What criteria goes into recommending a pistol.
It is not easy to make weapon recommendations. Many factors must be taken into account before hand.
The traits below will make a huge difference in one’s selection and need to be considered before an accurate pistol recommendation can be made.
Some criteria to consider:
- Male or female with big or small hands
- Strong or weak hands
- Good posture or weak posture
- Familiar or unfamiliar with firearms
- Willing or unwilling to practice manipulating the gun
People often have biases or preconceived notions toward a particular type of gun or bullet caliber. Some beliefs are founded on good logic and others have none. But if the bias exists then a requisite also exists.
We must also consider the intended use. Some want home defense, others want to carry the weapon. Some want to shoot for pleasure, while others want to learn armed self defense. Each of these choices may or may not require a different gun or caliber recommendations.
Also, I have my own biases toward caliber and weapon functionality. However, I don’t want my biases to influence your choices as a rule. What I use and why I use it is particular to my personal beliefs and the influence of my lineage of teachers. Mainly, a large caliber for maximum effect in a tried and proven reliable gun.
But, the 1911 45 a.c.p. is not for everyone.
Since many of our students come to our academy looking for pistol recommendations, I try to accommodate without pushing my personal biases against other platforms much. But I am biased and my biases will show from time to time. I will admit, some of the striker fired weapons have made tremendous improvements in their trigger systems as of late. They used to be very poor with a less than smooth, sticky feel from the beginning to the end of the stroke.
Another challenge, one person can’t keep up will all the various guns on the market. No single person can be expected to know each and every improvement that the manufacturers made over the years.
And, what’s popular isn’t alway what’s ideal. There are way too many stupid features and stupidly designed guns on the market. No manufacturer is going to redesign their great selling guns regardless of its poor functionality or dangerous features. No “Gun Shop Commando”, as my late instructor Michael Harries called them, will deny selling you a piece of junk because “he” thinks it’s great. Oh and, he’s on the other side of the counter so he thinks he knows better than you.
While we’re on the topic, lets mention the “it feels good” fallacy. Just because it felt good in the store doesn’t mean its a good gun or that it’s the right gun for you. The best gun is a gun that you can control, not necessarily a gun that feels good to you at the time of purchase.
Okay, now you know the difficulties of recommending a pistol. Let’s get to the list of recommended guns you say.
Not so fast! Lets schedule a Pistol Basics class or Contact Us for a Free Evaluation first.
