Which of these compact pistols would you prefer to have?

Which of these compact pistols would you prefer to have?

  • Commander size 1911 (please state the make)

    Votes: 88 23.2%
  • Glock 19

    Votes: 111 29.3%
  • H&K USP C (or CT)

    Votes: 22 5.8%
  • Sig Sauer P229

    Votes: 65 17.2%
  • Other

    Votes: 93 24.5%

  • Total voters
    379
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S&W M&P 9C. Its a great range gun. I've got well over 10,000 rounds through mine and I haven't found a better shooting gun.
 
If cost was no object, I'd probably go with the Sig P229. I've always admired Sigs and would love to own one. On the other hand, if I'm paying for it, I'd take the Glock 19. It might not have the panache of the Sig, but it's half the price and just as functional. ;)
 
My choice was the CZ 75 P-01, Smaller frame but not a 3 inch (too small) 3.8 inch barrel, 14 round mag and takes 9mm +p's, good sight radius and very comfortable in the hand.

Jim
 
Kimber 1911 Pro TLE II. I shot my buddies with beveled magwells and hogue side plates (palm swells). Outstanding trigger and balance. I was able to accurately shoot this gun almost as fast as my fathers colt woodsman (22 lr). His was the blued model with the rail. Probably the most accurate and easy to shoot centerfire hand gun I've shot. Well worth the money.

I've only shot a 4" 9mm sig sauer in da/sa with tritium sights (not sure the model). Great trigger in both modes, good balance, solid ergonomics and nice decocker. Another great choice.

The only glock's I've shot where 2 gen III glock 22's. The best way to describe glock imo is "adequate". Okay trigger, okay sights, okay grip, decent accuracy and good price.

The H & K I shot was also a 4" 9mm in DA/SA with night sights. I wasn't really a fan of the trigger in either mode. The grips where okay but I didn't love them.

Your mileage may vary,
Danny
 
No comparison. Colt 1911 45 acp. I don't even have one and I know that. It's just not the same category. Like a choice between a group of farm trucks and a Camaro.
 
I have a G17, and a G26 is on my short list, with a Walther PPS also a contender, so "other" seemed the best choice. I like 1911 pistols very much, but had bad luck with Commanders and like-sized copies. Moreover, a Commander cannot be so easily termed a compact pistol, with over 4" of barrel, and a height equal to a Government Model.

I am going to disagree that the P229 is a "compact" pistol! Measure one, from the top of the rear sight, to the base of the magazine, then measure that same dimension on any number of full-sized service pistols. (It is about equal to a full-sized Glock in height.) I have a P229, in .40, which has become a torture device, with the snappy .40 recoil combining with the high bore axis and light alloy frame to put too much sudden torque on my aging, aching wrist. A 9mm P229 might well be OK, especially a P229ST, with a stainless steel frame. For the immediate future, though, the P229 remains my duty pistol, until I determine whether my LE career is going to continue long enough to justify the expense of a new and different .40 pistol, plus the bother of a proper transitioning.
 
I am surprised to see that 1911 is not in lead. Is that because it holds less rounds, because otherwise its great for carry compared to others. Or is it because of the platform choices available in other choices listed?
I love my Les Bear Thunder Ranch Special, and find it quite concealable, but "compact" it is not. Slim, yes, but not compact, overall.
 
I've got my Glock needs covered, and none of them include a compact size model. So I voted P229, because I've wanted one for some time now.
 
Lw comander is fine
but the Gov't Model is much too big and heavy.
It's neither too big nor too heavy with a good holster and belt.
the lw officer's is just right, but only if you load it with the right ammo. The only commercial jhp that will reliably expand in flesh, from such a short .45, is the CorBon 160 gr PowRBall. Animal tests prove this.
Have documentation to these animal tests? Because professionally conducted ordnance gelatin testing strongly disagrees with your claim. http://www.brassfetcher.com/45ACP/45ACP Summary Table.pdf
The Gm is concealable only under a coat, only on a big man, and then not very comfortably.
You're hilarious. I know plenty of guys (myself included) who are 5'10" or shorter and who can easily and comfortably conceal a full size 1911 under an untucked polo shirt in the summer in Georgia. Some of my thinner friends can do it under a t-shirt. Goes back to that holster and belt thing.
 
