I got my RPAL almost 4 years ago and while I always wanted to purchase my first firearm, I couldn't simply because I am a poor university student. Very soon I will graduate as an engineer who will unashamedly still be living in dad's basement. Therefore I will have plenty of disposable income for my new hobby.

I recently went to the gun range where you pay for admission and ammo but could try out whatever guns you wanted that fired the ammo you picked. I tried a Glock, Beretta, a pump action shotgun, Desert Eagle, a Marlin 40-70 with a holo sight, what seems like a Chinese AK-47, 2 different AR-15s with scopes, and a CZ Scorpion that had a red dot and a foregrip. Unfortunately, I didn't get to try out the Kriss Vector or the Tavor-21 as both were unavailable. I'll see if I can try them out next time and also a pistol in .45 ACP (probably the M1911), a revolver, a rifle in .22LR, and an SKS.

Right now I'm trying to figure out what I want and when. I'm basically making a wishlist of firearms and accessories. I've been told that a noob looking to develop a good aim should get a cheap rifle and tons of cheap ammo to practice with. I currently have my eye on the Kriss Vector as my first firearm. It comes in 9mm, 45ACP, and 10mm. Considering it's designed to minimize recoil, it makes sense to go with the largest calibre, but the 10mm ammo seems much more expensive. Cheapest I could find is $39/50 rounds compared to $25 for the 45ACP and $16 for the 9mm. I found a 10mm 10/15 Glock mag. If I'm not mistaken, if I get the 9mm or 45ACP Vector, I could load its' ammo into a 10mm mag and potentially get a few more rounds in it. Has anyone tried this? For those who have the Vector, what accessories do you have on it? I'm considering picking up the rail extension and a grip because when I fired the AR-15, I noticed my most natural grip was thumb over the rail at midlength. Also, would picking up a short barrel convert the Kriss into a restricted rifle? And the most important question for the Vector, black or white?

I'm also thinking of picking up a .22 rifle shortly after getting the Kriss so I can practice my aim with super cheap ammo. I have my eye on a few but recommendations are welcomed, preferably something with a large magazine capacity.

My third firearm would be something in .223/5.56. Correct me if I'm wrong, but I've been told that while you could fire 5.56 ammo in a firearm rated for .223, it's not recommended, but you could fire both in a firearm rated for 5.56. Therefore, I want a firearm rated for 5.56 for flexibility. As much as I want an AR-15, I want to build my own AR-15 and I feel like I'm building my first gaming PC all over again. There's just so much to learn, so many parts, so many brands, and many use-cases. It's also restricted, so, for now, I'd rather pick up an NR 5.56 rifle that is not too similar to the AR-15. Recommendations are again welcomed, but I'm eying the IWI Tavor-X95. I believe it's also compatible with the 10 round LAR mags. Most of the X95s I find online often say .223 but a few say 5.56.

After that, there'll be a custom built AR-15 and plenty of historic firearms down the road since I'm a big fan of history (I swear I saw a revolver rifle somewhere on Reddit but I can't find it now).

A few other questions:

1. Are there any other mag size loopholes besides the Beowulf, Glock mags, and LAR mags?
2. Recommended brands and brands to avoid for AR-15 builds?
3. Recommended optics brands and optics in general?
4. What's your goto place to buy ammo?
5. Is there a point in buying more expensive ammo?