Buying a gun for the first time

fra05

Hi all,

Long time reader, first time poster here.

I’ve been thinking this long time about getting a gun, just for hunting, clay shooting, etc.

I want a good gun, that I’ll get good use out of but of course I want one at not to big of money. All going well I’d like to upgrade it in a few years for a better gun.

I’ve been looking at different guns on different websites lately, I’ll post the links to give your opinions.

http://www.shoot.ie/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=67&zenid=f6478e35a67d75835eadc56cbf01b318

http://www.sportsden.ie/guns/gun-showroom/shotguns/yildiz-12-bore-3.html

What I’d like to ask here is, what sort/make of gun should I be looking for to start off with? What price range should I be looking to spend – the guns on the websites range from €500 - €600, is this right, too much or too little?? Keeping in mind I don’t wanna spend too much.

Any help would definitely be appreciated.

jap gt

just after buying my first rifle last night, so the one piece of advice il give you is shop around dealers, there is great deals to be had on second hand guns, i know this isnt giving u much info on types of gun but there is plenty nice fellas on here to advise you, best of luck

Cass

Welcom aboard.

Try out these threads. Similar questions. Will give you a starting point then if you have anymore specific questions come on back.

http://boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055689697&highlight=shotgun

http://boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055685404&highlight=shotgun

http://boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055574610&highlight=shotgun

http://boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2055776759&highlight=shotgun

charlie10

just to say there that ezridax you have to be one of the most helpfull fellas on this site fair play:):D:):D:):D:):D

centre

Lanber /Bettinsoli/ yildiz/Baikel all make reasonably good 30" multi choke sporters that would fit the bill for game and clays .If you are shooting a lot of rough shooting and walking a lot weight will be something to watch for if you are buying a sporting model.
Hope this is some help

IDon'tKnow!

With a shot gun what you buy is all about fit.

The first thing to do is find out what your dominant eye is. http://www.archeryweb.com/archery/eyedom.htm

That will let you know if you need a left or right handed gun. The shoulder you should shoot off has nothing to do with your dominant hand.

When you know what shoulder you need to shot off them start to look at gun for that side till you find one that fits in your price range.

If you go to see a dealer they should be able to help you with eye dominance and shot gun fit. Should be able to find a dealer in your area here http://wiki.boards.ie/wiki/Gun_Dealers

J.R.

I personally wouldn't touch Yildiz.......never had one but friends had and they gave nothing but trouble.

I think you would be much better off buying a very good second hand shotgun rather than a cheap new shotgun for the same price.

Bettinsoli (recommended earlier) are a very good, averaged price shotgun that get great reviews. I've an o/u Bettinsoli sporter for clays & couldn't fault it for build and value for money.

http://www.sportsden.ie/guns/gun-showroom/shotguns/bettinsoli-u-o-30-trap-gun.html

fra05

Thanks everyone, you've all been great help.

Gonna visit a couple of dealers next weekend and see what they have.

Whats the best way to go about getting a gun licence??

Cass

fra05 wrote: »

........Whats the best way to go about getting a gun licence??

You need to be a member of a gun club/range or have minimum of 2 permission letters from 2 different land owners allowing you to shoot their land.

Go look at some shotguns and decide which you would like. Put a modest deposit on one and get the dealer to give you a letter stating the dealers pulse no, gun make and model, calibre.

If its only 1 shotgun then the minimum standard of security is a trigger lock and have the gun dissassembled and the pieces stored in seperate areas in your home. My opinion would be to buy a safe and have it installed. A Super may request you get a safe as the minimum standards are just that, minimum. He can request a higher level of security, but you will have to wait and see if he requests it.

Get an FCA1 either from your local gun shop/ Garda station or from their website (here - http://garda.ie/Documents/User/FCA1%20(english).pdf )Fill it out and attach you land permissions, 1 photo, dealers letter regarding the firearm, and a seperate sheet with the additional information that may be required (you will see on each section of the FCA! whether they request more info or not).

Once you have all the above drop your completed application into your local Garda station, to your Firearms Officer, then sit back and wait.

There may be other steps, but they are either minor or additional info/steps that i cannot foresee as each district/Super may require more/extra info.

IDon'tKnow!

The best thing to do before you put money down on an gun, is to contact your local Garda station and ask to speak to the Firearm officer.

Then tell him you want to buy a shotgun.
Ask him what they will want you to do. Like getting a safe join a shooting range get permission from land owners.

This will give you an idea of the costs other then the gun.

jamesomara

fra,
What do you want to do: clay pigeon, lamping, vermin, ducks, pheasant,...?

A semi auto 12ga would probably be the best way to go in shotguns. A 270 or 30-06 bolt action such as the Remington 700 would be the way for a rifle.

For vermin, I like a small 22lr like the Ruger 10/22.

Give us an idea as to what you want to do specifically or whether it is a more general use.

Also, don't go cheap and then upgrade later. You would be better off to save up a thousand or so euro and get a nice gun rather than buy cheap now, and buy again later.