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I'm down to two guns...and I'm okay with it.

14K views 217 replies 102 participants last post by  Cambo 
#1 ·
Short version of a long story:
1. Lived in NJ for most of my life, made a great living, but was constantly afraid NJ was going to take my extensive gun collection due to new gun control laws.
2. Moved to TX for 3 years, made a terrible living(almost poor), had to sell almost my entire gun collection to survive.
3. Moved back to NJ, currently making a better living, currently own 2 CZs.

The two CZs are a P09 and a P07. They are durable, accurate, reliable, have the same fire control/trigger pulls, and I can work on them myself as they are almost as easy as Glock in that regard. I am focused on the aspects of that design - how they draw from a holster, their controls, trigger reset, sights, etc. I am strangely happy with the simplicity, as I never thought I could own less than 15 guns.
And I thought about it this way:
1. I owned, but never really enjoyed shooting shotguns.
2. I owned, but never really enjoyed shooting .223 ARs.
3. When .38 special became $10 more expensive than 9mm, I gave up shooting revolvers.
4. When the .22 shortage was in effect, my .22lr guns and conversions were useless.
5. I gave up my more expensive calibers, and more recoil intensive calibers.
6. When I moved back to NJ, concealed carry wasn't going to happen, so I didn't need my smaller guns.
7. I was tired of having to pour money into already expensive guns like my Hi Powers to get them where I wanted them to be.
8. When I had my entire collection, 9mm pistols are what I would shoot the most anyway.

I plan to move to PA next year and get a CZ Scorpion Carbine, but after that, I may be done.

This is not for everyone, and I would not have done this if I hadn't moved twice, but I have noticed more instructors and gun writers zeroing in on certain guns/systems etc, and working on mastering them.
 
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#38 ·
With sound thinking like this you should consider spending less time in gun forums.



And I thought about it this way:
1. I owned, but never really enjoyed shooting shotguns.
2. I owned, but never really enjoyed shooting .223 ARs.
3. When .38 special became $10 more expensive than 9mm, I gave up shooting revolvers.
4. When the .22 shortage was in effect, my .22lr guns and conversions were useless.
5. I gave up my more expensive calibers, and more recoil intensive calibers.
6. When I moved back to NJ, concealed carry wasn't going to happen, so I didn't need my smaller guns.
7. I was tired of having to pour money into already expensive guns like my Hi Powers to get them where I wanted them to be.
8. When I had my entire collection, 9mm pistols are what I would shoot the most anyway.
9. Moved back to New Jersey from Texas. WTF!!
 
#44 ·
A kid at the gun club had one of those Scorpions. That is a heck of a weapon!

I'm with you on the CZ stuff, but man, a guy's gotta have an AR. That is some serious little weapon there- just a hell of a machine!

Kind of hard to imagine not having some kind of slide-action shotgun, but hey....
 
#45 ·
Also down to 2, CZ75 P-01 and a Glock g19 g4. Sold 6-7 handguns, Walther,3 Sigs, Springfield, Smith& Wresson and i am sure forgetting a couple. Same reason no time to love them all. One regret had a Sig P228 German, never should have sold but thats how i got CZ. Possible AR in future and time to slow it down, yea right. :dunno:
 
#47 ·
Short version of a long story:
1. Lived in NJ for most of my life, made a great living, but was constantly afraid NJ was going to take my extensive gun collection due to new gun control laws.
2. Moved to TX for 3 years, made a terrible living(almost poor), had to sell almost my entire gun collection to survive.
3. Moved back to NJ, currently making a better living, currently own 2 CZs.

The two CZs are a P09 and a P07. They are durable, accurate, reliable, have the same fire control/trigger pulls, and I can work on them myself as they are almost as easy as Glock in that regard. I am focused on the aspects of that design - how they draw from a holster, their controls, trigger reset, sights, etc. I am strangely happy with the simplicity, as I never thought I could own less than 15 guns.
And I thought about it this way:
1. I owned, but never really enjoyed shooting shotguns.
2. I owned, but never really enjoyed shooting .223 ARs.
3. When .38 special became $10 more expensive than 9mm, I gave up shooting revolvers.
4. When the .22 shortage was in effect, my .22lr guns and conversions were useless.
5. I gave up my more expensive calibers, and more recoil intensive calibers.
6. When I moved back to NJ, concealed carry wasn't going to happen, so I didn't need my smaller guns.
7. I was tired of having to pour money into already expensive guns like my Hi Powers to get them where I wanted them to be.
8. When I had my entire collection, 9mm pistols are what I would shoot the most anyway.

