"So you want to own a gun (Part Two)"

The Ruger Bearcat

The second installment of Bob Owens' series is up over at PJMedia. This one focuses on taking a non-shooting beginners class to learn basic gun safety and so on. He then goes on to extoll the many virtues of the .22 caliber long gun and handgun. 

If your eventual goal is to obtain a concealed carry permit or to obtain a handgun for personal protection or sport, the course of action I’d suggest is to first look at a handgun chambered in .22 Long Rifle (.22 LR). The .22 LR is an inexpensive, low recoil, and relatively quiet cartridge that allows shooters of every skill level to focus on the fundamental skills of shooting without being distracted by the kick or noise of larger-caliber weapons. I’d advise trying out both revolvers and semi-automatic pistols to decide which appeals to you, which feels more comfortable in your hand, and which has controls that you can manipulate.


At this point, you may notice a very loud wailing and gnashing of teeth around you. In all likelihood, that is the multitude of handgun shooters crying out in anguish at the mention of “.22 LR” in any proximity to a discussion of concealed carry and defensive handguns. Their complaints are not without merit — the conventional wisdom is that the smallest acceptable cartridge for self-defense is a .380 ACP in a pistol or a .38 Special in a revolver. I’m not disagreeing with that sentiment at all.


I’m suggesting you’ll learn faster, and often without imparting many bad habits you have to overcome later, if you learn your fundamentals with a .22 handgun. It’s all about the fundamentals.

I completely agree about the class and the .22.  I didn't like the fact that we had to take the class in order to get our carry permits in Ohio, but I was glad we took the class. Both .22 guns and ammunition are significantly less expensive that other calibers. If you are learning by shooting a lot of rounds, why waste money?

It's a beautiful day. I wonder if Mr. Big Food would like to do some shooting?