Author Topic: THE FIVE WORST GUNS I’VE EVER OWNED  (Read 1105 times)

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Offline Graybeard

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THE FIVE WORST GUNS I’VE EVER OWNED
« on: December 27, 2020, 10:33:59 AM »
https://gunmagwarehouse.com/blog/the-five-worst-guns-ive-ever-owned/

TRAVIS PIKE DECEMBER 26, 2020


It’s easy to list my five favorite guns, or my five favorite shotguns, or favorite handguns, or my favorite weird guns. That’s easy. What about the five worst guns? Well, that turned out to be easy. After owning so many different guns, it was easy for me to come up with my five worst firearm experiences. So without wasting any more of your time, here are my five worst firearms.

1. Jimenez 380 – Worst Guns Ever

The term Saturday Night Special was specifically derived for guns like the Jimenez 380 ACP. Jimenez, Lorcin, Raven, Jennings, and a few I’m most certainly missing are all part of this certain category of firearms best described as junk. You can pick on Hi-Point all you want, but a Hi-Point is a Nighthawk compared to a Jimenez.



I paid all of 40 bucks for this pistol, and I most certainly got ripped off. This pot metal piece of crap is easily one of the worst guns I’ve ever shot, handled, and looked at. When people use ‘Buy American’ as an argument for some quality standard, I think of the Jimenez 380 ACP.

If you can get the gun to fire more than two rounds without jamming, it’s a good day.

The sights suck and should be ignored. They are more decoration than a useful design. The manual safety sits flush within the frame and is hard to activate. Recoil is stout because it’s a direct blowback weapon, and boy oh boy, I hope you like slide bite.

It’s a piece of junk, and the number one on my worst guns ever list for a reason.

2. The Taurus Judge

Last month I wrote an article on why 410 revolver suck. In the process, I broke out my old Judge and took it to the range. It promptly broke, firing 410 Federal handgun ammunition. In many ways, I said why 410 revolvers suck in general but didn’t dive deep into why the Judge specifically sucks and why it’s one of my worst guns.


Taurus Judge and shells.

Obviously, it’s ballistically challenged with 410 loads. They tend to suck out of the Judge’s 3-inch rifled barrel. 45 Colt has so much cylinder gap to overcome that precision accuracy is best described as challenging with it. Also, the trigger blows hard. Even the single-action trigger feels sloppy and heavy. The rubber ribber grip feels like it’s sized for a J frame .38 special and not a 410 pistol.

Add in the fact that it’s probably fired less than 250 rounds in its entire life and still broke, and that says all I need to know about the Judge. I can deal with dumb fun guns. I love dumb fun guns, and the Judge was fun for a bit. However, when you combine the uselessness of the gun with the poor ergonomics, terrible trigger, and breakage issue — you get one of the worst guns I own.

3. USFA Zip

I wanted the Zip to work, and I wanted it to work so bad. It was a cheap gun, had a weird space-age design, and took Ruger 10/22 magazines. A fun, futuristic plinker like this could’ve been such a fun and silly gun for the range. However, like most of the guns on this worst guns list, it failed hard in the reliability department.


The Zip in all its space-age design.

The USFA Zip wouldn’t feed to save its life. USFA tried to come out with upgrade kits to make it work a bit better, but it never did. The gun barely feeds two or three rounds before you get a jam that requires you to remove your magazine and clear the gun.

Outside of the reliability department, the ZIP 22 had some fatal flaws safety-wise. Reportedly, there are out of battery detonations, which are never safe. The next issue is the charging handles — you basically have to put your finger in front of the barrel to charge the weapon. Not a wise decision.

4. Remington 597

The Remington 597 was my first rifle. This semi-auto 22 LR was a magazine-fed design and was my 10th birthday present. If I could go back in time, I’d tell my dad to get the Ruger 10/22. The Remington 597 was a garbage rod from the very beginning. The 10 round magazine was fragile and looked to be made of the same pot metal my Jennings is made from. It worked about the same.



The gun rarely fed correctly, and my ten-round magazine would rarely lift the round high enough to feed. The bolt would often drive the round down into the magazine, and this would bend to rounds and make removing the magazine and clearing the jam a major hassle.

Also, some years after owning it, the stock cracked near the pistol grip. No idea why; it just cracked and eventually broke. I traded it away for a single shot 22 LR and found myself way happier with the results.

