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TheEqualizer686P

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About TheEqualizer686P

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  1. Well, I finally made it to the range this evening for the first time to try my new 686p and it went really well. Now, I should preface this by saying that prior to the purchase of this firearm (my first) I had only shot a friend's .22 and .45 a couple of times a few years ago, never shot a .357 magnum and hadn't shot anything for the last few years. So, I went to the range this evening knowing I want to slowly and gradually work into using and becoming comfortable with my firearm so I wasn't planning on going through more than the 70 rounds of ammo I had brought with me. I started with 50 rounds of 38 sp to warm up which was no problem and then with some healthy apprehension tried 14 130g .357 JHP rounds through it and ...WOW! The difference in power was shocking, startling and scary....I was actually scared of the .357 round but I know I will get use to it the more I practice with those rounds. Is a little fear normal and healthy in this situation? I was able to control it, hit the target and did ok (although obviously I'll need more practice to get better) but the flash/bang/recoil demands serious attention/respect and now I REALLY understand why everybody recommends a .357 for home defense. This gun is AWESOME!! The funny thing was, following the first .357 round the RSO behind me (surely a seasoned gun vet in his mid 60's) stood up and stood partially behind me. When I acknowledged his presence by glancing back in his direction he said, "wow, that was loud" and continued to watch me fire my weapon. Even though he was very helpful and didn't say anything else, from that point on I felt as though I had done something wrong (like my gun was too loud for the range) and didn't really feel comfortable staying much longer. Perhaps he was paying closer attention to make sure I could handle my firearm and/or admiring the weapon but I didn't feel comfortable shooting any more .357 rounds after that so I shot a few more then packed up and left. What do you guys make of it?
  2. 1) Initial FID plus one handgun permit 2) Medford PD - Firearms division (Medford, NJ) 3) Firearms division - person varies, the individual that initiated the process for me no longer worked there when I picked up my FID/permit. 4) 4 months - too long but I'm in a small town with a small PD which I was told makes a difference. I had to call to check on the status at which time they told me it was in final review and would be ready in a few days. They called me 2-3 days later and told me it was. 5) Standard documents Note: The smaller southern NJ towns seem to take longer probably because the PD's are smaller with less human resources and I consider a 4 month waiting time excessive (although I've heard of much longer wait times so I guess I shouldn't be too upset). That said, the person I dealt with informed me up front that it would take 4 months so there were no surprises and the process went very smoothly with no problems. I paid a $7 fee at the PD when I first picked up my application, $55 for my fingerprints that I had done at a separate facility a few weeks later and then I did nothing but wait 4 months to pick up my FID and permit from the PD. There were no mix ups, screw ups, delays or additional calls or paper pushing needed so overall I'm very satisfied with the experience.
  3. Thanks for the welcome and recommendations. I picked up my firearm today. I took your advice and just purchased some ammo from SGAmmo. A lot of their least expensive ammo was out of stock (surprise, surprise) but I did manage to pick up 50 rounds of inexpensive .38sp Aguila 130 grain FMJ ammo for the range and splurged on 40 rounds of .357 Magnum Federal Power Shok 125 Grain JHP for home defense/range shooting all for about ~$71. Now I'll have to research some indoor ranges near me that were mentioned in this thread and head out there for the first time in the next couple of weeks.
  4. Thanks for the welcome and information everybody. I was leaning towards purchasing ammo online and you guys confirmed that's the best way to go so that won't be a problem. I've been doing a lot of reading and research about ammo online and it's not easy to make heads or tails out of it all. The number of choices for even one type of ammo is a little confusing let alone two (.38 and .357) so it's definitely a process. Michael2013, while I do not yet have an understanding of the nuances of different ammo, I did read that a hollow point round was best for self defense (max soft tissue damage within the target, less penetration/decreased collateral damage) in the home so thanks for confirming that. I've seen quite a few recommendations for the federal hydra shok or Speer gold dot .357 hollow points -- what do you guys think? I also read everywhere that most enthusiasts are using .38sp for plinking with a 686p so I'll start with those at the range and then move up to shooting some .357 to get a feel for what I should expect, as you suggested. I don't know what grain I should get for the .38 and .357 so any help there would be appreciated. I'm also not sure if I need a jacketed round or not. A lot of online sources are saying the non-jacketed .38sp rounds leave a residue behind that can affect the way a .357 fits and fires(??)....is that something I need to worry about? What about eventually reloading my own ammo? Is the equipment needed for that expensive and should I wait to do that until I'm more comfortable with ammo in general? Thanks again.
  5. Hello fellow NJ gun owners. It didn't take me long to find this great forum and I joined immediately. I'm a new gun owner scheduled to pick up my S+W 686P tomorrow that I purchased for home defense and plinking/target practice at the range and I'm really excited about it! So far I've purchased a gun safe and a speed loader leaving the ammo as the only outstanding purchase yet to be made (tough choice and still confusing to a newbie). I'll also be completing a gun safety course in the next few days as I believe in safe and responsible gun ownership. In my brief time here this site has already supplied a wealth of information and I look forward to the discussions about gun ownership and use in the great garden state.
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