What was the first handgun you ever shot?

[rwsmith]

Model 10

S&W Model 10 snub.

 

[LVSteve]

Steyr M9. I still have it. Ten minutes later I shot a Glock 23C and decided to stick with the M9.

 

[Fishinfool]

I remember the first handgun I shot. Me and a buddy split the cost, and ordered a single shot percussion black powder .44 pistol thru the mail when we were about 10 years old. We got it, put it together, scrounged up some components, and had a blast shooting it in the woods behind our houses. We used to argue who was going to carry it on field expeditions...

The first real handgun was a snubby .357 revolver when I was about 12. Me. my father, and a local gun shop owner he was friends with were at the range shooting .22 rifles. He pulled the snubby out from under his jacket, and opened fire on a soda can. I couldn't believe the blast from that little gun, and had to try it. man, I was hooked...... That led to my first real handgun, a Ruger .22 Single Six, a couple years later.

Larry

 

[arjay]

A 36 caliber navy copy.A friend bought one and I either shot it or the one I bought for myself.

 

[Chuck24]

Remington New Army 44 cap and ball made around 1863. I was 8 years old.

 

[RJJ 1971]

22LR SA revolver of my dads.
About 11 years old, trying to kill snakes and rats.
Neighbor had 2 hog barns directly behind our property.
If my dad was still alive, he'd still be talking about how he regretted selling that 5 acres to our neighbor back then.

 

[Pondoro]

College roommate's 1911. I'd been shooting rifles for years.

 

[Frank237]

Way back in 1958 or 59...I was eight or nine years old. My Uncles new off duty gun. He had just been hired by the local PD and I shot his little .32 S&W M-30/31? Or maybe a pre model gun. I do recall it was a 3" gun as he also had a 2" colt snubbie he already owned and I shot both of them that day.

Also recall not being able to hear very well for a few days afterward.

Bought a near new in box 3" M-31 last year at the Vegas Antique Arms Show. Still need to shoot it.

 

[mcoe74]

The first handgun I shot (about 50 years ago) was my Dad's S&W .38 "Lemon Squeezer." He still has it too.

 

[BC38]

For me it would be this one. My father bought it about 50 years ago. It still sits in my safe in the original box.

My dad had one pretty much just like this one - only it had the black (hard rubber?) grips. I shot it much better than he did
Nobody seems to know what happened to it after my dad passed 12 years ago, but I sure wish I had it...

 

[Kevin J.]

My first handgun that I bought and shot was my '75 colt python 357 / 6" barrel in blue. Sorry I sold it.

1st gun, python
.

Same here but a 4inch nickel Python, my first handgun, also in 1975. Sold it in 83 to raise money for the down payment on my first house. Sold to a friend who still has it.

 

[Farmer17]

My dad wouldn't allow me to own a handgun growing up but when I was about 16 I bought one anyway without telling my parents and it was a Hawes .22 single action Cowboy Gun with 5-1/2" barrel and extra .22 Magnum cylinder. I got it and a black Buscadero gunbelt both for 25 bucks from a buddy, and I was lightning fast with my quick draw and kept that gun for many years. I didn't want to sell it but a poor college freshman friend wanted it really bad so I sold it to him for the same price. The karma is, that about 40 years later my wife's grandfather GAVE me nearly the exact same Hawes .22 revolver.

 

[American1776]

The first handgun I ever shot was a .380 Walther PPK. The story is pretty cool.
Ever since I was very young (grammar school), I had a strong attraction to firearms. Growing up in NJ, this interest frequently garnered suspicion (since NJ residents have been brainwashed to think guns are only for police and the bad guys). Well, my dad would bring me to the local gun range just to watch people shoot their handguns. I was pie-eyed and in heaven. It was all just so cool. One visit, I must have been only 10 years old or so, one of the gunsmiths affiliated with the range was shooting a Walther PPK in .380. He saw that I was interested, and he asked my dad if it'd be okay to let me shoot it. I couldn't believe it. I grasped the little Walther with both hands, aimed, and shot two rounds slowly. Then I decided to let off a triple-tap. Then, fired the last round. The man let me keep the target, where I had two hits on target out of the six.

The story was, the Walther belonged to an LEO and carried as a BUG. It was being repaired by the gunsmith, who was there to test fire it. My guess is, the gunsmith figured that if the Walther doesn't malfunction with this little kid shooting it, it's fixed.

 

[finesse_r]

At age 11, my dad started me out on his only guns, first his service 1911 Colt .45ACP and second his double barrel 12 gage shotgun. This would have been about 1957, and for us at that time money and luxuries were scarce commodities. By age 12 I was thoroughly trained in gun safety and how to handle both our family firearms. If he was working at night and there was some concern it was me that handled the gun, not my mother. She never did really become proficient with a firearm, but for me it was easier than riding a bike.

I have since about age 10 always carried a pocket knife, and since I was 12 been very comfortable handling and being around guns. Today the idea of leaving my home without a concealed firearm and a pocket knife is just out of the question. Carrying both is as natural as breathing to me.

Thank goodness I do live in a state that respects the second amendment of the US Constitution, and does not seek to systematically deprive me of my constitutional rights to protect my family and myself.

 

[HOUSTON RICK]

A friend's Colt Python long, long ago.

 

[Cdog]

A Smith Model 15. I traded an Uncle something for it?

I wish I still had them both.

 

[Peak53]

It wasn't new when I shot it

Model 3, 2nd Model Russian c. 1875



Last fired about 1968 when I was 15. For a story about this shootin' iron see:

http://smith-wessonforum.com/new-members-introduction/289561-billys-forty-four.html

 

[Higganum]

1967 as a high school freshman. Mr. Petrella, the shop teacher, let me fire a clip from his 4 1/2" Woodsman Match Target. This was in the basement of the school, a three-point 50' range.

 

[TX-Dennis]

I was about five or six. My dad took me out and let me shoot his single action .22 revolver. I don't know what it was, but I remember being scared to shoot it. I think he could tell I wasn't ready since we didn't stay very long. He fired a cylinder, then I fired a cylinder. Then we drove back home. I didn't even have a BB gun yet.

Dad was self employed and worked lots of hours - often 7 days a week. He didn't have much time to spend with me when I was growing up, but he did try. He once told me his biggest regret was not spending more time with me when I was young. I've tried not to have the same regret with my son.

 

[Grayfox]

I'd shot rifles and shotguns since I was big enough to hold one up. Never gave handguns much thought.
Then as a young troop at Ft. Hood and my LT tells me today is the battalion's annual qualification with pistols. Since I'm a driver and supposed to carry one, I had to go. This is despite the fact that we never had enough handguns to go around and I had never been issued one.
Get to the range and Sarge gives me a 1911 and about three minutes of instruction. Cartridges go in mag, mag goes in gun, rack the slide, point it that way and pull the trigger.
Course of fire was actually pretty simple. Target at 10 yards, all ya gotta do is hit it. I reverted to the basics, sight alignment and trigger control. I managed to qualify Expert.
The rest, as they say, is history.