I had to move the gun safe yesterday, and as I unloaded the thing, I found guns in there i forgot I had - a couple of Marlin model 60 .22's, a variety of single shot arms in a range of calibers and a few oddballs like an AR-7 that i think is fun, cool and fascinating, but is a pretty crappy firearm overall.

So I am going to - gasp - reduce the size of the arsenal this year!

First, I'm dumping the "exotics" chambered in ammo i can't find at a yard sale. (25-40? what? 8mm? Huh? What was I thinking?)

Then I am standardizing most of the handguns on .40 - every cop I know carries .40 and I can find .40 ammo pretty much everywhere. This is a bit of a drag, because i have been shooting 9mm for a long time and actually prefer it, but when it comes to handguns, I have to follow the lead of the folks who trained me and when all of them tell me they carry .40 so i think they have more knowledge than me about that sort of thing.

Shotguns will be harder to trim the collection (I really like shotguns), and I REALLY like .410 around here, with my trusty and ultra-simple M6 scout for hunting (we are slugs-only shotgun hunting here, and I find that the lighter weight of the .410 with 3" hollow-point slugs makes a nicer hunt).

Of course, the king of all shotguns, 12 ga, will be retained, as will the slightly easier to handle for my wife and son 20 ga. But all the others go.

Hopefully, you plan to keep the Marlin 60 .22's and 1000+ rounds of ammo for them. All things considered such as firearm and ammo weight, cost per round, and availability, I can't think of a better survival hunting tool.

Oh dear! Whatever happened to 38 Special +P+? (he said, gently caressing his S&W 27....)

Keep a 9mm as ammo is easy to get and it's still the standard for the military at this time. I like the .40s, but it's only 1mm bigger. If I want to really hurt something, I'd go with .45 sacrificing power for rounds. Personal preference.

Keep some of the .22s, small game and the ammo is cheap.

I'd keep a .410, a 20 and a 12, just to have a range of calibers if ammo becomes scarce.

I'd dump any single shot (not counting a shotgun) and anything in the odd calibers. Right now I'm going for .22 as I can afford the ammo and a range trip doesn't cost an arm and leg, even if you burn through 1000 rounds.

I did a dump not too long ago. Was painful, but with the proper therapy 4x a week for a year or two, you will get over it.

A while back I standardized on .45ACP -- then tried a .40SW (G-22) and didn't much like it, so I put a 9mm slide on it (G-17). 9mm is what shoot most now (G17 and G19), easy to get and cheaper than either .45 or .40SW. My Colt Gov't still gets range time, but it's not nearly as pleasant to shoot as either of the 9mm.

Hey Martin if you would ship send me a PM with a list of what you want to sell

Thanks!

Your Marlin 60 and AR-7 aren't going to bring much money in. Depending on what single-shots you're talking about, your may get decent money or nothing at all. I'd say keep 'em. Why sell them? It's not like your bank account will be overflowing with cash after the sales.

I'm activly shoping around for an 8mm Mauser. The ammo is relatively easy to find and cheap (as are the Mausers themselves - well, maybe not the pristine non-defaced German K98's).

http://www.sgammo.com/product/surplus/340rd-8mm-mauser-stripper-clips-made-romania

http://www.samcoglobal.com/rifles-m24.html

http://www.aimsurplus.com/product.aspx?i...amp;groupid=209

What's the point of standardizing? Buy as many different calibers as you want, and then stockpile ammo for each of those calibers that you intend to shoot (not just collect). What benefit does standardizing give you? If you're going to standardize on the caliber, why not standardize on the specific gun as well? Buy two of your standard handgun (one as a spare) and get rid of the rest. There, ... now you're fully "standardized".

<PRUNING THE ARSENAL!>

I was under the impression that -
"Discussion of illegal activities are not allowed"

The terms: Disposing of, pruning, getting rid of, reducing, or selling as used in the context relating to gun collections should hereby be banned from this site. It is un-American and un-manly.

The next thing you will hear is - "I was on line and Martin is getting rid of his."

The last thing you want to hear is - "No, my dad sold all his."

