Own House -> Own Gun

[OldCannon]

I also did some research. Turns out the sidearm I had in the dutch army was a 3rd gen Glock 17. They are currently on the 4th gen, are there any advantages / disadvantages any of you Glock owners can think of?

First: Congrats on the baby girl! Now you have a complete family to protect!

Second: The differences between the Gen4 and Gen3 are subtle, and most parts are interchangeable. The grip texture on the Gen4 is nicer (in my opinion), but you will not notice much else externally. You can find a new Glock 17 Gen3 online for about $500, plus whatever transfer fees a local FFL will charge you (between $20-$40 usually). You should be able to find used police trade-in Glock 17s (Gen3) for around $400. Nothing wrong with them at all, and Glocks last forever.

One thing to consider is a .40 S&W Glock (Glock 22 or Glock 23). You can find inexpensive police trade-ins for that too. Some people don't like the snappier recoil, but it is a VERY common caliber in the law enforcement world, so you might find better deals.

[Justice]

Long time no post... But a bit of an update;

I was in Cabella's not too long ago talking about what I needed to do to purchase a gun. As others stated in this thread a long while back was the green card, drivers licence and 90 days worth of utility bills in name and address. I tried both the Gen 3 and Gen 4, and decided to go ahead and purchase a 3rd Gen Glock 17. I really dislike the Gen 4's grip texture. And after watching videos on the net it seems the Gen 4's don't eject their rounds with purpose, increasing stovepiping. I never had any failures to eject with my duty glock, and since that was a Gen 3 it is a no-brainer.

After the paperwork I was, as I already expected, delayed. They'll know tomorrow most likely, and if they don't hear anything the 31st will be the first day I am officially a armed legal resident alien. In my house... for now. The reason why it all happened now is I've been talking gun with guys I work with, and they kept saying; "Get one, so we can go shoot together,". I will be going to do my CHL with them as well come May, using the glock to qualify.

I haven't shot one in nearly a decade. And I wagered a 6 pack of shiner that I would be able to shoot a round in the bulls-eye at 5 yards within 3 shots. Not impossible, and in my heyday it was simple. I'll know if glocking is like bicycling soon enough. Weaver, Breathe in, breathe out 3/2ds and hold, target fuzzy, sights sharp... gently squeeze the trigger and see your intended target hit.

That is... if I don't get denied for some weird reason...

I'll keep you updated.

[03Lightningrocks]

Justice - when you buy that first handgun, inquire about basic pistol classes in your area. You need to introduce your wife to firearm safety and fundamentals so that she will be more comfortable with having a firearm in the house.

Best advice on the entire thread. There is also a women's section on this forum that may be of interest to her. Realizing she isn't alone in her concerns and reading advice from other women might be helpful.

Good Luck with the situation! I knew a guy some thirty years ago that had a theory about training bird dogs. When they were pups, he would fire a shot gun near them while they ate... Shock therapy was not a good technique. That guys dogs would be the first ones under the truck at the first barrage of gunfire when the quail busted loose. We only invited him alomg so we would have someone to make fun of. Introduce her slowly and she will come around... In your face never works well...LOL.


Edit... Holy cow!!! I just saw how old this thread was! I'm not deleting my great post anyway.

[Justice]

Hahaha! Yes, I bumped an ancient thread. But it was mine, and it almost seems to become sort of a story from start to finish.

[Justice]

Well, I can officially call myself an armed legal resident alien. They called the next day just before I had to go to work to tell me everything came back OK. I shall refrain from posting any pictures, as everyone knows what a Glock 17 looks like.

I also picked up a case of 20 federal hydro-shocks and 100 rounds of remington 9mm plinking ammo. I'll most likely take it to the range in the near future, after I clean it thoroughly. It is currently up-stairs, with a loop lock trough the barrel. One mag is loaded with the hydroshocks, and sits in my gun case. The wife feels awkward, and to some extent I do as well. But it'll pass. I know I will have lots of fun with it. And hopefully those hydro-shocks will never need to be used. $650 out the door for the lot. Quite a lot of dough. But I only have to do that once. (until I go for a Baretta M9 or 1911)

[03Lightningrocks]

Well, I can officially call myself an armed legal resident alien. They called the next day just before I had to go to work to tell me everything came back OK. I shall refrain from posting any pictures, as everyone knows what a Glock 17 looks like.

