Firearms and cars have a few things in common. When you’re out shopping for a new car, do you typically take each option out for a test drive before making a purchase? You probably do. While every car gets you from point A to point B, the experience of driving them can be very different. Everything from how comfortable you find the driver’s seat to how it actually drives.
Firearms are similar. While they all accomplish the same general goal (firing a bullet), the experience can be vastly different among varied guns. With that in mind, it simply makes good sense to take the opportunity to handle and fire a particular gun before you decide to buy it. There is no objectively ‘best’ firearm in any category for every person. We’re all anatomically at least a little different. What we’re looking for also varies, even if we don’t know all the specific features and specs we want. Sometimes, you don’t know until you handle a gun you’re considering.
You can read all the reviews and comparisons you want, but actually holding and firing a gun is a very important step in helping you make the best decision for your firearm purchase.
What should I compare?
What should you be evaluating when you handle and fire a handgun you might purchase? Thinking about this ahead of time will help you get the most out of your test drive. It’s fine to just go shoot a handgun, but if you’re not paying attention to some key aspects, you’re not getting the most out of the test drive opportunity.
How it fits in your hand
This one you can do at any gun store, even without firing the handgun. Although, you’ll get the best feel for it if you can fire it as well. Pick up the gun with your shooting hand and just see how it feels. We’re not going to worry about the perfect grip and hand positioning here. Those are things you’ll learn if you end up doing more training with your firearm. But, anyone can pick up a handgun and just see how it feels in your hand. Is it too big for your hand to control easily? Too small? Does anything seem to pinch or just feel awkward? These are all things to look for right off.
If you are at a range where you get to fire the gun, you get the added benefit of seeing how it fits when it’s fired. Does it feel secure or does it seem to shift around? You’re looking for it to feel comfortable in your hand. Not too large and not too small. You can often tell when comparing two handguns. One will likely feel better than the other in your hand. If a gun feels wrong in your hand, you may be able to modify the grip with some options from the manufacturer or other companies that provide grips. But, if you want a gun that feels right when you take it out of the box (which most first-time gun buyers are looking for), then focus on finding a gun that feels good immediately.
How is the recoil?
Every gun has a bit of recoil when you fire it. It’s just physics. But, the amount of recoil or ‘kick’ the gun has depends on a bunch of factors (overall weight, barrel length, caliber of the round, number of grains of gunpowder in each round, whether it has a compensator, etc.). You might be surprised when a smaller concealed carry handgun seems to have more recoil than a heavier full-size option. You may hear it described as being ‘snappy’. In general, a heavier handgun will likely feel like it recoils straight back at you, which is easier to control than a smaller, snappier gun that wants to flip upwards after each shot.
Ideally, you just want a gun that you can handle easily. If the recoil is too much for you, then you may want to focus on a different handgun option that is a bit easier to control.
How about the weight?
Weight can be very helpful when dampening recoil and creating a ‘flatter’ shooting gun. But, if you are looking for a concealed carry gun that will be with you regularly, weight matters. You probably want as light a handgun as possible for that use case. But, the tradeoff is that it will likely be snappier and harder to keep on target for second and third shots. Even if you’re looking for a full-size handgun as an open carry option, if your state allows it, an overly heavy gun can still be a lot to keep on your belt over the long haul. So, consider weight carefully when you evaluate your options.
Remember that all of this is very subjective
A handgun that fits perfectly in my hand (which is a little on the large side) may feel too big for someone with smaller hands. If the gun doesn’t fit well in your hand, it won’t be comfortable to shoot and that likely leads to accuracy issues that might not arise in a gun that was more suited to your hand.
More than just the size of the grip, the texture and shape will also vary and be more appropriate for one person than another. The weight of the gun, trigger setup, and a host of other details can make a gun vary from incredibly comfortable for one shooter and utterly uncomfortable for another. None of this may even relate to the overall quality of the gun, it’s simply ergonomics.
Where can I get a test drive?
Many shooting ranges have a selection of firearms you can rent and try out on the range. There really is no better way to identify the right (and wrong) gun for you, than by shooting the same make and model you are considering.
A note on some ‘expert’ advice
Some experienced shooters may argue that as a new shooter, you won’t be able to tell for certain how a gun shoots for you, if you don’t really know how to shoot. That’s not entirely wrong. Experienced shooters will be focused on a number of more detailed aspects of a firearm when they test fire it. But, even the most inexperienced shooter will still gain valuable information from every test firing experience. So, don’t think that as a newer shooter, you shouldn’t bother with a test drive. It’s well worth your time.
It’s possible that you don’t have easy access to a gun range that has rental firearms you are interested in testing. In this case, you should at least visit a gun shop that has a few firearms you are considering in stock. That way, you can at least put them in your hands and see how they feel without firing. It’s not as valuable an evaluation method, but still far better than just buying sight unseen.