9mm: Taking The Plunge

ruger sr9

I second the SR9.

I'd go with a Hi-power clone. I'm biased since I love the HP platform, but it gives you essentially the same manual of arms as your 1911. They feel great, and the FEG/Charles Daly I own has been 100% reliable. I bought it very lightly used less than two years ago for $300.

S&W M&P, Glock 17/19, Walther PPS/Q.......just to name my first 3 choices. I love a nice BHP, but not clones.....guess I'm a Hi Power snob.

Stoeger Cougar in 9mm. These can be had new for $400 or less and the gun is no joke. It's the old Beretta Cougar, which cost a lot more. This is the best value for your dollar, in my opinion. Here's mine with Beretta grips.

Glock 17 or 19, Ruger sr9, Springfield xd9 or xdm, Smith and Wesson M&P, Sig... I would try and shoot some different guns or at least handle them and see what you prefer.

Glock 19, Ruger P95, or S&W P&P. Out of those, I chose the Glock as I found a used Gen 2 for cheap.

I would grab a used Glock 34 if possible.

Fun and reliable range gun

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XD about as simple as it gets and take down so easy also fnp/fnx are nice to

If carry is not an issue, my personal choice would be Ruger P95. But I DO SO LOVE my SR9c!!

YMMV

How do you like your EAA? You may consider a CZ 75B or one of its variants, which is the design your EAA is based off of. Mine have been extremely reliable and they also tend to be soft shooting guns due to their low bore axis.

Sig 2022. Best 9mm under $500. I bought mine brand new on Gunauction for $310 + $15 shipping. With FFL transfer I have $345 into it. The single action trigger on it is SWEEEEET.

Just pick up a 9mm slide for your witness and call it a day. New i think is like $2-250

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Lerk said:

So been picking up a recent interest in the 9mm caliber for some good rec shooting. I already own a EAA Witness Match in 10mm, a .22 S&W 22A, and have a .45 1911 about to be on layaway for me, but would like to get a cheaper range gun for plinking. Two big points I'm after is realiable and a very reasonable price. Also may turn into a loaner for people wanting to try out new things so ease of handling is also a factor. I'm hoping to keep the final cost under $500. I have been eyeing up some glocks (unsure of exact model though yet), but am definitely open to more suggestions if anyone may have any for me to keep an eye out for.

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Resonable price and reliable covers alot of guns!

polymer:Glock gen 3 17/19
Springfield XD
Ruger SR9
Sig 20222(only comes with 1 mag and they are pricey!)
Ruger P95

metal:Stoeger cougar 9mm
CZ 75B 9mm

Good luck with your search.

I too just made the switch to 9mm, and went with the Cougar. All I can say is AWESOME. I looked at the SP2022 but didn't like my pinky resting on the magazine, the Cougar is a little longer in the grip which paired with getting 4 magazines (15 rounds) vs 1 10 round magazine kinda sealed the deal.

If youre thinking of using it as a "loaner" gun id say something more in the compact range like a Glock 19 or Beretta 92FS Compact. I think itll be a better match to "everyone's" hands in terms of shooting. Thats just my opinion though.

There are lots of nice 9mm's out there in your price range. I do agree w/the Stoeger Cougar. I have one in 45 cal. Also, the CZ 75 clones are great----I have a Baby Eagle and a Sarsilmaz (Armalite AR-24) and both of those are nice. I wish I liked Glock's but I don't but nonetheless recognize their virtues. The best deal going on a 9mm is the EAA/Zastava EZ9. EAA is no longer the distributor and CDNN is selling out the new stock for $299 each NIB. This is actually a Sig 226 clone which is as good as the original. For the money, I would rate them EZ9; Stoeger Cougar 9; and lastly CZ clone. Good luck!

If they feel ok to you, the Glock 17 and 19 can be had used stupid cheap and are almost impossible to make quit working.

The CZ products are also rock solid and some models share control layouts with your Witness and 1911.

BSW

What about a Rock Island 9MM 1911?

CZ P-07, $428 at Buds. Or look for a deal on a CZ75B, good solid pistol good for anything.

S&W 5906: gun and 5 regular capacity 15-round mags will still come in under $500.

Lerk, try out some pistols, if you can rent them at a local range, see what fits your needs. If you have smaller hands the 9mm 1911, or a single stack like a used SIG P239. My 2 best shooting 9mm pistols, 1) STI Trojan 9mm 1911, 2) Glock G34, totaly different platforms, both are very reliable. Find a pistol with a good to great trigger and a longer sight radius, usually makes for a great range pistol. Many striker fired/hammerless pistols have a just plain bad trigger, many DA/SA pistols like a CZ have a very long and hard DA triggger pull. SA only pistols, like the 1911 usually have the best triggers for target shooting. Glock pistols are very cheap and easy to do upgrades to sights and triggers, magazines are inexpensive as well. Try different pistols out before you buy, if you can.

Lerk, since you said you have small hands, I would definitely not recommend the Stoeger Cougar nor the Zastava EZ9 (while they are both good deals). I would recommend a CZ P01 which is all metal but very light and is a very good shooter. While it is not full size, the grip is good for those w/smaller hands. I also have a Sig P239 and I really like it but it is costly new and used (over 500 used). I see that Buds has the full size and compact Armalite AR-24 for $422 each on Gunbroker but it not the tactical version but nonetheless a great handgun. The grip is rubber and has palm swells and is perfect for all hands! As you might guess, I like metal so I would also recommend the Baby Eagle which has a grip adequate for those w/smaller hands. Let us all know what you come up with!