first gun

tiny timy

Hi all,

Im looking to buy my first gun for hunting of crows, fox and the like. Can anyone recommend a good starter gun and also costs and what exactly i have to do licence/paperwork wise to obtain a gun.
Thanks

garv123

tiny timy wrote: »

Hi all,

Im looking to buy my first gun for hunting of crows, fox and the like. Can anyone recommend a good starter gun and also costs and what exactly i have to do licence/paperwork wise to obtain a gun.
Thanks

For crows rabbits and foxes id go for a 17hmr its good on foxes out to 130 ish yards.
If its mainly foxes a. 204 or. 223. More expensive to run but the centre fire bullet does more damage. Won't pick up much of rabbits left after they get hit with one.

cookimonster

What experience have you with guns, what takes your fancy- shotguns or rifles, what animals / birds are available for you to shoot, what type of land permission will you be shooting over (this can impact on suitabillity of the type of firearm), what are the local Garda like to deal with, how much is too much (euros),
'WHAT' is a very big part of gun buying.
I'm a self confessed geek, like you are doing now I ask for opinions, help and knowledge, but you should have some idea of what you want or other wise you will be bombarded with every ones 'Two Cents' including my own which are - go away and think about what YOU want to do.
From the get go your question and the type of prey you are after can be done with either a rifle or a shot gun so straight away you are in two different fields of endeavor.

tiny timy

cookimonster wrote: »

What experience have you with guns, what takes your fancy- shotguns or rifles, what animals / birds are available for you to shoot, what type of land permission will you be shooting over (this can impact on suitabillity of the type of firearm), what are the local Garda like to deal with, how much is too much (euros),
'WHAT' is a very big part of gun buying.
I'm a self confessed geek, like you are doing now I ask for opinions, help and knowledge, but you should have some idea of what you want or other wise you will be bombarded with every ones 'Two Cents' including my own which are - go away and think about what YOU want to do.
From the get go your question and the type of prey you are after can be done with either a rifle or a shot gun so straight away you are in two different fields of endeavor.

Well is there one easier to obtain than the other? I'd sooner a shotgun and maybe a rifle in a year or two. Hunting would be on my land and boglands, primarily for fox and crow. Looking in the budget region of up to 700. Is it a thing you have to choose a gun and then go to the garda, or go to the garda first and then to buy a gun?

cookimonster

It was a thing before that many Garda saw shot guns as a safer option due to limited range etc over that of rifles and type of land ie flat or hilly could dictate gun selection. Today I am not to sure of the mindset.
Once you full fill the basic critique as seen here on the main page you should be able to select any qwgun, but as many will testify the Gardi may impose limitations on your first time rifle caliber.
If it was me (and I do like my rifles) I would go for the shot gun, 12 gauge, as it is more versatile for hunting both vermin and game.

Stevegeraghty

IMO everyone's first gun should be a shotty!
You learn a lot more from one from basic gun handling to field craft

Cass

tiny timy wrote: »

Can anyone recommend a good starter gun and also costs ......

tiny timy wrote:

I'd sooner a shotgun ...................

Go to as many dealers as you can. Do not rush the decision. Its can be a long enough process to get the license so you cannot pick choose, change your mind once the license process has begun.
Go out and try as many makes/models of the caliber/type of gun you would most like, but keep an open mind to other calibers as sometimes you end up buying a caliber you did not intend to buy.

For about €700 you would a decent selection of both new and second hand shotguns. Two big questions would be how much have you to spend and which do you prefer, over/under or semi-auto? If its clays with some game shooting i would suggest an Over/Under. Bettinsoli are a good, reliable and decent shotgun.



Owned by Beretta they have the pedigree without the larger price tag. The Diamond line comes in around €1,000, but as with all shotguns you can get them for €800 up to €1,400. There is quite a good market for second hand shotguns at the moment also. With Beretta, Browning and other makes of a "higher" quality shotgun going for up to €1,400 max. Best advice is to look around. A good shotgun will pick you rather than vice versa so do not let the brand draw you to a gun. Fit is all important regardless of name. Shotguns such as Baikal ..........



..............are popular with some while others would not touch them, and at around €500 - €700 new the price really cannot be beaten. If its semi-auot you are looking for my own preference is the Beretta AL 391, standard model, €1,000.

tiny timy wrote:

...........and what exactly i have to do licence/paperwork wise to obtain a gun.
Thanks

tiny timy wrote:

Is it a thing you have to choose a gun and then go to the garda, or go to the garda first and then to buy a gun?

Once you have a gun chosen you then need to apply for a license. The red announcement at the top of the main shooting page will give you all the basics. Anything else you need can be asked here. In short you need;

• An FCA1 (application form)
• Letter of sale from dealer with firearm details
• Photos x 2
• Referees to vouch for your character x 2
• Medical details
• Range details including membership number and copy of membership card.
• Seperate sheet of paper with an explanation as to why you want this firearm plus explanations for a mod (silencer) if you choose to get one.
• A witness to sign the application.
• All secure acomodation requirements in place as there is a box you must tick to say you have them in place.

The applcaition can take from 4 weeks to 3 months, and some have even waited up to a year for their license. It is meant to be done within a 3 month time period, but this does not always happen depending on which Garda district you are in.

Once a decision has been made you will receive a receipt letter followed shortly after by a grant letter (if successful) to say you have been granted the license. You can take this and pay your €80 at the post office and within 3-5 day your license will arrive in the post. You can do as some do and use the grant letter, and receipt of payment at the post office to show your license is on the way, but for the sake of a couple of days i don't personally see the need.

You collect your firearm, go and enjoy your shooting.

tiny timy wrote: »

Well is there one easier to obtain than the other?

Depends on district and your Super. However if it is your first gun weither will require a competency course, and personally i would recommend a shotgun. Less range, great fun, and will learn you the basics of firearm ownership. A rifle, even a .22, requires a different skill set, and while not hard to learn anything bigger such as a .223, .243, etc imo is too much for a complete novice.

tiny timy

Thanks very much for all this info Ezridax. Really informative. Much appreciated.

Theshooter2012

For your first gun i would definitely advise a shotgun. The best thing for you to do is find your local gun dealer and go to him and handle a few of the guns and see what you like. Everyone has there own preference regarding guns one person likes a light side by side others like heavy Over and unders. But for a starter a 12 gauge shotgun is the route you should go down the rest is up to you deciding what you like. Also for safety reasons with a starter i would advise not to get a Semi Auto simply because of the hassle of loading and reloading.

tonytoc11

What part of the country are you in?

hedzball

You'll shoot alot more crows for less yoyos and more fun with a 12 anyway!!










'hdz

meathstevie

I reckon you should also consider a side by side in 12g. Very good quality guns can be picked up for buttons as for some reason it appears impossible to sell a s/s in the Irish market. If you go for a good root around with a few gundealers you could end up picking up a very good continental S/S for the price of a few slabs of cartridges.

vulpus

First gun-well for me it was a single barrell Bakil(sp) good to start out with and no messing about with loading mags or tubes.You can shoot rabbits to foxes and birds as well.