[10-Ring]

What handgun was your biggest surprise & which was your biggest dissapointment? You know, something that you saved up for, dreamed about & finally got one to the range just to find out it wasn't all that??? ..or that garage sale purchase you got for $5 and was an absolute tack driver and would have been worth 100's more???

[Starter52]

OK, I'll start.

Biggest surprise: A Charter Arms .357 Bulldog that I bought used and cheap 20 years ago. It turned out to be a great little gun.

Biggest disappointment: Mauser HsC .32 automatic. Painful to shoot. Also the Colt Python. Good gun, but it doesn't live up to all the hype. IMO the S&W Mod. 27 is a better gun at half the price.

[Lou22]

Fortunately I haven't yet had a major disappointment. Did recently get a nice surprise. I won a bid on a new EAA Windicator .357 snub - got it for $195 including tax. I thought it would be fun to play with at the range.

When I received it through my dealer I thought it looked cheap -had me wondering why I wasted my money. But it turned out to be a great shooter at the range - reasonably accurate, decent double-action pull and mild recoil with full-powered loads. I figure it'll might make a good truck gun - it's inexpensive, you don't care about the appearance, it's built like a tank and functions well.

Lou

[Geronimo45]

Surprise - the 1911. After shooting it for the first time, I found out that the recoil wasn't nearly as bad as people seem to think - now, after a hundred rounds, you can get a sore hand. But the recoil wasn't bad at all... the racket it made was, though. Never shot with ear protection before that.

Disappointment - the CZ 70. Not a major disappointment, but it's definitely not CZ's best effort. Some magazine problems when loaded to full capacity, and the firing pin broke recently. Not a bad gun by any means, though. The way the firing pin is set up is very odd - no firing pin spring (per se).

[ZeSpectre]

Biggest surprise - CZ-52. It wasn't even on my radar until a friend let me fire his and after one magazine I knew I just had to get one. After I got one I put a new spring and firing pin in it and loved it even more.

Biggest disappointment - Taurus Gaucho SAA. I've had three (I still have the last two). Although they serve me decently well for cowboy action shooting, they have -all- been plagued by one sort of annoying little bug or another and have required a silly amount of my time to tweak them into reliability. If I had to do it over I would have saved up a little more cash and bought Ruger Vaqueros.

[Fun2Shoot]

Biggest dissapointment was my nib Ruger P345 45acp. To me it seemed like a great cross of a commander-sized and feel 45acp combined with a poly frame and decocker. Sad to say, it never ran right, even after a trip back to Ruger for repair.

Now, the biggest surprise was a used Bersa Thunder .380. What great little shooter! :D That little .380 fed & fired every & all ammos and was quite accurate and easy to put on target quickly. Great pocket gun too.

[Harry Paget Flashman]

Biggest surprise was the Armscor Model 300 .38 revolver for $159. Well built and fun to shoot.

Biggest disappointment was the KelTec P3AT. The first one had frequent FTF's so I sold it "as is" to a friend cheap. I bought another one (a gen 2) and it was also unreliable. Both were uncomfortable to shoot. I gave that one to a nephew. I really wanted to make this my CCW gun but they didn't work out for me.

[RNB65]

Biggest disappointment was definitely a Sig 228. Beautiful gun, 100% reliable, never skipped a beat. I owned it 15 years and never warmed up to it. I just found it boring to shoot. I eventually sold it (for more than I paid for it new) and bought a CZ SP01 which I enjoy shooting much more.

Biggest surprise was my Kahr P9. I figured I'd never be able to hold a tiny little sub-compact with a looooooong DAO trigger pull on targer well enough to hit anything over 10 feet away. It turns out the trigger is so smooth, I have no problem at all with holding it on target. I can't shoot ragged holes with it, but I can certainly hit a BG at 15yds with no problem.

[Nomad, 2nd]

Suprise: CZ452... I let a guy shoot one of my guns, so he insisted I shoot his .22. I was thinking 'Another .22'
After I shot it I asked him where he got it and how much, and then went right there and ordered one.

I LOVE IT!

Disapointment: Kahr PM9
POS gun POS company.

[Black Majik]

Of the guns I've owned...

Biggest Surprise: Colt .380 Government stainless. I'm not much of a .380 shooter, but this thing was soft and accurate! I could easily squeeze 2" groups on such a small little pistol. Accurate for its size and reliable.

Biggest disappointment: Colt .380 Government. It was a great shooter, but the craftsmanship as a huge disappointment. It never malfunctioned and was a accurate shooter, but the fit and finish was lackluster at best. Sloppy barrel to bushing fit, unfinished rails. When racking the slide, towards the end of the slide movement there were heavy burrs that made the slide feel gritty against the frame. The slide and frame was filled with tool marks, along with uneven edges. The cheap plastic trigger as horrible, not to mention the trigger pull. It became an eyesore to own and just had to get rid of it.

[351 WINCHESTER]

Biggest suprises - cz452 Scout, browning hp, colt 1911 (my first pistol) it was used and had been accurized. Everything I'd heard about the 1911 - innacurace, kicks like a mule - all garbage. One of the most accurace/reliable pistols I've ever owned.

