Before you buy your first gun, make sure you have actually tried it out on the range. A good gun range should have several popular guns that you can rent out for an hour or so on the range. And they’ll be more than glad to show you the pros and cons of different guns.

There are two makes of handguns that are very popular with beginners: Glock and Smith and Wesson. Glock handguns are the most popular guns used for law enforcement purposes in the world. Both Glock and Smith and Wesson handguns have a reputation of excellence, and you can’t go wrong with either.

There is a difference you should be aware of, though. The grips of Glock handguns are angled a few degrees more than those of most other guns. You may find that you prefer this difference, or that you don’t. You won’t know until you try out both guns. This doesn’t sound like a big deal, but even if you fire as few as 20 rounds from a Glock and a Smith & Wesson, you’ll probably be able to feel the difference.

There are many common calibers of ammunition that are used with handguns. The most common is 9mm. For your first handgun I would recommend one that shoots 9mm cartridges, since you’ll have the most choice of guns with that caliber.

Continue reading: What to do After you Buy a Gun