It's neither too big nor too heavy with a good holster and belt.

Have documentation to these animal tests? Because professionally conducted ordnance gelatin testing strongly disagrees with your claim. http://www.brassfetcher.com/45ACP/45ACP Summary Table.pdf

You're hilarious. I know plenty of guys (myself included) who are 5'10" or shorter and who can easily and comfortably conceal a full size 1911 under an untucked polo shirt in the summer in Georgia. Some of my thinner friends can do it under a t-shirt. Goes back to that holster and belt thing.
Just to add to that, I know plenty of guys who think they conceal just fine, but oddly enough have multiple gun flash moments throughout daily activity, or look odd making weird postures in order to maintain concealment. If you see it for even a split second it's not concealed anymore. People don't make a fuss about it but it definitely brings a lot a stares.
 
Just to add to that, I know plenty of guys who think they conceal just fine, but oddly enough have multiple gun flash moments throughout daily activity, or look odd making weird postures in order to maintain concealment. If you see it for even a split second it's not concealed anymore. People don't make a fuss about it but it definitely brings a lot a stares.
Hence my comment on a good holster, and a good belt to support it. This aint my first rodeo. Because of the rounded slide and grips a full size 1911 can actually be easier to conceal than the current crop of square slide service pistols. This isn't thinking it conceals just fine, this is knowing it can be easily concealed. If you can fully conceal a SIG 228/229, or a Glock 17/22/19/23 you can fully conceal a full size 1911.

As just one example I have a friend who's a former state parole officer in GA. He chose a 1911 over a Glock (and a host of other options available at the time) for ease of concealment when he worked plain clothes assignments during the 1996 Summer Olympics. His job was to blend into the crowd and not look at all like a cop. The gun could not show - PERIOD.
 
From the ones listed I'd choose the Commander size 1911. Dan Wesson commander or CCO would be tops for me, but there are many brands I'd be happy with. However, my #1 choice that's not on list is the CZ P01. Awesome compact/carry gun.
 
Hence my comment on a good holster, and a good belt to support it. This aint my first rodeo. Because of the rounded slide and grips a full size 1911 can actually be easier to conceal than the current crop of square slide service pistols. This isn't thinking it conceals just fine, this is knowing it can be easily concealed. If you can fully conceal a SIG 228/229, or a Glock 17/22/19/23 you can fully conceal a full size 1911.

As just one example I have a friend who's a former state parole officer in GA. He chose a 1911 over a Glock (and a host of other options available at the time) for ease of concealment when he worked plain clothes assignments during the 1996 Summer Olympics. His job was to blend into the crowd and not look at all like a cop. The gun could not show - PERIOD.
On that note I'll bow down respectively, Apples and oranges. I refer to a private citizen who ,in not knowing particular holsters in use, is in daily activity. I recognize a difference between that and a trained officer with proper equipment. And I don't doubt that there are those who carry the large frame pistols without incident, but there are also those who just think they do and may as well just open carry.

To reiterate; my vote was for the colt.
 
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JR, I realize I just came off as sounding like a jerk. I apologize for that.

I often forget that I've had the benefit of literally growing up around LE and military guys who know or knew firearms handling, shooting, and carry methods with such depth. I forget how much these folks taught me as I was learning about firearms and concealed carry, how fortunate I am to have been given this knowledge from the start.

I've also been lucky enough to become friends with a few folks who are have to carry plain clothes for work. That's allowed me to keep up with changes or evolutions in holster design / philosophy. When I was learning all this the Milt Sparks Summer Special (copied by just about every leather holster maker, if his was indeed the original) was the ticket, so I started with a Galco Summer Comfort (copy of the MS SS) for full size 1911s. The current IWB holster style of choice seems to be the Crossbreed / Comp-Tac Minotaur style leather / Kydex hybrid. After getting one of these (a Comp-Tac Minotaur) for said Wiley Clapp Commander I was hooked, and added one for my full size M&P. I still find the summer special / summer comfort type holsters to be very useful for some types of carry.
 
Actually, Milt Sparks copied the Bruce Nelson Summer Special, but it was with Bruce Nelson's blessing. The BN55, another Sparks product, is a copy of the Bruce Nelson Professional holster, with his initials in the model name.
 
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