Biggest dissappoinemt - ruger redhawk. Waited about 2 years before I could find one - couldn't hold a candle to my model 29. Trigger s/a & d/a sucked. Don't get me wrong - rugers are known for their strength, but not for slick actions.

[mmissile]

Suprise.....CZ99

Bummer....S&W Shorty Forty

[Trempel]

Biggest dissapointment - Remington 597. Unreliable piece of crap.

Biggest surprise - Glock 17. I used to hate Glocks. Could never shoot them well, and they're ugly as sin. Plus, in CA could never take advantage of capacity. After moving to free America, got the opportunity to buy a G17, cheap. Didn't really want to, but 17-round standard capacity mags and 33-round extended ones. With all that combined, I couldn't resist. By now, after 1500 rounds through it, I'm completelly converted. They're simple, light, have capacity for days and don't have too many external controls to confuse things. They're still ugly, but I found beauty in functionality and reliability.
I'll be buying a G19 to keep my G17 company and to use as colder weather carry.

[MikeRussell]

surprise -- CZ75 SP01
I figured being a CZ that it would be a good pistol, but didn't realize how good until I got one. Also didn't realize the potential it had until I started tinkering with it. It's my favorite pistol now, and I'm not exactly a 9mm fan.

disappointment -- Glock 20
It was a good pistol and a 10mm to boot, but not what I expected it to be with all the hype. It wasn't as accurate as I'd been led to believe and it wasn't what I wanted in a pistol.

[skeeter1]

Knock on wood, I've yet to be disappointed with any I've purchased.

My handguns have all been fairly expensive (Smiths, Berettas) and there hasn't been a stinker in the bunch. I sold one (Smith M66) to a friend because it was a bit too much for me to a friend and he's going to use it when he goes backpacking where he lives now -- Alaska.

Now that my safe is full, I doubt I'll be chancing buying something I'll be disappointed with.

[Legionnaire]

Surprise: Two-inch Ruger SP101 .357 mag. Had been intrigued by the SP101 from discussions here on THR. Found a used one on consignment at my local dealer and picked it up for $250. What a great gun! Handles full power .357s like a champ, is a breeze with .38 specials, carries well IWB with a clipdraw ... quickly became one of my favorites.

Disappointment: Glock 27. Love my Glock 23, and thought I'd like the smaller 27. It was fine gun, and worked great, but I never took a shine to it. It just isn't enough smaller than the 23 to merit consideration (IMHO). Sold it after less than 500 rounds, and don't miss it a bit.

[bensdad]

Disappointment: Remington 597. POS. FTFs, FTEs, about as accurate as a slingshot.

Surprise: Federal Ordinance Ranger Lite 1911A1. Rattles like a bag of car keys, has a hick-up once in a while, accuracy is comparable to my Hi-Point and it's ugly. For some mystical reason I love that gun. Got it free from a good friend.

[modifiedbrowning]

No disappointments so far.

Surprise, Bersa Thunder 9.
I bought one Thunder 9 Ultracompact because I liked the idea that it was based off the Walther P88. It was such a great little shooter that I bought a Thunder 9 Fullsize. Then I bought a Firestorm Mini-9 (Bersa Thunder UC under a different importer and rounded triggerguard). The Bersas have been completely reliable and I can't complain about a Walther P88 copy for 1/4 the price.

[coelacanth]

My biggest surprise a Charter Arms Pathfinder revolver in .22 - cheap and butt ugly and shoots CCI Blazer .22's like it was an Olympic target pistol being fed high zoot match fodder. My biggest disappointment was inheriting my Dad's Reminton 700 in .243 Win. because he's getting too old and broke down to shoot it anymore. I guess you'd have to call that bittersweet - yeah, I got a nice rifle but it sucks all the same.

[TexasP226]

Surprise: HK USPc. 45. It was one of the 1st guns I ever bought and didn't know much about HK at the time. I have shot it more than any other gun I own and it was my bedside gun for the longest time (recently replaced by a P220, and I may very well go back to the HK).

Disappointment: Browning Hi-Power. Its not a bad gun and it looks great, but I can't hit a darn thing with it and I rarely shoot it anymore.

[-terry]

Big Suprise: CZ 75B Stainless. Love the look, the feel, and the accuracy of this gun. Everyone who shoots it loves it.

Bigger surprise, a used Sig P220 (twenty years old at least). Never shot a .45 before and expected all kinds of drama. What I got was a trigger so smooth that you can't even feel it move, the gun just fires. Very accurate, lovely soft decocker, fun to look at. $395.

Nice surprise, the UltraDot MatchDot. My daughter loves it (and the CZ) but she ain't gettin' either one. :p

[Plink]

I tend to be a lemon magnet. If there's one crappy gun in the shipment, I always seem to get it. I ordered a Bersa Mini-Firestorm in .45 ACP (same gun as the Ultra Compact). I had heard they could be hit or miss, so I expected the worst. It turned out to be a real little jewel. Reliable, accurate, easy to shoot, and almost no muzzle flip.

