Looking into buying a handgun in the near future. Leaning towards a 40 S&W caliber, but not too familiar with some of the different brands. Any recommendations?

Some of the brands we noticed the other day while we were out included:

Sig Sauer (P250)
Glock (23, 22)
Springfield Armory
Smith & Wesson

Anyone with any experience with any of these? Any other brands that we should make it a point to consider?

TIA!

I'm partial to Sig. Awesome awesome gun.

buuuut, you should shoot each one first... Whichever feels best to you is the way you should go...

[This message has been edited by lglidewell (edited 7/6/2009 3:26p).]

what's the gun for?

I got a Glock 23 recently and really like it; main reason I got a Glock is cause I got it for 400 bucks through their LEO/Military Purchase Program

It's going to be primarily my wife's toy. She's working towards a career in law enforcement/government/etc. and would like something she can use to get more comfortable shooting and still be something that would be a good stepping for her career.

then get her a 1911

Sig P250 is a great gun. It has become one of my favorite to shoot.

Beretta 92/96

if anti- beretta then sig is fantastic

Posted via TexAgs.com Mobile.

Get a Sig 229 if your budget allows and thank me later.

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Sig Sauer (P250)
Glock (23, 22)
Springfield Armory
Smith & Wesson

Anyone with any experience with any of these? Any other brands that we should make it a point to consider?

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I own handguns from these brands, along with handguns from the rest of the major manufacturers as well, with the exception of FN. All of your listed makers produce a fine handgun that will serve her purposes quite well. There is nothing about any of them that makes one better than the other. They do have some slight differences however that might make her like one over another, but those are personal preference issues only.

As long as you stick to a major brand - and I would include H&K, CZ, FN, Beretta, and Ruger to consider as well - she will do fine. Also, I would not suggest you get her a 1911 since it sounds like she will be working for some type of agency. Most will not let her carry a 1911, and the vast majority that provides an issue gun will not be issueing her a 1911. Better to stick with the type that she might be one day using for real.....


[This message has been edited by Caladan (edited 7/6/2009 5:00p).]

[This message has been edited by Caladan (edited 7/6/2009 5:01p).]

if training to be an officer, Sig

Sig

M&P or glock, whichever she likes better.

If she's actually going to be an LEO, I would suggest something in the compact to subcompact models. Most departments issue the Glock model 22, and its kind of pointless to have two of them lying around. With a smaller version she will already have a back-up/off-duty weapon.

The Glock 27 and Sig copy of the PPK are the most common back-up's I have seen.

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Get a Sig 229 if your budget allows and thank me later.

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I love my 229. You can get great deals on CPO's. I put 50 consecutive rounds in the paint at 15 yards at the range yesterday. The guy shooting next to me asked if I was a Police Officer or something

I love my P226. Get a Sig.

Sig 220 owner here - maybe the shorter p220 Compact w/ the 3.9 in barrel if you want something smaller that still carries a big punch. Fantastic little gun, and the .45 acp isn't as snappy as the .40 S&W but infinitely better than the 9mm.

Wow, I had no idea departments wont allow carrying of a 1911. Why is that?

we have a Kahr .40S&W apparently it doesn't have a manual safety though

Most medium to larger departments don't allow 1911's because they are single action only. The departments see them as a liability. I disagree with having one as a duty weapon because of the limited amount of ammo.

this one

hands down the best pistol for your money is the CZ-USA P-01. Its a compact 9mm with an alloy frame thats as light as a poly frame. Its fires awesome and has very little recoil compared to other 9mm. It can also be used as a concealed pistol.

Thanks all! We're going to go this weekend and take a look and shoot a few of the models that have been mentioned on here. Seems like a general consensus though that it would be hard to go wrong with a Sig (assuming she likes the way it shoots).

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Wow, I had no idea departments wont allow carrying of a 1911. Why is that?

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Because that platform requires more training to become proficient in stressful situations. There have been more than a few instances of highly trained LEO's that have forgotten to switch the safety off when presented with a sudden shooting situation. With pistols such as Glocks, one does not ever need to hit a switch in order to fire. Also, the trigger pulls on 1911's tend to be lighter than most other handguns. Great for the range, but not so great when your adrenaline is through the roof. Lastly, the 1911 mag capacity is less than a lot of other handguns.

The 1911 can make a great defense handgun, but not for the average LEO, who won't put in the time and effort to train. For the average LEO, who is not any different that the next regular guy on the street, a high-cap polymer makes a better choice. One can see this by looking at what sits in the holsters of LEO's in most major cities....

