Your thoughts on H&K P7-M8 SQUEEZE COCKER

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My experience with the .40 cal P7M10 has been exceptional. A good friend of mine owns one and it is an amazing gun. Accuracy FAR exceeded ANY other 40 I ever shot, and rivaled my personal benchmark S&W M41.

I don't own a P7 due to teh cost, the funky manual of arms, the lack of spare parts, etc. That said, if I came across a P7M13, or even a P7M8 for the right price, I would probably snatch it up if I had $$$ burning the proverbial hole. Two men who I listen to about guns, Clint Smith and Teddy Jacobson, both hold them in high regard, but with some qualifications. I think that is where they should be held.
 
Well I had one. It was super neato but I just could not get comfortable with the front to back length of the grip(I have little hands) Traded it for an Enhanced Colt in .38Super. Sold the Colt to pay for something or other.
Ah Crap I need more guns.
 
I love the P7.
It's quick back on target, easy to handle and easy to carry because of it's size.

the only thing I miss is sight radius, because unless the weather is hot and I'm wearing shorts and a T-shirt, I carry a 5" Kimber 1911. the P7 is my hot summer gun.

I don't really concern myself with the squeeze cocker, I squeeze every handgun when I bring it on target. The fact that it also serves as a slide release is a plus.




It's extremely accurate and reliable. What more do you need?

I do wish they were cheaper, but HK won't dedicate those sorts of resources to production and marketing unless "The Unwashed Masses" want the product. Same as any company.

It's a single stack 9mm, so the guy who buys "gun's&ammo" probably will pass it over.
 
I HAVE OWNED A P7M8 AND NOW OWN A P7 PSP. BOTH WERE REFURB GUNS. I SOLD THE M8 YEARS ago, mainly because of the plum slide and ugly mill mark. i still kick myself for selling that pistol. it was a fine shooter. when i ran across one of the psp refurbs earlier this year, i bought it on the spot and will hold onto this one for a long time. it is one of the easiest pistols i own to shoot. it is the pistol i am most accurate with also. i shoot it better than any of my 1911s. interestingly, when i go to the range with other people, especially new shooters, they tend to shoot well with the p7 also. other than price, i don't know what there is not to like.:cool:
 
I picked up a PSP this year, several thousand rds without a flaw. Its hands down my choice of company. Till death do us part.

And I'm not a doody head!!!!!!!!! Thats funny!:neener:
 
This thread is getting interesting.:) It seems most shooters like the weapon. I'm primarily a 1911 .45 shooter, but for the weapon of choice in the .9MM category, I would have to say the P7-M8 beats anything I own.
BTW, Zak, that is one fine looking weapon you have there. :D Thanks again for the feed back. "Keep em coming."


SILENT ONE
 
I have to admit...it's a heavy, overpriced, kind of odd looking thing....until you shooot it...then very little comes close....and I have a 1911 and a HP so I have the best handling guns to compare it too....
 
I started out on a P7M8 and still come back to it. The only guns that rival it in my opinion are the BHP and 1911 Commanders. Polymer just doesn't do it for me.
 
I wanted a P7 ever since I saw Die Hard.
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That's exactly the reason why I wanted one. I finally got one; it was a super gun, very high quality, accurate, and a good CW.

However, the deal breaker for me was that I didn't have the hand strength to hold the cocking lever down for any more than a few seconds - and most times I didn't even know it, my hand would relax seemingly involuntarily. In a nutshell: I'd sight in, pop off a round, possibly another, then I'd squeeze the trigger and nothing - looking for a jam (which the gun never did) I'd see that my hand had let off the cocker... It actually came down to me having dreams about having to shoot a bad guy but having the gun do nothing... Right then I knew the gun wasn't for me... Unfortunate, because I loved the gun otherwise.

I guess if you have strong hands, you'll love it.

Good luck.
 
Hmmm,

once I owned the double-stack variant P7M13. It was a great pistol, but the big grip felt just terrible. Back then, I thought, a 9 mm Luger pistol should feature a high-capacity magazine. I was wrong on this one, as I should have purchase the much more comfortable single-stack version - the P7M8. Now, I'd do it. However, over the years I've acquired a couple of other pistols I like that already fill this niche, so I am reluctant to spend so much money on a new pistol.

