I have since I was a Kid on my dads "was in the country" Farm I had all types of Firearms , My older brother collected cowboy guns , and tried gunsmithing a little , My older cousin was a gun dealer for a short time .And he sold and collected all kinds of Army stuff ,from Lugers to Anti tank guns .And I kind of picked up a gun from time to time ,did some banging around then moved on to something else selling and buying , I did a lot of shooting with my cousin from the gun shop .And almost considered some competition , I think the most fun shooting was with Black powder guns ,It was kind of a all day event ,You would spend a few hours shooting then the rest of the day cleaning and or repairing the dam things , One gun I would NOT most likely sell is a Parker Hale 1858 Enfield rifled musket made in 1973 . Its is still a great Gun and is vary well made,accurate too unlike some of the high buck  "Cheapies from Italy" made today . And guns made in England are gone forever now . ON to the Hand guns ! I think I have shot almost every hand gun made ,from competitive Air guns & 22es to 44 mags and pistol shotguns and semi-auto sub machine guns as well as all the real things to ,Civil War Cannons and Anti Tank guns .Also if you hang around gun people long enough you can be involved with gun related accidents or close calls as I know well . I have had many and shot more autos and revolvers than most people ,and have seen some vary impressive close calls ,most with Cheap revolvers and a lot more with auto pistols cheap or not .And a lot of other stupid stuff Cannons included. OK hear is the deal ! I have seen fewer close calls with high quality revolvers& single shot bolt action rifles than any other kind of modern firearms total . Years ago I even built a few custom guns for my cousin and helped a cop that was a old high school friend tune up guns for competition (he was a vary good pistol shot). And with a cheap Tec 22 that I told him not to buy ,he shot himself in the hand trying to clear a jam (not to bad though) I proof fired many hand guns to see what gun was the best to carry and use quickly . My Cop friend was sold on Glocks (most likely by the same salesman that sold him the Tec22) .Revolvers can be fired as fast as a autos or faster by some people . Revolvers are almost always more accurate than Autos ,their are a few bad revolvers and their are a few great Autos . But most of the time a Mid priced revolver will out shoot a high priced military type Auto any day of the week at over 25 yards,and 45 long Colt peace maker can be good to 100 yds in the right hands  . Well Wild Bill could gun down a bad guy at 75 yards with his trusty 36 Colt cap and ball 6 shot revolver ! When Autos came out in the late 1880 the Wild West Showmen and Showgirls would not use them . They tried but gave up . Most loved the Colt peacemaker 45 the best , I do to, but for safety and accuracy its hard to beat a S&W 357 mag I think one of the best buys is a 686 6 shot with a 4 or 41/2 inch barrel made in Stainless Steel and it will never rust . it can be a bit heavy so a Alloy light frame might be better to conseal carry or a 5 shot S&W air weight in 357 mag . Why 357 ,simple it hits harder than 9mm and has more range than 45 auto . Less recoil than 44mag & 45 long colt or all the mag Autos and as a nice bonus you can shoot cheaper 38 sp for practice , And if you don't do some practice chances are you will not be able to hit any thing when you need to . Why the S&W , I did a bench rest test (gun sand bagged as well as from a vice ) with a few revolvers , A 357 Colt Python 6 inch barrel  , a 357 Ruger GP 100 6 inch barrel , A Colt Peace maker in 357 5 inch barrel and a 357 S&W SS 686 Coast Guard Model with a 41/2 barrel .All shooting the same hand loaded rounds , To my surprise the best accuracy came from the S&W with the shorter barrel, The two Colts came in next but they had longer barrels , The Ruger GP 100 was so bad a lot of short barrel Autos would be better ,A CZ 75 auto 9mm and a Auto Ordnance Government 38 super EZ ly out shot the  GP 100 But the GP 