I guess another positive surprise was a Traditions Trapper muzzleloader pistol I built from a kit. I mostly built it as a partner to a similar rifle, but didn't expect much from the gun in the way of accuracy. It turned out to be a tackdriver, easily shooting with my T/C Patriot pistol, and it even has a better trigger.

[chris in va]

Disappointment...XD9. I tried to like it, didn't happen. Same goes for the CZ 52, too many sharp edges. Not fun to shoot.

Thoroughly enjoy the ergos on the CZ 75. Just perfect.

Sig 220...mixed bag. I can't shoot it very well but trust it with my life.

[Gustav]

Biggest disappointment Auto Ordnance Pitbull that loved splitting the thin barrel bushing.:fire:
Biggest surprise an old Smith & Wesson 10 with little blue left on it and worn down grips an absolute jewel to shoot and a tack driver to boot.:evil:

[Sean85746]

My biggest surprise was a well used and worn Auto Ordinance 1911. I picked it up for $225.00 at my local gun emporium.

I let it sit in the safe for a LONG time.

Then, one day when I was rooting around, I found it again, and went to the range with it, and lo and behold...it shot 2" off sandbags at 25yds.

It was dead nuts at 15yds.

It gobbled up EVERYTHING I stuffed down it's pipe.

So, I put on a beavertail and cleaned up the trigger JUST A BIT. Then gave it to my nephew when he was promoted to Staff Sergeant over a year early in the USMC.

My biggest disappointment...Kimber Ultra Carry II. Didn't feed anything but ball reliably, and the slide stop kept flying out of it.

[Zeke Menuar]

I know this is handguns, but I'm including all my guns

Biggest surprise.

NEF Sportster 17HMR. $99 rifle with a $69 Trashco scope that can shoot aspirins at 150 yards. Absolutely amazing.

Biggest disappointment.

Ruger P-95. After only six months of ownership, the gun keyholed badly and wouldn't shoot any ammo to minute of pie plate at five yards.

Too add insult to injury, Ruger Customer Service had my gun for over a year, refused to answer all letters and phone calls.
When Ruger did answer, they admitted the gun had a barrel defect that was their fault. But they refused to fix the gun and tried to charge me for a new barrel. Needless to say, Ruger got a permanent place on my never ever again list.

ZM

[Caimlas]

Disappointment: H&K USP .40S&W. My first gun. Worked fine, but then I started having the damnest problems with the magazine release: it kept springing on me. It took me a while to figure out it wasn't me (hitting it accidentally), and then replaced the mag springs. Still no dice. Finally figured out the problem and determined I 'had' to send it to HK for repairs. Ended up selling it due to the hassle of repair through H&K and now being 'allowed' to just fix it myself.

Suprise: Taurus PT111 Pro stainless steel (2nd Series/DAO trigger). Second pistol, gotten shortly after the USP when I figured the USP was too big for me to CCW. Heard a lot of bad things about Taurus from the gunshop people and the Internet Idiot Brigade, but I've yet to have a single hickup of any kind with it whatsoever. What's more, I'm able to shoot well and consistently with it, despite the trigger, short barrel and big/blocky sights (can consistently hit bowling pins @ 25 yards).

[Ala Dan]

Biggest Disappointment= .40 caliber SIG P229, Glock 23 (tie)

Greatest Satisfaction= SIG-SAUER P220A (.45ACP), SIG SAUER 9/mm P228

[aka108]

Biggest Surprise-Star Model 30 Starfire 9mm. Accurate and so far 100 percent reliable with any ammo used so far. Not much for cosmetics. 16 round capacity and decent trigger.
Biggest Dissapointent-Ruger products-Bad triggers, terrible to mediocre accuracy and all require aftermaket parts to become halfway decent arms.

[-terry]

Nice thread, OP.

[tinygnat219]

Surprise: Russian TT33 Tokarev, S&W M&P Victory model in 38 S&W.

Disappointment: Kel-Tec P40, Taurus Gauchos. The Gauchos started off ok, but have been steadily developing quirks. Screws getting loose, etc. Next time, Rugers.

The Kel-Tec P40 is everything wrong about a DAO handgun. This is the most annoying god-awful POS handgun I have ever owned or fired in my life.

[ftierson]

Biggest disappointment:

Marocchi SM-64 .22LR semi-auto rifle...

In pictures, it looked quite nice and streamlined, with a quick takedown feature.

In reality, it still looks decent, but what the pictures didn't tell you was that the receiver is made out of zinc and not aluminum and therefore weighs about 200 lbs. In addition, the barrel assembly flops from side to side when mounted into the receiver (anchored by one bolt). And, in addition to all that, the chamber has evenly spaced gouges, either because of poor manufacturing or an attempt at poor-man's fluting. Having said all that, the gun shoots reasonably well and is completely reliable through 100 rounds (and I only mention 100 rds because I haven't fired it more than that without cleaning it).

