Topic: Best handgun for the money

Semiauto or revolver?

regular or occasional use?

will you practice at ALL?

with No other info:
First choice for me would be a used/new taurus revolver or a basic XD,glock or M&P. The taurus 24/7 is an ok gun for the money and offers a TON of bang for the scratch. Im going to assume no practice or experience and reccomend a revolver in 357 (loaded with 38 special) or a simplistic auto. The glock, XD, MP and even the 24/7 boil down to only having a slide release, mag release and trigger. The XD has the grip safety which you disengage picking it up and the 24/7 safety doesnt have to be applied... ever. I am not taurus' bigest fan, nor do i like glocks either, but regardless they arent bad guns. The taurus i would look at new autos though.

My STRONG recccomendation is the revolver. So ignore the semiauto babble if you're not looking to be tacticool and have to have a semi.

http://www.hi-pointfirearms.com/handguns/45acp/hi_point_45acp.html

http://www.hi-pointfirearms.com/handguns/45acp/hi_point_45acp.html

I also recommend hi-point. I've used my friends thoroughly and it's been reliable. It jams every so often, so I wouldn't use it for carry.

Let's keep it real... Under 700, there are tons of great options.
M&P's XD's.
http://www.springfield-armory.com/armory.php?version=1

Yeah for the $700 I'm with Ogre, I'd prefer the M&P but I've never tried an XD. If money's tighter than that I'd consider a Taurus, I've owned several and liked them all. For Concealed carry a S&W Hammerless revolver, the MSRP on the Model 442 is about right, or the 640 (stainless for sweaty carry)or the Taurus 850B2 or 850SS2. For just the home closet

If you really want opinions, you need to help us narrow the field. 700 bones gets you into pretty much anything, baring H&K (because they hate you, and you suck) and custom jobies.

Assuming you want an auto, what caliber are you looking at? Gonna CCW it, or just a "house gun"?? Same questions pertain to a revolver.

Basically, tell us what your plans are, and you'll get not only suggestions, but more than likely a good place to find whatever it is for a good price.

Yeah, bigjake's right. For a house gun we might not even recommend a handgun for a newbie. A shotgun might be a better choice. For just plain fun a rifle like a Ruger 10-22 is nearly impossible to beat. Give us a clue as to purpose and we can be more helpful, or maybe not, ask ten people and get twenty five answers :)

Wow - Thanks for all the quick responses.
OK -
Johnnyboy83 - Prefer semiauto for higher mag capacaties (good or bad?)
- Probably moderate usage
- Definitly plan to practice
BigJake------ Plan to carry it as soon as permit is aquired
- Looking for .40 or .45 (dont want overkill at this point)

Sorry for the lack of info; here's a bit of background...
Currently own Remington 1100,Marlin model 60 .22, Marlin 30-30 Win, and a .50 muzzleloader. In the past have owned a 9mm Makarov and a Glock 9mm. I have had plenty of experience shooting all these guns, just dont know too much about them. Idoknow that the city I live near and WORK in, is violent and crime-filled. This is the reason that I am pursuing a permit, protection first, pleasure second. My 12 gauge is my house protection, along with my German Shepherd and German Rott.
Also have been through hunters safety course (years ago) if that makes a difference.
Thanks again guys for the responses.

in that price range I'd definitely want to take a look at certified used Sigs
the 226 is a great gun, recoil should feel pretty tame in 9mm, i have a friend who is very happy with it as a concealed carry piece, at least until that god-ugly rail adapter got put on...
though for concealed carry you might also want to look at the 229 and even the 239 though i don't think those are nearly as common used.

and while you browse the glass cases at your favorite Maison du Canon, if you see the frosted stainless finish of a 3rd generation smith and wesson... pick it up, give it a try...join us on the dark side...

Oh - also, I want one that isnt very large (easy to conceal),
AND
Have been told and read that 9mm just doesnt have enough stopping power. Now I dont mean to open a can of worms here, so let me say I figure that a 9 is plenty for an experienced shooter, experienced tactically and in high pressure situations. While I am a fair shot, in a panic situation I am not sure how ACCURATE I might be.
Hope this helps.

