Handguns

Mighty HD · September 18, 2005

Went to the gunshow today in Lakeland. It's time to buy a new handgun.

I saw LOTS of Glock 23's (.40 cal) for $500 NIB. It seems to be a well balanced firearm, easy for me to conceal/carry, and good to keep in the truck.

I also looked @ a Glock 17--looked to be a bit big to carry, but good for the house.

One guy had a used G23 for $600. It had night sights on it, 2 15shot mags. A bit too high and he wouldnt come off it.

Many of the people there wanted full price up front cash only (this is "dealers" we're talking about here. No way in hell I'm forking over $500 cash to someone I don't know.

I'll be hitting the local shops this week.

Any opinions for other options under $600?

MiSdIrEcTeD_1 · September 18, 2005

Not too wise on handguns cant hit jack with one, however, I know my father will shoot nothing but Sig. No safety usually on a glock, which isnt necissarily that bad a thing, but also u might want to do a search on the "kaboom" symptom with glocks. No positive round enclosure and whats there is poly. Once again Im not bashing Glock, many police agencies use them strictly and without incident, but according to dad, who is an avid shooter, nothing compares to Sig.

knez · September 18, 2005

I vote for berretta.I have a 96 fs .40 brigadier model.Its very well balanced ,very accurate,great action,and has IMHO one of the better safetys on the market right there at your thumb,but if your looking for compact its a little big there are plenty of differnt models to choose from thou.Sig is defianetly a quality piece my bro has one and loves it and so is glock i never did care for the glock thou didn't like the feel of it my friend has one in a .40 thou and loves it to each his own.Good luck!

99silveradoz71 · September 19, 2005

We use Glocks at our place...model 22's specifically, and in 6&1/2yrs on the job, I haven't had any issues with mine. Even had it hit the concrete while wrestling some kid off a bike earlier this year, and it shot straight and true afterward. True that it doesn't have a safety, so ownership/use would depend on your level of comfort/experience, etc.

vhato · September 19, 2005

We use Glocks at our place...model 22's specifically, and in 6&1/2yrs on the job, I haven't had any issues with mine. Even had it hit the concrete while wrestling some kid off a bike earlier this year, and it shot straight and true afterward. True that it doesn't have a safety, so ownership/use would depend on your level of comfort/experience, etc.

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We are Glock Department also. I own a Glock 22 as my carry weapon, Glock 27 as a secondary concealed weapon and Glock 35 during competition. The Glocks are light, easy to shoot, easy to tear down for cleaning and can take a beating without looking like it.

However, both of our Range Masters prefer Sig. I owned a Sig P226 9mm and failed to qualify with it "twice" because I kept forgeting to decock it. When you need a weapon and your heart is pumping, the last thing on your mind is decocking it. I would like to buy a Sig Pro 2340 and try again though.

taco · September 19, 2005

Both the Glock and Sig are well made guns - you won't go wrong with either one. With that said the Glock is a little to square (in the grip) for me - just does not point naturally for me. I personally like the Para-Ordinance LDA models - I think the .45 is best defensive round out there. Good luck on your purchase - just remember to practice and then practice some more (your life could be saved by being able to clear a jam quickly).

kc5deb · September 20, 2005

Love my glock 22. It's my personal duty weapon, and I'll carry nothing on shift other than a glock.

I do however prefer to shoot other pistols if I'm going out to shoot for fun or money

The reason I love my glock is the fact that it really doesn't have a safety. I don't want to be at home one night, someone break in, and I'm laying there half asleep fumbling through 3 safeties trying to kill the sob who just broke in. I also like the reliability. If I shoot 200-300 rounds through it one afternoon, and fool around and don't get a chance to clean it before I go somewhere or on shift, I can put it in my holster, and know with 99.999% certainty that it's going to fire through all the clips I carry if I need it to.

The only other carry weapon I'd consider would be a glock 20, but not at the moment. That 10mm ammo is some mean and nasty stuff, and I'd have no doubts that whatever I hit with it is going down for the count. I've seen a guy shoot a 9mm at a piece of metal, and maybe ding it. A guy took his 10mm on the same piece of metal, and it looked like someone shoved a golfball through it. I still think they need some more years of refining the 10mm to make it a more reliable firearm; most frames, even the glock frames, are just not stout enough to take a beating from that 10mm ammo.

Now, for pure pleasure shooting, there's nothing I love more than shooting a Kimber. Those things shoot better than any handgun I've held. The only other gun that even comes close would be a Sig.

