Which Handgun is the Most FUN?

[Timberline]

Handguns have lots of uses - self defense, easy carry, truck guns, plinking, targets, hunting, rambling and more. If you’re like me, you’ve probably shot and maybe owned a few of them over the years.

Beyond self-defense use, though, I keep coming back to the notion that handguns are just plain FUN. They’re fun to handle and shoot. They’re even fun to carry.

Which brings me to my question: <span style="color: #CC0000">Which of the handguns you’ve shot or owned has been the most FUN, and why?</span>

Personally, am torn on that question. On one hand, I have tons of fun with my little Smith & Wesson M422 auto in .22 long rifle. It’s cheap to shoot, carries like a feather and is reasonably accurate up close. Mostly, I carry and shoot it with iron sights, but every now and then I set it up with something like TruGlo's red dot sight. Either way, it's fun.



On the other hand, something bigger can sure tick the fun meter up a notch or six. A bigger auto or revolver can be buckets of fun. Big chunks of wood fly from stumps, tin cans soar to the sky and bunnies tumble like they where hit by a truck.

My favorite big handgun (that’s still reasonably cheap to feed!) is probably a single-action revolver in something like .45 Colt. Inexpensive cowboy rounds can be had almost everywhere and with a relatively mild recoil and those big chunks of lead, such a handgun is almost more fun than should be allowed.



So, what are <span style="color: #FF0000">YOUR</span> thoughts? <span style="color: #CC0000">Of all the handguns that you’ve shot and maybe owned, what's proven to be the most FUN, and why?</span>

[snakey2]

Colt Woodsman 22lr. Good for fun and small game. Shoots like a dream and carries easily. It brings back fond memories of my youth. The older I get the harder it is to do that but that little gun always does.

[Bushcraft]

1911 Kimber .22LR Conversion. Exceptionally accurate. Save for the slide not locking back on an empty mag, it has the same operation as full-size .45ACP for inexpensive training purposes. Hard to keep my wife from burning up bricks of ammo at the pistol range while I'm over at the rifle range. Wicked fun if you have a shooting tree and/or a plate rack. What's not to love?

This said, I have to admit to cheating on my first love, with my S&W 629 Classic in .44mag. Something about the ferocious power being unleashed downrange every time I touch one off appeals to the kid in me that likes to bust targets...be they dirt clods, rocks, bunnies or balloons. The straightwall case is SUPER easy to reload and allows me to keep about 500-600 rounds at the ready for the next fun outing. Outfitted with a fixed 4x Leupold scope, it is very accurate with my handloads and shooting it off a bench and supported sitting positions has improved my rifle marksmanship. Perfect gun to plink with while waiting for rifle barrels to get cold again.

[CCH]

Any reliable, reasonably accurate semi-auto .22. Fun for precision, slow target shooting or ripping off a bunch of rounds quickly while plinking. No recoil so no fatigue for extended shooting and I don't wince as money leaks out of my wallet with every shot as with my centerfires. Buckmark, Ruger, Woodsman, S&W, take your pick.

[Sawtooth]

Ruger MKII. I no longer have it and haven't for quite a while. I should have never given it up. I'd say now my favorite, and the one I nearly always carry, unless big game hunting, is my Smith and Wesson Model 60 5". Versatile for squirrels up to deer or maybe even elk, light weight, packable size, fits my small hands, and I think it's purty. It's my rambling gun, and rambling is something I do often.

[Dan97526]

The S&W Model 29-2 4" I stupidly got rid of for a song 'cuz I needed to buy textbooks. It bucked and roared and spat huge fireballs and knocked the daylights out of whatever I actually hit with it. Even stuck the hammer in my head one time shooting hot handloads off a sandbag. Good times, good times. Best trigger I've ever experienced on a revolver; better even than the Python I had for a while (also gone, but nowhere near as lamented). Way more accurate than I could shoot it. I get sad every time I think about not having that Smith anymore.

The golden rule: never get rid of good guns or good books. You will always regret it.

A Glock 20 is a lot of fun too. That one went for tuition. [img]/images/%%GRAEMLIN_URL%%/mad.gif[/img]

[William Clunie]

I like the Ruger MkII. My MOST favorite to shoot happen to be a pair of matched Ruger Vaquaros in .45 colt. Just like you mentioned, I can get lots of cowboy reloads for very little outlay of cash. Hurling big hunks of lead downrange makes me feel warm and fuzzy.

[Ralph]

I liked my old, stolen, original Ruger Bearcat in .22LR. I used that for years and was a bit upset when it was stolen. The one I have now is the S&W 317, very light and fun to plink with. Shooting shorts or CB caps it's very quiet.

[idaho lad]

Colt woodsmans, Hi-Standards, Ruger 22's and your Smith are for certain the very best in fun and economy. BTW I would love to have an 442 like yours.

Another good 22 is the Beretta. Very high quality.

[Miller]

Im partial to the T/C Contender platform. With it the possiblilities are endless as far as hunting squirrels to cape buffalo. Just slap on a different barrel for each application, and off you go. I have one and I use it as my backup deer/elk/varmint gun. It truely is versatile!