strapped with a 45, hanging out with my pals TC and Higgins, not to mention a different chick on my arm every week! I never heard the term “1911” until years later but I always wanted a “45” like Thomas.

As a kid SAAs seemed a dime a dozen. Heck, the cowboys on TV always threw theirs away when they fired the last shot rather than reload. Although in fairness reloading a 36 shot revolver must have been time consuming.

Watching Combat though the Thompson always caught my eye. To the point my Dad made a wooden replica complete with cut down coffee can as a drum magazine. Dad said that he had two Thompsons during his stint in the Pacific. One he traded off for something more useful once a M3 became available. The other ended up in the water off San Diego. I never owned a full auto but did have a semi auto versions for awhile and fired the M3 while in the army. I quickly saw why Dad was willing to trade the weight of the Thompson for the M3.

It’s a dark personal secret but I always longed for the engraved, inlaid and fancified Llama’s in the multi-paged spread in the old Shooters Bible. Perhaps I was a third-world dictator in a past life or simply a child with no taste. I am not sure I have much better judgment as an adult!

A gun to catch el jefe’s eye:

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Possum—The other white meat!

BoFord 40mm wheeled mount

Like the OP, I was interested in guns at an early age and read everything I could get my hands on. My parents didn’t have a gun in the house, but we had several family friends who were “gun guys” and they mentored me.

I worked the summer of 1976 at a gas station and bought a brand new 6” S&W 27-2 with 3T’s that was still sealed in the shipping carton. I really wanted a Model 29-2 or a 5” 27-2, but those were like hens teeth. The dealer only allowed me to cut the tape and examine the gun, after I made the last payment. My dad had to do the paperwork because I was only 17. I still have that gun today.

My second gun was a Malin 39M, the third was a Remington 870 and the next was a sporterized 8mm Mauser. When my older brother and I started hunting, dad purchased a Remington 1100, a Winchester 94 and started to accompany us. It wasn’t really in his blood, but he didn’t want to miss out on the fun with his sons.

I still have all the old Gun Digest Annuals, including one from my teenage years where I circled every gun on my wishlist in pencil. It included a lot of high capacity centerfire semi-auto rifles and pistols, S&W and Colt revolvers, .22 rifles and fine shotguns. When I look through that edition now, I see that I’ve been fortunate to have owned many of those guns at one time or another.

My tastes haven’t changed much. I still have a few evil black rifles, but scoped bolt actions probably outnumber them 5 to 1. I wasn’t really interested in lever action rifles back then, but the dealer sold me on the Marlin 39M. What I really wanted was a Remington 541S or a Weatherby MK XXII, but I don’t think he had one in stock. Even though I currently have 3 541’s and a MK XXII, I’ve developed an appreciation for old Winchester and Marlin lever guns. I still like DA revolvers, but now I enjoy single-action’s as well. Just about any quality gun can find a spot in my heart!

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"I also cook."

I wanted all the WWII GI small arms.

Yeah, “Combat”! Saw my first episode in years last week.

I had the Dick Tracy shoulder holster set, probably a DS. Two Thompsons, one black/brown and one camo, and a pair of plastic 1911s to match. A camo M3 as well.

And finally, a lever-action bb gun (1892?) Daisy I think.

Colt Woodsman never found one so bought a Browning Challenger 2 it has been fine but too pretty to use much.
Steve W

When I was 13 or 14, I wanted a Remington Nylon 66 so bad, I could taste it, lol. Dad said, "No, that new fangled plastic stock won't hold up. it'll warp." So instead, I got a....nothing until I moved away from home and was old enough to buy a 10/22 in 1973.

Winchester 1892 in .25-20. 65 years later I have one.

Remington nylon Model 66.
Ruger Bearcat.

Remington Nylon 66 here also. If I recall Boys Life Magazine (Boy Scouts), Outdoor Life, Field and Stream all had ads for them. Dad was WWII and Korean War vet but never hunted and didn't have guns in the house. The first rifle I shot was at Boy Scout Camp back in early 1960's, a single shot bolt action .22 rifle. You could pay a nickel and get a triangle shaped wooden block with maybe 6 rounds of .22 shorts stuck in drilled holes in the block and a place on the firing line. I only remember prone shooting. Remember asking a leader "how do you load this thing the first time I shot it". Later Dad bought my brother and me a Remington 572 Pump .22 and would take us to an old rock quarry on Sunday afternoons for target practice. Never did get the Nylon 66 and still admire them when I see at gun shows!

