Bought my first handgun... :D
 

got back from cabela's and picked up my first handgun. Springfield XD-40. I've been wanting to get one for awhile, but just never bothered, a couple guys i work with kept asking when i was gonna come out and shoot with them and my girlfriends dad does competition shoots with handguns and is asking me when im gonna start shooting with him etc. etc. so i finally bit the bullet (no pun intended)

I havent shot it yet, so im itching to go out to the range, but it feels great in my hand, perfect size, and i like the double safety (grip and trigger) so you really need to hold it before it fires.

I was trying to find a black/stainless bi-tone and the .45 was $600, i saw the .40 in their case with a handwritten tag for $519 or $569 the 6 and the 1 were scribbled over and i couldnt tell which was correct, so i asked the salesman and he told me its on sale for $512.89 today.

I figure cool, what comes with it, he said just 2 magazines and a box, i figure thats fine with me. So he goes in the back, brings it up, and low and behold, it has all the XD gear with it (holster, mag reloader, mag holster, trigger lock, and barrel brush) Fan-****ing-tastic! The solid black one was right below us for $549 with all the same stuff, bi-tone is normally more expensive.

Go get the FBI check and paperwork and the guy starts flipping out where he got $512 because it was supposed to be $570.. oh well i got it for the $512 and im happy.

here's a pic since they are normally a requirement
http://forums.rennlist.com/upload/xd40.jpg

is that very accurate...sure seems small, jsut guessing you wont be entering any competitions with it.

Gun porn! Seriously target shooting is a great hobby but if you are not experienced I highly suggest a handgun safety course. Make sure you check on your state's gun laws as far as transporting etc. Many states you can not transport loaded in your car with out a license to carry permit.

Link to NRA training courses in Michigan.

http://www.nrahq.org/education/train...I&Type=BPistol

Get to know the pistol! Have fun and be safe. Cheapest ammo you will find is @ your local Walmart , bulk 100 box of winchester. ( called winchester white box.) Stock up , ammo prices are going up again.

Nice gun.

Great choice, Springfield XDs are comfortable to shoot and very accurate, as well as well built. I on the other hand carry an S&W Sigma SW40VE, a lot of Glock owners will talk a bunch of hate on this gun, but I love it, fun to shoot and highly accurate.

I also find .40 Cal to be a great balance of power and control as its not as jumpy as a .45 and not weak like a 9mm.

What I especially love about Smith and Wesson is that they're doing a promo currently to advertise their M&P/Sigma line, when you buy a Pistol between Christmas and February (Bought this one Dec. 26th) you get a $50 mail-in rebate and two free extra clips.

http://www.policeguide.com/sw40ve.jpg

Meh I thought since LM left we got rid off these threads all together. I agree with the poster saying it looks rather small, you sure it's enough to counter your other shortcomings [rofl]

/sarcasm off

Sorry couldn't resist, most gun threads are pointless displays off gun ownership imho.

It does look small, but on the other hand I'm not that sure off the scale. I do have a serieus question, why did you buy it? Fun at the shooting range? Going to be entering competitions as suggested earlier or is it for personal protection?

"off"?

Anyways, nice piece. [thumbup]

Because he lives near a REAL bad city.
[rofl]

Why didn't you go to guns galore? (ive never been there) http://discussworldissues.com/forums...es/tongue1.gif

I wish we could own guns like that in the UK, it's depressing that we have to always have to ban things to cater for the lowest common denominators in society.

Looks a nice gun but other than visually I have no experience to judge.

Huh didn't know Michigan was such a bad place [surrender] You own a gun Carl? You work in security.right?

Me? No. I am far too broke to buy a gun and I live in "the sticks".

However, as soon as im done with school im moving back to Flint. (look it up on wiki)
[thumbup]

you aint kidding!

as i stated in my first post, its mostly going to be used for recreational shooting, but because i do have to frequent the 2nd most dangerous city in the US, It is likely i will go through the training course and obtain my carry permit. But many shooting events have different classes so that people with all types of firearms can participate with the guns that appeal to them, rather then just highly accurate long barrels with scopes have to be shot laying on your back supporting it against your leg etc. etc.. so thats of no concern to me.

