Do you standardize on one caliber/platform?

[shooter4]

Standardizing your gun/ammo is not a bad idea. Simplifies your life. That being said I don't.......But my life is too complex too......I have 40/357sig barrels for my Glocks, 9mm Glocks and Steyrs, and 45 in HK and 1911 as well as Glock 30. What a mess........... If I had to do it all over again I'd stick with mainly 9mm everything..........Keep a 1911 cause we should always have one of these.........and maybe a 10mm for the woods in Glock 20.....but mainly 9mm...................don't do what i did ........too many calibers................

[Purplehood]

With the exception of my Micro Desert Eagle (.380), I stick to .40 S&W without a hammer. I am sure that there is a name for that type of pistol, but I have very little knowledge of what the terms single-action and double-action really mean.
KISS. And I do.
I apologize for exposing my gross ignorance, but on the up-side I learn tons of stuff on this forum almost every day.

[android]

Well, I'm pipe dreaming still, but I have it down to three calibers in my head.

I started with 9mm Luger because I can afford to shoot it right now. That's for my P2000sk. I'd also like to get a 9mm pocket gun and a Browning Hi Power in 9mm.

Next up will be a 1911 and a S&W 1917 revolver in .45ACP. Maybe an HK45 to round out the herd there.

And lastly, maybe another P2000sk in .40S&W just to have bit more punch available. I'm not sure on the .40, might just stick to 9mm and .45.

Oh, and a 22LR Walther P22 for my wife and daughter, but I don't really count that.

[shootthesheet]

I carry the same type of guns but not the same caliber. I don't carry anything with a manual safety that has to be removed or don't mix revolvers with pistols. I usually carry .45 in the colder months and 9mm or .380 in the warm months.

I try to shoot more when going from 9mm to .45 than the other way around simply because I have found my accuracy decreases. I guess it has to do with grip size and maybe recoil. I try not to switch once I start carrying one or the other because I find I don't grip the gun correctly if I switch back and forth. I use the same holster most of the time so the gun rides in the same place on both calibers. I plan to get a XD45 Compact and carry it for the cold and XD9 SC in the summer. I like the XD45 Compact and while the grip is larger it is closer than going from the XD9 to a Glock 21 or 30 and back.

Short answer is I try to standardize platform and caliber, and may someday, but I don't obsess about it. I just work with what I have and try to be aware of any transitions and do what is necessary to adjust.

[mr.72]

With the exception of my Micro Desert Eagle (.380), I stick to .40 S&W without a hammer. I am sure that there is a name for that type of pistol, but I have very little knowledge of what the terms single-action and double-action really mean.

Single-action and double-action refer to the effect of operating the trigger on the gun.

If the trigger performs two actions, notably (1) pulling the hammer or striker back ("cocking") and (2) releasing the cocked hammer or striker, then it is "double-action". If the trigger only releases the hammer or striker, which is cocked through some other action (such as the cycling of the slide or manually cocking), then it is single-action. If the trigger can cock the striker or hammer back, OR it can be manually cocked, then the pistol is DA/SA.

And on this note, some pistols have a hammer that hits a firing pin or other mechanism to hit the primer, and some just have a "striker" which is like a heavy firing pin with an integral spring. The "striker" is cocked back against the striker spring just like a hammer would be cocked back, and then released to hit the primer. The advantage of striker-fired pistols is that there is no exposed hammer and fewer moving parts.

Now, pragmatically speaking, there are very few Single Action Only (SAO) (requires manual cocking, or cocking by virtue of recoil cycling of the slide) pistols. There are a number of DAO pistols that actually operate with double-action ONLY such as a S&W Sigma or a shrouded hammer revolver. Many of the so-called "DAO" striker-fired pistols actually partially cock the striker on recoil and the trigger only pulls it back part of the way (Glock, Kahr, etc.). This is in order to reduce trigger effort and/or length.

To get back on topic, I would LIKE to standardize as much as possible or practical. I prefer 9mm DAO pistols. However, if the benefits of a different pistol outweigh the downside of deviating from my standard, then I might go for it, such as my LCP. I think there is a big benefit to having one cache of pistol ammo that can work in any of my guns, and a big advantage to having that ammo be the cheapest, and (formerly) most commonly available.

