What type of gun should I get?

[darkvapor 0]

I'm in the market for a good solid handgun.

I've always wanted an H&K USP .45 Stainless. Just wanted some opinions on that model. http://www.hecklerkoch-usa.com/pages/civilian/uspframeset.html

I know H&K's are pretty expensive, but money isn't a huge deal. I want this gun for personal defense, as well as weekend shooting. So I want reliability and accuracy. I'm also leaning towards the larger calibres. A 9mm ain't gonna cut it.

You can post about your gun(s) and opinions.

[pds 0]

hk is a solid weapon, as is a sig. they are some of the finest sidearms i have ever fired. and having owned ruger, beretta, paraordnance and glocks, all in larger calibres, i have come to the conclusion that a 1911 worked over at the Kimber factory is the shiznitz. the ultra carry 45acp will be my next sidearm. the workmanship is exquisite and the design is time tested.

sorry i cant give you a more informed opinion of your chosen model.

and remember, guns dont kill people...
but they sure make it easier.

namaste, motherfucker.

[QuickDraw 0]

Glock 19.

-- Hope you don't die. --

I'm fucking winning

[rmsmith 1]

Maybe you should re-examine your lifestyle and where you live before considering the added responsibility of carrying a firearm and the consequences of using it. That aside, a polymer rimfire pistol stored in a pancake style holster will be so light and flat that it will always be convenient.

[Blahr 0]

Howitzer

Kinda heavy but it'll stop em with one shot every time! Some weight lifting is a plus :-)

[kevin922 0]

I like my glock 23.. a 40 cal and mid sized fire arm.. not hard to conceal but still has enough stopping power.

[darkvapor 0]

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added responsibility of carrying a firearm and the consequences of using it.

I think I'm more worried over the consequence of not using it. I'm a law abiding citizen with no criminal past. I will get a CCW permit for this gun. What do I have to worry about?

But I sure as hell would rather have the gun then find myself a victim to one of the many low-lifes that would love to rob me, my car, or my home. And getting out and popping off a few rounds at the range won't be too bad on a rainy weekend like this one.

[AggieDave 6]

H&Ks are great weapons, well overpriced IMHO, though.

I carry Glocks.

My favorite is my Glock 17 (9x19, fullsized). I've fired over 9,000 rds through it and have had one malfunction. It was due to me, though, since I SEVERLY limp wristed the shot (screwing off on the range) and stovepiped the round (wasn't enough recoil to eject the round fully).


Another favorite of mine are Kimbers. My next gun is going to be a Kimber Ultra 10 II. Although I haven't owned a Kimber yet, I've fired probably nearly 1,000 rds through a few different models. Definately great weapons.



Oh, and for 9mm not cutting it...

Go here: http://www.federalcartridge.com/ammocat20.asp?s1=1 and compare the raw data. This is the site for Federal Hydra-shock, which is the best defense load you can buy.

Oh, I carry 147gr 9x19. Take a look at the muzzle velocities, the energy the load has and the grain size between the 147gr 9mm and the 40 S&Ws and the 45s. The 147gr 9mm is actually has better stopping power then some of the 40S&W loads. Whats cool, is that your plinking ammo is damned cheap (about $7 a box in my part of Texas), so you save money when shooting. Which means you shoot more, which means you become better. If you're carrying for personal defense, then it is impossible to be too good with your weapon.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[AggieDave 6]

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But I sure as hell would rather have the gun then find myself a victim to one of the many low-lifes that would love to rob me, my car, or my home. And getting out and popping off a few rounds at the range won't be too bad on a rainy weekend like this one.

Something that will help you is to go to a Tactical Pistol course.

I went to the Texas Pistol Academy in north Texas 2 years ago, I will at some point go to Thunder Ranch (the premier civilian training in the nation).

At TPA I fired about 1200 rds in 3 days, after spending nearly the first going through dry fire excersizes for practice drawing a weapon, reloading a weapon, clearing rooms in a house/building. Then I spent the next 2 days on numatic steel firing ranges, clearing rooms in the kill house, as well as going through a whole lot of other excersizes that do nothing but make you a better shooter.


