Your first one and why you bought it.

[Mac11700]

The first Handi I owned was a 12ga...and that was way back in the 60's...I got it for$10 at a yard sale as I recall from my saved up yard mowing money.....they had a nice Ben Pearson recurve that I wanted too...but couldn't afford both...My Dad went back later and bought it for me and gave to me as a Christmas present that year...I don't have that first Handi..but do have that old Pearson bow still.......I had a bunch of the Handi's thru the years..There were just a few years of my life where I didn't have at least 1 around about 9years to be exact..but after I got a divorce from her(1st wife)..I didn't have that problem anymore and still don't with my current one I ask my Mom a while back if that old 12ga was lying around her house..She said no..my Dad had gotten rid of it many years ago...I do remember the first time I shot it...I smoked a couple nice swamp rabbits with it...and took many a squirrel with it later on...

Mac

[goodwrench6710]

My first H&R was a 12 guage Topper full choke, my mom got it for me for Christmas when I was 15 at Ames for $49.99 . I killed more rabbits than you could count with this shoulder breaker (I asked for it) & I learned the one shot kill right from the start! My first Handi-Rifle is my 22-250 that I bought this year. I like it alot, fun to shoot!

[Fred M]

This is another great thread with human intrest. My first Handi a 25-06 was not for myself but for a friend in the country who helped me with goose and deer hunting.
The rifle was a gift  for him, but we agreed that he pays for the scope.

Alas he never did had the money for the scope and gave me back the rifle. Said the
the rifle was no good without the scope. Since he could affort plenty cases of beer and a pack of cigarettes or more a day I did not give him the $200 scope.

Since I already had a Ruger #1 in 25-06 I tried to sell the Handi had absolutly no
luck selling it. So I traded the barrel to Mitchell for a 24" 223 bull barrel. That barrel did not shoot very good so I had the barrel rebored to a 257 Roberts and made it
 into a custom rifle.  I still wanted a 223 so I bought a new Ultra, heck it did not
 shoot  either and had it reboed to a 6x47.

The rest is history

[moxgrove]

My first was a topper 20 ga. It was my payment when I was 13 for digging up the sod on a quarter acre backyard and bringing 40 wheel barrows of black dirt to fill it in for my neighbor's garden. It was a great deal !

[eskimo36]

My first was a hornet about 25-26 years.  It had a 17 pound trigger pull from the factory....had to use a fish scale to measure it. In the mean time I have had several handi's and Contender's and ruger 1's. I only have handi's in single shots now but have been looking at buying a G2 for a few calibers that are cost prohibitive in a handi.

[aulrich]

My first was a 243 ultra and really it was all I could afford at the time I remember spending some time in the doghouse even though I had a plan to sell some of my other stuff to get it out of layaway (my first post here was to advertise my bear rug that I was selling (I had two and not enough wall to hang them). That one started good but was a bit of a problem child but I did eventually get it shooting, but in the mean time I figured out that I don't really like 243 and the new 204 ruger had just come out money was still tight so I sold it to finance my 204 ruger  that one has been a dream accurate and reliable from the get go.

I have added a 22 hornet and cad if reamed to k-hornet it's a superlight and it the perfect size for my boys to use.

If I see a 444 marlin this side of the border it will come home

it is better than 50/50 that my boys first deer gun will be a 30/30 handi but I have to admit that a stevens in 7-08 with a youth drop in stock is in the running as well.

[myarmor]

First for me, was in 05 and my 223 Ultra Varmint. Bought it for some affordable plinking and to kill off some ground hogs around the farm. Had a few small problems with it, but turned out it just needed a good break in and for me to learn how to shoot a hammer fall better
Sense then I have owned Handis in the following
 22Mag
 22Hornet
 204
 2 -223's
 243
 270
 7.62x39
 2- 30-06 Ultra Comp
 44Mag
 Several Pardners shotguns
 .58cal Huntsman
 and soon to add another 204 and a 280.
Not the biggest list but I have had a lot of fun with what I have had.
I am down to my actual needs as of now, which are my original 223 Ultra,  30-06 Ultra Comp,  along with shotgun project and the ol' .58cal.  A 45-70 and 357 will creep in there one day I hope..

-Aaron

[270Handiman]

Well, a 270 obviously! (note the name).  That was in '98 or '99.  Reason was purely financial, because at the time I was in college.  (Can you say thank you sallie mae?)  I put a Tasco Golden Antler on it and was out the door for just a hair over $200 bucks.  First box of ammo I shot was Hornady Light mag 140's.  They shot about 1 MOP (that's minute of plywood).  I had a target on the plywood, but never actually hit it.  Finally tried some cheap Rem Core-loks and they shot pretty decent, but I had bad vertical stringing.  I didn't straighten the thing out until I found this site in 2003 and read about removing the scope base, cleaning, and re-attaching!  Amazing!

Now I've got:
223 BB
223 Fluted Ultra
243 BB
270
280
45-70 22"
50 Cal. ML

Now I want:
25-06 Ultra
30-30
.444
44 Mag
45 LC

Guess I'm gonna have to break down and buy another frame at some point!

[300winny]

Hi, my first handi was a survivor model in 223 and i bought it because i wanted something that looked kinda tactical and it was really cheap. then i bought my ultra varmint fluted in 243, and im sure these wont be the last ones i get.