By the same token, I intend to standardize on rifle calibers as well. I have a .22LR rifle and my future rifle purchases will be limited to .223, 7.62x39 and .308, for the same reasons as my choice of 9mm for pistols: ubiquity and cost of ammo. Planning for the zombie apocalypse includes ammo stockpiles, which will be very difficult to acquire at $1+/round for .243 or .270WSM.

I have honestly considered the "bug out" options, and if we have to bug out, I don't want to have a mishmash of ammo to have to carry with me. Taking a few hundred or so rounds of 9mm and three or four guns that all use the same ammo sounds like a better plan. Also the size and weight of 100 rounds of pistol ammo affects both storage of a quantity of it, as well as impacting how easily it can be carried off in a bug-out scenario. Same goes for the rifle ammo above.

[Lindy]

Now, pragmatically speaking, there are very few Single Action Only (SAO) (requires manual cocking, or cocking by virtue of recoil cycling of the slide) pistols.

If you mean by "very few" types or designs of pistols, that's arguably correct.

If you mean the number of such pistols in existence, given that the description includes all 1911 pistols, I think you're arguably wrong... :D

[nitrogen]

Nah.

Though I would if I could get a really good 1911 in 9mm. I figured it was better to get one in native .45acp since I can get parts for it anywhere.

What I REALLY want is a small, lightweight, skinny 9mm, kinda like the G36 only regular sized and in 9mm.

[MoJo]

What I REALLY want is a small, lightweight, skinny 9mm, kinda like the G36 only regular sized and in 9mm.

What you need to look for is a S&W 3913 or 908 or a SIG 239 all three are single stack compact 9mm guns that are DA/DAO. The 3913 is out of production except for the Lady Smith model the 908 is the same gun blue with plain sights and non ambi safety/decock. There was a 908S that may still be made that was stainless-alloy.

I have a 3913 and love it if I could find a 3914 (DAO) at the right price I would snap it up.

[nitrogen]

Except for the slide-mounted safety, I'd probably agree :(

[mr.72]

What I REALLY want is a small, lightweight, skinny 9mm, kinda like the G36 only regular sized and in 9mm.

You mean, like a Kahr? Kahr CW9/P9/PM9 are very close to that description.

[mr.72]

Now, pragmatically speaking, there are very few Single Action Only (SAO) (requires manual cocking, or cocking by virtue of recoil cycling of the slide) pistols.

If you mean by "very few" types or designs of pistols, that's arguably correct.

If you mean the number of such pistols in existence, given that the description includes all 1911 pistols, I think you're arguably wrong... :D

Exactamundo.

Honestly I wasn't thinking 1911s when I wrote that. I never really think about 1911s :) 1911s are a whole class of firearms on their own.

[MoJo]

Except for the slide-mounted safety, I'd probably agree :(

Decock the gun disengage safety put in the holster - - - GTG. The safety just locks the trigger mechanism.

[03Lightningrocks]

What I REALLY want is a small, lightweight, skinny 9mm, kinda like the G36 only regular sized and in 9mm.

You mean, like a Kahr? Kahr CW9/P9/PM9 are very close to that description.

That was my first thought also. Perfect description of a Kahr

[KinnyLee]

I have consolidated my collection to 6 calibers.

9mm on Glocks G17 (G19 and G34 in future). None of the Glock mags will fit in my 1911s.
.45ACP on 1911s. None of my 1911 mags will fit in my Glocks.
5.7 x 28 for FN FiveseveN. That doesn't fit into anything but the FiveseveN.
.223 / 5.56 on all AR-15s.
7.62 x 51for my M1A
And last but not least.
12 Ga. for all my shotguns.

[Mike from Texas]

Nope. Why limit yourself to one caliber when each caliber does different tasks, well differently.

For the most part, I carry either a 9mm or 45. Occasionally I will carry my 10mm. I've been on a 10mm kick here of late though.

I do have at least one weapon in each NATO caliber; i.e. 9mm, 45ACP (I know not technically a NAT caliber anymore but there are lots of them out there), 5.56 and 7.62x51 (308). When the zombies come I should have no problem picking up spare ammo.

I do have a couple of oddball calibers like the 10mm and a 6.5 Grendel thrown in the mix as well.