100 is still a safe solid hand gun , Much better than Ruger's Junky larger than 22 cal.autos ,all of them . I have had 5 different Rugers (not related to Lugers) and I will never have another at any price(well maybe $10 bucks but I would not keep it )  . Almost all newer revolvers are ez to understand ,side roll out cylinders are ez to load and check to see if loaded .Open hammer single and double action type can be fired vary fast and or accurate . In a fight 6 accurate shots are better than 13 wild shots any day .And in the real world if you need to fire more than 5 shots in a gun battle you should not even be there, time to call in a air strike Thats what the Army dose  . If you were in the Army and you shoot up a clip of rounds its time to call Tac Air and dorp some bombs or bring up a Tank  . Most Auto pistols are made for Military fire power like auto rifles and extra mags can be high buck ,many people buy Autos and just have one clip or just carry one in the gun and not one in the pocket , So shoot your 7 or 8 or 13 shots now reload that clip . I can reload a revolver with rounds out of a shirt pocket faster than you could reload a MT clip and get it back in the auto any day  .Its just one other thing to think about with autos . Also almost all top of the line revolvers can be dropped on the hammer off a two story building and not fire . The safety is you must pull the trigger and turn the cylinder to fire the gun .Old peace makers are not made with that safety ,And must be stored loaded on a MT chamber or don't store loaded at all .Cops and Carry for self defence people rarely fire more than one or two shot in a engagement .And if so they need back up fast not two more clips .And if you are in a war and burn up a clip or two you don't need a shot gun or a machine gun ,you need a flock of jets and a radio . If I had to have only one do it all hand gun I would have any all steel (the tupperware belongs in the kitchen not a holster )or Stainless steel S&W 357 revolver with a 4 to 41/2 inch barrel , If conceal carry I would go for a 5 shot alloy light weight .If open holstered for service and for hunting it would be a 6 shot and Stainless Steel .No peril handles and Chrome plating (quote George S Patton " Only a pimp would carry a gun with Peril handles " His Colt Peace maker,and 1911 Colt Auto were Silver also not Chrome plated and the grips Ivory not peril ,Patton had real class ! Last item You can get nice speed loaders for all Colt and S&W revolvers ,with speed loaders and practice you can load a revolver as fast as most Autos , Although Patton took no chances ,he carried a S&W in 38 sp a 45 Colt Peace maker and a   45 auto Colt Gov. all with Ivory handles and hot plated in Silver can be seen at Fort Knox  Ky . And if you just can't live with out a Auto pistol a 1911 Colt Gov in 45 acp(just like Patton,s with out the solid silver filling " its cheaper") or in 38 super ,they have a lot of safetys built in and jams are vary ez to clear made by Colt ,Auto Ordinance , Springfield Arms,and a few others Auto Ordinance would be my first choice . On the other hand I have seen a lot of people do lots of stupid things with guns ,most people have a hard time just handling the responsiblity of driving a car and people like that really need a lot more firearm and law training than driving a car to use guns .No matter ,a gun accident is just that a "Accident" the issue is treated like a federal crime ,Car and motorcycle accidents are not . Our problem is not to control gun ownership ,its to get people better trained with responsiblity's "ALL OF THEM "and we act like they don't even exists or should not (people having responsiblity that is)And the guns are just supposed to go away in time and that will fix everything. If the Bill of Rights had never been drafted ,people still would have the human right of self defence ,Other wise you are in the hands of real evel of the powers that be .And we are getting closer end every day .People who give up their freedoms for security have nether. If you a agree vote Yes  below if Not vote no Thanks

