As we descend further into the lore of the gun, as we absorb more of the gun culture, as we study the technical specs of various firearms and as we slug our way through what our cop buddies say, or the rando behind a random gun counter, it is quite easy to get mired in the nonsense and lore that pervades gun culture. This is especially true when it comes to which firearm is the “best” one. “Just buy a Glock19,” they say. And they’re not wrong. Hell, I have been ‘them’ many times before. Without any other information than, “what gun should I buy?” This is my go to answer. The G19 is a great choice for anyone from a 1st time gun buyer to a seasoned veteran as an everyday gun or a ‘one gun to rule them all’ if you can only have one. There is a much deeper conversation that needs to take place and that conversation revolves around one question. “What is the use case?”

I have been to dozens of gun shows and gun shops in my short time upon this earth, many of which I have gotten to overhear, and sometimes be involved in, conversations with the seller/clerk that are pathetic to say the least. As someone who has spent a decade behind a bar, and another most recent decade in sales, it has always bothered me to hear these conversations. The amount of cringe when I hear a seller say, “this is perfect for a lady” and see him showing a 40 something female, a snub nosed revolver or a micro 9mm of some sort. I once got to bear witness to a gun show seller tell a woman and her husband that the pink Jiminez semi-auto 9 subcompact pistol the wife was holding was, “very reliable” and had “almost no recoil.” I have heard sellers/clerks ask “is this for self defense?” Which is like asking someone looking at a car, “are you gonna drive this to work?” But I never once heard a seller/clerk ask, “how do you plan to use it?”

On the surface, these seem like the same question just asked in a different way. To some extent they are, but we have to factor in what the unconscious human response will be. When you’re trying to find the buying motivation you rarely ever want to ask a yes/no question because the answer you will get 99/100 is “no.” The customer could have been looking at a vehicle on the internet for two weeks, done all the homework, checked all the particulars and yet if you were to ask them, “hey, do you want to buy it?” You will always get a resounding, “no.” To find out the motivation we want to ask open ended questions, the same holds true for any product. Now, I understand that almost everyone reading this has a negative view of car sales and dealerships, so let’s try to clear our minds because the idea is to get the right product for the right customer. What has brought this person to this point in which they’re wanting to purchase a firearm?

“So what the hell does this have to do with guns!!” Chill out Frank, I’m getting there. Whether it's a clerk at the gun shop or you sitting on your computer watching endless YouTube videos, the question needs to be asked, “what is my use case?” Am I using this for self defense? Well the odds are, yes, of course. But where will it potentially be used and by who? Are you going to carry it on your person? Is it going to sit in the nightstand? We don’t want to get a 12 gauge with a 24” barrel for home defense. Much like we don’t want to use a Glock 19 to hunt Geese.

There is another aspect of use case that some of you have to consider, unfortunately, and that is local laws. Know your state and local laws concerning what firearms are allowed. This is usually fairly easy because you won’t be able to buy any illegal firearm locally, but it is possible that your local shit city doesn’t allow a firearm that your state has no issue with. Another consideration is ammo choice as well. Some commie states and cities don’t allow expanding ammunition like hollow points. If you really want to do some hardcore homework you can look at the court dockets of citizen involved shootings that your local DA prosecuted and see what their issue was. This is an entire subject worthy of its own discussion so I’ll end it here.

When considering your use case you should also take into consideration who all may potentially have to use the firearm. Example, if you decide to buy a Smith & Wesson 686 .357 revolver for home defense, which is a decent choice, perhaps you should consider that if your wife has to use it if you’re away will she be able to pull the trigger? They have a 10 lbs trigger after all. Will she be able to handle the recoil impulse? That’s a magnum round coming out way hot! If while pulling the trigger, will it affect her grip and throw the shot left or right? Not only are we going to miss, but who might be in those rooms she just sent a magnum round into. And maybe the biggest question of all, is the sound going to scare her so bad she freezes like Delta threw a 9-banger into her room? Maybe a rifle is the right choice?

