What is a good cheap pistol for target practice at a pistol range?

Question

I am looking for a fun gun to practice shooting at a pistol firing range. Any suggestion? It has to be inexpensive, but good.

Answer 1

Bound's hubby here:

First, never expect to have fun with an inexpensive firearm, it will end up costing you more once you have it up-graded to meet your expectations.

I would strongly suggest you get one of the Ruger Mark pistols. My father has a Mark I that he bought over 30 years ago. That pistol shoots as well now as the day he bought it. Ruger currently manufactures the Mark III series pistols. I would suggest that you consider the Ruger Mark III 5.5" bull barrel target pistol (http://www.ruger-firearms.com/Firearms/FAProdResults?function=famid&famid=55&variation=Bull%20Barrel&bct=Yes&type=Pistol ). The price is a little high, but you will enjoy your purchase for a lifetime!

Just a quick footnote: Many people talk about .22s selling for $12-15 for 500. Most of the time, this is high velocity ammo, which you do not want to shoot out of the Ruger. Yes, the pistol can handle the ammo, but it will be battered more than necessary, with no appreciable gain in accuracy. In fact, accuracy can suffer when you use high velocity .22s!

Good luck!

Answer 2

The Ruger .22s mentioned above are excellent choices and have a major advantage -- super cheap ammo. A .22 is an ideal pistol to learn and target shoot with.

If you want a good-quality and inexpensive pistol in a larger caliber, which would at least somewhat more useful than a .22 for self defense, consider a Makarov. This was the Eastern Bloc military sidearm for years and years. It looks a little bit like a Walther PPK. It shoots 9x18 ammo -- which is not to be confused with the much more common "9 mm" (which is technically 9x19 I think). 9x18 rounds are roughly equivalent to a .380 in ballistic performance.

The Makarov is rugged, well-designed, and surprisingly accurate. The East German Makarovs have a reputation for being the best made, and command a price premium, but I find the Bulgarians to be the best shooters. Bulgarians should be readily available at around $250.

There are a number of other pistols that fire what has become known as the "9x18 Makarov" round, but I find the original single-stack Makarov to be the best.

Answer 3

Most .22 caliber pistols are very affordable and the ammo is cheap, 500 rounds costs you $10-$12... which is important if you plan on doing a lot of shooting.

I have 2 Ruger .22 pistols that we use for target shooting. One is a Ruger MK45 with an 8" fluted barrel... very nice gun.
The other is an older Ruger Mark II with a 6" barrel but it is still very accurate and fun to shoot.

Answer 4

I would advise you get the .22 caliber Ruger Mark I, II,III all are a very accurate and dependable.
I have 1 that I got 33 years ago and it is still an outstanding weapon.
I could not even guess how many thousands of rounds of ammo I have sent through that pistol.
Being raised on a ranch gave me the opportunity to test that weapon and many others.
My son had the idea that since I got that Ruger on my 16 birthday, he should get it on his 16 birthday.
I let him start shooting it at age 10 at 16 I gave it to him, he’s 28 now and that Ruger is still the same outstanding pistol it was brand new 33 years ago.
I only made it a couple of years before I had to buy another Ruger Mark II to have a 22 caliber pistol to shoot for fun.
All my friends that have shot my Ruger Mark I or II have had to go buy one for them selves because they liked it so much.
My son and I use our Rugers to hunt squirrels and rabbits it’s so accurate with a 4 ¾ inch barrel, and very cheap to shoot.

http://www.ruger.com/Firearms/FAProdView?model=185

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruger_MK_III

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ruger_MK_II


D58

Answer 5

Go with a Ruger Single Six. This is a six shot, single action revolver, with good accuracy and solid reliability. If you have to have a semi auto. The Ruger Mark II or the Mark III are good guns.
All of these are .22 Long Rifle.

Answer 6

An inexpensive pistol will surely not be a good pistol. I would recommend that you go to an indoor range and rent a few to see what you like.

Answer 7

A Ruger Mark II 22LR semi-auto.

Answer 8

Gun Target Practice

Answer 9

you should be able to get a used Ruger mk2 for around $150 an exelent gun and cheap amo

Answer 10

.22 lr ruger handguns are fun,