HK P7/PSP or SIG P225

[MNine]

I am switching back to 9mm for CCW and have narrowed my choices down to a SIG P225 or HKP7/PSP. I believe both to be excellent pistols. The HK is about $150 more than the SIG. Is it that much better? Both feel great, but I have only shot the P225. If you had to choose between the two for CCW, which would you choose and why? (because I cannot!!) Thanks!!

 

[orangeninja]

I like both...but the P7 can fatigue your hand if you are holding that grip down for more than a few seconds at a time...say like in police work. The P7 obviously has a better trigger and is probably much more "Tactical" but for CCW or every day carry....go with the Sig.

 

[Greg Bell]

P7. I think they are probably the best CCW around:

1. Squeeze cocking. IMHO the safest gun for daily carry. The gun goes from perfectly safe to perfectly deadly in a split second. If you drop it you may have a heart attack because it might get scratched but you can rest assured it won't go off. This gun is incredibly fast.

2. Trigger pull. Thanks to the squeeze cocking system the gun is safely equipped with an excellent single action trigger pull. I've had die-hard partisans of every type of gun praise my P7's trigger.

3. Compact. Although it has full-size controls (no pinky hang), the gun is sized like a compact approaching a subcompact. It is much thinner than almost any handgun.(1.1-1.2 inches).

4. Full-size barrel. Despite this gun's compact size it has a full 4-inch barrel.

5. Fixed-barrel. This gun lacks the tilting barrel assembly of most other full-sized guns. This lends the gun exceptional accuracy. In combination with the aforementioned trigger, this barrel makes the P7 ultra-accurate.

6. Low recoil. This is debatable. I have always felt that this has the least recoil of any 9mm. Some disagree, most don't. This is likely result of the guns low bore/axis and gas system (although some say the gas system should have no effect).

7. Tough! This gun is CNC milled from a solid steel forging. The gun is so solid it could be used as a nasty set of brass knuckles in a pinch. Without picking one up it is hard to imagine how solid this little gun feels. When I had mine hardchromed the smith complained endlessly about how hard the P7 was to machine.

8. Excellent sight radius. Although the gun is short, HK maximized the sight radius by pushing the sights as far apart as practically possible.

9. Oddball manual of arms confuses bad guys and know it all buddies. There are many accounts of cops losing their P7's to bad guys who were, in turn, unable to figure out the squeeze cocker. On the lighter side, a know it all at a local gunshop had just explained to all of his bad experiences with the P7 when I handed it to him only to watch him fumble around unable to cock it! Hilarious.

10. Chamber fluting allows the gun to function even if the extractor is broken. This feature really makes you think when you are trying to determine which gun you want to bet you life on (no offense, but this a much more serious advantage than being able to freeze the gun in a bucket of ice or whatever).

11. Easily childproofed. The P7's striker can be removed without tools (and without any other disassembly of the gun). The striker can be re-inserted into the gun in roughly 1 second. This could be a major consideration to those of us with small children and stupid friends.

12. Ambidextrous. With the exception of the slide catch and take down buttons, every model of the P7 is completely ambidextrous.

13. Ultra-fast magazine release. This has to be experienced to be understood. Rambo types complained about the PSP’s lack of rapid magazine release. HK, Germans that they are, decided to give them what they wanted—a magazine that ejects so fast and powerfully that they could be used as back-up projectiles in an emergency.

14. Ultra fast slide release. Simply squeeze the handle and the slide will be released.

15. 110 degree grip angle gives the gun natural pointability. 110 degree grip angle makes the gun point just like you finger.

16. Low profile slide. The P7’s low profile slide means that there is very little recoiling mass relative to the frame. This, along with the above mentioned 110-degree grip angle makes reacquiring targets a breeze with the P7.



It will also have a much better resale value. Still, the 225 is an AWESOME weapon. Great grip, great trigger, great accuracy, low maintence, total reliability.


You can't go wrong with these choices.

