Best Starting Caliber

[navydad2010]

If I were to start over since I was a young gun decades ago, I would have listened to folks and gone with the .22LR.

Of course, I didn't listen and went with a snubnosed .38/.357. Over the years I had established so many bad habits from stance to trigger, and took many instructors and countless hours to unlearn/correct them. Yet, even now whenever I was tired or tried new guns, sometimes my 'ol bad habits would surface again.

I sincerely recommend the .22LR and a good pistol like the Browning Buck Mark, use a lot of patient to practice practice practice with classes until the instructor releases to move up the caliber. The reward will go a long way in life.

^^^This^^^ No matter what you ultimately carry, you must first be proficient, period. The best way to develop shooting skill is to acquire good habits. Repetition aids that, .22 is cheap to shoot. Everyone needs a .22 LR in the collection. May as well start out with a good one. If you get a Ruger 22/45, the transition to 1911 ergonomics' is a snap. Every range session with a pistol STARTS with 50 to 60 rounds of .22 LR. Single action, aim small, miss small, or 22/45 if shooting a bottom feeder.Gets the breathing and muscle memory all dialed back in.

[tbc]

I am going against the popular recommendations in here.

Shoot the 40 first. You need to overcome the evil flinch that is already implanted in your head and the best way to deal with it is the 40 caliber.

[brettkeating]

Not only do I agree .22 is best to learn on, I would say a .22 revolver is best among them. You can take advantage of a learning technique that involves putting empty rounds in random places in the cylinder.

[trigger945]

Knowing what I know now - with around just 1.5 years of shooting experience and having shot approx. 30,000 rds of various caliber - I would most likely introduce a new shooter to a .22 LR handgun, although probably not a .22 LR revolver as the double action can be quite stiff and the fun factor might not be there. But once such new shooter becomes comfortable that's when I will introduce the .22 LR revolver.

That's probably what I would do if I were to start over. Start with my 1911-22, then with my Model 34 and then with a Sig Mosquito. Once I get the discipline and consistency down, I will progress to a striker fired or SA/DA in 9mm.

But I also recognize the challenge with having someone not enjoy the .22 LR due to its lack of recoil. I was once there. In fact, I started a thread before and mentioned that and got flak for it. CSACannoneer was one to call me out

That's where I stand. Good luck!

[Zartan]

Start with .454 Casull in a snub nose

[jarhead714]

I've always been a big proponent of .22WMR as opposed to LR because it sounds and recoils more like how you think a "gun" should.

[CSACANNONEER]

Knowing what I know now - with around just 1.5 years of shooting experience and having shot approx. 30,000 rds of various caliber - I would most likely introduce a new shooter to a .22 LR handgun, although probably not a .22 LR revolver as the double action can be quite stiff and the fun factor might not be there. But once such new shooter becomes comfortable that's when I will introduce the .22 LR revolver.

That's probably what I would do if I were to start over. Start with my 1911-22, then with my Model 34 and then with a Sig Mosquito. Once I get the discipline and consistency down, I will progress to a striker fired or SA/DA in 9mm.

But I also recognize the challenge with having someone not enjoy the .22 LR due to its lack of recoil. I was once there. In fact, I started a thread before and mentioned that and got flak for it. CSACannoneer was one to call me out

That's where I stand. Good luck!

I find it amusing that some people feel the need to feel recoil. I can only assume that the majority of those (not necessarily you) who need recoil are trying to compensate for ???? They tend to be new shooters who are more worried about chest pounding and looking cool to their buddies then actually learning proper shooting techniques. Don't get me wrong, I own a big Dodge Power Wagon and shoot some large stuff including 50BMGs but, I also love shooting .22lrs and understand the importance of learning on an easier platform before moving to something that can be a bit harder to handle. I also have also driven an '84 Escort and an '87 Corolla. Hell, most people learn to drive on automatic trans before moving to a manual transmission with 600hp.

[Bobby Ricigliano]

Knowing what I know now - with around just 1.5 years of shooting experience and having shot approx. 30,000 rds of various caliber

At an average of 385 rounds per week fired, you must have a lot of money and a lot of free time.

[wu_dot_com]

At an average of 385 rounds per week fired, you must have a lot of money and a lot of free time.

300-500 rounds are an average session... that is 30 to 50 mags with 10 rds reach.

its really not that hard when its once a week.

I was putting 1500 rds of 22LR per week back when they were cheaper. clearing a 5 K bulk box every month for about a good year.

this is hardly anything compare to some other competition shooters.

i remember reading that you need a minimum of 100K rounds to be really proficient for entry pro level. the duration of that 100K rounds needs to be relatively quick too (with in 2-3 years)

[CSACANNONEER]

At an average of 385 rounds per week fired, you must have a lot of money and a lot of free time.

???????? I can load most handgun rounds I shoot from .25acp to .44mag and .45LC for less than 6 cents a round. Primer, powder and my cast bullets from free lead are all it takes. Yea, I buy components when I find them for low prices and 6 cents is really over estimating my out of pocket expenses.

[wu_dot_com]

???????? I can load most handgun rounds I shoot from .25acp to .44mag and .45LC for less than 6 cents a round. Primer, powder and my cast bullets from free lead are all it takes. Yea, I buy components when I find them for low prices and 6 cents is really over estimating my out of pocket expenses.

6 cents per round is pretty manageable. I was averaging between 3.26 cents for bulk pack training and 5 cents for SV .22 LR benchmark test.

no reload needed.

[trigger945]

At an average of 385 rounds per week fired, you must have a lot of money and a lot of free time.

My apologies if that was the impression you (and probably some other people) got from my post. I was trying to put proper context into my post so I mentioned the round count and length of time. I was in no way implying anything else.

I don't want this thread to be hi-jacked any further so let's get back to the topic, shall we?

OP: Starting with .22 LR is my recommendation. If I were to start all over again, that's what I would do. I hope this helps. Good luck!

[BOOGIEMAN]

IMO, a .22 is not a good starter caliber. They are generally not nearly as accurate as bigger calibers. The guns are usually not as well engineered or built, and the ammo is rarely consistent. They are fun to shoot though.

LOL!!!! You are right one out of five. They are fun to shoot!

[ElDub1950]

Not disagreeing with anyone above, nor claiming any qualifications to do so.

But from a consumer point of view...

If I was looking for an introduction to shooting, I'd be glad to have any of the above with experience training, and be glad they recommended a 22LR.

BUT if I was looking for an introduction to self defense/home defense handguns, and the instructor insisted I have a 22LR, I'd go elsewhere.

So IMHO it really depends on the reason for the purchase. Many people can't afford to lay out $200-$400 on a decent 22LR pistol knowing they'd have to replace it with a more suitable SD pistol in the very near future. But many people want to get into shooting sports and a good 22LR pistol will serve them well for many years, regardless of what they add to their collection.

The OPs original premise was that the initial purchase is for sd/hd so a 22 may not be suitable.

While safety, gun handling and basic marksmanship is probably easier to learn with a 22LR, I don't think there's any reason the same skills can not be learned with a common SD/HD caliber, and some good instruction.

[trigger945]

^^^ Good point.

I don't want to get into a discussion on whether a .22 is sufficient enough for HD/SD as that has been discussed plenty of times over here.

I just want to say that you present a good angle to the argument. I think the OP and many others will find value to your post.