Biggest 'surprises' (and I really shouldn't call them surprises because I expected them to be good, but they turned out even better than I expected):

Steyr M9-A1 and Beretta Cougar 8000F, both of which feel wonderful in the hand and shoot extremely well. Although the Cougar was touted as a medium sized gun, it actually is larger than I expected and the grip fits my hand perfectly...

Forrest

[MrDig]

Doing a pretty significant amount of research before buying a Handgun, I have yet to be significantly disappointed with a purchase. I was pleasently surprised with a Over/Under Shotgun from Stoeger but that isn't a HG.

[PaladinX13]

Answering in terms of expectations, because I have had worse guns that I expected to be bad and better guns that I've expected to be good. Luckily, as far as handguns go, I haven't had too big a swing in terms of disappointments or surprises, but these are my experiences:

Most disappointed: Buckmark Hunter & CZ75B
Most surprised: Glock G19

CZ75B - It is only here because of the impossible expectations I put on this, my first semiautomatic handgun. I had been wanting one for a long time and was so happy to finally get one when I turned of age. The gun has not let me down in any way except that it doesn't shoot in proportion to my love for it! More on that under the G19.

Buckmark Hunter - I already had a reliable, accurate, and fun Kadet Kit for the CZ75, so I'm not entirely sure what possessed me to buy a 7.25" Buckmark Hunter. I think I wanted a dedicated plinker with hypothetically greater accuracy (especially scoped). Unfortunately, with a scope- it's big and takes up a lot of room in the range-bag, heavy, and not particularly accurate fired off-hand (really hard to tame reticle jitters with a heavy gun at full extension). Also, it came with only one mag... so I bought a spare, but they both have feed issues with certain rounds. I suspect taking off the scope will go a long ways towards making it fun as a plinking gun again- otherwise, when I have the time, I'll try to master a scoped handgun (off-hand). But, for now, bringing along the Kadet Kit just makes more sense.

Glock G19 - I bought this practically out of "obligation". To just have a Glock in the stable as any good collector should. It turned out to be my favorite overall gun. First, I was surprised at how much softer shooting it felt to me than the CZ75B... I was expecting a larger kick because of the lighter and smaller frame, but somehow it felt easier. Next, I was impressed by how much more accurate I was both at aimed fire and rapid fire... due mostly to the larger sights on the G19 than a stock CZ75B, but also the square grip which forced my hands into the exact same consistent place each and every time. Finally, it was easier to clean- no slide-stop to push out, polygonal barrel, and more simple internals for detail strip/clean. I happier with the G19 than I ever expected to be, but disappointed my beloved CZ75B doesn't shoot as well in my hands (they're equivalent from a bench/rest).

But they're all fine guns, so I'm just making much ado about nothing. :P

[lev83]

Biggest Suprise: S&W Model 41...thats right it is worth the money.
Biggest Disapointment: Colt Fontier 22...look cool, great pedigree, dont shoot worth a damn.

[The Amigo]

Surprise:Taurus mod 85 ultralight, I just abused that gun and it never died
Glock model 19 most precise fail free gun ever owner
Kel tec P3at just heard horror stories about it ended up buying one
for what the hell and has never left my pocket in 2 years very
light and reliable.

Nightmares: Taurus pt 145 just could not get Taurus to fix it right.
Davis industries .380 most of been doing peyote the day
purchased :D

[DAdams]

Now, the biggest surprise was a used Bersa Thunder .380. What great little shooter! That little .380 fed & fired every & all ammos and was quite accurate and easy to put on target quickly. Great pocket gun too.

Plus one. I didn't really expect much out of a $250 HG. It's worth twice the price. One of my favorites.

[The Lone Haranguer]

Originally posted by Legionnaire:
Disappointment: Glock 27. Love my Glock 23, and thought I'd like the smaller 27. It was fine gun, and worked great, but I never took a shine to it. It just isn't enough smaller than the 23 to merit consideration (IMHO). Sold it after less than 500 rounds, and don't miss it a bit.

Your experience with that gun almost exactly mirrors mine. I just could not bring myself to like it. And I've had a Glock 19 for years.

Another disappointment: a Sigarms GSR Revolution Carry. Although it has improved and is almost where I want it to be functionally, it has been plagued with failures to feed or go fully into battery. I don't mind paying for quality, but when I pay for the quality and still don't get it, it ticks me off.

[mdao]

Biggest disappointment: Kel-Tec in general. My PF-9 and P3AT both worked well initially, then started having intermittent failures. I don't trust them, can't sell them in good faith, and really need to send them in for service.

Biggest surprise: HK P7 PSP. I'm frankly shocked that an obsolescent, single stack 9 mm autoloader with an idiosyncratic manual of arms could be worth it's $900 asking cost.

[10-Ring]

Since I started this thread, I'll add my 2 cents:
Biggest dissapointment: SIG P220. It had a very very heavy & vague trigger (measured 15+ pounds DA -- we ran out of weights to know for sure & 8#'s SA :barf: ) dissappointing from all the comments on the great triggers these things have and then it still wasn't right after a 10 wk trip back to the factory
--for some reason I feel like I have to apologize to Ala Dan :o
Biggest surprise -- G19. It took me ALONG time to warm up to the Glock trigger, but now, we're simpatico :cool:

[realmswalker]

Biggest surprise- How accurate all my guns can be.