Regarding the power necessary to depress and hold the squeeze cocking action, a couple of years back I spoke to a Bavarian police officer and the conversation quickly turned to guns. He told me that they're quite satisfied with their Heckler & Kock P7 duty pistols. However, he bluntly told me that when they go out on the range (a rare event), the male police officers must often help the female counterparts to depress the cocking action of the P7 before they can even start shooting!!! :eek: :p :D :( I can only wonder what will happen if these ladies are forced to use their P7s in self-defense.

Personally I never had a problem depressing the squeeze-cocking action. Once, it's depressed, the force necessary to hold the P7 in that "cocked" condition is certainly not that great.

One minor disadvantage of the P7 I can think of right now is that you shouldn't shoot ammunition w/lead bullets out of it, as it can clog up the unique gas-retarted blow-back action. Actually, that's no big deal as ammunition w/lead bullets aren't very common in 9 mm Luger caliber. Maybe "dirty" burning ammunition might also affect reliability of the P7 negatively, but I've never heard of it....
 
If you cant depress the cocker on the P7 and hold it cocked, there must be something wrong with either you or the gun. Once depressed, you can hold it cocked with just the pressure of your thumb and pinky finger(not a firing grip, just to show what it takes). My kids had no trouble cocking mine when they were younger and no trouble shooting it. The reason I think its best to either carry a P7 or carry anything else and not mix them is because of its manual of arms. You have to instinctively cock the pistol when its in your hand and keep it cocked, without having to think about it. If you dont use it all the time, you may or may not do it under stress, although I think you will at least probably get it cocked, you just may not hold it there if your not paying attention.
 
I wholeheartly agree with AK103K about the HK P7's unique manual of arms. In Germany, there happened a few accidental shootings in the past when startled police officers with fingers on the triggers pressed the squeeze cockers of their P7 pistols. Unintentionally, the gun "went bang" with disastrous results. Of course, there's a training problem. The P7 is hardly the appropriate choice for police personel not extensively trained in handgun use. In my opinion, a P7 is even more demanding than a cocked and locked 1911.

I also recommend sticking to the P7 exclusively when you intend to use it for self-defense. Constantly switching back and forth between pistols featuring traditional DA, DAO, Glock Safe-Action, SA and/or double-action revolvers and P7's squeeze-cocking action can have catastrophic results in the moment of truth.
 
My tale of woe re: P7s

When I introduced SWMBO to shooting, I wanted her first experiences to be as pleasant as possible. I wanted her to shoot a handgun with a nice trigger, good accuracy, low recoil, etc.

So.... when she graduated from .22's, I put her in a P7M8. Mistake # 1. (I really miss that gun...) :banghead: :D OK, so I'm a nice guy, I let her get away with that... No big, it's only money.

I saved up for a while and kept my eyes peeled for another P7 at the right price. Found one and grabbed it. Shortly after I got *my* replacement, she & I took Handgun 1 at Thunder Ranch. Mistake # 2. Please understand, I worked for a loooong time trying to persuade her to go - stupid me. In walks Clint and, within the first hour, he tells the class that two is one and one is none :cuss:. Taking that to heart, she laid claim to P7 # 2.... :cuss:

Now that she's shooting more, she's told me we could save money by shooting more .22's and less 9. To that end, she wants a P7 in .22... (P7K3 .22 = ~$3000) :what:

My advice - stay away from P7's. That road leads to poverty and heartbreak. I've been there!

HTH, YMMV, :evil:

Jax
 
What you need to do it get an M13 next time, and hope it's too fat for her to hold well.
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Good idea!

Unfortunately Clint messed up that option as well. He was clear on the fact that we both needed to carry weapons we are both proficient with. Good tactics, you understand... Ah well. I guess I'm looking for a good deal on # 3.

Jax
 
I think you ought to send Clint a bill for a new P7 since it was his comments that got yours confiscated. :D

I think it's pretty cool that your wife likes guns.
 
If you cant depress the cocker on the P7 and hold it cocked, there must be something wrong with either you or the gun.
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You're correct, in this case I think it's me. My hands have always been on the weak side, so it doesn't surprise me that most other guys have no trouble squeezing/holding the cocker. It just burns me that I miss out on such a great gun. :fire:
 
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