Funning how you remember details from that long ago.

As a boy, I would sit around for hours scouring the Shotgun News issue every time it came out. I'd circle the same guns all the time. An AMT Hardballer long slide, AMT Lightning with the folding stock and the A-Team folding stainless Mini14. Oddly enough, of the hundreds of guns that have been in my possession, not one has ever been one of those three.

Nowadays, the only one I'd want is the old folding Mini for nostalgia sake. Maybe one day.

We had hunting guns in the house that had been in the family forever. The only handgun was a cobbled together 1911A1, Colt slide and parts on an Essex frame. That I still have and it still shoots.

The first gun I actually ever acquired on my very own was a Nylon 66. My best bud and I would wander the gun show whenever his dad would let us free from watching over his tables. I forgot what I had for trade even but, I managed to talk some old feller into swapping for that Nylon 66. Now I'm the old feller, gun shows mostly suck, haven't seen a shotgun news in years and that old Nylon is still with me.

In my hometown, my dad was a volunteer fireman and for a while was on the town council, so we (he) always had some business or another down at the Boro Building. There was usually a policeman there, BS'ing with Dad, etc. I would always stare at the plain ol' Model 10 hanging off the policeman's belt. Dad had a K22, but rarely got it out, but these seemed like cannons compared to his. Finally about 22 years ago, before moving to Pittsburgh, I went to a gun shop and instantly eyed a model 10. I knew nothing about handguns, but after I had my friend check it out for me, I parted with $210 and bought my police gun. I really didn't know that was what I was looking at on the cops' belts at the time, but somewhere in the back of my mind this was the handgun I wanted since the '60s.

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There's a Monster on the loose

Guns I wanted as a kid?..... All of them LOL. Actually there were a few hunting guns around in the family but dad had lost all interest in hunting after his army service and didn't have one in the house. My first shooting experience was with a couple of my uncles guns, a Savage double shotgun and an old Winchester 22 pump. The first handgun I ever got to shoot was a Luger that one of dads American Legion pals had. I was in the beginning stages of "gun nut disease".

The ones I wanted the most were influenced by TV, movies and articles in various magazines. First and foremost I wanted that Luger (and eventually got one, then a couple more though I am now back down to that first one again). The TV cowboys left me with a love for Colt single actions and Winchester lever actions. Broomhandles were fascinating as was the Thompson and it's German opponent the MP38/40 (or Schmeisser as so many authors incorrectly called it). I also wanted an M1 Carbine and an M1 Garand (dad was issued a Carbine but said that he like, and shot, the Garand better)

I've been lucky enough to own many of the guns I dreamed of having as a kid and have at least gotten to shoot some of the full auto ones that I was never in a position to buy. While I've got a nice assortment of guns to shoot or simply enjoy as collectibles it still gives me a thrill to pull out the Luger, the Broomhandle or a Colt single action for a day at the range. My fascination with those guns has left a deep impression all my life.

A Colt New Frontier .44 spl with 4 5/8" bbl......Saw "em" but sadly too young and no $$$ to buy "em"...........Still don't have one.

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S&W Accumulator

Growing up dad had plenty of rifles a few rather spartan shotguns and 1 handgun that he would not have had if my brothers had not given it to him as a Christmas present. Hence, handguns always fascinated me and i always wanted a Colt SAA 45 Colt.
Closest I ever got was a Ruger BH.

^^^^^^^

This. Could not have said it better, and I used to think I was the only one who had never heard a 1911 referred to as a "1911" until well into adulthood. Thank you.