Biggest dissapointment- how badly I shoot all of my accurate guns.

[ZeSpectre]

Biggest surprise- How accurate all my guns can be.

Biggest disappointment- how badly I shoot all of my accurate guns.

HERE HERE! I raise a toast to one of the most accurate truths ever to be posted on THR! :neener:
(applies to me too by the way)

[ftierson]

A truism that applies to us all, I imagine...

:)

Forrest

[hemiram]

Biggest surprise: My Astra A-75 in .40 S&W. It eats everything, beats my friend's similar "Shorty Forty" in every important way, for half the price. Doesn't matter what kind of ammo, it shoots. Doesn't matter how it's held, it just shoots. Yeah, the S&W is "worth" more, and parts are easier to get, but if I was going to carry CCW, and I had a choice between the two, the Astra would be my pick. Best $290 I ever spent, gun wise. I'm looking for another one. Sadly, the price seems to be going up.

Biggest dissapointment: My Colt 1911, series 70. It was rare when an entire magazine could be shot without a jam. Went back to Colt, still jammed. Local gunsmith said it was "rough", and after he got through with it, it worked 95% of the time. I sold it and almost broke even. It was my second, and last 1911.

Another big dissapointment is my shooting after taking several years off. I can't believe how bad I'm shooting now. I used to be able to shoot all six shots from my DW Model 15's with a 4" barrel, one handed, with magnum loads into the 10X spot at 30' easily. Can't do it two handed now! I am slowly improving though, but I can't afford to shoot more than 2x a month or so right now.

[fattsgalore]

surprise: Taurus PT92 17+1 in stainless. We use to call it the Feretta(fake Beretta) now we call it the Taurus respectfully. Handled more of these then any other firearm and have never been disappointed. Easy disassembly; affordable at under $400; accurate as all hell; and reliable which is the most important.


disappointment: Bersa Thunder45. nickel plating peeled like a potato. The sights were just for show and had no correlation on where the bullet actually was gonna go. And the worst of all the magazine release broke within the first 200rnds. Which literally broke my heart.
Lucky my friend loaned me his other gun. A Bersa .380 which would be another surprise.

[honkeoki]

Biggest surprise: Star BM 9mm. My first SA, bought out of a wooden trunk at the gun show last year. I LOVE that little gun! It's absolutely a dream to fire.

Biggest disappointment(s): A Kahr PM9 that wouldn't feed more than a couple of rounds of *any* ammo I tried and locked open on the last-but-one round every time.

[wally]

Biggest surprise. Witness-P 9mm Compact. CDNN was closing them out for $249 when the the 2006 frames with the rail came out. Trigger was much better than I expected and improved greatly with a little shooting. Accurate, and I like that it'll do cocked and locked and you can cycle the slide to load/unload with the thumb safety on. Very easy take down & reassembly.

Biggest disappointment, since I liked the Witness-P Compact 9mm so much and CDNN still had the .40 Compact for $249 I got one so I'd have the .40S&W as a "car/truck gun" and have the 9mm for cheap practice. The .40 is a jam-matic POS and if it doesn't jam it suffers premature slide lock!

--wally.

[Plink]

A while back I posted my biggest surprises, but I never got around to posting my biggest disappointments. Here they are.

Colt in general. I hate to say it but that's been my experience. Had a Woodsman from the 70's. After less than 1,000 rounds it broke internally and refused to reset the striker after firing. Sent it in, and got it back with the same problem.

Bought a Delta Elite when they first came to market. Had bad frame peening within 200 rounds. The dealer took it back in trade towards something else.

Last of all, I have a Govt. model .380. It's a great little shooter but at about 1,000 rounds the hammer began following the slide. I sent it in to Colt and they replaced the hammer and sent it back to me without even bothering to fit the safety! The hammer had to be pulled farther back to set the safety. I ended up fitting it myself and just giving up on Colt after a 3 for 3 streak of crappy guns and service. Shame too, because they make several guns that I want.

[Dr.Rob]

Surprised: FEG pistols in general. Great bang for the buck.

Worst: Russian commercial Makarov in .380: chamber undercut so badly the brass bulged to the point that reloading seemed unlikely, and I was worried about a KB.

[HiroProX]

Biggest surprise: Ruger P-85 Mk2. I had heard nothing but horror stories until a friend of mine at work talked me into it. I seriously don't think it knows how to jam, I've fed it some of the roughest looking rounds and it digested them with no complaints. There are certainly pistols that are more accurate, but it's accurate enough for me, and dead on reliable. I'm looking forward to picking up a KP90.

Biggest Disappointment: Glock 22. I tried but I could not warm up to it. And I found quickly that I missed the option of single-action mode. It did have an effect as my next pistol, the P-85 Mk.2 was a DA/SA instead of the single action automatic that the Glock replaced (Colt Delta Eagle).