I standardize on certain things because I don't have unlimited storage space. That also means that sometimes I need to clear out the "hanger queens" to make room for things I will use more often. Having said that, it is always a tough decision for me to let go of a piece of gear no matter how impractical it has become. Of course I have a good reason to go get new stuff once I room for it!

-Eric

FWIW, I would say stick with 9mm if thats what you like and shoot well. With modern ammunition the difference is made by the person, not necessarily the caliber. Not to mention 9mm is far cheaper so you're likely to practice more. Just a thought.

If You lived in another area the cops would all be carrying 9mm. Change to .40 if you want, but don't kid yourself it's because its' been proven to be the best calibre. All the major calibres have the same stopping power to within a few percent. Your speed and accuracy with a round that suits you, will far outweigh any 'advantage' of calibre. Besides what is the advantage of standardising? You planning on going on a wagon train or something?
qjs

<All the major calibres have the same stopping power to within a few percent.>

I am afraid the firearms industry, law enforcement and the military will disagree with this statement.

The firemarms industry are trying to sell you stuff so I'd discount their opinion. Guess what? They all say thiers is the best!
The military can only use fully jacketed ammo so their experience will be different to yours. They simply don't have an opinion on what is the best expanding round. They have no need to know.
And the cops follow Evan Marshall whose figures show 9mm, .40, .45, 357 etc all in the 90 to 95% one shot stop range.
qjs

geesh, is this a 'Going Green in 2011" thread. Cutting back on weapons systems simply because they are not used? JK.

I am actually considering ADDING a .40 to my arsenal. There is a nice H&K USP on co-sign at a shop next to my house.

Does smokeless powder create greenhouse gases?

I agree with the above post.

As long as the caliber chosen has adequate stopping power, to my way of thinking it’s more personal preference and how accurate one is with the particular gun. A gun needs to be accurate, have reliability and have controllability. For instance, if I take two otherwise identical Winchester model 70 rifles, one .270 and one 30-06 to the range, the .270 is an easier rifle for me to control and thus it’s more accurate for me. Granted if I had two grizzly’s coming at me at the sametime the stopping power of the .06 might be nice, however overall the .270 is a little easier for me to use. In closing when you get down to similar calibers I don’t think there is a definitive answer other than what works best for the individual.

Yep, as I have come to understand, the latest generation 9mm 147 gr JHP are some pretty good loads. I have been shooting some of the Win Ranger 147 gr and it seems to be good stuff, much easier for me to control than the .40SW. YMMV

Selling some firearms in odd ball calibers because you don't use them and never will is one thing; selling 9mm to make room for .40SW is another. I have standardized on a number of standards -- 9mm, .45ACP, .357 (158 gr only) and .22LR in handguns -- .22LR, 5.56 NATO/.223, .308 Win and 30-06 in rifle. Those are all standards in my book.

I actually ditched the .40 and standardized on the 9mm

If I were wealthy enough to own them all, my idea of "standardization" would be: slingshots with 3/8" steel and .44 lead, airguns in .177 and .22 pellet, firearms in .22lr, .32acp, .380acp, 9x18mak, .38spl, 9mm parabellum, .45 long colt, .45acp, .40s&w, .357mag, .22wmr, 5.45x39, 5.56x45, .243win, .30-30, 7.62x39, .270win, .45-70 gov, 7.5x55 swiss, 7.62x54r, .30-06, .410 bore, 20ga, 12ga and .44cal muzzle loader.

obvious answer... buy a new gun safe

It's not the money I care about, it's more STUFF to manage in my life. I'm tired of the endless pile of "edge cases" accumulating in my life - if I could get my ammo stash down to, say, 6 sizes (.22 .40, .223, .30-06 .410, 20ga and 12 ga) that would be a huge start. Really, that's the crux of it.

It's the same reason over the last year I got rid of ALL of the spare computers and ALL but one of the spare LCD monitors.

It might be part of all the weight loss - I am just tired of having too much stuff I don't need and won't use around.

Don't get me wrong - the arsenal is still in place, it's just the stuff that:

a) I don't use much or ever
b) Is chambered in a caliber that I can't buy readily locally
c) Needs repair or "special attention"

With the exception of the 9MM pistols, all of the oddball stuff is now GONE as of today...didn't make as much room as I expected in the safe, but at least now I don't have stuff in there I don't want.