I also picked up a case of 20 federal hydro-shocks and 100 rounds of remington 9mm plinking ammo. I'll most likely take it to the range in the near future, after I clean it thoroughly. It is currently up-stairs, with a loop lock trough the barrel. One mag is loaded with the hydroshocks, and sits in my gun case. The wife feels awkward, and to some extent I do as well. But it'll pass. I know I will have lots of fun with it. And hopefully those hydro-shocks will never need to be used. $650 out the door for the lot. Quite a lot of dough. But I only have to do that once. (until I go for a Baretta M9 or 1911)

WooHoo!!! Congrats! I have a gen one Glock 17 I purchased in 1986(?) time flies when your having fun. Great weapon... That thing has been through heck and back and is still a tack driver. Great weapon choice!! You will love it. Be sure and give us the range report. For some darned reason, some of us tend to shoot our groups to the left of center with Glocks. I put more of my finger on the trigger and the problem corrected itself. Maybe I am weird...LOL.

[Originalist]

Justice,

Give the wife time.... Way back when (2005) when I got married the wife was opposed to guns in the house. (We were a ready made family with her having 2 and me 1 previously). After several months of talking we decided 1 in the house would be ok and as long as it wasn't on my person, there was never one in the chamber. We started out with a Taurus PT111 because it had an external safety then when I liked the Beretta 9000S or 8000S or something (its been forever) in a .40 caliber, with the 1 gun rule.... I sold the Taurus and bought the Beretta but it was big and bulky and hard for the wife to shoot (she was coming around to the idea of guns at this point and liked going to the range together). So one day, at Outdoor Sportsman I saw and fell in love with a Springfield XD9SC (2006) and bought it... of course the one gun rule was still in effect so the beretta went away. Shortly after buying the XD (and our "conversations" about the lack of an external safety) I had an ND, totally my fault and I am thankful no one was hurt (I followed rule 1 but not rule 2). Well fast forward to 2012 and now I have my XD9SC, an XDm .40 and my wife has a Taurus PT 111 (Pink polymer frame) and a Taurus .22 (Hot Pink - her description, not mine) plus we are talking about me getting a Glock when I get back (Not sure which one but most likely a .40 of some design). BTW, the XDm was a birthday gift from the wife, so hope is not lost!

We actually introduced a second gun in the home in 2010 (She went and bought me a LCP while I was deployed and we traded that for the Taurus)... Good luck and happy shooting!

[Justice]

Be sure and give us the range report. For some darned reason, some of us tend to shoot our groups to the left of center with Glocks. I put more of my finger on the trigger and the problem corrected itself. Maybe I am weird...LOL.

Willdo, might take a week or two before I go though. And left center is pretty much a given if you jerk the trigger somewhat. I was thought that only the first digit should be used to pull the trigger for accurate shot placement. But everyone has their own technique.

Justice,

Give the wife time.... Way back when (2005) when I got married the wife was opposed to guns in the house. (We were a ready made family with her having 2 and me 1 previously). After several months of talking we decided 1 in the house would be ok and as long as it wasn't on my person, there was never one in the chamber. We started out with a Taurus PT111 because it had an external safety then when I liked the Beretta 9000S or 8000S or something (its been forever) in a .40 caliber, with the 1 gun rule.... I sold the Taurus and bought the Beretta but it was big and bulky and hard for the wife to shoot (she was coming around to the idea of guns at this point and liked going to the range together). So one day, at Outdoor Sportsman I saw and fell in love with a Springfield XD9SC (2006) and bought it... of course the one gun rule was still in effect so the beretta went away. Shortly after buying the XD (and our "conversations" about the lack of an external safety) I had an ND, totally my fault and I am thankful no one was hurt (I followed rule 1 but not rule 2). Well fast forward to 2012 and now I have my XD9SC, an XDm .40 and my wife has a Taurus PT 111 (Pink polymer frame) and a Taurus .22 (Hot Pink - her description, not mine) plus we are talking about me getting a Glock when I get back (Not sure which one but most likely a .40 of some design). BTW, the XDm was a birthday gift from the wife, so hope is not lost!

We actually introduced a second gun in the home in 2010 (She went and bought me a LCP while I was deployed and we traded that for the Taurus)... Good luck and happy shooting!

Those are indeed rules to live by. Although I feel that the #1 rule of gun ownership would be assume it's loaded, even if you know it's not. You really do not want to know how many times I checked it. I never had an ND and am not planning on one ever. The wife says she is uncomfortable, but she did tell me she'll go to the range with me in the future. Which is a start. I am quite sure I can convince her to handle the weapon at home, and when she knows and lives by the basics, shoot at the range as well.