[TimboKhan]

Biggest Surprise: I can't think of the model for some reason, but my dad has a little Beretta .380 that he bought that I just couldn't seem to miss with. I honestly was shocked at how well I shot that thing. I am no fan of the .380 as a defensive round, but for a fun, accurate gun, that one surprised me more than anything else that I have ever shot.

Biggest Disappointment: Springfield Compact 1911. I was somewhat uninformed at the time about 1911's, and I just expected the gun to perform miracles. It couldn't, and I got rid of it. Now that I know the limitations, I am not sure that I would be interested in a micro or compact model again. A commander or full-sized model, I am on-board with, but not another micro.

[Belgiboy]

Biggest surprise: my 1942 Winchester 94 that i bought for $400. Was intended to be a wall gun but shoots dead on with cheapo 30-30 powershock.
I will hunt with it in the fall.
Biggest disappointment: My trusted 760 Crossman pumpmaster BB-gun (my first love) has finally broken down beyond repair

[bannockburn]

Minor disappointment-Kahr CW40 What was there not to like? Flat, lightweight, great ergonomics, decent caliber, and priced under $400. Only problem was I could only keep 2 out of 6 shots in the black-the other 4 ended up somewhere south of the border. Couldn't develop any sort of consistency with that loooong DA trigger. Major disappointment-Colt Stainless Officers Model Couldn't get the slide to go completely into battery; way too many tool marks and wavy lines; unevenly polished frame and slide rails-I think you're starting to get the picture now. How this piece ever got passed by the QCI, (if indeed ,there even was one) is beyond me. Major surprise-Colt Mustang Great fit and finish; no recoil, even with hot JHP's; decent trigger pull; and nice tight groups at 30 feet. Colt may have turned out some clunkers but every now and then they got it just right.

[MJZZZ]

My biggest surprize came from the CZ 75 and Kadet kit, just awesome and just solid.

My biggest dissappointment came from my Kimber Ultra CDP II, as unreliable a gun as I've ever taken out of a box. A bigger surprize was after Kimber worked it over, it became the CCW I thought I was buying. Mike

[HammerBite]

My biggest surprise was my Astra 300 in .380 ACP. I bought it basically because it was ugly, but appeared well-made and I was curious about it. Its trigger is somewhere between wretched and miserable.

If I grab it with two hands it will shoot half-dollar size groups all day at 25 yards.

I have had no firearms disappointments.

[Beetle Bailey]

Biggest surprise: Bulgarian Makarov. It came in a greasy, plain white cardboard box. A very cheap, thin cardboard box with no text nor markings whatsoever. My buddy remarked "I've gotten hamburgers that have come in better boxes!" The reason I bought it was that even though my CZ75 had been completely reliable, I thought I should have another handgun and the Makarov was supposed to be reliable.

It was nice little gun. Very simple to field strip and clean and it had decent reliability. It never had any kind of failure and the finish was actually fairly well polished. The sights were tiny but the trigger was pretty good and the whole thing cost me $200! I later got a few more handguns so I sold the Mak because it shot an oddball caliber I didn't want to stock anymore, but it was a good gun and accurate.

Biggest disappointment: I've been lucky enough that I haven't had anything I would consider a disappointment.

[rxraptor02]

Biggest disappointment: CZ RAMI 2075 in 9mm, It was a very nice gun accurate but the thing would not feed, I had issues with both mags and tried the fixes. I quickly sold it off.


Biggest surprise: my XD45c, This is my first 45acp. I have to say that it is a dream to shoot. no failures of any kind it has eaten every target ammo, and three types of SD ammo by different mfg's and bullet weights.

[GotGlock]

Surprise: Taurus M44 44mag. I got it for 80 bucks, the trigger pull was horrendous, After a full strip and cleaning, its amazing.

Disappointment: Sig p220 Carry, its the best shooting handgun i have ever played with, but not feeding the last round of every magazine and having to go back to Sig after 400 rounds really pissed me off.

[Fabi75]

Surprise: CZ-83. Although I am well aware that CZ are good guns the CZ-83 was better than expected ... excellent trigger, very comfortable to shoot and very well built.

Disappointment: Kareen (High-Power clone). This must be the worst High-Power clone ever built. Although the gun looks quite new the slide is very losse. I also have mechanical problems with the trigger.

[hostilecrab]

Biggest Surprise:
CZ-75 an extremely accurate gun out of the box. Excellent ergonomics.
Amazing price/value.

Biggest Disappointment:
Sig 226 an excellent gun that costs way too much because of all the hype. Ergonomics are average, and accuracy is equivalent to the CZ-75.

[Fumbler]

Biggest surprise:
Bersa Thunder 380. I got one of those duo-tones in 380ACP so my girlfriend would have something lighter to carry.
Best $200 gun on the market. It's fed about 300 rounds of mixed ammo (Win FMJ, Win JHP, Rem JHP, Fed JHP) without a single hiccup.
It shoots as well as my Sig 228 too.