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i grew up without a father so i never had any of the "father son" stuff but i remember being into guns - movies t.v. etc. i always thought they were cool - i remember having a gun magazine in 1979 with a 6" Colt Python on the cover - it had a scope on it and i just thought it was the coolest looking gun i'd ever seen in my 11 years on the Earth -



fast forward to the mid 90's and i picked up a 4" King Cobra and thought i was pretty cool because it reminded me of that Python - had to sell it to pay rent UGH!


a few years ago i was playing poker with some friends and for some reason i started talking about that Python on the cover of that mag and the KC i use to own when one of my friends said he had a Colt revolver but knew nothing about it and was kicking around the idea of selling it - i told him to send me a pic of it - a few days later i got that pic and i got very excited - my only thought was if he knew what he had or not - i offered him $600 and he declined - he then sent me a pic of a Glock 21 and said he would sell me both for $1000 - i told him i was coming over right away and i bought them both - i sold the Glock for $500 so i ended up paying $500 for a 1980 Colt Python! now every time we play poker i razz him about it and we all have a good laugh -

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As a kid, I saw an Automag on the cover of Gun Digest and thought that was the coolest gun ever. Of course they went out of business before I could get one.

Many moons later......

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SWCA #3356, SWHF#611

As a kid, Dad kept a loaded model 66 in the hutch. I remember walking around the house with it when I was alone and 12.(this was the 70s). pointing it out windows at the dog,,,,I shudder to think about it now. Dad gave it to me when i turned 20 or 21. I showed it to my best friend and his brother along with my other pistols. The brother turned out to be an addict.

1991, while on active duty, mom called to ask me about my guns as the house was broken into. It was always surmised the brother did it but never proven. I also lost my Hi Standard 22Lr pistol that was a gift from my Grandfather before he died.


I purchased an used 66 with a 3 inch barrel in 1996. I kept it until 2010 and sold it for what double what i paid for it. I thought that was a good deal. A buddy told me later it was a great deal for the buyer. live and learn.


I've been missing and regretting my lost 66 since 2010 and purchased a model 19 carry comp last week.



That lead me here. So yea, I guess the SW 357 Magnum is "the one". Model 66 or other, not sure yet, but there will be a stainless in the stable soon enough.

My dad was a tool and die maker at the REAL Springfield Armory, in the model shop. He had guns in the house, a model 17 and a High Standard Sport King (the first revolver and semi auto I ever shot.) He had others, but I never knew what he had until I was older. While his guns were secured, his biggest fear always was that I would be at a friend's house, where the father wasn't as responsible, so gun safety was taught to my brother and I from a very early age.

Western movies or TV shows were (still are, thank you Western Channel) watched and I fell in love with Winchesters and Colts. Combat and other war movies were influential in my fondness for any 1911/1911a1, Garands and 1903s.

It's funny, but this thread bought back a flood of old memories, thank you 4T5GUY! My oldest and fondest memories are of my father and his buddies sitting around talking about guns and the ones they regretted selling. I turn sixty years old in two weeks, and have only sold two guns in my life and I replaced them later.

I read a lot of gun magazines as a kid. Skeeter Skelton, and later John Tafin have extolled the virtues of a S&W .44 Spl. It is the one that has always eluded me, but I am always on the hunt for one. Maybe someday.

I think I remember seeing that same gun in Shooter's Bible too!

My Dad took me to a gun shop in 1976 in GF, Mt when I was 10 yrs old and he looked at a new nickel 1911A1 but settled on a 6” .22 peacemaker which to me may as well have been one of Marshall Crown’s 2 nickeled .45’s......That was the 1st handgun gun I fired...I fired thousands o rounds rough it and it became mine and I let it go but replaced it recently with an identical 22/22mag peacemaker at 7 fold the cost of my Dad’s but worth every cent to me....and then I also had a fascination with Ruger M77 rifles and he bought me one in beautiful condition a a pawn shop...243 win caliber and I haunted the mule deer and coyotes and ground hogs with that sweet rifle...it slipped away too, replaced by a same model in 22-250 which is fine but less versatile IMO...my 1st gun was in 1978, they gave me a nw Savage m24 in 22 lr/20 ga which I hunted Huns and pheasants with although the 1st bird I ever took with it was a mallard...4 other guns as a kid I was infatuated with were the pre 64 win 94, the win model 62A, the s&w model 18 Combat Masterpiece, and the s&w model 28 Highway Patrol...all of these were endeared to me because of how the 4 different owners loved and used these guns and each spoke highly of each gun and imbedded a strong impression in my soul an it is because of those folks and their guns...I have acquired all of these guns save the win model 62A...and am blessed with more than I deserve...cheers gang!

