Welcome to the blog covering what IMO should be the first firearm purchases for beginners.
If you haven’t seen Part 1 or 2 check out my other blog posts
Continuing on where we left off, the people this is intended for is those who are just starting out in purchasing firearms. Whether that be a college student living on their own (How I got started), just moving out of the parents house (with no passed down firearms), or even a new found love for the finer things in life that go boom.
Again, the criteria that we looked at for these options are the usual; cost, accuracy, reliability, purpose, and ease of use. I hope that you all understand that I cannot tailor this article to abide by all states in this glorious country. If you live in any of the more restrictive/ or “less American” states, then the particular recommendations may not apply but the fundamentals should still hold true. I would like to give two options for each purchase, one being a budget minded option while the other is a “standard/high” quality option.
Where we left off was first purchasing a good 9mm pistol that could serve as a nightstand gun, daily carry, truck gun, range gun and basic home defense firearm. We then moved on to a good shotgun to transition to when the user was able to for better defense. In home defense, the more options you have readily available will increase your survival rate dramatically. We now introduce the 3rd firearm we think you should buy.
The AR-15 rifle platform is my next recommendation. If you haven’t had the sweet satisfaction of building or purchasing your first AR-15 then you are in for a real treat ladies and gentlemen. First, let’s talk home defense with this weapon system. One of the first rules that always must be considered is the likelihood of over-penetration with the rounds leaving your firearm. Pistol calibers generally have lower bullet velocities and with shotgun buckshot being in the same boat, the worry is not always there. This is especially ruefully when we start to negate these possibilities through our ammunition choice like hollow points and such (to be covered another time). While rifle ammunition offers subsonic rounds, the rifle calibers generally boast a much higher velocity to be effective a longer ranges. The AR-15 platform we are talking about is going to be chambered in .223 or 5.56×45. The best part about this being America is that a “Need” is not required when wanting multiple versions of this platform. There are multiple calibers it can be chambered in such as .223, 5.56×45 , 7.62×39, and 300 Blackout. You can also make a pistol version, precision rifle, hunting rifle, short barrel rifle (NFA item) and etc.
Next let’s talk, hunting and killing some paper (target shooting). Understand that the AR-15 is know for its versatility in many areas like hunting, competitive shooting, plinking, home defense, and it’s military use (M4 and M16 variants). This rifle platform has a soft “push in the shoulder” feel when it comes to recoil so the ease of use is applicable to people of all ages and sizes. The cost is low for the capabilities your are receiving or as high as you can fathom when building your dream rifle. Many states have come around in the past years to allowing these rifles to be used as hunting rifles with minor regulations. These regulations are usually in the form of magazine capacity when hunting. This rifle as the 3rd firearm one purchases can fill almost any other role you can think of if you buy or build the right gun.
To buy or build? Now that Shakespeare, is the real question. Amazing and tested companies have put out great complete rifles and many more will continue to do so. A complete rifle is going to come out of the box ready to shoot as opposed to purchasing a lower receiver and building the rest of it. You can also purchase a complete upper and a separate complete lower for ease of build to match your wants. I only caution you to do your research on lower receiver and upper receivers that may not work well together or not even have proper fitment. When building your perfect rifle the thing that matters most is aftermarket support.
The aftermarket support for these rifles is almost beyond compare. If your looking for a rifle that you can fully customize to your taste and purpose your on the right track to satisfaction. These rifles have a multitude of parts to include stocks, grips, rails, magazines, foregrips, bipods, iron sights, red dot optics and scopes that can be accessorized just for you. It’s almost equivalent to being the Barbie or Honda Civic of firearms when it comes to dressing it up and operating.
The Moral of the story here folks is that the AR-15 is a versatile weapon system that can be tailored to almost any need and for these reasons we see the AR-15 as the 3rd gun that someone new to the world of guns should purchase to further their “arsenal” if you will. With someone owning a 9mm Pistol for daily carry/nightstand access, a shotgun for home defense, and now an AR-15 for home defense/ tactical implications/ hunting, we are confident that the owner is prepared for many situations that may arise… Or just ready for some good ole range fun on the range.
Let me know what you think in the comments below. Follow for further posts on guns, cars, golf, and investments.
