Quote:
Originally Posted by Twisted Canuck
Congratulations on joining the Club. That is a reasonable budget to have. As a long time pistol shooter and collector, please allow me to give you a good piece of advice? Start with a good quality .22 LR pistol. The reason being, ammo is cheap, you can have lots of range time, and learn good shooting discipline without the issue of developing a flinch or other bad habits by going right into a center fire (I'm assuming you are looking at the 9mm). I will admit at this point, that I didn't heed this advice, because I was all hot and bothered about getting a Sig P226 in 9mm, which I did, and which I learned to shoot. Luckily, I had a few people to help me get past some bad habits I was forming.
If you absolutely need to have that 9mm (and trust me, I get it, I really do)....don't have a set agenda or brand in mind until you have tried a few and see what fits. In your budget, I would say
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X2, VERY good Advice.
The price you pay for a handgun is just a down payment on the on-going cost of ammunition.
IMHO, it takes a LOT of rounds to develop proper sight picture and muscle memory.
I suggest that learning requires firing at least 200 rounds / week, and more is better.
IMHE, this much training is likely to result in developing an anticipation flinch.
IMHE, a flinch is not usually fear of recoil, but rather anticipation of noise and pressure.
It is only natural to anticipate the reaction recoil, and to resist this in order to enable holding on target for both first and re-acquiring the target for follow-up shots.
If you calculate and compare the cost of ammunition for a 9mm and a 22LR you will find that you can recover the cost of a suitable SA 22LR in only a very few range days, (and even more so comparing 45acp with 22LR).
I have several 9mm & 45acp pistols, but in a normal range visit fire many more rounds of 22LR combined with alternating 9mm & 45acp. My personal practice is 2 mags of 22LR, then 1 mag of 9mm, then 2 mags of 22LR, then 1 mag of 45acp, and repeat.
If you purchase a SA 22LR with a similar platform to your center-fire pistol, they will use similar loading & firing procedures, mal-function drills, and can use one holster.
I suggest a GSG 1911-22 or Ruger Mk III-45 combined with a Norinco NP29 (1911-9mm). The total cost for both pistols will be within your budget, and after you have recovered the cost of the 22LR (with savings of ammo cost), you can consider a Norinco 1911-45, or any other type.
Good Luck, YMMV.