NSSF: Nearly 7 Million First-Time Gun Buyers January Through October 2020

Figures from the National Shooting Sports Foundation (NSSF) show that nearly seven million first-time buyers purchased guns between January 1, 2020, and October 31, 2020.

NSSF sent Breitbart News information showing an estimated 17.2 million guns have been sold this year, 40 percent of which, or nearly 6.9 million, went to first-time buyers.

An NSSF Firearm Retailer Survey that covered the first four months of 2020 showed that the most popular gun among first-time buyers to that point was a semi-automatic handgun, followed by shotguns and modern sporting rifles, i.e., AR-15s, AK-47s, etc.

Revolvers were the fourth most popular choice among first time gun buyers, followed by traditional rifles, then muzzleloaders.

This news of the surging gun sales among first-time buyers comes on the heels of ten consecutive months of record-setting National Instant Criminal Background System (NICS) checks at gun and retail stores throughout the country.

Breitbart News reported that October 2020 was the tenth straight month of record NICS checks, which means more checks were conducted in October 2020 than in any other October in history. More checks were done in September 2020 than in any other September in history, more in August 2020 than in any August in history, and so forth.

AWR Hawkins is an award-winning Second Amendment columnist for Breitbart News and the writer/curator of Down Range with AWR Hawkins, a weekly newsletter focused on all things Second Amendment, also for Breitbart News. He is the political analyst for Armed American Radio. Follow him on Twitter: @AWRHawkins. Reach him at awrhawkins@breitbart.com. You can sign up to get Down Range at breitbart.com/downrange.