I actually dislike the Sigs trigger pull.

I would go with the Glock or XD, but it's all a matter of preference.

Thanks again everyone for the suggestions and help.

We went to Champions this past weekend and shot a variety of .40s, including Sig P229, Smith & Wesson, Springfield Armory, Glock 23, and an HK.

She shot the best with the Glock and the Sig, but didn't like the feel of the P229 as much as the P250. However, we can't find a place that rents P250s, and she's hesitant about buying a gun that she hasn't shot.

Does anyone know of any places in DFW that rent these out?

Or, for those of you that have one already, did you shoot it before you bought it?

I recently bought a Sig P250 and really like it. Most of my handgun experience is with revolvers, so the trigger pull fits my comfort level. It is such a new model, I doubt there will be many if any places you can rent one since there are no CPO's in the market. I would bet that if she likes the 229, she will be just as comfortable with the P250, but I understand the reluctance on the investment without shooting one.

It's not necessary to shoot every platform before the purchase of choise. Most prospective buyers know the general kick of the 9mil, all they need to do is find the most comfortable frame. General rule for the guys, don't do the selecting for your lady. She is the one that has to get proficient with the weapon to protect herself and her close ones.
After introducing three hot 9mil autos to my wife, she settled for the small S&W five shot wheel piece for her concealCarry with two speed loaders. We carry the 9mils in the vehicles for rural/cross state trips.

"I may be krazy, but I'm not insane".
"Guns have two enemies; rust and politicians".....

damn this thread is old

Looking to get a 9 mm. I have a Ruger GP 100, and S&W Victory, but due to the cost of .38 and .357 ammo, as well as the desire for more firepower and easy loading of an ACP.

What I would like is a 9 mm DA/SA with high capacity mags, and looking for the trade off of economy and quality.

Any thoughts on Ruger SR9, Springfield XD9, Beretta PX4, Sig 2022, S&W M&P 9. Tried Glock, Taurus 24/7, Melinneum, Beretta 92 S&W Sigma and even 1911's but didn't care for the either feel or accuracy of any of those I tried.

Appreciate any input to shorted my list.

I just bought a M&P 9 this past week and love it. Shot a glock 17 too, but loved this one. I would recommend the M&P for sure.

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What I would like is a 9 mm DA/SA with high capacity mags,

Any thoughts on Ruger SR9, Springfield XD9, Beretta PX4, Sig 2022, S&W M&P 9. Tried Glock, Taurus 24/7, Melinneum, Beretta 92 S&W Sigma and even 1911's but didn't care for the either feel or accuracy of any of those I tried.

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It's easy to immediately shorten your list. Since you want an SA/DA, you can cross off the XD and M&P. That leaves the Ruger*, Beretta (in the correct variation), And Sig.

Between those, the Ruger and the Sig would be the ones that immediately fulfills your requirement of cost efficiency. Either one is fine for what you want, and the purchase decision IMO comes down first to the one that fits your hand the best, and secondly which one you can actually find. There won't be an appreciable difference between accuracy and reliability between these two.

That being said, I think that to limit yourself to SA/DA just serves to remove some very good pistols. The M&P IMO is a better pistol than the SR9 or 2022. Of course it should be, since it's more expensive. The XD is also a fine handgun too, although I don't care for it myself for numerous personal and subjective reasons. Of course the PX4 fits right in there too, but it is the most expensive and would therefore not meet your cost requirement.

*now that I think about it, I think the Ruger does not meet your SA/DA requirement either....

[This message has been edited by Caladan (edited 1/24/2010 12:22p).]

What is sa/da??

Single action, double action

Single Action/Double Action (or vice versa). One of these usually has an exposed hammer and a decocker. When the slide is moved back, the hammer is also moved back, making it a SA if fired then. If you use the decocker, it becomes a DA. Most (if not all) Sig P229s are like this.

The Glocks and the newer P250 are DA only. There is no decocker nor is there any manual safety on either of these.

To answer the question, after handling a P250 last night, unless you just don't like the way it feels or shoots, or you just like or want a Glock, to me, there's no reason to buy a Glock. Before, Glocks were cheaper and fairly accurate and realiable. Paying a little less than $500 for a new Glock was more attractive than paying $750 for a Sig or H&K. Now Sig has a DAO polymer model in the $500 range that seems to have all the benefits of the Glock (though maybe a little heavier) and fewer drawbacks (easy to limp-wrist jam, trigger pull to strip, etc.).

I don't care for Glocks, but people that like them will feel differently. My point is that there is a same price, same general feature alternative where before, there wasn't unless you went used.