Good Range Piece

I'm a 1911 guy ....and stripping them is no big deal to me....but if you want another option ...(and no tools ) to field strip it....look at a Sig 239 model...single stack, good solid gun ...and available in 9mm, .357 Sig or .40S&W...( I have one in 9mm and one in .40S&W )....the 9mm will be the least expensive to shoot....

A 1911 in 9mm is a good option...especially in a 5" gun....Kimber, Springfield, Wilson, whatever....but a 9mm is a nice gun in a 1911...( I have Three - a Wilson, a Baer, and a Kimber...) in 9mm....

I think a good revolver is also a good choice....a S&W K frame ( model 19 or 66 in .357 mag ) is probably in your budget...and they're both very nice guns. The older model 19's were available blued or in Nickel...I'm partial to Nickel...but the model 66's in stainless are fine guns as well...

The S&W K38 Masterpiece / Model 14 makes a fine range queen. While many others will be peppering their targets with shotgun like patterns you will be shooting one hole groups. Good shooter grade Model 14s sell in the 350-450 range. A nice collectable K38 5 screw Masterpiece may hit $800 with box, tools and papers.

Another vote for a S&W K-Frame.

I have a police trade-in Model 10 that will pretty much put bullets through the same hole. I'm not that great of a shot, but that gun makes me look like a pro at the range. It's just a plain-jane gun with ugly, but very functional rubber grips.

I paid all of $269 for this gun from Bud's Gun Shop online.

I also think the S&W K frame is a great range gun for fun and accuracy. A M&P/ Model 10 is a good choice or even better, like Smith357 suggested, buy a S&W K38 Masterpiece/ Model 14. That revolver is a GREAT target handgun which is hard to beat for accuracy...

I own a 1948 M&P which is rarely left home when i go to the range. K frames are so much fun to shoot especially with 148gr WC or 158gr SWC ammo.

I own a 1948 M&P which is rarely left home when i go to the range. K frames are so much fun to shoot especially with 148gr WC or 158gr SWC ammo.

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I just picked up a beater M&P for 145 bucks at a local shop.

It was made somewhere between 1948 and 1952. So far, I've just cleaned it up (lots of crud and some surface rust) and put wood grips on it, but it locks up good. I'm hoping it shoots decently.

Anyway, these guns are out there for low prices if you shop around. Sorry, not trying to hijack thread.

My $145 gun:

I didn't touch the grips because I didn't want to ruin the value and I think this revolver is a little better than a beater.
I paid $150 for my M&P and that's probably the best buck and a half I ever spent!

Here it is pictured with it's little cousin, the Chief's Special:

You get what you pay for in terms of accuracy and a smooth action. If you learn to easily disassemble your 1911, you could get a nice 22 conversion kit for it. You could also look for a good used S&W model 17 or 617.

Sig 220? I can't think of too many pistols that fit your criteria. There just aren't that many single stack pistols that I would consider range guns, especially under $600. Most of them, like the two you listed are really concealed carry guns and not range guns.

You also might want to check out some of the newer polymer double stack pistols. They have much smaller grips than the older metal frame guns. The Beretta PX4 for example is a really nice range gun and it's much slimmer than the 92.

S&W 5906 9mm. You can thank me latter

Go Swiss! Get a P210, preferably the heavy frame. Favourite gun here in Sweden.

power167 said:

Cheap as possible is the name of the game. Would ideally like to keep it in the 500-600 bracket, but might go as high as 700 for something exceptional.

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Rock Island Armory 1911 Tactical. Google is your friend. About $60-ish more than the GI model & worth every penny.

I actually just DROSd a Ruger SR1911 today. It seems a better pistol but I haven't actually fired it yet. It was <$700 before taxes, fees.. etc etc etc...

power167 said:

Looking for a good/fun range pistol or revolver. Should be as accurate as is reasonable, not heavy/cumbersome, good grip, single stack if auto and easy to strip/clean without tools if auto. Looking at the Walther PPS and perhaps considering the Kahr T9. Currently have a Beretta 92 and a Smith 645, both fun to shoot but not terribly accurate, and the fat grip on the 92 is like shooting a piece of driftwood. Also have a Redhawk but it fails the heavy/cumbersome test. Have a Kimber team USA as well which is accurate as can be but is somewhat irritating to strip and clean, at least compared to the Beretta.

Cheap as possible is the name of the game. Would ideally like to keep it in the 500-600 bracket, but might go as high as 700 for something exceptional.

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LGS has stainless J-frame revolver in .22lr. That would do nicely. S&W should bring this model back.

I love to shoot my S&W Model 686 Plus with 4" barrel. Accurate when I do my part and fun as heck. For semi auto, my Glock 19 is my go to gun for home defense and range fun.

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Define what you consider a good level of accuracy.

I've got a Beretta 92fs as well. Granted there are more accurate guns in my collection but as service guns go it's not bad at all. It gives me 4'ish inch groups at 20 yards when I'm not hopped up on coffee. And that's about par for the course for service grad semis other than getting into some specific guns or specialty target guns.

Having said that some of the higher priced 1911 guns can easily do better. But typically not at the price point you are looking at. For that money you'll get somewhat smaller groups from a good condition used revolver from Colt or S&W.

Of course there are random low priced guns which shoot far better than their price point. But that is the luck of the draw. The next one off the same line might well be "minute of pizza pie" accuracy at 20 yards. There just isn't any way to tell until you shoot them.

Now if 4'ish inch size groups at 20 yards sounds like great accuracy then it's not the guns but the shooter. A number of guys that I shoot with can do better with the same guns. Typical for a service grade semi is more like 2.5 to 3 inch groups at 20 yards when shot from a simple wrist rest. And many of the better brand name revolvers can manage 2.5 or smaller groups when shot from a wrist rest at that distance. On more than one occasion I've managed sub 2 inch groups shot one handed "bullseye" style with my rather old late 60's era Ruger Single Six as well. More normally for me and that gun is up a little under 3 inches. It just depends on the night and my general condition.

Your options of a Walther PPS and the Kahr don't particularly strike me as being guns which might be more accurate than what you have now. They might be nice and fun to shoot but likely no more accurate than what you're doing at the moment.

So again it comes down to what you expect for accuracy at some given distance. And more importantly if you have the skill and methdology to achieve that with any gun.

For fun and accuracy at the range, you cannot beat a 4"-6'' .357 revolver like a L-Frame S&W or equivalent. Enough heft to control recoil and enough boom to know you are shooting formidable weapon. Accuracy is generally better than most of us are capable of also. I have .22 autos, .38 snubbies, coupla 1911s, several N-Frames and X-Frames. I also have 3 686s, a 4'', a 5'' and a 6''. Outta all of them, the L-Frames are the ones shot the most by me and others that go with me. It comes down to being pleasant to shoot and accuracy. Being relatively cheap and easy to handload for also helps.