Make sure you check on your state's gun laws as far as transporting etc. Many states you can not transport loaded in your car with out a license to carry permit. Thanks, I am familiar with the gun laws in my home state, i've been into hunting/shooting for 11 years. You are correct, you cannot transport it loaded unless you have a carry permit. I have to have it in its case, in the trunk, and ammo has to be in a seperate location such as the glovebox.

most gun threads are pointless displays off gun ownership imho. just as much as a pointless display of a new car, or new video card, or new TV so whats the difference?

I realize that a lot of people on the forum are on the other side of the pond where this stuff isnt common, but if anything, i think it would peak interest/curiosity. thats ok though, its just a hobby of mine and so far i've stuck to long rifles and shotguns so i was excited is all

Its no smaller then what most cops use, its the basic service model ( i know, most cops are a crap shot :p ) I've only heard great things about this model though, so we'll see how it goes

heres a clip on flint -
According to the Federal Bureau of Investigations (FBI), Flint has one of the highest crime rates in Michigan (5538 incidents/100,000 residents)[citation needed]. In the 1980s and 1990s Flint was nicknamed the murder capital of the U.S[citation needed]. In 2004 it had the second highest violent crime rate in the United States[citation needed]. As of 2007, homicide in Flint is down 52% and rape is down 36%as well as auto theft, assault, and larceny are down.[7] The total amount of homicides in Flint in 2007 are some of the lowest in decades there has been some arguments against how the stats were taken in 07, but the mayor used that as a key factor in his re-election last year. its still on the news every night, and they still had to establish a cerfew at the mall after 5PM because of gangs starting fights. I go to that mall often, but havent witnessed any of the big ordeals that has taken place thank god

Nice pistol! I was thinking about picking up an XD 40 about a year ago, but it seems like every time I get some money saved up towards one, something always comes up...so I've given up on pistols and even guns in general. I think I'll be waiting until I get a halfway decent job before buying a pistol. On that note, it may be sooner rather than later that I get a better job, since I'll be losing my current job within a little more than a month. http://discussworldissues.com/forums...ilies/cry1.gif

all I can say is ...... Only in America!

It must be frustrating for the OP that posting a thread about something completely legal in his country garners so much controversy and negative attention from some people.

I'm amazed at the price of the thing[rolleyes]

Pay a similar amount over here for a decent CO2 pistol http://discussworldissues.com/forums...ies/wacko1.gif

I will since it better be interesting if you're advertising a wiki link hehe http://discussworldissues.com/forums...s/biggrin1.gif

You're absolutely right which is why I treid to make it absolutely clear I was being sarcastic. I had some heated debates in gun threads before, mainly because people claimed that private gun ownership is a very important and strong identifying part off the American culture and I needed allot off convinceing on it. Not saying I'm swayed you're doing things right, but I can see and relate to the positive arguments more now so I thought I'd be able to be in this thread without automaticly resulting in posts like...

... these?

It wasn't negative attention, it was genuine intrest in more details about the why's. I'm not that technically interested in guns, I do like seeing some big one's fired on youtube once in a while had some fun being linked to some anti tank gun not long ago from fm I believe. But what I find most interesting is the why behind the purchase, as I think hearing about those from real people is what allowed my somewhat narrowminded approach to gun ownership to be broadend.

If all thats true!

I would have gone for the largest calibre semi-auto pistol that holds loads of bullets or just buy a set of full body armour or never set foot outta my house, ever again!

Seriously! Sounds like a sh*t place to live!

Nice! As ds stated, it would be a good idea to take a handgun safety course if you haven't been shooting for very long. Try to get a good amount of shooting time in at the range. If they make a Fobus holster for it, I'd highly recommend one. I've got one for my HK USP40 and it's the best holster I own.

Happy shooting!

a lot of people also dont understand recreational shooting because they dont have the opportunity. I havent met very many people that didnt enjoy going out to a range and pop off a few rounds[thumbup] As simplistic and pointless as it may seem, ITS FUN! i also enjoy archery, and my friend gave me a crossbow to demo out and thats fun too.

I pretty much like anything that launches some sort of prejectile, im 23 and i still have a blast with my 5 year old cousin and a couple of nerf guns