Best revolvers My dream list from first to last . Smith&Wesson 6 shot 686 .357 with smaller round stocks in stainless mat 4 " or 41/2' barrel looks like Model 65 also a good choice Model 65 in 3"&4" Barrel with SS frame .

 S&W mod 37 Chiefs Special "Air weight"  nice carry gun .

 S&W 629 44 mag but use 44 Special 4" barrel will due fine long range gun 6" or 8" for hand gun hunting also 41 mag Mod 657 for smaller hands and more control .

 Colt King Cobra in 357 4' barrel priced well for Colts .

 Colt Single action Army 5 in barrel "peace maker" in 45 long colt or copy by Cimarron Arms 1873 mod better price .Fast out of a open  holster good long range gun. best DA 45 long colt gun is a Dan Wesson with a longer then 5 inch barrel .

 And if you must have a Auto Loader with lots of clips Any Military Government 1911 Colt "Browning" look a like all steel 45 acp will do just fine. As well as all the spin offs of the same design. I am not a big fan of 9mm .38 super has better stopping power . Our Military only uses 9mm now to make ammo resupply simple ,most Army sub machine guns in service today are 9mm because 45acp just created to many supply problems. More over side arms (hand guns and knives)for military use are a last resort when all else fails .

 Don't Buy List .

   Almost Any Ruger hand gun . Most Ruger newer Revolvers are cheaply made useing lost wax casted of gun parts that have a low amount of mechine work done to finish the job . I have never fired a Ruger made after 1967 that was as accurate as another quality made look a like ,crafted by another maker . Also I checked out one of Ruger,s 9mm cheap part plastic auto loaders a friend wanted to know if the sights had a problem . The thing did not have sight problems ,the groups were so bad the thing did not need sights at 25 yards ,their was little chance of hitting a Barn let alone a standard target . And I have heard that same story by other Ruger auto buyers . P85 and Newer mostly plastic guns. Rugers Mark 2 standard and target 22s still seem to be a accurate and functionable gun ,but hard to brake down for cleaning or repair .Their are lots of 22s that are better .

  The AMT auto mag 2 is one of the worst 22 for hitting anything I have ever fired also it was the highest Db noise wise to .Other AMT Auto Mage also seem to have mechanical problems (Lots of storys here).

 LLama s  seem to be cheaply made and may need replacement parts from time to time "Parts can be hard to find"   Star same thing ! And Llama  s are not cheap to buy as well as Star .Spend a few extra bucks and get something else quality .

  Some Smith & Wesson Auto s in double action fail to fire different brands of ammo .And their Auto 22 jams a lot and all can be hard to clear jams . I would just stay away from all Smith & Wesson "AUTOS"  .Revolvers all seem just fine accurate and reliable . Don't take one to a gun fight !

 Most F I E guns have quality problems as well as Iver Johnson , Jennings , and Mitchell arms cowboy guns as well as their China autos .

 Rossi Guns work ok when new but will not hold up with a lot of use . I have seen cylinder dogs were out fast 5 to 6 hundred rounds and some times as few as 1 hunderd .

 I have seen Taurus revolvers were out fast also ,They are nice looking copys of the S&W line and should do better . Taurus autos are copys of some models of Beretta s and function just as good but I have noted PT 99 barrel problems .

 Almost all old Walther P-38 s have slide spring problems and accuracy can be a problem ,also not for gun fights. replace the slide springs and they will be close to reliable .And will shot better than a Ruger P 85 any day .All other Walthers are good for what they were built to do .

 Grendel - If you buy one I think you will be sorry  Tec guns same thing !

 Glock  They shoot good ,reliable and are some what accurate ,but the tupperwere belongs in the kitchen not in a holster .The shorter barreled models bounce wird and badly .second shot can be slow . And they are not Cheap for a Plastic gun . Sorry Glock Lovers !  One thing on Plastic guns they are light to carry and thats the attraction . A Glock and Glock looks with a like 4.5 inch barrel, weight is 22 oz  and a Colt Commander alloy frame weight is 28 oz ,With only 6 oz more I will take the Colt any day . The all steel big goverement auto is only 39 oz .

  H& K small hand guns are real personel you either like them or you dis like them .Accuracy is standard military ,also a 100 percent reliable hand guns ,but they feel a bit strange to shoot . Anyhow with the dollar in the crapper the H&Ks are overpriced for what they are real bad . As well as Sig /Sauer , Walther ,Beeman and some Hammerli guns their are a lot of guns that will do the same job Cheaper ! These guns are made well but due to the sinking buck are not good buys.

 UZI Reliable but will not fight a hip holster ,Military accurate gun only .

 A lot of Military Sub machine guns in simi auto are called hand guns .they also have no stocks . Most are poor self defence guns ,To big and most need the stocks for control . And they are not conceal carry to big ,way to heavy . Military accuracy and reliablity is expected from such guns . Thats Accuracy good Reliability Great ! consider them gun play toys in most hands .