So you are considering a rifle as your ‘one gun to rule them all.’ F**k yeah! Rifles are friggin’ sweet dude! Sadly it doesn’t solve all of your problems. You’re going to need a weapon mounted light since a lot of burglaries happen when it’s dark. Trying to hold a flashlight and wield a rifle can be done but is not recommended. Additionally, the manual of arms, aka how to use the rifle, is a bit more complex than a lot of pistols. And, of course, a rifle is a bit more difficult to manipulate inside a home or building. The good news is though, your wife and kids are more likely to be able to handle and shoot a rifle better than a pistol. The biggest issue with a rifle over a pistol is the cost barrier to entry. Although, Palmetto State Armory and Bear Creek Arsenal have AR-15 offerings that are inexpensive and reliable. That being said, the AR is not the only rifle. I felt sick just typing that last sentence. Yuck. But, there are other rifles including pistol caliber carbines aka PCs or PCCs that can be viable options for your use case.

Use case is not just limited to first time gun buyers looking for the “one.” More often than not the ‘experienced’ gun owner fails to ask themselves the use case question more than anyone. The “I need an 6.5 Creedmoor with a 24” barrel to shoot 1200 yards.” Ok, but can you shoot 1200 yards accurately? Is there a scenario in which you would need to shoot that far? Why are you buying a 6.5 Creed? Just because a rifle or, more specifically, a round is capable of 1200 yards does not mean you can pull that off. Or the scope & mount you decide to use may not be able to pull that off. Let’s assume you can make the 1200 yard shot. When do you expect to need to make a 900-1200 yard shot? Hunting with a 6.5 is a daily occurrence for many, especially those hunting herd animals like Elk or Caribou in North America. Hunting both of those animals requires hunters to stalk the herd to get a shot. How far do you want to carry a 24” rifle over the hills and far away? 2-3 lbs doesn’t sound like a lot until you have to carry it up and down hills all day long, especially when it’s attached to an awkward rifle. Why have the extra weight when you can get an 18” barrel, save the length and weight and set your rifle up for a max 7-800 yard range. Your weight is down, your dope is more precise and your vital hit percentage is higher.

Use case is an important aspect of setting up a new rifle or pistol. There are always the retro builds, the tribute builds and the meme builds which are all cool AF but this is a different category. When you’re wanting a longer range rifle setup, let’s say a 3-600 AR set up, a red dot sight is not going to cut it for that. A 16-40 scope will definitely help at those ranges but is like using a .50 cal to take down a squirrel. It’s a bit of overkill. The opposite applies as well. Putting a 10-24 scope on your home defense rifle is not ideal either.

This question afflicts even the professionals as well. The US military could have saved a lot of time and probably a lot of service member lives if they asked the use case question when invading Afghanistan in 2001, and definitely during the occupation. A 5.56mm rifle in the Hindu Kush mountains with engagements happening routinely at 400 meters is beyond ideal. Our soldiers were outgunned by dudes running around in homemade sandals armed with x39 AKs and PKMs. Our highly decorated upper brass, stars shining, command never asked, “what is the use case of our rifles?” Maybe they didn’t care, maybe they asked and were told to “figure it out.” Who knows, but this exact lack of use case consideration would also rear its ugly head again in Iraq. More specifically with the Marines in Fallujah. We tasked the Marines with going house to house, building to building, clearing them all with M16A4 rifles with 20” barrels. Delta and SEAL units, who are experts in room clearing, have been rocking rifles with 14.5” barrels since the 1980’s. The M4 Carbine, which is the result of Delta operations, has been in US military service since 1994 with its 14.5” barrel would have been much better suited to the house to house clearing that the USMC was tasked with. The Marines accomplished their task through sheer will and true American grit, but how much could those Marines have benefited from having M4’s over those M16A4’s with their 20” barrels?

This article is getting long and if you’re still reading thank you. Let’s end this with a simple conclusion. When considering a potentially life saving tool, like a gun, the best thing you can do is to figure out what your specific use case is going to be. How do you plan on it being implemented and who potentially will be implementing this tool. Just be warned about one thing. The pursuit of perfection of the gun is addictive and ever evolving. This can become an obsession that costs you literally thousands of dollars. Stay frosty and use every day to become harder to kill. Stay toxic America

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