It came down to the Ruger 10/22 and the Henry Lever Action. I went to a local gun store and held both of them in my hands. I instantly loved the Henry. People would tell me that the Ruger was a better buy because of how popular it is and the robust aftermarket. The Ruger wasn’t bad, but the Henry just felt right. Do you guys believe in love at first sight? I do (for guns, anyway.)
Before I could commit, I had to try shooting one. I’d rather spend $10 on a rental to figure out that I didn’t like it like the Glock than $300+ on a gun that I would never touch again (and have my name on a list with the DoJ? no thanks!)
When I shot at the range, I started with the Henry thinking that I’d rent the Ruger after. Maybe this was destiny but when I went back to the counter for it, the Ruger was checked out.
The Henry was everything I wanted in a first gun. Aside from wanting wood because I wanted it to be beautiful, I knew I wanted manual action. Semi-autos are still a bit of a mystery to me. I preferred the revolver to the Glock because I liked seeing the hammer fall on the firing pin, making the bullet go and the cylinder goes around. With a semi-auto, it was all encased in the upper out of sight. Pull trigger, bang, magic happens, next round is in the chamber and now you can go again.
I really didn’t want to give the Henry back to the guys behind the counter. The next day, I went to the gun store and started the arduous California process of becoming a gun owner.
gunbunnylexy 