I plan to move to PA next year and get a CZ Scorpion Carbine, but after that, I may be done.

This is not for everyone, and I would not have done this if I hadn't moved twice, but I have noticed more instructors and gun writers zeroing in on certain guns/systems etc, and working on mastering them.
I wouldn't even give it a thought, I bet there are more members here that don't own a gun then you might think. I'm sure that a few don't even like guns...
 
#48 ·
Someone may have already posted this, but it goes something like, "Beware the man who only owns one gun (or two) - because he probably REALLY knows how to use it."

In my mind (a scary place), I'm competent enough with most of the guns in my collection, but if I could bring myself to consolidate and just spend quality time with them at the range I might master one or two and be "better off". I've actually found myself pulling guns out of the safe to take to the range because I feel guilty not shooting them. I get to the range and sometimes find that I'm "clumsy" with them, have to sight them in again, and end up with just OK scores on paper.

Since I DO have an addiction to owning quantity, maybe I could at least do away with too much variety and have duplicates, as some posters alluded to? A few G19s, a couple of Shields or G43s, two ARs and/or two AKs - maybe keep the .22 handguns and rifles. It would be a start at least...

Thanks for reminding me OP that I need to rethink my strategy/collection.
 
#52 ·
Even the most reliable gun can need repair at some point, so it seems to make sense to have a backup for every gun that has a specific purpose. So for me, the absolute minimum would be seven guns: two each for home defense, concealed carry, target shooting (22LR) and a 12 gauge pump for end-of-the-world situations. At my age of 74 I keep thinking about simplifying my life, and I have sold some guns off, but I am not yet down to a minimum six plus 12 gauge.
 
#54 ·
I hear you. Over the decades my collection has gone up and down. I've come to the conclusion that I can't shoot more than about six. Any more than that and they just don't get shot enough to stay well acquainted with.

I gave up shooting rifles and exclusively shoot handguns. I reload so ammo cost in a given caliber is not much of a consideration. 90% of my shooting is done with two center fire revolvers (S&W), two center fire autos (1911's) and two .22 autos. My ammo consumption varies widely, but it can be anywhere from 5,000 to 10,000 rounds a year depending on what else is going on. With the higher end consumption I like having two guns per caliber, as it spreads the wear out.

I have half a dozen others, some held for sentimental reasons, some held as emergency reserve (a couple of high capacity 9mm's) but none of these get shot much. I would say if you have similar duplicate guns like you do, or you have a bunch of 1911's, then you can bump up the limit a bit without one's performance suffering.

But some guys collect. That's fine. As for myself if I can't get enough trigger time with a given gun it drives me nuts so I tend to get rid of those, trading them out for something new to try.
 
#55 ·
''Someone may have already posted this, but it goes something like, "Beware the man who only owns one gun (or two) - because he probably REALLY knows how to use it."

Beware the man who only owns one gun, he is lacking and may
want you to lend him some of yours.

Beware the man who only owns one caliber, he did not learn
anything from the last thirty years.
 
#56 ·
I like the idea of standardizing. We have chosen to standardize on the Glock 9mm line. I have spare parts to fix them if something breaks. I have PCCs that use the Glock magazines.

After the last ammo shortage, we purchased our own reloading equipment and supplies and now have the ability to reload for years with the supplies on hand. The nice thing, I wait for sales and stock up on what I have used.

Yet never wanting to put a 100% of my eggs in one basket, I do have a couple of other calibers just in case something happens where I can't get my 9mm ammo. Yet, they only get taken out of the safe and cleaned once a year and put back in. The 9s see all the fun.
 
#80 ·
I like the idea of standardizing. We have chosen to standardize on the Glock 9mm line. I have spare parts to fix them if something breaks. I have PCCs that use the Glock magazines.

After the last ammo shortage, we purchased our own reloading equipment and supplies and now have the ability to reload for years with the supplies on hand. The nice thing, I wait for sales and stock up on what I have used.

Yet never wanting to put a 100% of my eggs in one basket, I do have a couple of other calibers just in case something happens where I can't get my 9mm ammo. Yet, they only get taken out of the safe and cleaned once a year and put back in. The 9s see all the fun.
This is a good investment if there is another shortage, can be used in
the 9mm, 357sig, 38 super, 38 special and 357mag, even some
rifles too.

https://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com/item/0000690574/double-cavity-mould-358-125-rf

https://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com/item/0000690046/lube-and-size-kit-point356-diameter

https://www.midsouthshooterssupply.com/item/0000690177/alox-bullet-lubricant-4-oz-liquid

I have at least one mold for every handgun, rifle and 12/20 shotguns
that we own.
 
