I am looking to buy my first handgun in the next few weeks, spurred by a renewed interest in shooting and an attempted break-in/burglary of my house last week.
Over the past few months, I have visited local indoor ranges with rentals and shot a dozen or so handguns, primarily autoloaders. My preferences are toward a mid-sized or service-sized 9 mm. The gun, for now, will be used for range practice and home-defense. I am interested in obtaining my CCW permit, and a dual-use gun would be nice, but concealability is not high on my list of priorities at this point.
My short list is:
Beretta 92FS
Beretta PX4 Storm
Glock 17
Taurus PT-92AF
These guns are all within my price range (< $600) and I have shot 100 or more rounds through each. I am equally accurate with all four, able to put ten shots into a large 1-1/2 to 2 inch hole at 7 yards with each. In terms of operation, I like the combined safety/decocker of the Taurus best, and I find the Taurus and PX4 to be the most comfortable, but it is really too close to call. The grip angle of the Glock is weird, but it does force me into a wrist-down, thumbs-forward grip that it conducive to quickly getting the sights back on target.
I am mainly interested in hearing good/bad experiences with each in terms of functionality, reliability, and durability.
Finally, two guns that interest me are the CZ-75/P-01 and the Springfield XD. I have not had a chance to shoot either, but renting an XD is no problem. CZs on the other hand don't seem to be in anyone's rental inventory. However, there is a new P-01 (unfortunately with the Clinton-ban 10-round mags) at a local store for a very tempting price. If anyone could give me their opinions of this gun in comparison to say SIGs or Berettas, I would be interested.
Thanks for your time,
Tim
Over the past few months, I have visited local indoor ranges with rentals and shot a dozen or so handguns, primarily autoloaders. My preferences are toward a mid-sized or service-sized 9 mm. The gun, for now, will be used for range practice and home-defense. I am interested in obtaining my CCW permit, and a dual-use gun would be nice, but concealability is not high on my list of priorities at this point.
My short list is:
Beretta 92FS
Beretta PX4 Storm
Glock 17
Taurus PT-92AF
These guns are all within my price range (< $600) and I have shot 100 or more rounds through each. I am equally accurate with all four, able to put ten shots into a large 1-1/2 to 2 inch hole at 7 yards with each. In terms of operation, I like the combined safety/decocker of the Taurus best, and I find the Taurus and PX4 to be the most comfortable, but it is really too close to call. The grip angle of the Glock is weird, but it does force me into a wrist-down, thumbs-forward grip that it conducive to quickly getting the sights back on target.
I am mainly interested in hearing good/bad experiences with each in terms of functionality, reliability, and durability.
Finally, two guns that interest me are the CZ-75/P-01 and the Springfield XD. I have not had a chance to shoot either, but renting an XD is no problem. CZs on the other hand don't seem to be in anyone's rental inventory. However, there is a new P-01 (unfortunately with the Clinton-ban 10-round mags) at a local store for a very tempting price. If anyone could give me their opinions of this gun in comparison to say SIGs or Berettas, I would be interested.
Thanks for your time,
Tim