5. The Tec 9

Technically this is a TEC-DCM9, but let’s just call it a TEC-9. Admittedly I bought this gun knowing it was a piece of junk, so that’s why it’s the final gun in my worst guns list. Even though I knew these guns were of dubious quality, I still didn’t expect how bad the gun was. The first big flaw is reliability.



Boy, oh boy, does this gun love to jam. Not just fail to fire or fail to eject—and while it does do that, it also tosses complicated malfunctions left and right, like double feeds and failures to eject when the bolt still loads the next round. Almost every malfunction is trouble. Those suck for sure, but the gun itself is poorly designed.

The TEC-9 is a direct blowback weapon, and man, does that heavy bolt cause your gun to jump and buck way more than a 9mm should. The TEC-9 is a fiery little fella with one helluva safety. The safety is the charging handle. To turn it on, you press it down, and it locks in place. It’s a terrible design all the way around. If it didn’t have the controversial nature, I’d never own it, but for now, it’s a primary fixture in my gun safe.

My Five Worst Guns

These are my five worst guns. Guns I wouldn’t trust to be anything more than a paperweight. How about you? What are your worst guns? And why?


Bill aka the Graybeard
President, Graybeard Outdoor Enterprises
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I am not a lawyer and do not give legal advice.

Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life anyone who believes in Him will have everlasting life!

Offline Argent 88

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Re: THE FIVE WORST GUNS I’VE EVER OWNED
« Reply #1 on: December 27, 2020, 11:23:26 AM »
Sum that up with one word, Ruger. 10/22 is ok. May not be five, but Ive had four new Rugers Ive had to send back to the factory. Two, twice. LC9, GP 100, 1911, Vaquero. Returns , never again.




Offline wtxbadger

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Re: THE FIVE WORST GUNS I’VE EVER OWNED
« Reply #2 on: December 27, 2020, 02:00:54 PM »
Two worst guns I had were a Savage Fox double side by side and a cheap Turkish made Khan over/under. Both guns would double every time they were fired. With the Fox I was quail hunting in southwest Texas and when a quail flushed and I shot and it stood me up in my tracks and that quail exploded into nothing but feathers and feet. I was using my newly purchased Khan shooting sporting clays in the mid 2000's and it started doubling on me. I'm not real recoil sensitive but shooting 12 gauges that double on you tends to get your attention. Sold them both and warned the purchasers about the problem with them both but they bought them anyway. Always wondered how they both fared with them.
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Offline Graybeard

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Re: THE FIVE WORST GUNS I’VE EVER OWNED
« Reply #3 on: December 27, 2020, 05:14:45 PM »
By far my worst was an Italian made Sharps. At 25 yards it was well over a foot high with sight bottomed out. But it didn't keep shots on an 8.5" x 11" target sheet anyway.

Then there was the Ruger #1 in 6mm Remington. Hit to POA OK but on a good day couldn't keep 3 on a target sheet no matter what I fed it, traded it back on a Browning .243 that was one of the most accurate guns I've owned.

I'll have to think about 3-5.


Bill aka the Graybeard
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I am not a lawyer and do not give legal advice.

Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life anyone who believes in Him will have everlasting life!

Offline BUGEYE

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Re: THE FIVE WORST GUNS I’VE EVER OWNED
« Reply #4 on: December 27, 2020, 05:21:18 PM »
I have never owned a firearm that didn’t work just like they were supposed to.
Well one, but it was old and I had to replace a few parts in the lifter mechanism and the O ring on the magazine follower, and now it works fine.   (Sears model 43)
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Offline Dee

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Re: THE FIVE WORST GUNS I’VE EVER OWNED
« Reply #5 on: December 27, 2020, 05:51:18 PM »
Well I'll say that one of my biggest disappointments was that Ruger PC40. Jammingest, most unreliable pos I've ever owned.
You may all go to hell, I will go to Texas. Davy Crockett

Offline Graybeard

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Re: THE FIVE WORST GUNS I’VE EVER OWNED
« Reply #6 on: December 27, 2020, 06:10:28 PM »
Well Dan that reminds me of the Ruger P90 in .45acp I bought new. WOW what a junker. All sorts of feeding/function issues. Wouldn't hit the side of the barn even if you were inside it.

I took it back where I got and they flat refused to take it in trade. I had same at every dealer I went to including a bunch at a gun show. I was about ready to toss it in the river.

