Guns you "need", guns you want, guns you'll use

[db4570]

I know we all joke around about "needing" every gun we ever flirt with, but I am really trying to get a handle on this.

I like the old saying that said something to the effect of: "Beware the man with only one gun because chances are he knows how to use it." I fantasize about living a minimalist existence, where every possession fits an immediate need as a tool, necessity, or major quality-of-life enhancer.

My old college friend who got me into guns tried to practice this, but he still said that everyone needs one center fire rifle, one rimfire, and one shotgun. We didn't agonize over the perfect example of each category; we got what was cheap and reliable. So I had my Enfield I traded a fishing pole for, my $45 single shot Iver 12 gauge, and a Savage 23A bolt 22.

We then got into handguns, and selected our single guns in that category. The problem is, there is no perfect handgun, so you end up trying a lot of them before you find the perfect one. Well, if you then decide to convert from revolver to auto, you have to do that cycle again, as I am doing now.

With handguns I started large. Ruger 357 when I was into revolvers, and then Beretta 92 when I switched to pistols. Immediately in both cycles I realized these giant handguns were never going to be carried, so I started the quest for the perfect carry gun. So I have all these guns in small, medium, and large. Although I am not particularly attached to more than a couple of my handguns, I still am hanging on to the ones I've accumulated over the years either because I got it so cheap I can't afford to get rid of it, or I might need it for a specific purpose. Like the 357 because I may need to put down a rogue bear sometime here in Upstate NY.

And then I figured it was time to modernize the three long guns with an 870, 223 AR, 10-22. But that 223 is too small for big game, and the Enfield is a bit old and the round is good but not great and I'd really like a really beautiful walnut/blue bolt action magnum with a Leopold clamped on the top, even though I haven't hunted in probably 20 years...

So I kid myself and pat myself on the back because I never bought a gun just because it looked like it might be fun to shoot. Except those semi-auto rifles really are. And if I ever get that big game rifle it would be nice to just go visit it in the safe now and then and maybe show it to a friend now and then who will say something like "why don't you get one in black and stainless?"

David

 

[Water-Man]

I don't need any. I'm selling, not buying.

 

[mellow_c]

For me what it comes down to, is this...

Regardless of the idea of me needing it, or wanting it, and whatever those reasons may entail. I will be shooting it.

However if I were to buy a gun that I wont be shooting because it's some sort of unfired investment type gun, then I'd still be using it in a way, because I get enjoyment out of my ownership, and I expect that I can at least get my money back from it if not make a profit.


Although I think we all have a pretty easy time coming up with some sort of "use" for every gun we own. But every now and then, you'll get a lemon, that has issues of some sort that are beyond repair, and selling it to free up some cash to put towards something else is likely the right decision.

Also, if you have a gun that works just fine, but you really don't have any interest in it what so ever, and you don't shoot it, and don't have any kind of even remotely justifiable use for it, or you would just prefer something better or different, there again, it might be time to sell.

But to clear things up. I think that there are a very few number of guns that I realistically need. But a lot that I want. And I get some kind of use out of all of them.

 

[kozak6]

I don't really "need" guns, I suppose. I'm just awful fond of 'em.

I want an LCP just because they are cheap and decent. Although, money is tight and I can't quite justify it. Especially when I already have a sweet Kahr MK9.

A local pawnshop has a Winchester Model 12 in good shape for $250. It's hard to stay away. If I didn't have an Ithaca 37 and a Remington 870 project gun, I'd have bitten by now. Still might.

Another pawnshop has a a couple Iver Johnson and High Standard .22 revolvers for super cheap. If I wouldn't have to order .22 online for more than $.10 a round, I'd have picked one up by now. It's hard driving past that pawn shop, though.

And then I think about that $875 .50 BMG that debuted at the Shot Show. And I still want an AK. And I still want a Colt 6920, like those cheap police trades I saw the other week. And I still want a hi-cap 9mm service pistol. And a .357 revolver. And a hi-cap 9mm carbine because the .22 situation is still dumb. And one of those cheap Russian .22 Olympic target pistols.

Except the worst part is that I'd never use any of them because I don't have the time or energy to go to the range these days.

Oh well. Maybe someday.

 

[44 AMP]

I've been fortunate in that for my entire life I have had access to all the guns I "needed". My family's guns for a start, and from age 14 on, my own. I had a .22 and a deer rifle, and a good shotgun. My needs were met. Since then, its been wants, somewhat extensive ones.

I have, or have had about every kind of gun I was ever seriously interested in. I see want lists here, mostly from folks a decade or three behind me and think, got that..got that, had that , never cared about that, had that, got that, etc.

Nowdays, the "never cared about that" seems to be taking over. I do have to admit that there are a number of guns in my collection that haven't been used in far too long, but unlike some things, they keep well.



