Pistols

I am going to be packing when I get out of the military. I joining a Posse unit and you have to buy your own (I like the idea).

So far I have fired a...

Glock 22.
Sig P226
M9 (Beretta 96)
M1911A1

Any others I should try out? Something affordable would be nice.

Good friend of mine has a real nice kimber 45, which is not on the affordable side but is a great shooter. One of my in the near future purchases will be a dan wesson 357. The nice thing about a 357 is the ability to shoot 38 cal ammo at a fairly cheap cost as compared to the magnum rounds.

Whatever you decide make sure you buy a several thousand rounds or a reloader and a ton of brass, powder and lead now rather than later. Seeing as how a democrat has been elected we will see some rather steep increases in ammo and probably some major gun control bills passed.

Good luck!

Mottern Man said:

I am going to be packing when I get out of the military. I joining a Posse unit and you have to buy your own (I like the idea).

So far I have fired a...

Glock 22.
Sig P226
M9 (Beretta 96)
M1911A1

Any others I should try out? Something affordable would be nice.

Click to expand...

Beretta Px4 Storm

Springfield Armory XD in 40 cal or the 45 acp. I own the 9mm version of the weapon only because I already have several 40 cal and 45. I actually think the XD shoots better than any Glock I have shot and I have shot a bunch! I prefer the trigger pull over the Glock and I shoot better with it.

+1 on the XD. I debated between it and the Glock, bought the Glock, and kind of regret not getting the XD.

Bluestaco said:

+1 on the XD. I debated between it and the Glock, bought the Glock, and kind of regret not getting the XD.

Click to expand...

Not to mention, you get a nice case, 2 mags, a holster and if you are weak, a magazine loader. Unfortunately, with supply and demand, their prices have gone up to as high as a Glock. The XDs are a Croatian made pistol and sold by Springfield w/ a lifetime warranty. Springfield's warranty dept is NO JOKE!! If you have a problem, they will fix it!

My suggestion would be to consider what you will be using the gun for. If it is going to be a range gun and/or work for home defense a full size gun like most of the ones you have listed is good. But if you are going to concealed carry (which I assume from your reference to "packing") you will find that a full size gun is harder to conceal and weighs on you over the course of the day. It can be done, and many folks insist on a full size weapon. But others, myself included, prefer to carry a gun that conceals easier and is lighter. I didn't want to have to buy a new wardrobe or always wear a vest so as to carry. I found the best compromise of size, hand fit, power, ammo capacity, and price to be the Kahr CW9. It's a sweet little shooter too. You may find a different compromise works better for you.

I go with the thinking that it's the caliber not the pistol that matters the most.

If my life depended on it I would limit my search to only .45 caliber or larger.
After selecting the caliber I would buy a pistol with the least number of moving parts in it.
So 1) Caliber 2) Pistol 3) familiarity with the pistol
From your list I would select the M1911A1 for myself.

But that's me and not you.
What do you feel is important in a firearm?

This thread is about pistols and any political debate about gun control will not be tolerated in this specific thread.

Thank you.

I'm a 1911 guy here. And for summer carry I have a 5 shot .38 snub.

Nothing like a Glock for ease of concealment

TimmyBoston said:

This thread is about pistols and any political debate about gun control will not be tolerated in this specific thread.

Thank you.

Click to expand...

The preemptive strike. Awesome.

tclevela said:

I go with the thinking that it's the caliber not the pistol that matters the most.

If my life depended on it I would limit my search to only .45 caliber or larger.
After selecting the caliber I would buy a pistol with the least number of moving parts in it.
So 1) Caliber 2) Pistol 3) familiarity with the pistol
From your list I would select the M1911A1 for myself.

But that's me and not you.
What do you feel is important in a firearm?

Click to expand...

REALLY!? I kind of look at it the other way. 1) familiarity with the pistol (I'd rather have a .22 with which I know I can dump 5 in the middle of an attacker than a .45 I know nothing about), 2) Caliber (again, a .45 will knock stuff down better, but not if you can't hit anything with it), 3) pistol.
It really is a very personal choice, for sure.

My preferred pistol is and always will be a S&W 686. It's as simply designed as they come, very comfortable, well balanced, and nasty accurate. Sure, it only holds 6 rounds, but that should be enough for 6 targets.

what about a nice H&K ???

I will be looking at those myself pretty soon...

I own and regularly carry a Beretta FS92, which is the civilian version of the 96. It's actually pretty easy to conceal with a Fobus paddle holster and a jacket.

But for summertime carry I do miss the .380 Walther I sold a year or two ago. of course I couldn't hit the broad side of a barn with it. I'm now contemplating a small .357 revolver.

Mottern Man said:

I am going to be packing when I get out of the military. I joining a Posse unit and you have to buy your own (I like the idea).

So far I have fired a...

Glock 22.
Sig P226
M9 (Beretta 96)
M1911A1

Any others I should try out? Something affordable would be nice.

Click to expand...

You just answered your own question.

Sounds like you've got at least a passing familiarity with the major automatic pistol designs; I'd recommend taking a few wheelguns through the paces. I'm partial to the low velocity big bores, myself (.45 ACP, .45 Colt, .44 Special). And, of course, you can never go wrong with the .357 Mag.

I got my son one of these a while and him and his wife shoot on a regular basis. SHe liked it enough to have him get her one too.

Read the article and make your own decision though..............

http://www.gunblast.com/Bersa_380CC.htm

As has been mentioned, I don't think you can go wrong with a Springfield XD. I prefer .45 ACP. This round is a time proven man stopper. A great round in a superb pistol. That said, try everything you can and pick something you feel comfortable and confident with.

I really like my H&K USP45 Compact. It responds well to instinctive aiming (a plus in those situations where you really, really need a gun), has manageable recoil and great balance.