Then I took it to a shop I had just recently discovered. He never refused to take any gun I brought in for trade, he didn't give me much but I had already learned no one thought it worth much. I had to agree, he is also the one I traded the Italian Sharps to.


Bill aka the Graybeard
President, Graybeard Outdoor Enterprises
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I am not a lawyer and do not give legal advice.

Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life anyone who believes in Him will have everlasting life!

Offline Dee

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Re: THE FIVE WORST GUNS I’VE EVER OWNED
« Reply #7 on: December 27, 2020, 06:35:17 PM »
I must admit that Ruger worked with me, and sent new parts, but the little carbine didn't want to feed. My trade wasn't too bad, but I went back to a proven action and solved the problem.
You may all go to hell, I will go to Texas. Davy Crockett

Offline Graybeard

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Re: THE FIVE WORST GUNS I’VE EVER OWNED
« Reply #8 on: December 28, 2020, 02:31:52 AM »
I'll have to also add the Taurus M44 I bought, the barrel looked like it had been gouged with something hard. Large sections of rifling were just gone. At 25 yards most bullets went thru target sideways if they hit it at all.

To their credit Taurus replaced it at no cost to me.

I think I'll give the remaining spot to a TC semiauto 22LR rifle I bought new. Very inaccurate when you could put up a backstop large enough to catch them. Even at 25 yards using all the scope adjustment they were 2' from POA, I used Burris Signature rings with offset inserts and got it close enough to catch the groups which were huge.


Bill aka the Graybeard
President, Graybeard Outdoor Enterprises
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I am not a lawyer and do not give legal advice.

Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life anyone who believes in Him will have everlasting life!

Offline Dee

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Re: THE FIVE WORST GUNS I’VE EVER OWNED
« Reply #9 on: December 28, 2020, 02:43:09 AM »
I haven't had that many "bad guns", but two of my biggest mistakes/disappointments were two Colt Pythons I bought new.

I couldn't get over the look of the Python vs the Smith Model 19. The Python to me, was just a more esthetically appealing.

But in my line of work, the Smith was far more efficient at half the cost. I eventually got over it after the second Python further proved what I already had learned.

My everyday carry today is a 686 4 inch I have smoothed up, and since I wear suspenders anyway, the weight is a moot point. It'll do anything the Pythons would do.
You may all go to hell, I will go to Texas. Davy Crockett

Offline Doublebass73

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Re: THE FIVE WORST GUNS I’VE EVER OWNED
« Reply #10 on: December 28, 2020, 03:13:02 AM »
I had a Sig P938 that wouldn't reliably feed any hollowpoints, it would only feed ball ammo. I dropped it off at the Sig pro shop to get fixed. Got it back and the feed ramps had a beautiful polish job but it still had the same problem. I ended up trading it off, it was a shame because I liked the gun when it worked.

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Offline Graybeard

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Re: THE FIVE WORST GUNS I’VE EVER OWNED
« Reply #11 on: December 28, 2020, 05:05:47 AM »
I've owned several hundred different guns, lost count maybe 40 years ago at around 250. I guess owning so many I should expect several bad ones. Those I've listed don't cover nearly all the bad ones, just the worst 5.


Bill aka the Graybeard
President, Graybeard Outdoor Enterprises
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I am not a lawyer and do not give legal advice.

Jesus is the way, the truth, and the life anyone who believes in Him will have everlasting life!

Offline orerancher

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Re: THE FIVE WORST GUNS I’VE EVER OWNED
« Reply #12 on: December 28, 2020, 07:08:05 AM »
Smith and Wesson, SD40....Gun so bad it Covers 1-5 by It's Self!

Offline Argent 88

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Re: THE FIVE WORST GUNS I’VE EVER OWNED
« Reply #13 on: December 29, 2020, 03:31:19 AM »
I had a couple of FNH rifles I wasn't very impressed with.  PS90 that wouldn't group at all and that stupid looking Bullpup, a 2000, something or other I can't remember. It jammed all the time and then went slam fire
emptying the entire magazine. Very dangerous and might have been illegal.

Offline nw_hunter

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Re: THE FIVE WORST GUNS I’VE EVER OWNED
« Reply #14 on: January 02, 2021, 03:32:05 AM »
I've owned so many over the years, I can't remember. I do remember a Mossberg  22 plinkster I bought as a truck rifle, and the front sight was off center so bad, you couldn't correct it.
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