The Best 9mm pistol....

Well, since I don't have a dog in this fight, don't own a 9mm, I personally like Hi Powers, but I shoot G19's and 9mm 1911's best.

pwillie said:

....is?....The best made (reliable)in your opinion?...9mm only, and ever day use...?

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I would vote HK VP9 or Walther PPQ.

Opinions are like ... never mind.

I'm going with the ones that have stood the tests of time and widespread use by military and law enforcement. (OK, so the Luger's really only in there because it's iconic as the pistol that the 9mm round was created for.)

Glock G19, G17
Beretta 92
SIG P226
CZ 75
Browning Hi Power
Walther P38
Luger P08

There are a lot of really fine 9mm pistols out there, so many that we can't even really begin to talk about them without drawing some parameters of price, intended use, etc. So there's my "Hall of Fame" list.

pwillie said:

Thanks for the input.....the thread is about boats?....I am a boat man!. I currently own a 17 ft Aquasport that I have rebuilt with new everything...also I built a "Grand Banks Dory" from plans. Cypress and white Oak!....View attachment 232774

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Now if you were attacked by a bear, which boat would you use...

Dokk said:

Now if you were attacked by a bear, which boat would you use...

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Do bears swim that well? If not, I think just about any boat that works would be pretty good.

Average Joe said:

Any CZ 75 will do.

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This is my thought exactly. I have 9MM pistols from Sig, Beretta, Browning (FN), and I keep going back to my CZ-75's of which I now have several in different models, but all 75 based, including a LNIB 75 "pre-B". They are excellent, but my BHP is right up there, and the only real competitor to the 75 although I know they are very different.

Not sure if it's best. Reliable, yes. If I have a pistol that's not reliable, I either fix it or get rid of it.

This is my latest reliable pistol,

The Browning BDM was a really good pistol. I didn't care for the DAO feature but it was tough, and very slim. It was designed to fullfil a .gov contract, who changed their requirements, then changed their mind altogether. Browning, IMO should have modified it to a DA/SA design, maybe trimmed and tweaked it for a lower fit in the hand undercutting the front frame below the trigger guard and a higher position for the web of the hand on the backstrap and fielded it that way on the open market.

No idea what's "best."
I'm a sucker for 3rd gen S&W compacts, so my favorites are a 3913 and a 3943.
And hard to beat a H&K P7 on coolness factor (wish I had one).

I'm shocked nobody said a Sig P210.

Saying 'Best' certainly should mean something. A P210 is a very nice, well engineered pistol with a reputation for accuracy, build....and a price to match.

I'm not a huge Sig fan, but I'd rather have a P210 Legend Target than any of the guns mentioned. It isn't even close.



The P210-1 was standard issue for the Swiss and Danish Military. Most expensive service pistol ever. This is often cited as the most accurate autoloader. The originals were built in Switzerland. Trigger that may best a 1911 trigger. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SIG_Sauer_P210

RugerOldArmy said:

I'm shocked nobody said a Sig P210.

Saying 'Best' certainly should mean something. A P210 is a very nice, well engineered pistol with a reputation for accuracy, build....and a price to match.

I'm not a huge Sig fan, but I'd rather have a P210 Legend Target than any of the guns mentioned. It isn't even close.

The P210-1 was standard issue for the Swiss and Danish Military. Most expensive service pistol ever. This is often cited as the most accurate autoloader. The originals were built in Switzerland. Trigger that may best a 1911 trigger. https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SIG_Sauer_P210

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This pistol is legendary in the accuracy department. Maybe the reason is that they are very rare and hard to find nowadays. I heard Sig have the new version but never tried it yet.

RugerOldArmy said:

I'm shocked nobody said a Sig P210

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If he asked what the most accurate 9mm was, the p210 would certainly be mentioned by many on this forum, but he asked the best, which doesn't necessarily mean the gun that shoots the tightest groups. That's why I mentioned the Cz p01, because it can be a duty gun, conceal carry, home defense, or competition gun if one was skilled enough with it. It's a jack of all trades. The p210 was made to be a bullseye handgun, plain and simple.

jjones45 said:

If he asked what the most accurate 9mm was, the p210 would certainly be mentioned by many on this forum, but he asked the best, which doesn't necessarily mean the gun that shoots the tightest groups. That's why I mentioned the Cz p01, because it can be a duty gun, conceal carry, home defense, or competition gun if one was skilled enough with it. It's a jack of all trades. The p210 was made to be a bullseye handgun, plain and simple.

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The Sig P210 was developed for, and issued to, the Swiss armed forces. You can read about that in the link I posted above.

pwillie said:

....is?....The best made (reliable)in your opinion?...9mm only, and ever day use...?

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The best is the one that works for you. That's why they make different models of anything. Cars, Boats, slacks etc. One guy loves Rolex and the next gut loves Omega, it's all a matter of personel taste, also everyone has different sized hands and absorbs recoil different, along with sights safetys, etc.

RugerOldArmy said:

The Sig P210 was developed for, and issued to, the Swiss armed forces. You can read about that in the link I posted above.

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Yeah I was more thinking of the present day p210's, not the guns issued from 1949-1975. But yes, I agree that the old military models should be listed as well. The present day p210's are more sports pistols than military/police guns.

Looks like it's the CZ75 in all of its forms

Lock the thread

Personally, I've not shot too many 9's, but of the ones I have felt most comfortable with and confident with are the 92 series(S, SB, F, FS/G, & Elite), and since a few others mentioned old military models, I would also say I enjoy shooting my grandfather's old Mauser P38 & P08. But of them all, the Elite II might be my best. It's had some work done to the action, but it was stellar before the work.
Admittedly, I am biased.

jjones, A later production fixed sight P210 would not serve as well as an older fixed sight P210 in the military/police role? Perhaps you are correct, but wonder how you determined this. Did you just mean the P210 is used more as a sport pistol nowadays, than as a police/military pistol? If so, undoubtedly true.

Someone should start a poll with every option listed in this thread - I'd love to see the results...
(G19 would probably win - yuck...)
I can't decide between my SR9c and my XDm 5.25... They're both best for me for slightly different purposes

The best 9mm has to be the new FN 509. They say it has been tested million rounds. The new Sig P320 Army pistol is a joke. I held one frame seemed so bland and cheap like a movie prop. And it is made by the same American guys that made my (sold) Sig 556R which was a joke. detent holes not drilled the right size, no more accurate than egyptian AK. Not chromed either. This army contract could be a disaster in execution. Mine is a HK VP9. THAT is a great pistol.

Glock 34
Glock 17
CZ 75
Dan Wesson 1911
Sti 1911
Sti 2011
Glock 26
Glock 19
Wilson Combat M9

I'll mention one folks love or hate, the old PF9.
I got one when I was getting into guns. I love the small size. Mines very comfortable to carry and has always shot anything I feed it once I learned good technique.
That said it's an awful range gun, and a terrible gun for newbies. And I suspect many problems contributing to its reputation are do to the awful recoil and the need to hold it like you want to choke someone.

I don't see the SD9/SD9VE listed. A great cheap gun that got a bad rap because of its price and the Sigmas problems. But those who know, know these are good shooting inexpensive guns with crappy triggers.

Personally, I'm a huge fan of the M&P 2.0.
I like the XDs. So like many I can't pick one gun. Many are good. A few are great and some that some call awful are hidden gems, or diamonds in the rough.

I'm glad the OP found something he liked. For others, there's tons of info out there and good guns in all price ranges.

It's hard to beat a Browning or a G19, but there are many others to choose from.

Ask Gaston which one he likes best.....