Oh, and please do not take CCW permit holding lightly. It is very very real and the consiquences can be very real. With that said I fully support CCW (well, I think everyone here knows that), and being someone who has had to draw his weapon more then once, I can tell you, it can get very serious very quickly. Oh, and no I didn't have to pull the trigger, but I drew and a bead and was pulling slack when the situation solved its self.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[Jib 0]

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I like my glock 23.. a 40 cal and mid sized fire arm.. not hard to conceal but still has enough stopping power.

How often are you planning to carry? Where/how are you planning to carry it?

If going Glock, I'd go for the 27; so, you can put it in your pocket. You can get high-caps and grip extensions. (I have a 23 and never carry it.) I opt for the new Kahr 9mm because I can almost forget I'm carrying it, but want a Para_Ordnance P10 (to be able to use the high caps from my 1911) or baby Kimber. Overall, like pds said, Kimber rocks!

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the depth of his depravity sickens me.
-- Jerry Falwell, People v. Larry Flynt

[AggieDave 6]

I HATE the sub-compact Glocks.

Although that's because I have big hands, I had a Glock 36, but ended up selling it to my Dad (well, giving it to him, but anyways). The damn thing would literally try to come out of my hand after each shot fired. I even had the magazine grip extension. So there was practically no way I could double tap, and damn sure no way I would be able to double tap 2 to the body and put on in the head with that gun.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[Jib 0]

A friend of mine (6'1" & 300lb) qualified (police) with his 27 backup better than every cop there that day. He missed one.

--------------------------------------------------
the depth of his depravity sickens me.
-- Jerry Falwell, People v. Larry Flynt

[Unstable 8]

I've fired several Glocks, but for my taste, i prefer the Standard issue .45 auto. Nice solid firearm. (I am from the Browning Family, so I am a little bias )

If you are buying a gun to carry for self defense, why do you need anything more than a Derenger or something like a Judges Gun???

=========Shaun ==========

[BoogieBob 0]

As for .45 semis, I have a Ruger P90. The only "mal" I ever had on this weapon was my fault for not pushing the clip in all the way (the first round didn't strip).

As for "good solid handgun," I am partial to my .44 Magnum Super Redhawk with 9.5" barrel. Tactically, I'd take the P90, but there is something about holding a cannon of a revolver in your hand that is intriguing. I do remember eagerly sitting down to watch a Dirty Harry movie after getting my Super Redhawk...when Eastwood did the "this is a .44 Magnum..." line, all I could think was...Geez...his is SMALL!!!

[Rookie120 0]

What do you want it for the firearm for. Do you want to carry and conceal, target shooting, or to blows somebody to Beijing if they break into your pad. My personal preferance is the sig 229. a little pricey but just a sweet ass hand gun!

If you find yourself in a fair fight, your tactics suck!

[AggieDave 6]

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As for .45 semis, I have a Ruger P90. The only "mal" I ever had on this weapon was my fault for not pushing the clip in all the way (the first round didn't strip).

You've had a much better experience with a Ruger P90 then I have. I've shot 4 or 5 different P90s over the past few years, they've all had serious problems with jamming. One was even one that was fresh out of the box. The owner showed up at the range I shot at with it, took it out of the box for its first shots, field stripped it, put some oil on it, put it back together, loaded it and went to fire. The first round jammed loading into the chamber! I helped him clear it and the 2nd round jamed! We cleared that and went to get a different box of ammo (you never know). The 3rd round jammed. We finally got it to start loading correctly, he fired about 50 rounds, then I fired 20. It jamed twice in the 20 rounds I fired.

I will never own a modern Ruger semi-automatic.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[pds 0]

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I like my glock 23.. a 40 cal and mid sized fire arm.. not hard to conceal but still has enough stopping power.

i enjoyed amazing accuracy with my 23, but did not have magextenders so i was really uncomfy gripping with 2 fingers. a little tiring too.

you have that kind of problem? id like to see dave grab onto a 23. finny thought.

and i have to agree with dave on the ruger. mine was a p89. didnt jam much but was just real 'loose' and noisy. know what i mean. traded mine for a standup bass.

namaste, motherfucker.

