First handgun: Ruger SP101 versus Glock 19

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Mitlov

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I know this is a comparison between an apple and a zucchini, but I was wondering if people could weigh in. I'm a shotgun owner (shoot trap and skeet) looking for a first handgun. Both of these attracted me because they're both relatively small (I'm a small-framed guy with smaller hands), relatively inexpensive (under $700), have impeccable reputations for reliability, don't use any unusual/expensive ammo sizes, and don't have any complex manual safeties.

Intended uses are practice at the range (lots), taking it with me camping, and home defense. I'm not intending it primarily for concealed carry (I might buy something specialized for that down the line later) but it might do occasional duty as such.

Some questions I had would be:

(1) Which would be easier to clean? The Glock has more moving parts, but the SP101 has more barrels and I've heard .357s can build up lead deposits if you routinely shoot .38 Special out of them.

(2) Price and availability of ammo--which is worse (I'm not sure anything is "better" in this market)...9mm or .38 Special?

(3) Theoretically, if a bear or mountain lion were to take umbrage with something I'd said or done, would 9mm have any effect on them? (I know .357 would).

I don't have any friends who own either (my main firearms-enthusiast friend is a head taller than me and a fan of 1911s, and they're a bit bigger, heavier, more complex, and more expensive than I'm looking for). I'd be interested in arguments in favor of either the Glock 19 or the SP101, from either a specs-based perspective, first-hand-experienced-based, or even plain old subjective bias :)
 
1.) Both are easy enough to clean. No need to debate over that issue....Forget about the .38 crud ring stories. Regular cleaning will prevent it.

2.) I wouldn't let the price of ammo be my deciding factor.

3.) A 9 mm is better than a rusty nail for a bear or mountain lion.

I carry a Glock for a duty weapon and a SP101 as my off-duty weapon. Both are fine weapons. I have carried Glocks for 14 years and bought my SP in 1995. I have had no issues with either.
 
I carry a Glock 19 as my main carry gun. It is easy to shoot well, and easy to clean. The being said, the same applies to the SP101.

Now, for defensive purposes (2 legged creatures) I give the edge to the 9mm over the .38 spl. However, for bears I will take the .357 every time. The deciding factor for me would be the capacity of the Glock, and the ability to mount a light (my home defense firearms all wear a light).
 
The Ruger is my pick. Glocks are so over rated,the belly buttons of guns. Just my opinion.Not that they arent reliable,they are.Just like most semi-autos nowa days.But id go SP101,love rugers,.357 is a better lion killer,u can use .38spl for more choices,cleaning is a breeze,u can not get more reliable than a revolver
 
Snub 357's are not a good choice for anyone, especially first handguns. You get a tremendous amount of muzzle blast and recoil with 357 loads and velocity from short 2-3" barrels is greatly reduced. They are much harder to shoot accurately.

The Glock will weigh less, cost less to buy and shoot, be about the same overall size, it will hold 3X more ammo. It will be more accurate, have less recoil, and with +P 124 gr 9mm ammo will actually equal or beat the velocity you can get from a 3" 357 barrel. It will easily beat the 2" version in velocity.

If you want a 357 for a first gun you need a full size 4-6" barreled version. They are easier to shoot, recoil less, and with longer barrels give you full performance from the round.
 
You say you have small hands. I stand 5'4". Mine are small too. Army taught me how to shoot double-stacked 9mm's but I never did feel that comfortable. You will find that your pals 1911 to have a smaller grip frame than the G19. I keep my SP101 for night stand duty, woods carry, and CC when not dressed for really hot days.

G19 will be just larger in size and weight (with a full mag) than the SP. 9mm seems to be harder to find than .38/.357 around here. Not sure about your location. .38 in an SP if really light on recoil, kid even likes to shoot it. 9mm in n auto-loader dends to feel more "flippy." Accuracy is aceptable in each, if you are trying to hit pennies at 50 yards, you are using the wrong tool. More rounds on hand with the G19 but there are speed loaders. Google some vids, with practice (using snap caps) wheel guns can be reloaded quickly.