[xhare]

My first was a 45-70 back in 1993 when I was stationed up in Minot AFB North Dakota. I bought it because I had gained an interest in the 45-70.  Frankly I knew nothing about the Handi rifle at the time but it was the least expensive 45-70 I found by far.  But after shooting it I found that it was (and still is) incredibly accurate.  I was absolutely amazed at the accuracy I was getting from it, better than any 45-70 I had read about.  Since then I  have added a 223 barrel, also purchased a 22 mag, 10 gauge, 12 gauge slug (now gone), and a 500 magnum. 

[v8r]

bought a 223 handi in september 1995,saw one in a book with the maple stock,and ordered one.bought a 30-30 handi used. Sold both out of stupidity. I have since replaced them with a .223 Ultra,a .22 hornet topper 158,a .22 sporster,Handi .357,and a 12 gauge.

[Sourdough]

Got my first H&R in 76, a 12ga smooth bore slug gun, it was a gift.  Shot a bunch of rabbits, grouse, and deer.  Loved that ejector.  Then in 96 someone borrowed my TCR while on a Moose hunt.  Did not like the dings and scratches it got at someone elses hands, decided I needed something cheap as a spare gun to loan to others.  Because I liked my old H&R shotgun so well decided a rifle to match would be good.  Bought a 30-06 Handi Rifle, then sent it back for a 20ag barrel.  When sighting in the scope realised it was a good shooter, and loved that ejector.  That Ejectors were the reason I bought it, that and the rugged simplicity.  The price also came into play, but mainly the ejectors.  Bought a .223, .243, .35 Whelen, 45-70, and a .223 Ultra since then.  Now they have taken a good hunting rifle and turned it into a bench gun.  Won't buy another new one, unless they come back with the ejector..

[Mitch in MI]

I'm trying to remember what I found on the internet first, I think it might have been the Yahoo H&R group. From there, I found H&R Talk, and Graybeard after H&R shut down. I read about all the fun people had tinkering with these little guns (remember David Perklo's Another Fine Mess website?), and found out that a H&R distributor was having a going out of business sale around 2003 or so. I wanted a .280, and was having problems deciding on whether I wanted a 30-30 or a 45-70 to swap barrels with. I ended up buying two .280s, a 30-30, and a 45-70, because four guns had the same FFL hassle as one. I figured that one of the .280s had to interchange with one of the rimmed cartridge guns, but no such luck. The 30-30 interchanges with the 45-70, and that's it. Later, I had a chance to pick up a .223 ultra barrel on the cheap, but didn't get around to shooting it (it fit the 30-30 and 45-70) before I had a chance to buy a mint condition .223 HB with uncheckered Camo laminates. Been having lots of fun shooting the .223 with the ultra barrel, can shoot about an inch at 200 yards on a good day with cheap Winchester 45gr, and it doesn't fail to eject very often since I polished the chamber a bit. When they had the barrel sale of 2005, I sent the 30-30 frame in for nine barrels, none of which I've played with yet. I find myself unemployed this week, so it's time to blow the dust off my too many guns and have some fun with them. IIRC, I've got a 30-30AI reamer around here somewhere, and I've got three 30-30 barrels, plus a .44mag that I reamed out in 2005 with Jeff's 445 Supermag reamer. No factory 30-30 or .44 ammo, but I've got brand new dies, brass, etc to load some up.

[James B]

My first was a used topper 30-30 about ten years ago. On the chance that my wife may read this, I will leave it at that.

[JerryKo]

My first purchase of an H&R was for my son in 2006.  PA started a mentor hunt for squirrels, turkey and groundhogs.  I needed a small gun and fast so he could start shooting it before the opening on squirrel.  I found the 20ga pardner and some little skeeters so he could shoot 410's.  While doing some research I found the barrel program and started doing some brain storming.  It wasn't a week later I saw an unfired 270 handi w/scope for $200.  I took it   I took it to the range to test fire, all was good, and the receiver was on its way to H&R for a 357mag barrel.  These are my sons.  The pardner youth stock fits the handi for now until he can fit out of the youth stock.  He just turned six this April so this may be awhile.

Thanks to this site, which I love, I am trying to get for myself, either a BC 45/70, or an Ultra in 204 or 223.  I cannot find either locally, and will be ordering very shortly if I cant find soon.

Great stories in this thread, thanks for sharing.

[PartsMan]

My first was a 25-06.
I had always deer hunted with a marlin 30-30.
Got tired of watching the big one go by at 300yd.
Both deer I shot that year were inside 50yd.

[Dusty Wheeler]

I just got my first handi--a .45 Colt Carbine.  I handled a couple other hindi's but this one really 'spoke' to me.  It reminds me of civil war breech loading carbines.  I already have several other 45-70's and just wanted a fun pistol caliber carbine.  This forum pushed me over the edge--I'm hooked!

[Freightman]

I wanted a 45/70 and didn't have the $$$$ for most so I got a Buffalo Classic, well I caught the single shot bug and was going to send in my action for more barrels. Well I got a phone call from a man who I had traded with in the past, he said I have two rifles I can't shoot they kill me they are 45/70's what do you have to trade? well I gather a Draganov sniper rifle and a case of ammo and go to his house (haven't shot the sniper in months) he has a Sharps and a Remington Rolling Block and a 1885 Winchester. I do not have enough trade goods I pull up my shirt and hand him my CCW still not enough, ok went back home and got another pistol and ammo for the CCW and it. Ok he says I get three single shot rifles all it cost me was all the simi auto's I owned + ammo I am sick sick sick.