You can get a "Red Box" Sig well within your price range. These are factory refurbed guns with a waranty. Dealers get a potluck when they order them so if you have a dealer that has some, ask to look at each one.
When I say potluck, I am not talking qual... I mean features. We got an Elite with beavertail and nightsights for the same price, same product code as a plain 229. That's a 1000 pistol for under 600 bucks. Hell of a great deal.

layneman:
as said before, 50 people will give you 50 different answers to this question. my own druthers:

i DO NOT recommend the Hi-Point. Cheapest plastic piece of blowback junk made in modern times. Even butt-uglier than a Glock. and that's something.

revolver: Ruger GP100- goes from hot .357 to mild .38 special loads, your choice. tough as a rock, comes in black or stainless, and looks great with wood grain Hogue grips. if you want to go smaller, go with the Ruger sp101. all of the above still applicable, in a smaller 5-shot package. but you said you wanted a...

Semiauto (under $700): CZ 75b/sp01- a real good old-fashioned wood and steel gun. Consider it an refinement on the already excellant Browning Hi-Power. comes in literally dozens of configurations; 9mm/.40, full/compact frame, single/double action, blued/nickel/stainless/poly(mer) finishes. check em all out at CZ's website. My personal fave- 75b .40 SA.

Semiauto (money no object): Hell, that's easy. Dan Wesson Commander Bobtail... in 10mm. Holy Mother of Pearl...41 magnum performance in a compact semiauto (at least with the hotter loads).

having said all that, my advice. Go to the biggest gun shop in your city and handle everything in 9mm, .40 and .45 they're willing to take out from under the counter for you. pay attention to trigger finger reach, smooth trigger pull. buy the one that fits you like a glove, the one you fall in love with.
good luck in your decision-making process.

not to point out something about 9mm, but placement matters, no matter what caliber you use. A 45 doesnt do magical +50 shockwave damage. Even hollow points put a half inch hole in an object/person. .357, .38 spec, .380 acp, 9 makarov, 9mm all are about the same diameter. the difference between a 380 and a 357 is bullet weight and velocity. A 125gr magnum round moves around 1450 fps. a 124 gr 9mm +p moves at 1220 according to speer's gold dot info. Thats a difference of 230 fps or 16%. That isn't a whole in the scheme of things. Considering a 4" revolver has approximately the same barrel length as a 5" auto, those #'s could be closer than they report. That said, if you aren't going to practice a ton, then ammo cost is moot and a 40 or 45 will do fine, but don't rule out 9mm because its a smaller bullet. 38's have been putting people in the ground for a century strong and going.

Personally, I carry a 5" sw1911 in 45 acp with 230gr +p federal hollow points as a primary. A Kahr K9 9mm with Federal 115 gr +p+ hollows is my backup. I am not caliber particular as much as bullet type particular (spend the money on good ammo and it will pay off more than bullet diameter).

Hi-points are the #1 cause of thug fatalities around here....they seem to work better if you throw them though.

If a bullet expands, that's a bonus. You can't bank on bonuses, because you don't always get them. A .45 is almost a half inch at the start. Bonus, it expands to well over a half inch. Expansion however, does do anything magic. Bullets make holes. That's all handgun bullets do. To make them most effective you drive those bullets through what suffers the most from having holes in them.
http://www.madogre.com/Interviews/Magic_Bullets.htm

The .45 will make a .451 inch hole in static material like wood or sheetrock.

But in something elastic like flesh, the only way it can do that is with a lot of nose contact area.

Which is why Uncle Jeff's favorite load was A FLATPOINT 230-grain round, not the roundnose.

True that. My favorite load right now is the Winchester SXT and Hornady XTP rounds. 230 grains, of course. These are pretty much the only HP's I carry anymore.
However in shorter barrels, I do favor 185 grain loads.

If a bullet expands, that's a bonus. You can't bank on bonuses, because you don't always get them. A .45 is almost a half inch at the start. Bonus, it expands to well over a half inch. Expansion however, does do anything magic. Bullets make holes. That's all handgun bullets do. To make them most effective you drive those bullets through what suffers the most from having holes in them.http://www.madogre.com/Interviews/Magic_Bullets.htm

I thought about linking that...
I just kinda figured if they read your site, they should've gotten to that by now.

I wasn't really serious about the Hi-point.

I recomend Glock. Most reliable handgun I've owned and I love the grip angle. Some people can't stand the Glock grip angle and so it it just work for them.

The most important thing is familiarity. Regardless of the weapon selected, using it has got to be natural, instinctive, and without thought... it's got to be transparent. You should think about the target, and the weapon just extends your will to it.
If you can do that, sure, a Hi Point would serve. A High Power would be preferable.