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Hi y'all,
I always get good advice here so i keep asking questions :-)
I was looking to put a couple of guns in my car and my wife's. given that i need to buy 2 i'm not looking to spend too much on the guns.
on one hand i am buying it with the hope of never needing it but on the other hand i want to know it will be there for me/my wife if we need it. having said that i guess i'm looking for recommendations.
Some of the guns i consider: the hi-point guns (with the mixed reviews out there), the taurus, rossi, etc revolvers, there are also the the older eastern European models like the CZ-82 or the Polish P-64

Any help will be appreciated.

Three keys to consider on a car gun:

1. Cheap - a relative term to be sure ($500 gun may be cheap if your "other" gun is a $1,500 custom 1911). but generally speaking you want something that won't make you curl up in the fetal position and cry for three days if it is stolen

2. Reliable - important for an self-defense gun, but especially important for one that will likely sit for a long periods of time without use while being "ready" at all times, just in case.

3. Durable - weather-resistant is key if gun is kept in a vehicle in Texas heat. A gun with standard blue finish WILL RUST if left in a vehicle for a week. Hard chrome, stainless steel, tenifer-type finish, duracoat type finish.

and lastly, be sure gun is SECURE - keep it locked up in a combination-locked strong box if at all possible (I highly recommend http://www.consolevault.com" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false; )

A tough list of conditions for a generally cheap gun. A used Glock fits the bill perfectly if the price is within your grasp (some LEO trade ins can still be found in the $350 range if you look around hard enough).

Also LEO trade in S&W stainless revolvers are good choice - though usually these are least expensive in .38-caliber with 4-inch barrel and 6-shot cylinder. Try JGsales.com out of Arizona and some others. Any other good stainless revolver will work too ... Rossi has a two-inch barrel stainless 6-shot .357 that you can usually find used for about $300

the old Eastern block Makarovs and .380s also work, but be sure of the finish and account of extra TLC to avoid rust if necessary ... a Duracoat type finish would help a lot on these

S&W Sigmas are good reliable guns with awful triggers that usually can be found sub $300 used. And since the frame is polymer, only need worry about rust on slide/barrel, which are usually reasonably well coated from the elements.

If I had to buy 2 guns to throw in the trunk, they would be hi-points and I would just take the time to maintain them often. I would prefer the glocks but I dont have that kind of money. Thats just me

A-R covered the two I would personally go for first - S&W LEO trade-in (plenty of them, including stainless at J&G) and the Makarov. I already have a Makarov and it is a very good gun, but I don't keep it in the truck.

I don't have a "car gun". My gun(s) are on me and/or taken with me to the vehicle. Same with my wife's.

Don't have to worry about it(ones) being stolen or getting messed up.

Pay as much as you can to get a 100% reliable gun that always goes "bang".

JMO

A friend of mine saw an ad today from Cheaper than Dirt for 9mm and .40 Cal Springfield XDs in 3" and 4" sizes for $399.00

And then I went to the CTD website and searched for 9mm handguns, sorted by price, low to high. Here is the link: http://www.cheaperthandirt.com/ItemList ... catid=1732. The cheapest gun on the first page of the search is a S&W Sigma 4" for $296.96, and the most expensive gun on the first page is a Taurus 809 for $367.34.

None of them are what I would call "great" guns, but all of them are serviceable enough for vehicle duty, and several of them have stainless or titanium slides.

Ruger P Series. P89, P95, etc. Used they go for about $300. There is one in nearly every pawn shop seems like.Typically 100% reliable - makes a good car gun. I would carry one if it wasn't so large.

How about SIG 2022, for some $315 or so?

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewIt ... =245677842" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

I never worry about my car gun getting stolen, as long as you sign up for the NRA insurance it will be covered.

SAK wrote:Ruger P Series. P89, P95, etc. Used they go for about $300. There is one in nearly every pawn shop seems like.Typically 100% reliable - makes a good car gun. I would carry one if it wasn't so large.

this is the way to go. I have a p89 that functions ever single time, the only down side is they are like bricks to carry . do a search in the for sale section I know mine and a few others have posted them up for sale or trade.

Second that on a Ruger. P89 or a P95. Solid and reliable. When I was much younger, I carried a single shot breakdown 20 gauge with a box of shells inside my '72 El Camino.

As has already been said, it's hard to go wrong with the P-series pistols. I know that I've said this before, but I've had one for five years that's never once malfunctioned on me, including a stint in college where I was putting over 100 rounds of exceptionally cheap ammo through it a week and cleaning it maybe twice a year. Hard to carry (though it can be done - did it today, as a matter of fact), but tough to beat as a car/truck gun.

mrvmax wrote:I never worry about my car gun getting stolen, as long as you sign up for the NRA insurance it will be covered.

Stolen guns kill cops

for a "beater" to leave in the vehicle for extended periods of time.....i.e. neglected... I would stick with stainless, 3-4" bbl .357 revolvers. I'm not a big fan of Taurus or Rossi, but in this case it's a gun that probably won't be shot much (how do you practice defensive shooting through (your own) door panels and windshields without really ticking off the wife) so lifetime quality really isn't an issue. A truck gun is often left to withstand 120-150° annual temperature swings inside closed/locked vehicles with very little care. Sure a semi-auto can handle it, but oils and greases do evaporate and often can leave a crusty baked on residue if left uncared for over extended periods to dry out in our current temperatures where inside the vehicle can exceed crock pot temps. Considering the possibility of lack of weekly maintainence, I'd trust an old, loose revolver to be more ready for the call of duty than most any new/used semi-auto that I may leave under the truck seat, in the console or glove box.

I'll stick to old, inexpensive revolvers for my truck guns.


surv


p.s. It might not be so good for many of the current crop of polymer framed pistols to bake in the vehicle with our current climate

AK pistol w/ 20 round mag.