I suppose it was mean, but its not meant to be a tease, only to share the joy.
This want began when the first got advertised in Guns & Ammo in 1970. Took me 13 years to find one that was both for sale AND that I could come up with the money. Cost more than the car I was driving at the time. The next came along about 10 years later and the third a decade after that.

Cover your needs, then look to your wants. Dreams can come true, sometimes.

 

[jughead2]

guns you want, need, use

friends ask why do you need that gun. when i bought my 45-70 i ask where in the bill of rights does it mention needs? i wanted it and so far shot it 3 times. long story why i wanted it. wont bore people with it.

 

[MrWesson]

I "need" a bedside gun and a CCW and that's about it really.

These days that's a sweet shooting CZ75 with mounted light and 19rd mag and shockingly a Taurus pt111 G2 which caught me by surprise(one of those what the hell purchases). Both fit my hand like a well oiled glove.

My want collection is pretty large and growing every month.

 

[shootingblanks]

Guns I need are covered and I shoot them all. Some more than others.

Guns I want are the following and probably this order:

Sig Sauer P226 MK25 (threaded barrel)
SCAR17
Armalite AR-10
Mossberg 590A1
FNX Tactical 45
G21

 

[mellow_c]

44 AMP,

Unless I find one for sale by someone who doesn't know what they have, or someone decides to do me a favor and sell me one cheap... I'll just be on the look out for an Auto Mag to finally shoot some day.

I've shot a lot of "normal" but interesting guns as a result of my own purchases and asking folks at the range if I could take a few shots from their own (some times they offer. I always ask if they'd like to shoot what I've brought, but more often then not, they say no thanks but let me shoot theirs anyway!!! ). Never shot an Auto Mag though. Kind of wonder if I ever will?

 

[Photon Guy]

When buying guns or making mental lists of guns I want, I find myself drawn in different directions: Guns that fill a void in my collection or serve a specific purpose vs. guns that are just too fun or sexy to pass by vs. guns that will see the most use.

With me, often those categories overlap. For instance when I got my Bushmaster 5.56 I got it for the purpose of home defense and also for training, its a gun that I choose to do lots of training with since its practical and effective and a good gun to work on your rifle skills with, and its a very fun and sexy gun too.

I could really use a pocket pistol. I would carry it a lot, especially in warmer weather. I'd rather buy yet another full size 9mm; because...why not? I like shooting them at the range and the new one would be ever so slightly different than the old ones.

Or, I "need" something for hunting in bad weather (a mostly theoretical situation for me) but I'd rather get a FAL for no other reason than they look and feel awesome.

Or, I think I need something that will take me to 800yds but maybe I should just get another .22 bolt gun.

When I decide I need a certain gun for whatever reason I put my mind to getting that gun and that includes a gun that I might need for some of the reasons you mentioned above such as, another gun of the a caliber I've already got (including 9mm) just because I like shooting them and the new one would be different from the guns I've already got and the new gun since its different might be better for serving certain purposes, or if a gun looks and feels awesome which was one of the reasons I got the Bushmaster I mentioned above. But when I choose to get a certain gun, I don't change my mind and get another gun instead. Occasionally, when out getting a gun another gun will strike my fancy and I will get that gun plus the gun I originally intended to get, I will just get them both.

Anyone else experience something similar? I suppose one can amass a varied collection over the years but when buying stuff now I sometimes kick myself for getting something unnecessary but also don't get as much use from the niche guns that I "needed".

I've never regretted a gun purchase. Sure, some guns I shoot more than others but Im glad about every gun I've got in my collection, which will probably just keep growing.

 

[tlm225]

I met my basic needs long ago. A bolt action deer rifle, squirrel rifle, shotgun, defensive handgun, what more could I need?

I found that my "needs" became more specialized. A pocket revolver, a lever action deer rifle for hunting in brush, a compact semi-auto, a big bore Ruger SA for "bears", and so on.

All of them being justification for getting what I want.

 

[Branko]

Need? Well, none really. Thought about applying for a hunting license this fall (it involves a couple of weeks of classes where I am, plus, red tape, European speciality), in which case I'll need a shotgun for a start. Between slugs, buckshot and birdshot, covers all the basics, and I got my eye on a nice side-by-side (a sucker for classical aesthetics, what can I say).

Want? Lots of things; I'd like (I'll probably construe this as 'need' eventually) a Remington 1875 and a lever gun using the same cartridge (still undecided on that - need to gather money first and get the required permits; they will also serve for hunting), and a few more charcoal burners - a Colt 1851 (and perhaps the 1862 Police also, simply because it's the best looking gun ever made) and some variant of 19th century military musket (been looking at the Mauser match model but it's on the expensive side).

Guns I'll use? I have a new match-grade Remington NMA in the mail which I'll definitely use a lot, but I'll have to lay off new purchases for a while; match grade is a nice euphemism for "expensive".