Beginner

Gone West

im living in the states now, and i have an opportunity to shoot on a range, what guns would you reccommend to start off with? pistols, etc?

well what exactly are you interested in shooting?? - Air? Live fire? Pistols?

Also, have you any experience?

civdef

One mistake some people make is to shoot the very biggest/most powerful gun they can get their hands on. A few painful shots out of a .44magnum or similar later, and they've decided shooting isn't for them.

It will also depend on what is available to shoot on the range, eg if it's indoor you probably wont have much in the way of shotguns or rifles. Best plan might be to try as much as possible - with someone knowledgable helping you with holds, positions and particularly safety.

If you have the opportunity, why not try everything available to see what you like.

Gone West

well ive tried a m16 and a smaller pistols .22 glock i think. What other guns would you recommend for a fairly eginnerish person? Thanks BTW

Rovi

I'd agree with civdef in suggesting you steer clear of the .44 magnums and suchlike if you're starting off at handguns.
Stick to .22, .38, .9mm, and try .45 and 10mm when you're more comfortable with the whole experience.
Leave the hand-cannons for later

Find a buddy or a range who'll give a bit of help in starting off, particularly on the safety stuff, but also on the correct handling of whatever guns you're using.
The slides and hammers on many handguns will take bites out of your hands if they're not held correctly, and having someone experienced at your side will boost your confidence and comfort level, and will hopefully prevent any bad habits from getting too deeply ingrained.

Same thing applies to rifles and shotguns, aviod the hairy chested magnum stuff until you're happy with handling guns and have a handle on range ettiquette.


After all that, shoot whatever's available to you, and have FUN!

.

Sparks

I'd echo what the others have said, but I'd probably recommend starting off with airguns - air pistols or air rifles. That way you can learn the basics indoors, cheaply, without having to learn to correct for changing wind or light, and with very basic gear (not all air rifles are ISSF rifles!). There's an IZH air rifle (the IZH-60) that costs about £60, though I've not been able to get a quote from an Irish supplier;


There are also a bunch of similar sporter-class air rifles that would be around the same price range either new or second-hand, and for a beginner, they'd be accurate enough.