#174 ·
I've hated the AR since they took my M14 away in 1966. To each his own.

Sent from my SM-G935V using Tapatalk
Heh. I have a Norinco M14 semi-auto courtesy of the China North Industries Corp and my wallet. Pretty good quality for a Chinese rifle. I know that Bush banned Norinco from selling to the States years ago. Is that ban still in effect?
 
#63 ·
Your post is AMAZING. I'm from PA and my wife from NJ so we moved to NJ once married. Lived there for 8 years constantly buying guns with, naturally, regular visits to my local police for a permit for each purchase being treated each time as if up to something. Was up to maybe 30 guns before determining that it's gotten a bit overwhelming so started to pare down to the favorites.
Even ran for a fairly major political office and almost won in possibly one of the most ultra-liberal insane towns on earth just by being honest at all times no matter what.
At that point, though, I couldn't take it anymore and possibly the single happiest day of my life was viewing that town in the rear view mirror of my Just 4 Wheels rental truck. I may have cried tears of joy.
I'm constantly seeking perfection, but also maintaining minimalism. I really do enjoy having fewer firearms vs. trying to manage many. My current lineup is a Glock 23 and Ruger SP101. I think I'm going to add a Henry Small Game Rifle and possibly a CZ RAMI (or other small 9mm).
In all honesty, if like me, it may take some time to get over leaving many friends behind in NJ, but it's essential and there's no other way.
 
#65 ·
Your post is AMAZING. I'm from PA and my wife from NJ so we moved to NJ once married. Lived there for 8 years constantly buying guns with, naturally, regular visits to my local police for a permit for each purchase being treated each time as if up to something. Was up to maybe 30 guns before determining that it's gotten a bit overwhelming so started to pare down to the favorites.
Even ran for a fairly major political office and almost won in possibly one of the most ultra-liberal insane towns on earth just by being honest at all times no matter what.
At that point, though, I couldn't take it anymore and possibly the single happiest day of my life was viewing that town in the rear view mirror of my Just 4 Wheels rental truck. I may have cried tears of joy.
I'm constantly seeking perfection, but also maintaining minimalism. I really do enjoy having fewer firearms vs. trying to manage many. My current lineup is a Glock 23 and Ruger SP101. I think I'm going to add a Henry Small Game Rifle and possibly a CZ RAMI (or other small 9mm).
In all honesty, if like me, it may take some time to get over leaving many friends behind in NJ, but it's essential and there's no other way.
It's funny, I cried tears of joy as I drove over the Scudders Falls bridge for what I thought was the last time when my wife and I left in September 2013. We visited NJ in 2014 for a family function, and still hated it. Moving back, when I drove over SF bridge in November 2016, I was so glad to see "Welcome to New Jersey", and felt a huge sense of relief. It's funny how your position changes, depending on what you go through.
 
#68 ·
There is more to life than money. I could not imagine living in such a restrictive, anti gun State.
How true, my wife and I passed on a chance to own a business in Ohio some years ago because at the time, Ohio did not have concealed carry. No matter what the job would be or the pay, you could not get us to live in CA, NJ, NY, MD, MA, IL, or HI. Its just that simple really.
 
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#67 ·
Short version of a long story:
1. Lived in NJ for most of my life, made a great living, but was constantly afraid NJ was going to take my extensive gun collection due to new gun control laws.
2. Moved to TX for 3 years, made a terrible living(almost poor), had to sell almost my entire gun collection to survive.
3. Moved back to NJ, currently making a better living, currently own 2 CZs.

The two CZs are a P09 and a P07. They are durable, accurate, reliable, have the same fire control/trigger pulls, and I can work on them myself as they are almost as easy as Glock in that regard. I am focused on the aspects of that design - how they draw from a holster, their controls, trigger reset, sights, etc. I am strangely happy with the simplicity, as I never thought I could own less than 15 guns.
And I thought about it this way:
1. I owned, but never really enjoyed shooting shotguns.
2. I owned, but never really enjoyed shooting .223 ARs.
3. When .38 special became $10 more expensive than 9mm, I gave up shooting revolvers.
4. When the .22 shortage was in effect, my .22lr guns and conversions were useless.
5. I gave up my more expensive calibers, and more recoil intensive calibers.
6. When I moved back to NJ, concealed carry wasn't going to happen, so I didn't need my smaller guns.
7. I was tired of having to pour money into already expensive guns like my Hi Powers to get them where I wanted them to be.
8. When I had my entire collection, 9mm pistols are what I would shoot the most anyway.

