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AEA wrote:Gun first is the way to go. Then practice and get real good/comfortable with it.

I want to caution you though on buying anything just by size/sight/caliber.
You should find a range that has guns for rent and try shooting a variety.
Then, based on that experience, shop for and buy the gun that works best for you (keeping conceal ability and cost of ammo, etc in mind. Also availability of holsters or other carry methods for whatever you actually decide on.

Believe me, I have been thru this and it gets expensive when you think you have purchased just the right gun (by sight/looks and feel) without knowing if you can hit anything with it, or consider the cost of ammo and accessories.

I have had guns all my life (63 years) but even with that knowledge I made mistakes when choosing for CHL when I got my first license. It's a whole different ball game than plinking of dove hunting.

When we first started looking for a carry gun for my wife, she started with a "pretty" Stainless Beretta M96. She loved the gun, but it was too big for her to carry and she had trouble managing the recoil of the .40. The Beretta became mine and she bought an FNP9. She then decided that the FNP9 was still too bulky for IWB carry so we sold the FNP9 (for a loss) and bought her a Kimber Ultra CDPII. She will sometimes carry the Kimber but not always because she doesn't want to scratch it up, pluss the checkered wood grips are rough on her delicate skin. We then bought her a Taurus Public Defender that we custom designed (redneck engineered) a way for her to keep that in her car and still easily draw it. So she keeps the Taurus in her car all the time and occasionally carries the Kimber.

So........for one person's carry weapon, we wound up making 4 firearms purchases, which I'm OK with because any day that you buy a firearm is a good day.

I still carry the Beretta.

A gun without a license is more useful than a license without a gun but if I was in that situation I would pay cash for the gun at a gun show and use plastic for the class and online app. Even if I paid $20-30 in interest, it would be worth it to be able to carry 6 months sooner.

Realistically, if you are living in a decent neighborhood, that is not in drug infested area Then, Forget about about both gun and the CHL plastic. Focus on getting on your financial house sorted out and build a monthly positive cash flow (monthly savings). Just make sure you can have a cell phone and you can call 911 at anytime.

Why I am saying something like that? Guns and ammo is an expensive hobby and for real how many out there they neither have a gun nor have thought of owning one.

Once you saved enough, gun comes first, then ammo, then practice, then a CHL when you saved enough for a CHL. If you can prove that you are a low-incomer, DPS can give a discount for your CHL.

Send me a pm, if you are in the Houston area I can help you find a good,inexpensive handgun.

mrvmax wrote:Send me a pm, if you are in the Houston area I can help you find a good,inexpensive handgun.

I'd call him, I was going to ask you what you were looking at and insure you understood that there is a minimum caliber requirement for your CHL test. MRVMAX will be able to guide you. Contact him.

Have you looked at anything yet, brand, caliber, size?

gun first.
Statistically, I expect you'd likely have to defend yourself (and family) at home sooner than
out on the street (unless you frequent bad areas).

Let me repeat what others suggest and try before you buy. Handguns (especially carry guns) are a personal
choice and you have to figure out what works for you.

Thanks everybody for some really great responses. For those that have asked, I have been researching different firearms for several months. So far, I've only test fired one and I did pretty well with it at 5 yards and then 10 meters (odd how the range was marked). I fired 50 rds out of an XDm .40. Afterwards I asked one of the range officers if I would pass the shooting portion of the CHL based on my target. He just looked and said, "Oh yeah, easily." I know I need more range time as my grouping was a little low and to the left and wasn't all that tight. That'll happen eventually when I finally get my personal weapon and practice practice practice.

The weapon I am keen on is the Springfield XD(m) .40 Compact. I've looked at and held several weapons so far at various gun shows (the big ones in Dallas and Houston). The FNP, M&P, Glock (I just don't like the little finger grips), H&K, various 1911's and a host of others and the one that consistently "feels" right is either an XD or an XD(m). I have found that if I look hard enough I can find the XD(m) .40 Compact for about $530.