Biggest disapointment:
Luckily I haven't had a handgun that I didn't like.
After I get more range time with my new 480 Ruger then I'll let yall know if I'm disappointed.

[foghornl]

Big surprise Mid-'70's vintage Charter .44Spl Bulldog. Much BANG! for the buck....but WOW! the price of factory .44Spl..more than twice .44Mag

Disappointment... F.I.E. knockoff of Colt SAA in .22LR & .22Mag (cylinder swap, liker Ruger Single-Six) IIRC, model name was "Buffalo Scout".
Had that gun been a 'bass fiddle', you couldn't hit a bull in the butt with it.

[Setzer77]

Surprise: S&W 3913 LS. I thought it would have more recoil, it's a smooth-shooting tack driver (though what I paid for it, it better well be)

Disappointment: Sadly, my first gun: an SA GI 1911A1. Extractor problems have plagued it since the beginning, not to mention the front sight came loose after a few hundred rounds.

[aguyindallas]

My biggest surprise was my SigPro 2340. I had it for about 5 years. Its the bastard Sig that nobody has any love for. That thing was DEAD reliable and was a tack driver. Great gun. I only got rid of it because I was moving into Glocks and wanted to standardize my collection and also the SigPro was not a good gun for me to use in IDPA.

My biggest disappointment was my last M44. I knew I could be the guy that buys one and it turns out to be a great one, or it could be crap. Well, it was crap. When you fired a round, it would get stuck in the chamber. I did everything to remedy it and it never got better. It was nearly impossible to get the bolt open after a round was shot. I took it apart, sold it for parts.

[Kevinch]

I'm lucky that I haven't had a major disappointment.

My biggest surprise was a Taurus PT940. I bought it on impulse to support Taurus when they announced the company would not be signing any agreement with the Klintons. I put a mag load of ammunition through the gun in the back yard when I got home & put it away.

Years later, after not shooting it at all, I figured it was time to sell it. I took pictures & got ready to list it. Then I figured I might as well shoot up the 140 rounds of ammo I had & took it to the range.

This thing just plain shoots. I am as accurate with it as I am with my 1911s, if not more. Gobbles up anything I feed it too. I came home, decided it was a keeper & never listed it.

Sadly, I really need to narrow down the calibers I have to inventory & I think the .40S&W will have to go...:(

2nd Place: Bulgarian Mil-surp Makarovs. I have *a few* of these little guns. Although not really a surprise, I still can't get over how robust a pistol you could buy for $127.

[shark40sw]

Biggest suprise would have to be the Norinco 1911 I bought new for $300. Before all the modifications it was suprisingly accurate and fun to shoot. After, it still suprises me. And the Winchester 94 I bought used, but looked like it had never seen the light of day. The previous owner though he remembered someone shooting it once when he was a kid, but it's been in the closet for who knows how long. Looks brand new and shoots as good.
Biggest let down would be the shorty Ithaca 27 clone shotgun I bought. 14 inch entry sized shotgun that I can't get a full 4 rounds though without it jamming of failing to feed. Been to the gunsmith twice and still no luck. Of course most of the time it only screws up with me.

[Shipwreck]

Biggest surprise was a P99 A/S

Biggest disappointment - A Beretta 92FS Vertec stainless - Had a regular 92, and was really looking forward to this gun being awesome - looked like a shotgun on the target, though. Not consistent at all!

[Stevie-Ray]

Biggest surprise - 1911s.

Biggest disappointment - 1911

To clarify, I didn't think I would fall whole hog in love with the 1911 design. I was a Ruger RST-6 owner that wanted my second handgun to be a .357, though I hadn't chosen a maker for the purchase. Was leaning heavily toward Ruger, again, for their Security Six. Lost interest in the .357, and my second gun was a .44 magnum Ruger Redhawk. I was then bitten by the 1911 bug all those years ago, and don't even remember how or why. But I acted in haste and bought a AMT Govt. .45. It remains my biggest disappointment since, though accurate and with a ton of standard features, it was the worst POS as far as reliability went. It is the first of only 2 guns that I have sold. The Colt Mark IV that replaced it is my favorite and my other 1911s are at the top of my favorites. Strange, I do not own a .357 at all.

[Texshooter]

My happy surprise: A Rock Island Armory 1911 in .45. Also a S&W Sigma in .40.

My puke surprise: A Glock G31 and a Wilson .45 (considering what I paid for it)

[LightningJoe]

Biggest disappointment: NAA Guardian .32. Put blood blisters on my trigger finger, made half the pad of my right forefinger go numb for a few weeks, stove-piped on last round out of magazine, and a heavy lump for a pocket gun.


Best surprise: Kel-Tec P-32. It's everything the Guardian should have been.

[ewayte]

Biggest disappointment(s): Kahr PM9, Beretta NEOS, SA XD-9 SC

The Kahr was part of the barrel/feed ramp recall, but it always had a problem returning to battery. Beretta didn't fit my hand that well and wasn't very accurate, even with a 7" barrel. It also had sharp protrusions on the slide that would cut your hand during barrel cleaning. The XD-9 shot very well and was easy to maintain, but raised a blister on the bottom edge of my finger shooting only 115gr. FMJ factory loads.

