By the Grace of God I hope none of us have to make the one gun decision for any reason. I have agonized over this a time or two over the years because of financial reasons.
I would actually expect many to have to make this decision at least once in their lives. If you didnt grow up with guns around and reach adulthood with none at all,then there is going to be (unless your one of those people that dont WANT guns,but I think its safe to assume that the audience here has few of those types) a time that you decide that you want or need a gun and go down to the gun store to get one. Since your probboally young and dont have a lot of cash,and may not even have a clear idea of all the things your going to need or want it for,something with alot of versatility may be just what you need. There are of course the questions that come up of what do you need it for. Are you living in a bad neighborhood. If your young and poor,this may well be the case.
If your older and poor,then I suspect that you will know EXACTLY what you need a gun for,self defense. If your older and have little money,its likely you have a family one or more full time jobs,and may well live in a city,and dont go hiking or camping often and recreational plinking beyond what you can justify for much needed practice may be out of the question. When your young with no responsibilities,you may eat ramen for a month (actually,that's a terrible idea,your better off buying a 50lb bag of rice and a 20lb bag of beans and supplementing it with small amounts of vegetables,whatever is cheapest or marked down and eat every bit including the stems. A little soy sauce for 3 dollars and a pinch of red pepper that costs less than a penny adds a little flavor. If you really want to go all out buy a bottle of mirin for 5 bucks and it makes a solid teriaki sauce for pennies a day if you use it sparingly. A sticky rice ball,seasoned with a little soy sauce if you like it that way,makes a good filling lunch too. That will actually keep you healthy rather than ramen which will end up making you malnourished,but that's another discussion). When your older however,your less likely to have the ability to sacrifice like that (or you may well be already sacrificing like that just to FEED your family so recreational activities are off the table. The gun is just a tool to protect yourself and your family and if you get some fun at the range when you practice its a side effect as its not a game,its serious business at that point,making every shot count toward practicing and perfecting your technique.
If your younger though,you probably have more latitude with your money and your time. Even though you may have limited funds,you may still find the time to go camping with friends,or even go on a hunting trip. When you go to the gun store and tell them your looking to buy a gun,of course money is an issue. The question of course might be asked if your looking for one for self defense. The answer is "Uh sure,I guess,yea that sounds like something I need to worry about,my neighbor was broken into last week." If they ask if you need something for hunting,you might answer,yea,hunting with a handgun sounds fun,sure why not" When they ask if you need something to protect against predators while hiking,the answer is "Well,yea,I go hiking and fishing sometimes,and Ive heard of attacks,but I never really thought about it,I guess I do need something for that." In fact,you need a lot of guns. Maybe a 1911 for carry,maybe a light weight 357 or 44magnum for hiking. Maybe a full sized 7.5 or 10" 44magnum or even larger revolver or a single shot for hunting. Thats not going to happen so you have to either decide which of those is most important and get one gun that does that perfectly (which you will most likely fail to do,I was lucky,I chose a browning hi power,loved it and several of my friends,who allready had lots of guns ran out and bought one too after shooting it) You might also decide to get something versatile. I have to say,I'm not a revolver guy (in fact,I REALLY wanted to buy a Desert Eagle in 44magnum but came to the conclusion that a SBH just made so much more sense),but I hardly think something like a 4" DA 357 magnum or 44 magnum would be a bad choice for that person. I wouldn't try to hunt with it,but some people do and it hits like a freight train with the right ammo. They can both be loaded down with a special,and be in the range that useful for self defense. (Everyone who knows a retired LEO who swears by a 38 raise your hand!) Its light enough for concealed (or open) carry and as such,is light enough for a backpacking trip where your counting ounces. Like I said,I'm not a revolver guy,so maybe I'm way off base here,but it seems that in any of those rolls,either of those guns are not going to be particularly bad or unsuited to any of those roles.