[AggieDave 6]

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id like to see dave grab onto a 23. finny thought.

You saw my post about the 36, right? The 36 is the sub-compact single stack .45...

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[pds 0]

nope missed that one in my haste to sound like i know what i am talking about. lol. the 36 is even shorter than the 23. too funny.

i wanna say that big hands limits our carry options, but i can imagine you stuffin a desert eagle in yo britches.

and kimber is most certainly the finest 1911 out there. good taste, dave.

namaste, motherfucker.

[AggieDave 6]

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i can imagine you stuffin a desert eagle in yo britches.

It could carried, but you would really have to dress around it. It would SUCK to carry though. I consider the Desert Eagle .50 AE to be quite possibly the perfect anti-carjacking weapon, though. I could see the .50 AE round going through someone, hitting a bystandard. That would be terrible and open yourself up to a serious lawsut.

Thats another point, lawsuits. Thats a reason why people should never use reloads for defense rounds. A good lawyer could argue that the CCW was "itching to kill someone" since he/she carried "hot" reloads. Off the shelf defense rounds, even if "hot" can be easily argued against, since that's what police basically carry (especially in the case with Hydra-Shocks). Not that I've ever met a CCW that was "itching to kill someone", quite the opposite actually.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."

[ScubaSteve 0]

H&K FiveSeven!!!

[Stik 0]

I am a die hard Glock fan. I used to think that nothing made of plastic could be any good but I ran across a Glock that was too cheap to pass up. I shot it for a while and found it to be a very no nonsense tool that would not malfunction. I carried a SIG at the time but have since sold my SIG and gotten two more Glocks. I even have a Maritime Glock 17 that fuctions flawlessly underwater. Not that usefull but really cool and a great testament to the weapon.

BTW the SIG 228 is a little lighter and more compact than the 229. Both great guns.

Pete

[MagicLou 0]

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I HATE the sub-compact Glocks.

Although that's because I have big hands, I had a Glock 36, but ended up selling it to my Dad (well, giving it to him, but anyways). The damn thing would literally try to come out of my hand after each shot fired. I even had the magazine grip extension. So there was practically no way I could double tap, and damn sure no way I would be able to double tap 2 to the body and put on in the head with that gun.

I'm with Dave here. I too have large hands. Before I bought anything I tried several manufacturers and all size frames (remember in Canada we are limited to barrel lengths over 4" so compact and sub-compact frames are illegal). I decided that the perfect gun was a full frame Double Stack (10 rounds) I bought a Para-Ordinance 1445 Ltd. (Single Action) in Stainless, and a Para-Ordinance 1445 LDA Ltd. (Double Action Only) in stainless. I love the Para Ltd. series, they are only slightly more expensive than the stock guns, but have a lot of the custom extras standard from the factory.

Ballistically, I think the .45 is probably the most versatile round you can shoot, and is not price prohibitive to shoot alot of rounds for practice.

Lou
___________________________________
. . . now you see that evil will always triumph because good is dumb - Dark Helmet

[skymedic 0]

I'll tone in on the HK USP. I owned a Stainless 40 as a sidearm used for work. it was a great gun that ALWAYS worked. never a hickup with well over 2500 rounds through the thing in a one year period. it's a fun gun and HK is one of the best when it comes to customer service. I have a serious problem with carrying 9mm anything...I've seen people first hand shot with 9mm hydra shocks with out them flinching...one or two rounds of a 40 and a 45 hitting them was like them getting hit with a sledgehammer. no thank you for a 9mm/.38 anything.
Oh yeah...my other HK gun was an MP5..but hey that was the fun gun...hehehehe

marc

Marc
otherwise known as Mr.Fallinwoman....

[AggieDave 6]

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Oh yeah...my other HK gun was an MP5

I hate you.

--"When I die, may I be surrounded by scattered chrome and burning gasoline."