I plan to move to PA next year and get a CZ Scorpion Carbine, but after that, I may be done.

This is not for everyone, and I would not have done this if I hadn't moved twice, but I have noticed more instructors and gun writers zeroing in on certain guns/systems etc, and working on mastering them.
Blessings to you and yours, Pa., is a good state, thought about moving there myself.
 
#71 ·
Short version of a long story:
1. Lived in NJ for most of my life, made a great living, but was constantly afraid NJ was going to take my extensive gun collection due to new gun control laws.
2. Moved to TX for 3 years, made a terrible living(almost poor), had to sell almost my entire gun collection to survive.
3. Moved back to NJ, currently making a better living, currently own 2 CZs.

The two CZs are a P09 and a P07. They are durable, accurate, reliable, have the same fire control/trigger pulls, and I can work on them myself as they are almost as easy as Glock in that regard. I am focused on the aspects of that design - how they draw from a holster, their controls, trigger reset, sights, etc. I am strangely happy with the simplicity, as I never thought I could own less than 15 guns.
And I thought about it this way:
1. I owned, but never really enjoyed shooting shotguns.
2. I owned, but never really enjoyed shooting .223 ARs.
3. When .38 special became $10 more expensive than 9mm, I gave up shooting revolvers.
4. When the .22 shortage was in effect, my .22lr guns and conversions were useless.
5. I gave up my more expensive calibers, and more recoil intensive calibers.
6. When I moved back to NJ, concealed carry wasn't going to happen, so I didn't need my smaller guns.
7. I was tired of having to pour money into already expensive guns like my Hi Powers to get them where I wanted them to be.
8. When I had my entire collection, 9mm pistols are what I would shoot the most anyway.

I plan to move to PA next year and get a CZ Scorpion Carbine, but after that, I may be done.

This is not for everyone, and I would not have done this if I hadn't moved twice, but I have noticed more instructors and gun writers zeroing in on certain guns/systems etc, and working on mastering them.
Use to live in NJ and had over 30 + hand guns because of the stupid permit process to buy a firearm. I would apply for 5 hand gun permits at a time because it was so much a pain in the ass. Retired and moved to Florida about 10 years ago. over the last few years I have sold most of my original hand guns. What I bought since I am in Florida is a Glock 19 and Glock 43 which are my daily carry. I have my S&W 66 my only original hand gun from NJ. I would never go back to NJ.
 
#73 ·
I have a very elderly mother in NY. She is 102 but almost totally gone with Alzheimer's Disease so I don't feel bad not getting to see her often (she is unaware of people visiting her, and long ago lost all memory of having children, grandchildren, etc. and even self awareness). But when I do go to see her I always feel like I am traveling to a foreign country. I can drive from my home, through several states legally carrying but when I reach the PA/NJ border I would become a felon if I continued in an armed mode (or even if I unloaded my handgun and locked it in a case in the trunk of the car; it would still be a felony to have it with me in NJ or NY). I am not sure if I were stopped for a traffic violation or at a random stop if the LEO would know that I have concealed carry licenses from several states when he ran my driver's license, or if a NJ or NY officer would use this info as a pretext for an involuntary search of my vehicle. The consequences are too great, and so I am forced to make such trips totally unarmed. The same thing holds for trips beyond those two states into New England. As a result, I rarely go anymore and thus do not get to see my mother more than about once a year. I was born and raised in NYC, and left over 50 years ago, never looking back. And I despise the ignorant fools who keep re-electing the politicians like Gov. Cuomo who has bragged about how gun owners, NRA members and Conservatives in general are not welcome in "his" state.
 
#74 ·
There are probably 853 threads on this topic but it makes me think that if I could only have 2, which 2 would it be. I can narrow it down to 2 kinds: pistol and rifle. At that point the pistol is easy: G19.
Now for a rifle. Just to keep it simple I'll only choose from what I actually own: various aks, a psa ar, and a Browning .280.
Of those 3 it would be one of my aks rather than the other two. Reason being that the .280 Rem is a fabulous hunting rifle but not a good defense rifle. The ar is a fabulous defense rifle but not hunting rifle. The ak can bridge the gap from defense to hunting if absolutely necessary. At that point, which ak? All of mine are builds so I'll have to put more thought into that one.
 
#76 ·
As far as #9, I could make $25,000 a year in Texas or $120,000 in New Jersey like I used to. Easy decision.
I agree with your decision. I could live in the south and make $30-35thousand at my job.....or stay in MA and make $80thousand doing the exact same job. I chose MA. sure the gunlaws suk........but I have a MA LTC and can constitutional carry in NH,ME & VT .
 
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