I see a trend here - all polymer frames! :evil:

Biggest surprise: Ruger Blackhawk Convertible (.357/9mm) The 9mm cylinder on this thing is scary accurate. I've hear all kinds of horror stories about shooting 9mm in the Convertibles, but mine has exceeded expectations.

[nathan]

Biggest surprise: Norinco 54 in 7.62 x 25 tok , shoots like a dream, recoil isnt too bad and quite accurate for an ugly looking gun. Will never part with this baby.
Biggest disappointment: Sig 230 in .380. i got one back in 1997 . Shot it and can t get good groups . Maybe i was expecting too much on a small pistol. I sold it to my brother for much less just to get rid of it. NOw I have BUlgarian mak in .380. I havent fired it yet.

[Black Snowman]

Surprise: CZ 97B, used. I was so upset about putting off buying this gun after I actually got my hands on one. Wished I had picked one up when they had first come out instead of waiting. The most accurate center fire self-loader I've ever shot, reliable, and feeds everything but the most odd-ball semi-wadcutters.

Disappointment: Taurus 455 Ti in 45 ACP. Horrible forcing cone created bad leading and horrific accuracy. So snappy that bullet pull is a problem. Still trying to work out a load that I can eject the moon clip after firing 4 of the 5 rounds. 185s or lighter seem the only way to make it happen. Plus, the trigger shape is just right to blister my finger after a couple dozen trigger pulls. If they had gone with a slightly different shape it would be fine. Local gunsmith fixed the forcing cone issue. Gun is at least usable now.

Honorable mention for the surprise award: Polish Tokerev TT33. Great trigger, light recoil, slim, powerful. Only things keeping it from being a great CCW gun are the safety position, sights, lack of concealment holsters, and wonderfully huge fireball when fired.

[trueg50]

Biggest suprise: Firing my fathers S&W model 26 357 Mag. he said it couldn't hit anything with it, but tried it recently with remington wadcutters, and blew away a 2 inch plastic tire at 50 yards. turns out he only used to fire it with some handloads a friend gave him. It was also my first time shooting a pistol.

Biggest disapointment: shooting my brother-in-laws new stainless steel S&W 357 mag. It had a 6inch barrel (2 inches longer than my fathers model 26) and couldn't hit a 1 foot by 4 foot log (facing perpendicular from me) at 50 yards.

[gandog56]

I'll play:
Biggest surprise: My first big bore centerfire gun, a Taurus 66 .357 magnum with a 6" barrel. I swear twenty years later I can still shoot a fly's doo-dads off at twenty paces.
Biggest Disappointment: Ruger P85 9mm. While it was built like a tank, and would digest any kind of crapola load I ran through her, I just could not get decent groups out of it. Reliabilty but no accuracy sucked.

[sarge83]

Biggest Surprise:

Bulgarian Mak that I bought about 8 yrs. ago. Very accurate, fairly easy to conceal and goes bag every time you pull the trigger.

Biggest Disappointment:

Springfield Champion in stainless steel .45 that my wife bought me for Christmas one year. She had a trigger job done on it, breaks cleanly at 4 lbs and is accurate, but it just eats the web of my hand up when I shoot it(I know should get a beaver tail for it) but for whatever reason I just cannot bring my self to like it and don't want to sink anymore money into it. Safe queen...

[22-rimfire]

I have had few surprises as I generally only buy first tier firearms. My biggest disappointment was probably a Colt 380 Gov't Model as it was a jamamatic and I got rid of it quickly. That was years ago and I have not bought a small pocket sized semi-auto since other than a Glock or two.

[Joe Demko]

Biggest Surprise: Pistolet Makarova. I bought one of them for under $100 when they first started importing. Bought it because it was cheap, but was amazed at the accuracy, durability, and reliability.

Biggest Disappointment: Harrington and Richardson 999 revolver. Always wanted one when I was a kid. Mine, which I bought new, was a POS. Several of the chambers were bored off axis. The DA trigger pull was off the scale. The rear sight fell off. Sold it and never looked back.

[Jomax]

Biggest Surprise: Ruger SP101 2" .357 - I can shoot it all day, with all types of ammo, mix 'n' match a cylinderful of different ammo, and still be accurate without pain or discomfort, even with full .357 loads. Reliable and smooth. A wise investment IMO.

Disappointment: Kahr PM9 TLC and factory night sights. Not very accurate as it shot low and to the left and it got increasingly worse as the range session progessed. Chambering the first round from a new mag was always an adventure. An expensive lesson learned IMO.

[TonyB]

Biggest Surprise:a 2 way tie...Taurus pt111($250)flawless w/ any ammo and very ccw'able
and my Rossi 461($150) way more accurate than a snubby has a right to be.

Biggest disappointment:Dan Wesson mod 15..had high hopes w/ the 3 barrels and all.....gun always locked up..after a few "fixes" I still could never trust it.what kills me is that I traded a super accurate and reliable GP100 for it:fire: