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Howdy From Parma Ohio!

1 by marinersk
It seems I've already managed to mess up; I did my intro as a reply in the pinned message, rather than making my own.

Luckily, I'm a paranoid son of a gun and did a Copy before posting, so now I can Paste.

Apologies to all who see this twice. The good news is you can just scroll past it. Nothing should be different (unless computers suddenly work differently than they have for a long, long time).

* * * * *

Howdy from Parma, Ohio!

Dunno that I qualify as a Liberal in the current American common use of the term, but I seem to fit the classic definition ( https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Liberalism ) very well. I am flexible in my views; governance should adapt to real-world challenges, but core values remain the same. Our founding documents make it clear that our culture -- our vision -- is supposed to be about ensuring that government exists to serve the people, not the other way around.

That said, everything on the opening pages of this web site align perfectly with my long-held views. Which, I must say, is refreshing. Usually I'm the odd ball out on some thing or another. Almost makes me wonder if I missed something. :-D

Lessee, what else? Until recently, strictly a carbine guy. Now licensed for CCW.

Born in Michigan, raised in the Chicago area (with summers on one of the family farms in Indiana). Wanted to move to Colorado from a young age; Air Force 11 years (Texas 3½ yrs, Colorado 7½). Never thought I'd leave. But family needs called us to my wife's hometown, so here we are in Ohio. Looks like this might be it for the long haul.

We are both CCW carriers, H&K P30L in deep appendix Enigma for me, Walther PDP-F4 in shoulder rig for her. I am an absolute geek about concealment. Most people have the proverbial box of holsters; I have one holster and box of clothing accessories that didn't work out.

My perspective on that front is essentially that polite society has no use for weapons, and we've been a statistically polite society for so long that the average citizen gets a little wigged out by the mere knowledge of the presence of weapons. They frequently find themselves unable to even hold a normal conversation because they are so terribly distracted by the presence of the weapon. Things just can't be normal for them. So -- my mantra is:

The purpose of concealed carry is to allow normal to remain normal until normal is no longer possible.

Beyond that, I'm a staunch believer that the Second Amendment pointedly refers to the right as being necessary in order to be able to form militias with which to defend the nation. Any argument about so-called "Weapons of War" is not only nonsensical, given that a rock can be a weapon of war, but doesn't hold the Constitutionality test. It says right there "militia" and "security of a free state". It *means* weapons of war.

Now -- is there room to argue that we might need to move past that in our society? Sure. Every perspective can be argued (so long as the argument is in earnest). But until you change the Constitution, don't you dare come at me with any argument that says we need to get weapons of war out of the hands of citizens. That is precisely what the Second Amendment constrains the government from being able to do.

: : Looks around, sees soapbox : : Hmm, let me step down here. I'm pretty sure I'm preaching to the choir here.

Anyway, Hi! As you can tell, I'm the shy, quiet, demure type. Seeya!

Re: Howdy From Parma Ohio!

2 by CDFingers
Hey, I mess up at least six posts before breakfast. I think the classical liberal can find peace and joy here. And dad jokes. Heck, I have a weapon of war from 1894, a Mosin Nagant m91 from the Sestroryetsk armory. He's retired now. But can tell stories that will curdle your borscht.

Welcome from northern California where your almonds come from. And Sierra Nevada brews.

CDF
Crazy cat peekin' through a lace bandana
like a one-eyed Cheshire, like a diamond-eye Jack

Re: Howdy From Parma Ohio!

4 by marinersk
senorgrand wrote: Thu Aug 15, 2024 10:02 pm welcome? what else do you shoot?
I had a long dry spell where I didn't own any firearms, but I've shot M-16, AR-15, 10/22, M-15 (the old S&W .38 revolver designation for Air Force standard issue sidearm)... in my younger days when I tried out other folks' rifles I wasn't terribly attentive about models and such, so I'll just say "a smattering". Oddly, never yet a shotgun. Though I did have a bunch of folks show up at my favorite shooting spot on Mount Herman near Colorado Springs with full trap setups whilst I was out there plinking with my 10/22 (an actual Mark I Model 1022, wish I still had it -- sucker stovepiped like a son of a gun, and knowing what I know now I bet I could've fixed it if I'd still had it), and I practiced tracking their pigeons with my little ol' 22LR. They had one pigeon that noone got to before it fell below the waist so I took a shot and we all agreed I'd hit it before it hit the ground (no satisfying puff of dust, though, merely a three-way split right before the pieces hit the ground and dusted themselves), so I have technically engaged in trap shooting once LOL.

My wife and I also tested dozens and dozens of models whilst we were preparing to invest in sidearms and get our CCWs, and I ran through just about anything I could get my hands on that was 9mm or 22LR. I think I might have tried out a .380 at one point. Never a Glock, though. First experience dry-handling a friend's 10mm left a sour taste, and then I found out you have to pull the trigger to field strip Glocks....done with that. Finger off the trigger until sights are on target and the decision to fire has already been made. Glock lovers are welcome to them -- a fine, sturdy, reliable sidearm, to be sure. But not my cuppa tea.

Besides, I fell in love with the paddle style mag release on the HKs once I figured out they were ambidextrous.... I'm probably cursed to spend HK money on all sidearms going forward. : : sigh : :

I suppose the good news is I don't have enough years left for that to be problematic HA!

Re: Howdy From Parma Ohio!

5 by YankeeTarheel
Hi from NJ.
The H&K P30 would be my first choice for a hammer-fired semi-auto (I have a VP9).
Carry licenses are tough to get in NJ and I don't feel the need for one. But that's my CHOICE (a key word for me in many contexts!)
"Even if the bee could explain to the fly why pollen is better than shit, the fly could never understand."

Re: Howdy From Parma Ohio!

11 by marinersk
YankeeTarheel wrote: Fri Aug 16, 2024 1:00 am Hi from NJ.
The H&K P30 would be my first choice for a hammer-fired semi-auto (I have a VP9).
Carry licenses are tough to get in NJ and I don't feel the need for one. But that's my CHOICE (a key word for me in many contexts!)
I tried. I really tried to not like the HKs. I didn't want to be a copycat (more on that in a moment).

As I'd noted previously, my wife and I tore through the inventory of rental options. Spending this much on a tool, by golly, we were going to do this ONCE. The single biggest regret I consistently hear -- bar none -- from first time handgun owners is "If I'd known then what I know now, I would NOT have bought THIS."

The Sig P320 was really a clear notch above all the others I'd tried up to that point. Smooth, comfortable, and I was probably most accurate with it of all the ones I'd tried. My best translation: It was built the way I move. Or something like that.

But, as our local inventory options diminished, research had turned up a few specific things to look into (especially my wife, with female-sized hands AND she's a lefty). So she started hunting farther and wider to ensure we tried all the things that we'd had on our lists. The timing was good, too. Getting into fourth quarter or thereabouts, heading towards Christmas, big expenditures coming.... we agreed to make it so our Christmas Presents to each other that year would be the guns.

But we finally bit the bullet and went to a different range where we could rent a VP9.

Now -- I'd been wanting to be a CCW and carrier for years. Decades. But there was always some other priority for dollars, time, dollars, training, and dollars.

But, to keep "touching the dream", as it were, I took to bouncing around YouTube, and stumbled across John Corriea's Active Self Protection channel. Constantly pebbling my wife from its content, she, too, started pulling out her long-dormant desire to get CCW and carry.

Well, as most husbands will tell you (I imagine there's something similar for wives, but I'm not a wife and wouldn't presume to be able to speak for one), we can want a hobby and do nothing with it for a loooooong time as one of the sacrifices we make to prioritize our family. It's just a thing.

But when your *wife* wants in on it? Mortgage the dog, baby. We goin' shoppin'.

Well, John really likes H&K -- I think he's a brand ambassador or something -- he mentions it frequently. And while I can't help but think like an Engineer, I am mindful of dangerous practices like Hero Worship and such. So, I was trying really hard to make sure I wasn't allowing John to drive my decisions. Hence, as noted above, I really pushed H&K to the back of the list. If I was going to like them, it was going to be after everyone else had gotten a fair shake. And I honestly didn't think I was going to like them very much. (I was, at the time, thinking of myself as Ruger guy. Long[er] story.)

So anyway, finally went to the range that had a VP-9 to rent.

Lined 'er up, squeezed, dead frickin center on the dot. Smooth? Made the P320 seem a little gravelly. Comfortable? I'm pretty sure they molded my hand to make the prototype. OMG. There's no way anything could be better.

Dang it, John. Get out of my head. LOL

Finally, my wife found a range out in Pennsylvania which had the Walther PDF and the HK P30. So we cleared our calendar and took a short road trip.

I was gobbsmacked. There's no possible way anything could have felt more natural and comfortable than the VP9.
Heckler & Koch responded: Hold my beer.
The range's "P30" turned out to be a P30L. Hold the beer, indeed.

We walked out of the range really, really quiet. Normally we would be just abuzz with energy, jumping at the opportunity to talk about the models we tried, what we liked, didn't like -- the whole geek package.

And we were both silent.

As I fired up the Jeep, she ever so gently asks:

"Do we *have* to wait for Christmas?"

We ordered them the moment we got home.

Re: Howdy From Parma Ohio!

12 by YankeeTarheel
marinersk wrote: Fri Aug 16, 2024 2:39 pm
YankeeTarheel wrote: Fri Aug 16, 2024 1:00 am Hi from NJ.
The H&K P30 would be my first choice for a hammer-fired semi-auto (I have a VP9).
Carry licenses are tough to get in NJ and I don't feel the need for one. But that's my CHOICE (a key word for me in many contexts!)
I tried. I really tried to not like the HKs. I didn't want to be a copycat (more on that in a moment).

As I'd noted previously, my wife and I tore through the inventory of rental options. Spending this much on a tool, by golly, we were going to do this ONCE. The single biggest regret I consistently hear -- bar non -- from first time handgun owners is "If I'd known then what I know now, I would NOT have bought THIS."

The Sig P320 was really a clear notch above all the others I'd tried up to that point. Smooth, comfortable, and I was probably most accurate with it of all the ones I'd tried. My best translation: It was built the way I move. Or something like that.

But, as our local inventory options diminished, research had turned up a few specific things to look into (especially my wife, with female-sized hands AND she's a lefty). So she started hunting farther and wider to ensure we tried all the things that we'd had on our lists. The timing was good, too. Getting into fourth quarter or thereabouts, heading towards Christmas, big expenditures coming.... we agreed to make it so our Christmas Presents to each other that year would be the guns.

But we finally bit the bullet and went to a different range where we could rent a VP9.

Now -- I'd been wanting to be a CCW and carrier for years. Decades. But there was always some other priority for dollars, time, dollars, training, and dollars.

But, to keep "touching the dream", as it were, I took to bouncing around YouTube, and stumbled across John Corriea's Active Self Protection channel. Constantly pebbling my wife from its content, she, too, started pulling out her long-dormant desire to get CCW and carry.

Well, as most husbands will tell you (I imagine there's something similar for wives, but I'm not a wife and wouldn't presume to be able to speak for one), we can want a hobby and do nothing with it for a loooooong time as one of the sacrifices we make to prioritize our family. It's just a thing.

But when your *wife* wants in on it? Mortgage the dog, baby. We goin' shoppin'.

Well, John really likes H&K -- I think he's a brand ambassador or something -- he mentions it frequently. And while I can't help but think like an Engineer, I am mindful of dangerous practices like Hero Worship and such. So, I was trying really hard to make sure I wasn't allowing John to drive my decisions. Hence, as noted above, I really pushed H&K to the back of the list. If I was going to like them, it was going to be after everyone else had gotten a fair shake. And I honestly didn't think I was going to like them very much. (I was, at the time, thinking of myself as Ruger guy. Long[er] story.)

So anyway, finally went to the range that had a VP-9 to rent.

Lined 'er up, squeezed, dead frickin center on the dot. Smooth? Made the P320 seem a little gravelly. Comfortable? I'm pretty sure they molded my hand to make the prototype. OMG. There's no way anything could be better.

Dang it, John. Get out of my head. LOL

Finally, my wife found a range out in Pennsylvania which had the Walther PDF and the HK P30. So we cleared our calendar and took a short road trip.

I was gobbsmacked. There's no possible way anything could have felt more natural and comfortable than the VP9.
Heckler & Koch responded: Hold my beer.
The range's "P30" turned out to be a P30L. Hold the beer, indeed.

We walked out of the range really, really quiet. Normally we would be just abuzz with energy, jumping at the opportunity to talk about the models we tried, what we liked, didn't like -- the whole geek package.

And we were both silent.

As I fired up the Jeep, she ever so gently asks:

"Do we *have* to wait for Christmas?"

We ordered them the moment we got home.
Great story! I went through similar things test shooting all kinds of handguns. Unfortunately, I didn't even know about the P30. My son wanted to start with Glocks to we did and frankly, they were fine--I like the G19 better than the G17. I made a priority list and #1 was a tie between the VP-9 and the Walther PPQ. Had I shot the P30 it would have made it a 3-way tie--the P30 and the VP9 are SO close! #3 was the Beretta M92, civ version of the mil-spec one. #4 was the G19.
I ended up with the VP-9 LE edition because it was a better deal ($$$) than the PPQ.

As for the P320? I ended up with Compact RE version with the factory red-dot. I have the sub-compact conversion kit as well. I do like the VP-9 better, though.
"Even if the bee could explain to the fly why pollen is better than shit, the fly could never understand."
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