I suggest finding each at a rental range and giving them a trial. For me, have a Sig 9mm and an SP. SP gets 10 times the use/carry that the Sig does.
 
Snub 357's are not a good choice for anyone, especially first handguns. You get a tremendous amount of muzzle blast and recoil with 357 loads and velocity from short 2-3" barrels is greatly reduced. They are much harder to shoot accurately.

The Glock will weigh less, cost less to buy and shoot, be about the same overall size, it will hold 3X more ammo. It will be more accurate, have less recoil, and with +P 124 gr 9mm ammo will actually equal or beat the velocity you can get from a 3" 357 barrel. It will easily beat the 2" version in velocity.

If you want a 357 for a first gun you need a full size 4-6" barreled version. They are easier to shoot, recoil less, and with longer barrels give you full performance from the round.
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I'm going to hazard a guess and say that you don't own and snub nose revolvers....


The 2" sp101 .357 was my first handgun, an I absolutely love the thing.

True, with full house loads, you can get some Impressive muzzle blast.....however you can also shoot lighter loads and they handle just fine, I personally like 110gr .357 mag, good power, and very manageable recoil with almost no muzzle flash.

Plus I can always shoot .38, giving me even less recoil and more ammo selection.

As for weight, sure, an empty glock may weigh less than the sp101, but when you load it up with 15 rounds, I'm going to guess the weights are darn near equal.

You do have reduced capacity, however you also have added reliability and better ammo selection.
 
I would go for a GP100 rather than the SP but that's a 6 of 1 half a dozen of the other to me. I am not a Glock fan myself but that's because the pistol doesn't fit my hand well.
If you want something for 2 legged/4 legged creatures why not look at a compact Glock in 10 mm bigger bullet diameter wise and just as powerful as the 357. You'd have 10 rds as opposed to 6 then get an after market barrel for 40 S&W and you'd be good to go. Granted 10 mm ammo is pricey but 40S&W ammo shouldn't be that hard to find.
 
If you are going to want to carry it camping then the .357 is a better choice. I'd rather have the Glock for everything else but the .357 will work well for everything but the Glock would not be good in the woods.

If you want one gun for everything its going to do some of the things well and some of the things not so well. Saying that a .357 does most things pretty well. Its only got 6 rounds but those 6 rounds will work very well.
 
The SP101 is a great gun, but if you're not intending to conceal I wouldn't get any snubby. You say you're a smaller framed guy, if recoil is an issue keep in mid a smaller gun= harder recoil. There are some 4inch barrel models of the sp101 and you may also consider the gp100 if ruger is the brand you've decided on if you go the revolver route. On the pro revolver side I do like their reliability over semi autos you completely remove jams and misfeeds from the equation. Glocks on the other hand have a stellar reputation, and with semi autos you of course get larger magazines and typically a little more gun for the same money.


For home defense the scatter guns you already have will be way better than any pistol you can buy. A pistol's main advantage is its portability when that is not a factor it will be outperformed by a rifle or shotgun.

As far as ammo availability right now. In my area I can sometimes find 38 special, but I really have to search. Same with 9mm though it seems to be a little more scarce. .357 mag seems to be in decent supply, but of course is the most expensive round of the 3. In less lean times (which will be back eventually) 9mm is easily the cheapest and usually has a broader range of manufacturers and loads.
 
Between the two, I'd take the 19 in a heartbeat, though neither would be my first choice.
 
Both are good first pistols, but between the two I would choose the G19 for the sake of much higher capacity, plus for HD you can use the larger G17 mags in it if so inclined. You may want to shoot the G19 or any Glock first, as some do not like the grip angle. Actually, shoot both if you are able.
 
(1) Which would be easier to clean? The Glock has more moving parts, but the SP101 has more barrels and I've heard .357s can build up lead deposits if you routinely shoot .38 Special out of them.
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Actually, you would be supprised at how few moving parts a semiauto has, and how many a revolver has. In any case, I consider routine cleaning of a revolver to be somewhat more tedious than that of a semiauto, but neither is all that difficult or time consuming. I think its pretty much a draw on this point.

