Because I just went out at night after a day of work and spent $113.57 on new magazines and ammo for my firearm.
Ok, so I did have a rationalizationreason to do so that was work related, as follows:
On Monday my fellow security guard, who has worked as an armed guard for years and is quite knowledgable about guns, suggested to me that on the job I do NOT carry the full-metal jacket rounds that I target shoot with. (I did specifically ask the head of the security agency when I started if there was a required grade of ammunition, and he said no.) My coworker urged me to use jacketed hollow-point (JHP) rounds when serving on duty- less chance of overpenetration. I had to agree it seemed like sound advice. Also, I suffered penis envywas impressed by his firearm, a Glock (don’t remember the model) that holds 13+1 .45 caliber rounds in a double-stacked magazine -that gun has a grip almost as big as a Desert Eagle!. Given that I would want to keep my duty rounds in their own magazine anyway, I decided to look around for a high-capacity magazine for my .40 caliber Beretta, which was shipped with AWB-era ten-round magazines.
Long story short, my trusty gun range turned out to have 15-round magazines available, and I felt I just had to go out and buy two of them, plus the JHP ammo.
Sounds like a Glock 21 series (13+1 of .45 ACP gives it away), there are two main models of G21’s
G21; has the magazine release button on the left side of the frame, so the right thumb can drop the empty mag, the G21’s grip width can best be described as “husky”
G21SF (Slim Frame), a G21 grip that’s gone on a slight diet, it’s shorter front-to-back, and fits smaller hands a little better, the SF’s mag release is ambidextrous (the release button can be pushed from either side of the handle)
either one is a nice firearm, soft shooting, controllable recoil, I had one for a while, but sold it to get a Kimber Custom II 1911, my G21 (not the SF version) was a hair too wide for my hands, and the Kimber’s slim single-stack grip fit me perfectly, plus, I absolutely love it’s crisp single-action trigger
The rule of thumb is to spend as much on magazines in the first year of ownership as you spent on the firearm itself. Mags wear out, and it’s not like they’re always easy to find.
Now please do yourself a favour: go buy 200 more round of the JHP you intend to carry, and fire them all through the pistol. Yes, it’s expensive, but your life & health are worth it. If you have 2 or more malfs/jams, try another brand. Many law enforcement agencies in the US use either Golden Sabers or Hydra-Shock. Not all JHPs will feed reliably through all pistols. If you have to use these, chances are a jam would be highly inconvenient.
-trupa
1 .45 1911, 5 range mags + 2 home defence mags, gun nerd.
I agree w/trupa; I fire at least 200 rounds of my chosen defensive ammo through each of my guns which may be used for “social situations.”
But you need more magazines–4 mags does not a gun nut make. I like to have at least 5 on hand for each handgun. For my Glock 17 and 19 (home defense and carry guns, respectively), which take the same magazines, I probably have close to 30.
Be careful about describing yourself as a “gun nut” around non-shooters; it’s a loaded term (excuse the pun). “Firearms enthusiast” is a safer term to use when describing your hobby to people, IMHO.
An old friend once asked me to temporarily buy his gun collection from him until his divorce was worked out. I agreed, and it took half an hour to get them all out of his car. He made a list, so I could take it to my insurance agent. The total value (about $37,000) was more than I had paid for my modest house. The insurance agent’s jaw dropped when I handed her the list, and when she came to the word “Uzi,” she said she couldn’t write the policy.
He ended up “selling” the guns to someone else.
Right now, I have a few rounds for guns I don’t own, I own a holster for a gun I’ve never owned, and I do pick up power tools with my index finger straight. I also have a rifle (a gift) that I would not have bought for myself.
I don’t know if this is a good place to ask, but let’s give it a shot: what is the appeal?
I have gotten very enthused about HAM radio, photography, microprocessors… various things. There are all kinds of items to buy, books and magazines to read, clubs to join, and so forth. But you never hear about groups of these enthusiasts marching on Washington and influencing politicians. There’s no amendment protecting camera ownership, and so forth.
What’s the appeal of being a gun hobbiest? The same as almost anything else people enjoy owning and collecting. And if it were a serious possibility that the internal combustion engine might be banned from private ownership, you’d see car owners of all stripes marching on Washington too.
