Top Battle Sidearm

[Johnny Guest]

I'll have to make some assumptions here --

Just me, with no consideration of mutual support from other individuals, other than possibly some ammo resupply?

A very plain GI type 1911A1. Only modifications I might make would be somewhat higher fixed sights and a crisp four-to-five pound trigger. Five spare magazines, a pound of spare parts, all pre-fitted and tested. Two hundred rounds of ball ammo. Depending on the job/assignment, up to four holsters: A concealment holster such as a Bianchi Minimalist, a flap holster like the UM921 Bianchi, a shoulder holster such as the Galco Miami Classic, and a Blade Tech leg holster.

Other considerations might alter the choice. Might. If you consider the real purpose of a sidearm, one could probably make do with any of several.

Best,
Johnny

 

[DarkKnight01]

I choose...... A Slingshot !! better than throwing rocks...

hehe no really id go with the H&K.

 

[Gixerman1000]

Give me a USP45 Tactical and KAC suppressor and I'll kill the enemy in their sleep

 

[The Drew]

how about a 7.5inch AR pistol??? throw a sling on it and it hangs at the "side" so there is no need for a holster. and it takes the same mags and ammo as the standard US rifle...

Something like this.

also since you'll be potentially in comat in another nation, there shouldn't be anything stopping you attaching a real buttstock, or all the other "goodies"

 

[Onmilo]

Much as I love and choose Glock 9mm handguns for battle purposes, If I was jet-setting around the dark corners of the planet as a neer-do-well my choice would still be a Browning P35 High Power.

 

[ruger357]

1911.

 

[Island Beretta]

g17.. a little more handy in multiple environments than the beretta 92fs ..1911 may require a little tuning..

 

[CZF]

Not really a logical caliber selection- as anywhere outside of the USA you would have a hard time finding .45 ACP or other ammo other than 9mm.

Even in S. Africa the .45 ACP is scarce and spendy ammo.

I'm told that there are plenty of CZ75s and other NINES running around in Iraq, but few .45s due to the ammo supply.

My choice would be a high quality, highly reliable 9x 19 : CZ P-01

 

[Marshall]

BHP
USP

 

[GunGoBoom]

CZ SPO1 with two spare 18 round mags, and maybe another spare or two somewhere, but most of the battle harness will be rifle mags and accessories...

Now you're talkin'!

But of those choices, the Beretta, since it has high capacity, fires a caliber that is more common in any country but espec. in foreign lands, where the .45 acp is less common than the USA, has been adopted by the US Armed Forces, meaning it's been torture-tested, assuming I'd be able to take good mags, that is. Plus, if you're sent to the sandbox, where it's 120 in the shade, a Glock would just melt.

 

[Dr.Rob]

BHP... when I left I could sell it to a greenhorn as Saddam's personal sidearm. Course I'd remove the magazine disconnector and put some friction tape on the back strap and use a Houge monogrip.

And why is your 'stock' 1911 a Springfield? A good Colt (like the Commander I have that went to Korea) would be just fine.

The USP is a really BIG handgun. I don't like the ergonomics at all. It's a solid pistol though.

 

[Tim3256]

In an out of the box battle situation I'd have to choose the Glock. It's the only one of the choices given that I would would really trust in the chaos of actual armed conflict, it was designed for battle and is combat proven.

My .02

 

[Jammer Six]

In an out of the box battle situation I'd have to choose the Glock. It's the only one of the choices given that I would would really trust in the chaos of actual armed conflict, it was designed for battle and is combat proven.

Where have Glocks seen combat?

Citation, please.

 

[TheDutchman]

BHP they are everywhere

 

[The Drew]

I would think the Beretta has seen WAY more actual combat than any glock...

For that matter so has the browning HP, the 1911, and the CZ 75 and it's clones...

 

[IZinterrogator]

Where have Glocks seen combat?

With the Iraqi police. The MOI guy I worked with was issued a Glock 19 carried in a shoulder holster. So did all the cops that I transferred prisoners to, along with full-auto AK-47s (but they had regular duty holsters).

 

[Pilot]

Bhp

 

[Bobby Lee]

Glocks have in gun fights all over the world since they were first put on the market.

They have proven themselves many times.

If you think that you need a "combat proven" weapon that has been in use by the major armies of the world for the longest time then you need to carry a flintlock.

The flintlock served the armies of the entire world for 200 years before being replaced by the cap lock.

So in some of you peoples logic the flintlock would be the best choice for you.

For those of us that don't live in the past modern designs are better.

 

[Jammer Six]

So Glocks have been issued since, like, yesterday? Or the day before?

 

[Ivy Mike]

the Glock is a favorite of many police departments around the country.

I know my local PD (LVMPD) issues the Glock 17 and they have been doing so for many years now.

 

[enfield303]

USP 9mm. And that's all I got to say about that.

 

[Bobby Lee]

So Glocks have been issued since, like, yesterday? Or the day before?

Glocks have been used by cops and criminals and carried in combat zones all over the world most likely since before you were born.

Today they are all over Iraq and in other ????hole countries carried by both good and bad people.

Glocks have been in combat and they have put both good and bad people 6 feet under.

The fact that you may not be aware of this fact does not make it less true.

 

[Jammer Six]

Bobby Lee, do you have a citation for your claims, or are they merely your opinion?

 

[Ash]

Bobby Lee gets his feelings hurt when you do not praise Glock. And since they have been in issue since 1984, chances are most here were born before that date.

As for me, I would take something truly archaic and use a Webly Mk 6. Sturdy, reliable, and in the Afghan area, actually reasonably common (along with .455 ammo). It also proved utterly reliable in conditions no Glock has ever faced, that is years in the muddy trenches of Europe. Plus, as most Webley revolvers are nearing or past 100 years old and remain perfectly safe to fire with powerful ammunition, it has proven that it can stand the test of time.

But then again, a CZ-75 would fit the bill nicely. Of course, lets all be honest, the 1911 would do fine, as would the Glock, Ruger, P-38, you name it. Glockophiles are silly when they worry overmuch about modernization of pistols as they are all variations on a 100 year old design. The materials might have changed, but the designs have not. Glocks are nothing modern, using a lock-up that is modified from and in no way superior to that used in the BHP, a striker from even earlier, a slide on frame fit from 1903, and a firing pin block that was popular on the CZ-52. That said, the Glock would be fine and is certainly reliable. It would be no better than any other good combat gun and to believe so is to fool one's self.

Ash

 

[Berg01]

Colt Series 70 1911, although I don't know why the P220 and G21 were left out of consideration!