 

[9mmepiphany]

that is a great post greg, one of the most complete listing of the merits of the p7 i've ever seen

i'm also a believer that the p7 psp is the ultimate 9mm for CCW. i've just got a couple of points to add...

1. the squeeze cocker takes about 10 pounds to cock but only about a pound to hold down (sorta like a compound bow)
2. the 4" barrel in such a compact package is really impressive
3. like the sig, the p7 has no safety to "release"...yet it is likely the safest CCW gun on the market
4. the stright feed angle of the mag adds to it's reliability. the mag doesn't follow the grip angle when inserted into the magwell..its more like inserting a ar-15 mag
5. the only area that the 225 comes out ahead is in weight...the alloy frame makes it lighter
6. you also have to be a little more careful about holster selection. it requires a different point of balance due to it's heavy butt and short nose. all the good holsters makers well have specific recommendations for the p7.

the p7 is definately worth more than the 225

 

[Tamara]

I'd give the nod to the P7 over the P-225 for CCW on the virtues of a better trigger and being super flat, plus it fits my hand better (but that's purely subjective.)

The P-225 is no slouch, either.

The only real downside for both is rarity/cost of spare mags; it's a pretty unusual gunshop that you can walk in and fing both P7 and P-225 mags in stock.

 

[extremefishin00]

Just curious, how robust is the P7's design? It seems there's a lot of little parts in there, but for the life of me, I can't remember ever hearing about one breaking.

Chris

 

[Gunhead]

The P7 and the P225 is still the best of the best in single stack, 9x19mm, compact category. I see a win-win situation here even if my preference id the P7.

 

[Tamara]

I can't remember ever hearing about one breaking.

Skunkabilly's busted the firing pin retaining bushing, my roommate's gun suffered a bent firing pin safety spring (causing a slamfire ), others have reported various broken small bits.

Hey, guns are machines; they break sometimes.

 

[Gunhead]

The firing pin bushing broke in my P7M8 after 5000 rounds, but the gun continued to work flawlessly.

 

[TheFederalistWeasel]

In my experience and my opinion, the P7 is quite possibly the perfect carry piece. I’ve owned both the M8 and the PSP. Since my return to law enforcement I’ve decided to go all SIG, but I do miss my M8 and I’m getting the itch again for one, a new one.

But having said that may I make a suggestion on a single stack SIG for CCW.

Look into the P239 it comes in 9mm.

The can be had w/o nite sites for around $450 to $500 NIB in the south.

I own both a 9mm and a 40/357 version and I carry the 357SIG.

The P225 have one of the best grips on a gun I’ve felt, it’s about the same size as the P228 just thinner, so depending on your size…

If I had to pick out of your two choices I’d pick the P7.

As for the P7 breaking head over to HK Pro http://hkpro.com and ask for more particulars on P7 breakages and I assure you, you will be pleasantly surprised, despite those among us who have single handedly witnessed every gun this side of Sunday break, jam and KaBoom, they are made well.

Just pick one up and compare it to a Glock, 1911 or even a SIG for that matter.

 

[MrPink]

I have a handful of P7s and, while I don't have a 225 I own a bunch of SIGs - 228, 229, 239 & 220. So I like them both; Germans make real nice guns.

My vote for CCW is the P7PSP. In addition to all the good things said above about the P7, the PSP in particular has the heel mag release so the sides of the gun are very flat and protrusion free. Virtually impossible to snag the mag release on anything.

I've never had a problem with any of my P7s and have sent two to HK for a once-over and replacement of any suspect parts. This preventative maintenance was cheap. To be fair, its not like these guns see 20k rounds per year or anything. But so far a very good track record.

For years I used to carry a PSP. I still would except I've fallen for the lightness and pocket carry-abilty of an S&W 340PD.

 

[Tamara]

TheFederalistWeasel,

Just pick one up and compare it to a Glock, 1911 or even a SIG for that matter.

I did, and sold it (along with my Glocks) to buy more 1911's.

What works for thee may suck for me, and verse vicea.