| There’s just something about the weight and feel of a well crafted gun in your hands that can’t be had through other hobbies. A good gun is a quality tool, designed with extreme precision and care by the loving hands and mind of a professional gunsmith. Gun collecting can be a rewarding hobby for anyone. If you’re interested in firearms and like shooting, you may want to consider getting started. A good place to start is with something small and cheap. A .22 or single shot twenty gauge shotgun will rarely run you more than a hundred dollars, and are a lot of fun to shoot. A .22, with ammunition running at barely two cents a shot, is great if you just want to get out and get familiar with rifles.
From there, you can choose what aspect of gun collecting to focus on. Many people love the portability and versatility of handguns. There are plenty of styles to choose from even here – you can emulate the days of the old west with a couple of Colt .45 revolvers or opt for the almost legendary durability and reliability of the Glock semiautomatics. Pistol and handgun ammunition is generally cheaper than a rifle, but not by much – a box of fifty nine-millimeter shells will cost seven or eight dollars, while a box of .40s or .45s might cost ten or more. One good strategy is to visit gun shows and buy ammunition in bulk, especially if you plan to be doing a lot of shooting. This can cut the standard price by as much as thirty or forty percent, making gun collecting and shooting much cheaper.
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Shotguns can also be beautiful weapons. Again, you have to decide what kind of style you want. In the world of gun collecting, the standard polished wood shotguns are especially popular both for their usefulness in waterfowl and grouse hunting and the elegant beauty that a stained, shaped-wood shotgun presents. On the other hand, if you’re looking for something more durable and practical, you may want to look into getting a synthetic stock weapon – the black matte material from which these are constructed are waterproof and lighter, making for a more modern, utilitarian look.
And then, of course, are the rifles. If there’s one thing more satisfying than the ownership aspect of gun collecting, it’s practicing until you can blow the center out of a target at three hundred yards or more. For this, of course, you’ll need a rifle. The simplest and cheapest, as discussed before, are the .22s, which are great for hunting small game and cheap target practice, but are ineffective against larger targets or at distances of much more than a hundred yards. If you still want something small but with more punch, you can look into getting a .223, one of the highest-velocity rifles sold and great at range. Or, if you want some of that old world feel, you might think about getting a lever action 30-30, rarely for more than two or three hundred.
No matter what you decide to get in the end, gun collecting is a satisfying and enjoyable hobby whether you get out and shoot a lot or just like owning them. After all, it’s the only hobby specifically supported by the United States Constitution – that’s got to count for something! So think about whether gun collecting would be right for you, and take a look at your options today. Whether you build up an arsenal of handguns or a high quality rack of rifles and shotguns, you’ll be glad you entered the very American world of gun collecting. |
GUN COLLECTING