It all really depends on what you're going to do with it. For personal defense, and a duty weapon, it's going to be really hard to beat the performance, reliability, and price of a glock. For sport, you can find some better handguns out there that are smoother, like the sigs. If you have the money (~$800 and up), you'll do great to get yourself a Kimber.

mmayo · September 20, 2005

My pistol of choice is HK. I have 2 of them, the USP full size .45, & the compact USP .40 for my cc weapon. I've thought many times though about buying the Glock 27 because for some reason I'm always one shy of all the guns I need. For a carry weapon, IMO there are 3 choices: Glock, Sig, & HK. Just depends what you feel most comfortable with. Just my 2¢.....

blacksmoke · September 20, 2005

For pure sport or compitition,if smooth is what you need forget the kimber go directly to an STI,my cousen has MANY handguns most are kimbers and they are very well made and not cheap,for a few more dollars the STI is something he wished he had shot prior to the kimbers.Again not inexpensive but bar non for sport/compitition the glocks.sigs and kimbers are in another class.For under $600.00 your two choices are right on the money.

Mighty HD · September 20, 2005

Well I ended up going with a Glock 19 9mm. I wanted something that my wife could handle easily and would feel comftrable with, as well as something that I could carry on myself at times.

I'll look into a Glock 23 or a .45 in another brand probally in the near future. I mainly picked this 19 for the home protection to be the primary and make the 7.26x25mm the secondary.

I'll get some pics when I pick it up Friday.

Burrito · September 21, 2005

Well I ended up going with a Glock 19 9mm. I wanted something that my wife could handle easily and would feel comftrable with, as well as something that I could carry on myself at times.

I'll look into a Glock 23 or a .45 in another brand probally in the near future. I mainly picked this 19 for the home protection to be the primary and make the 7.26x25mm the secondary.

I'll get some pics when I pick it up Friday.

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Good choice. I also have a G 19 and it's my primary carry weapon. Excellent shooter. You won't be dissapointed. Here's a pic of a few of my goodies.

Mighty HD · September 21, 2005

mmm very nice :-)

What's the best round to shoout out of the 19 for target and defense.

Burrito · September 21, 2005

mmm very nice :-)

What's the best round to shoout out of the 19 for target and defense.

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Target: cheapest round you can get. The cheapest available is CCI Blazer 115 gr at Academy (if there is one in your region). $3.86 per 50 round box.

Self Defense: any premium jacketed hollow point by a manufacturer such as Federal, Speer, Remington.

Check out http://www.glocktalk.com for some info, but try to be selective of what you believe from some of the members of that forum. There are some retards out there, but also some very knowledgeable members. Try the "Caliber Corner" section.

kc5deb · September 21, 2005

There was a great show on the national geographic channel the other night. It's a show called "Naked Science" and they were doing a show on bullet technology.

The only thing I disagreed with them about was which was the most effective stopping round for a handgun; they said it was the .45. If you read up on ballistics tests done by law enforcement agencies and the FBI, you'll see much higher stopping percentages by .357's than .45's. Granted, I wouldn't want to be hit with either, but, the .357 is going to have more velocity and more power upon impact, espcially with a hollow point.

Basicly what was said by the ballistics experts was that the FMJ will cause injury, but, typically go right through a subject, and only causing a small tunnel of tissue damage.

What really causes the most damage from a handgun is how large of a "temporary cavity" is created inside the target when the bullet hits. The temporary cavity is a large opening that is swollen open by the bullet upon impact, and then is reduced by the pressure of the target's torso. The larger the temporary cavity, the larger the shockwave into the torso, and the more damage caused to internal organs such as the liver and kidney. The rest of the damage is caused by the slug's impact on muscle tissue, much like a meat cleaver on a piece of beef. You'd think the larger the cleaver, the more damage, but, it's more like the harder you hammer with the size of the cleaver, the more damage. Hence the reason a .357 does more tissue damage than a .45; more power, more energy, and if it's a hollow point, it mushrooms out and disperses all of it's energy into the body.

They were really hyping up the 9mm, and while again I still wouldn't want to be hit with a 9mm, I really personally feel they're not as good as other weapons for home defense and duty weapons. They have a higher velocity than the .45, but, not near the impact damage. I've seen many reports of people being hit numerous times with a 9mm and still fighting and surviving multiple rounds in the chest. Before I start a flamewar here on the 9mm, I will say they're still better than having nothing, and a 9mm hit to the head will kill someone just as dead as a .357. I used to have a browning HP 9mm, and it was a great little gun. Just my own personal opinion that if I were to buy a handgun for personal defense, I'd much rather have something like a .357, .40, or a 10mm.

But, opionions are like rectums; everyone's got one, and everyone thinks everyone elses stinks

kc5deb · September 21, 2005

mmm very nice :-)

What's the best round to shoout out of the 19 for target and defense.

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You'll get many answers to this, but, the highest rated so far tends to be Cor-Bon's 115gr +P JHP for personal defense.

It's got 1350fps, and I've read reports of it having twice the size of a destructive cavity in ballistics gelatin as any other round.

As far as target, about anything will do, but, stay away from the really cheap stuff. It tends to have a lot more "junk" in it, and tends to dirty up the gun. I had some blazer ammo in my .40 for target shooting, and it had a nasty smelling powder, and to me, looked like it dirtied up the gun a lot quicker than the others I tried. Wolf and winchester FMJ's are usually what I end up shooting for target, and either WalMart or Academy will usually give you the best price.