(2) Price and availability of ammo--which is worse (I'm not sure anything is "better" in this market)...9mm or .38 Special?
Click to expand...
Well, I've see more .38/.357 ammo during the current panic than 9mm, but under normal conditions 9mm is about the cheapest and most plentiful of the center fire pistol rounds.

(3) Theoretically, if a bear or mountain lion were to take umbrage with something I'd said or done, would 9mm have any effect on them? (I know .357 would).
Click to expand...

Neither would be my first choice for defence against 4-footed predators, but the .357 probably has the advantage here.
 
Glocks are Tupperware with a kick, I don't much care for Glocks. But they're damn reliable and shoot well enough. For a carry gun get the Glock. I'd go with a 4 inch SP101 for range practice.
 
I own a Glock 26 and an SP, I prefer the simplicity of the revolver myself. I am not as concerned about 10 rounds vs 5 as I am getting the first one on target and firing. For my shooting, I am more comfortable with the SP. I can say that as I have shot them both and made an informed decision. As others have stated, it would be worthwhile to find someone who has, or a place that will rent, one of each. Good luck.
 
I've had both, with a caveat. If you asked me what I like, it'd be the SP101. At the range, I like revolvers, and most time when camping I'm carrying a J-frame. But the G19 is a useful tool that's easy to work with and clean, and has lots of aftermarket support. I have a .22 conversion kit for my G19 without having to have a separate gun; the kit is threaded for a suppressor. Can't do that with an SP101.

2. With 9mm you get capacity. .357/38 can have a much wider range of bullet types because of the lack of feeding issues. I believe .38 can be loaded to match whatever 9mm will do, but that's from the same barrel length (4" or greater) for both calibers.

The caveat is that I haven't owned the .357 version of the SP101. Given the pain I suffer shooting .38s from an Airweight, I don't think I'd like shooting .357 out of the SP101 that often. I've had the 3" .38 special, and the rare bird version, and enjoyed both. If you are partial to 9mm, and you can find one at a price you can live with ...

sp1019mm.jpg
 
I say SP101. It will perform all the duties you want, and do you want your first handgun to be a steel gun with class, or a piece of plastic. I mean no offense to GLOCK owners. GLOCKS are fine guns with a good rep. I myself own two poly guns. But the SP101 is a very nice gun for the money.

Good luck.
 
grimjaw said:
I've had both, with a caveat. If you asked me what I like, it'd be the SP101. At the range, I like revolvers, and most time when camping I'm carrying a J-frame. But the G19 is a useful tool that's easy to work with and clean, and has lots of aftermarket support. I have a .22 conversion kit for my G19 without having to have a separate gun; the kit is threaded for a suppressor. Can't do that with an SP101.

2. With 9mm you get capacity. .357/38 can have a much wider range of bullet types because of the lack of feeding issues. I believe .38 can be loaded to match whatever 9mm will do, but that's from the same barrel length (4" or greater) for both calibers.

The caveat is that I haven't owned the .357 version of the SP101. Given the pain I suffer shooting .38s from an Airweight, I don't think I'd like shooting .357 out of the SP101 that often. I've had the 3" .38 special, and the rare bird version, and enjoyed both. If you are partial to 9mm, and you can find one at a price you can live with ...

sp1019mm.jpg
Click to expand...
I had S&W version of that. The moon clip spares are bigger pain in the ass to carry then speed-loaders. The reason these are rare is because most people were wise enough to avoid buying them.
If all that he will be facing in 'dangerous' four-legged category are cougars and black bears plus HD use is important then choice should take couple of seconds.......G19.
 
Glocks. More ammo - could come into play. Easy to clean - big deal. Brass to face - do a search. In a lot of people's hands - feels like a brick. Lot of people have to change the way they aim & shoot naturally to shoot a Glock well.

Ruger. Less ammo - but potentially a lot more potent round. Also easy to clean - just different. Built like tank. A company with more integrity IMO. Not as easy to change sights.

Try to rent & see for yourself. Probably can not go wrong.
 
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