As for my money tightness, that's because my "hobby fund" doesn't come out of the general family budget. Whatever I save in per diem's, by selling off stuff I no longer have use for, and the usual birthday gift money, all goes to the Hobby Fund. Unfortunately, my hobby fund now encompasses three different hobbies so to speak. My gun/survival needs/wants. Which is gun, ammo, accessories (holster(s), gun safe, etc.) plus getting together first aid kits for 72 hr kits and various vehicles and other survival stuff. I have a new car (2011 Kia Soul) and there are some aftermarket parts I want to put on it. And last but not least, I'm a computer nut (especially Mac's) and I like to get new stuff occasionally. My wife says I am on my own when it comes to paying for my hobby's....lol. BTW, I have one of the wives who aren't too happy with having a gun in the house. I have read where some of ya'll have a wife that not only likes guns but carries one or two themselves. I wish mine were like that but unfortunately not. Oh well.

Sorry, my responses are usually this long. Thanks again, ya'll have been awesome and I appreciate it.

There are a lot of quality used guns you can find. There is nothing wrong with buying a used gun, and most of the time it will off set the cost of a good holster. A gun may cost you 500 then you have 100+ in a holster, 100 for practice ammo your first time out, 100 for personal defense ammo (you will want to shoot some of your personal defense ammo to make sure it feeds reliably), 125 for night sights and probably another hundred for magazines and misc things you will find. Cost of new glock without a chl is about $600 between the gun and some ammo. Cost with a chl for the same gun, comes out to about a thousand. Price of sitting next to a cop at lunch and knowing you have a bigger gun and more ammunition... PRICELESS. Good luck with whatever you come up with. We hope to see you in the "Waiting Room" soon.

Jules wrote:Price of sitting next to a cop at lunch and knowing you have a bigger gun and more ammunition... PRICELESS.

Also knowing that you are more than likely a better shot than the Cop!

Beiruty wrote:Realistically, if you are living in a decent neighborhood, that is not in drug infested area Then, Forget about about both gun and the CHL plastic. Focus on getting on your financial house sorted out and build a monthly positive cash flow (monthly savings). Just make sure you can have a cell phone and you can call 911 at anytime.

Why I am saying something like that? Guns and ammo is an expensive hobby and for real how many out there they neither have a gun nor have thought of owning one.

Once you saved enough, gun comes first, then ammo, then practice, then a CHL when you saved enough for a CHL. If you can prove that you are a low-incomer, DPS can give a discount for your CHL.

...while it's always good advice for us to get our finances in order...it doesn't do much good if folks can walk in and take it from us...or one of us loses his/her life before they get to enjoy it...and NO NEIGHBORHOOD IS EXEMPT...having a gun for defense of home and family is not the same as an expensive hobby...the man needs to get something to protect his family WHILE he gets his house in order...a little digging and he'll find a .38 2" or 4" that someone will sell him for $200 or so...and he can work and save for something upscale from that...calling 911 from your cellphone isn't the solution when the door's kicked in at 2 a.m. and your wife/daughters are in their nighties...I wouldn't want to tell my wife that we had a nice savings...if they held her at gunpoint while they took me to draw it out...life is real...finances go up and down...arm yourself decently...then work on the finances...just like in Nehemiah 4...

When I went thru my divorce back in 1995, I got up one Saturday morning and counted my change. I had enough for a box of ammo or a six-pack. Bought the ammo. If I was on a tight budget, I would eat cheese sandwiches and drink water to save enough for a pistol. Priorities, that is what it is about.

Tallinthesaddle wrote:When I went thru my divorce back in 1995, I got up one Saturday morning and counted my change. I had enough for a box of ammo or a six-pack. Bought the ammo. If I was on a tight budget, I would eat cheese sandwiches and drink water to save enough for a pistol. Priorities, that is what it is about.

So, what you are saying is that I should not drink anymore frappucinos until I get the gun and the ammo. Hmmm, I can see other benefits from that strategy as well. Thanks Tall, good advice.

Sorry, after the OP clarified how he is tight on Money. I am speechless.

It's a matter of priorities. For me a gun and a CHL are key components of the safety level in Maslow's hierarchy and I would budget accordingly.