If I ever meet Tom, I’m going to ask him - “Why is a guy named ‘Magnum’ always carrying a 1911?”

It is interesting seeing the number of people who wanted a Nylon 66 as a kid. I remember my dad buying one but for some reason he never shot it much. But he kept it and even put a scope on it.

Pop bought one of the Mohawk Brown models. I have a taste for shiny guns and I cruised the gun shows and auctions looking for one of the Apache black and chrome models, but it always seemed they were going for more than what I was able or willing to pay.

Pop passed on 5 years ago. My brother and I were picking out guns that we really wanted to have prior to putting the rest to auction. The color didn't matter now, because it was Pop's gun, and I now have his old Nylon 66.

The handguns that impressed me most as a kid were used in "Bonanza" and "The Lone Ranger"







And by Roger Moore as "The Saint".

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Expect the unexpected

When I was a kid I had an old Stevens Favorite. It was rough, but served me well. There were two things I Lusted for, A Winchester hammer .22 pump and a 47/48 Ford coupe. I never managed to get that Ford, but I did scratch that Winchester itch.

Great topic.
I became a gun geek at an early age, but finances kept my accumulation very simple. First rifle came from an old man that was a picker and estate-sale attendee who my Mom bought some antiques from.
That's where my first .22 came from, a nice, used Winchester M67 single shot.
My shotgun came from a similar source, an old Iver Johnson 12 ga. single shot that kicked like a mule.

The very top object of my heart's desire came from hours of pouring through various gun catalogs I'd pick up here and there.....And don't ask me now as to why - but if I could ever truly own a 'Marlin Goose Gun', a 12 ga. bolt action with a 36" barrel, my life would be complete!
I mean, what could be ANY better??
Looking back, really funny.

And no, I never got one, but learned a little more and just before being invited on a neighboring-state duck hunt, Santa brought me a Remington M870 Wingmaster 12 ga. 28" VR Mod. choke.
Now that was a my first piece of true quality firearm and really got me on the path to perdition on gun acquisition.

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Ret'd LEO
SWCA #2275

FWIW, I never heard a 1911 referred as anything other than a “45” in the Army.

^ I had unlimited access to dad’s match target and all I ever thought about was a diamondback 4” nickel .22lr


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After watching the first episodes of " The Untouchables " I wanted a Thompson . My dad , a carpenter and handy making things out of wood made me a wooden thompson , with the circular drum magazine . Does that count as my first " want " ? Regards Paul

I've always wanted an Auto Ordnance Thompson 1921AC Submachine Gun, but sadly that's just not something that I expect to ever have the money or time to obtain, and I wouldn't be willing to settle for a modern non-NFA example either, because a big part of the attraction is the fact that it's fully automatic, and a longer barrel ruins the aesthetic for me.

I also grew quite fond of the Walther PPK because my grandfather was a big fan of Bond. Fortunately, I'm not so picky when it comes to the PPK, so I own a couple of more modern examples of the PPK/S. One is in .22LR, the other is a Stainless Steel Smith & Wesson model chambered in .380 ACP.

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Shooting Comfort is bilateral.

Well, I gotta be honest. This one punched my hot button as a kid, and I finally found one under a long ago Christmas tree...

John

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- Cogito, ergo armatus sum -

I grew up in the in the 1980’s and 90’s with Vietnam War movies and shows. It left me wanting an M16A1 and an M60. The latter was really just a bucket list gun and I did not expect to ever have one. One day about five years ago a minty M60 popped up locally.

Whitney Lightning! Space-age, Streamlined!
What’s not to like? It don’t work?
They quit making it?
When Fantasy meets Reality it’s often not pretty.

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NRA LIFE MEMBER

Firearm (s), you wanted as a young kid;

For me It would be 2:
The Lever Action Nylon 66 Mohawk Brown "Trail Rider"
and
Lever Action Apache Black versions.

In 1975, and for some reason it has stuck in my mind, at a Hardware Store,
Flandreau South Dakota, sat a New in the Box Lever, on the counter,
just always wanted it.

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SD social distanc'n since 1889

I was a kid in the 50s and the guns I dreamed of were:
1.)A real Kentucky rifle to go with my coon skin cap.
2.) Colt 45 SSA with holster and belt with cartridge loops.