Truth About Handguns: Exploding The Myths, Hype, And Misinformation [Paperback]

Duane Thomas (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: November 1997

Every gun enthusiast will enjoy reading this lively look at the myths about the Colt .45; the hype surrounding handgun stopping power; the truth about Alvin York's incredible World War I firefight; the answers to the questions "Are revolvers dead?" and "How good is the .40 Smith & Wesson cartridge?"; and much more.

Editorial Reviews

Review

Duane Thomas is one of the newer breed of US gun writers and a highly entertaining one at that. An ex-US Army paratrooper stationed initially at Fort Bragg he was also an Administrative Sergeant - he describes this title to mean 'clerk typist' - who left the army after 10 years with an interest in firearms and the ability to type 100 words per minute.

A career as a free-lance gun writer seemed about the best way to combine the two. Thomas's book follows no fixed formula; in fact it is sort of a potpourri of material related to pistols and revolvers. He subtitles this work Exploding the Myths, Hype and Misinformation, obviously about handguns. Thomas covers subjects as widely diverse as The King of Combat Handguns - the .45 auto, pros and cons; Double-Action Autos - he carries, or did carry a SIG-Sauer P228 in 9mm Luger; Handgun Stopping Power; Firepower vs. the "One Shot Stop"; Are Revolvers Obsolete?; and Just How Good is the .40 S&W? Particularly good is the piece on the .40 Smith & Wesson cartridge and Thomas makes a valid point - with data to back it up - that this cartridge should only live in .45-size frame guns, not those who began their careers as 9mms. Equally thought-provoking is the chapter on Handgun Stopping Power and his conclusion about defensive shooting is worth noting, even if it is a little on the rich-mixture side for the politically correct: "If someone is trying to kill you, shoot him as accurately and as swiftly as possible and keep shooting, as many times as necessary. Only stop when he stops...trying to kill you, that is." -- ManMagnum, January 1999

From the first page of his Introduction, Duane Thomas, a prolific writer about guns for magazines, and a man whom I would class a hands-on expert, shows a very engaging writing style, a clear, informal, detailed technical knowledge and an involving story-telling manner.

It is a joy to read his inside information and judgments.

He deals first with the controversy over the 'King of Combat Handguns' - the Colt .45 auto (which he admires but feels is flawed...), and then takes on the pros and cons of Double-Action Autos..., discusses Handgun Stopping Power..., Alvin York: Hero With a .45 Auto..., Firepower vs. the "One Shot Stop"..., Are Revolvers Obsolete?..., Just How Good is the .40 S&W?...

And he delves into the arguments for and against owning a handgun, leaving most peoples' pretensions and nonthink in a shambles.

There is a Gun Trivia Quiz, and A Few Closing Comments: City Slickers & Gun Nuts. Invaluable info and perceptions - especially for any writer who often or occasionally needs to put handguns in a story or novel. This is a keeper. -- The Geis Newsletter #43

From the Author

This book saw its genesis in an article titled "Handgun Myths Exploded" that I wrote for a nationally distributed gun magazine. For years it's seemed to me there is an incredible amount of myth, dogma and outright silliness accepted as solemn truth in the world of the handgun, and in my article I addressed what I thought were some of the more outrageous examples. A book publisher was so impressed with that piece he had his editor call me up and ask if I'd be willing to expand it into a book. My reply: "Sure. Why not?" Since this book's publications I've gotten a lot of positive response on it. The chapter on Alvin York in particular seems to have touched people. I've had more than one person tell me, "I cried while reading that." I'm not surprised - I cried while writing it! Also the Gun Trivia Quiz, which I threw in just for the fun of it, has garnered a lot of praise. Just to let you know a bit of what you'll be letting yourself in for if you buy this book, I'm going to reprint here the opening paragraph from each of the book's nine major chapters:

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Product Details

• Paperback: 136 pages
• Publisher: Paladin Press (November 1997)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0873649532
• ISBN-13: 978-0873649537
• Product Dimensions: 8.5 x 5.6 x 0.4 inches
• Shipping Weight: 7.2 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 4.1 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (7 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #935,979 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Still Timely twelve years later, September 10, 2009

By 

mec "mec" (Texas) - See all my reviews

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This review is from: Truth About Handguns: Exploding The Myths, Hype, And Misinformation (Paperback)

A very engaging book. I read it in one sitting and if I were a more demonstrative person, I would have been pounding the arm of my recliner in agreement with Mr. Thomas' take on gun faddism, stopping power arguments and the nuts and bolts of handgun selection.

As an active gunwriter, I found that many of his experiences, observations, and prejudices mirror my own. In 1997, he was a bit ahead of the times. Since then, the double action pistols he favors have proliferated and become generally accepted by officialdom and the shooting public. The number of people owning and routinely carrying handguns has multiplied many times over and there is a strong trend toward pocketable,double action only pistols. Jacketed truncated cone bullets-deplored by Mr. Thomas, have largely given way to designs with feed-friendly rounded ogives . Nevertheless, the same myths, hype and misinformation still hold force and have become even more rude and contentious with the explosion of internet gunchat forums.

The Truth About Handguns remains timely, topical and very entertaining. It provides intellectual body armor for those comtemplating acquisition of a defensive handgun or an excursion into the chaotic world of internet chatrooms.

5 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Getting it Right, January 11, 2001

By 

Al Voth - See all my reviews

This review is from: Truth About Handguns: Exploding The Myths, Hype, And Misinformation (Paperback)

...that's what Duane Thomas does in THE TRUTH ABOUT HANDGUNS, he gets it right. This is a great little book that addresses many of the predjuices and misconceptions that gun owner's and gun "experts" have about handguns. Duane is obviously someone who has developed his credentials and gathered his information from actually working with guns as opposed to those whose only claim to expertise is reading about guns and watching lots of action movies (don't get me started on the inaccuracies of firearms in action movies). One of the things I appreciate most about the book is the clear separation Duane draws between fact and his opinion. When it's fact he tells you so and when something is his opinion he's fair enough to make that clear also. His writing style is casual and engaging - just the way it should be for a book like this. By the time I was finished I had not only learned something about handguns but I also felt I'd gotten to know Duane, an unexpected bonus.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Entertaining and informative, hard to find..., January 4, 2009

By 

G. Soos "emanigol" (Dublin, GA United States) - See all my reviews
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This review is from: Truth About Handguns: Exploding The Myths, Hype, And Misinformation (Paperback)

Unfortunately this is a hard book to find, I got my used copy from England! It was well worth the wait, because the book is great and the author with his unique and entertaining style does cover all the aspects of modern handguns: capacity, caliber, penetration, stopping power, design, pistoleros, even a trivia quiz. No myths, dogmas, misunderstandings, "commonsense" remain unshaken. Since this is a hunting country around here, I did not have many opportunities to learn about handguns, but this book (just as one of the reviewers mentions this in a less than complimentary way) almost feels like the author is sitting across from you at a table, well, sipping on some drinks. It sure feels better this way than the feeling of looking up to some lecturing stand.