I actually showed the weapon to my inlaws and brother in law today. I triple checked the weapon to make sure it was empty after dropping the mag. Guess where all their fingers went? Inside the trigger guard. I grabbed their fingers and put it on the body of the weapon. "no touchie the trigger unless you want to destroy what is in front of you" is what I replied. My brother in law never even held any type of firearm before and was amazed by the weight. I said that the Glock is one of the lightest full duty firearms, and it did not even have a magazine in it loaded with ammunition. Racking the slide was another adventure for him. "Damn, in the movies it looks all so easy," to which I replied "The movies are _______, besides, how many times do you see people in movies have their fingers on the trigger 24-7? A lot of times, and it annoys the _______ out of me,"

It was a basic gun safety training almost, and I'll take them to the range whenever I have found out the good ones, and have shot a few times. I got to get the rust off my gun skills myself when it comes to shooting!

And to see if I could pull a Glock 17 off concealed I literally put it in my waistband at various positions. I can tell you it is possible. I am 5'11 and 180 pounds, so about average. I was surprised, I thought it would stick out like a sore thumb. At winter time there is no issues. But that is for when I get my CHL. And even then I doubt I would walk everywhere with it in my free time.

One final thing, does anyone have any recommendations on hearing and eye protection for a reasonable price? I like the idea of being able to change lenses (clear / yellow / smoke). I used to have a "cheap" pair back in my MP days, but those are long gone / still in the mother country. And hearing muffs come in many shapes and sizes, but I am sure some of you bought some that sucked, and I would like to be spared from such a thing if possible.

[Justice]

Well... guess what... If everything goes as planned I will be having my CHL class together with one of my buddies at work May 19th. It will be a small one day class with people he knows. Don't know all the details, but it is pretty certain this is going to happen.

[Justice]

So, I finally got to the range and shot off 75 rounds. It was 9 years since I last pulled a trigger, so I wasn't expecting a whole lot.

I did have a friendly bet with one of my co-workers that I would be able to hit the bulls-eye on a target placed at 7 yards away with my first 3 shots. The bet was a 6 pack of shiner bock. The left target is obviously the one I shot at first. When the first round fired I looked at the target and saw that it was in the bulls-eye. 7 yards is not a huge distance, but I was pretty pleased. I posted the picture you see here on facebook and tagged him, so he is aware. I will see him tomorrow, at which point I will tell him to pay his dues. He'll probably say "I wasn't there" and "nonsense". But I do not inflate my own capabilities. That is just not me.

I went to Bullet Trap in Plano. It was raining last Friday, so I had no choice but to go there. Pricy as a non-member (18.99) but not too bad considering I would have paid more in gas if I went to elm fork as I originally intended. They where helpful, and placed me in the #18 lane. It was the far right one, and one of 5 lanes. Must be the premium booth or something. I am thinking about becoming a member once I shoot more. In order to make it worth my while I will have to go once a month. And that isn't happening for a while yet.

I shot 3 distances;

7 yards (picture above) 15rnds
10 meters (all but 4 in the red) 30rnds
15 yards (15 yards had 4 missed, but all still on the paper. Interestingly it was my last 15rnd clip. The first 15 where all good, 10 in the red, 5 out. I guess my arms where getting tired the last 15) 30rnds

The funny thing was there was a guy next to me shooting silhouette, and upped his range to 10 meters to match mine and he was all over the place. As in, he actually missed the silhouette completely and was in the white paper quite a few times. Shooting to the right, with a Glock... It was loud though, much louder than my 9mm. When I looked over I noticed 357 boxes. There was a shock-wave every time he fired. I have noticed most of my rounds tend to go to the left, which is in line with "jerking" the trigger. The few times I actually made an effort to still my breathing and squeeze lightly till the glock fired it was pretty dead on.

I loved every minute of it, and I was happy I picked my old friend the Glock 17. And even happier the 2nd amendment is there, even for greencard holders such as myself! God bless America!

I am going to be able to shoot the CHL requirement with being out of practice for 9 years. And they just give those first 100 points away at 3 yards. You could qualify for that blindfolded. That is pretty scary... CHL class should be on the 19th (next Saturday). I was going to cancel if I was rubbish, but I am good. Going for 200 points on the 3 and 7, and then I am not having to worry about where my shots land on the 15. Wish me luck!

[Jumping Frog]

Good Luck!