are only for close range self-defense. I keep mine in my truck. If someone 17's with me, I may not kill them the first shot but I sure as 17 won't miss with that .410 buckshot round. At 10-12 yards, it shoots about a 4 inch group. I had fun shooting it at sheetrock just to see what damage it would do. 2-3 back-to-back shots would 17 a person up.
OT: buying a handgun
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A good friend mine, who happens to have a gun dealer's license and is a lover of handguns gave me two really pieces of advice that I may never forget:
1) After being married for eight years and divorcing, I was dating a 19 year old. Him: "There's two things that are overrated: automatic weapons and teenage *****". He's right on both of those.
2) Him: "For home defense, get a twenty gauge pump shotgun. If you're in the bedroom and you hear someone break in, rack it like you mean business. If he hears you and doesn't flee, you know you're going to have to use it. And a twenty gauge won't mess up the sheet rock too bad."
1) After being married for eight years and divorcing, I was dating a 19 year old. Him: "There's two things that are overrated: automatic weapons and teenage *****". He's right on both of those.
2) Him: "For home defense, get a twenty gauge pump shotgun. If you're in the bedroom and you hear someone break in, rack it like you mean business. If he hears you and doesn't flee, you know you're going to have to use it. And a twenty gauge won't mess up the sheet rock too bad."
But you will be hard pressed to find anyone at the top of the people killing food chain that uses an xd. Glock and m&p being the most popular among police, military types. Sig has a great reputation but is spendy. I tried an xd for a while and it wouldnt even feed ball ammo very well and it has too many little features that can break. And that high bore axis is **** for controlling muzzle rise. As far as reliability, glock glock glock. If the gun is for self defense don't go buy a super accurate 1911. The thing that makes them so accurate is what can make them unreliable. That is really tight specs. And don't think that 9mm won't get the job done. Just remember Cornon DPX or another good hollow point.
Take the time to learn how to shoot properly, take the time to practice, and the only handgun you'll ever need is a Ruger Mark 3. And no, I'm not joking.
Never in my life will I EVER give away my position to ahostel on purpose. Racking that shotgun does just that. The only sound an intruder in my house will hear is Peter's voice at the Pearly Gates. Granted, most of the time he will flee, but what happens if he doesn't? Now he knows exactly where you are, which is a major tacticaladvantage. Poor advice.icecreamman said:
It has become a habit for me to chamber a round once I pull it out of the holster, only takes a split second too. You don't need no stinking safety...AzzurriDawg4 said:
Word of advice, be weary of bullet setback, which is a result from the same round slamming into the freed ramp over and over again when cambering that same round each day. It can cause excess pressure to build up in the chamber and can cause all sorts of issues, including catastrophic failures. Google it for more info if you'd like. Best way to avoid this, rotate your rounds in the magazine out and replace them with new rounds on aconsistentbasis. Personally, I'm not a fan of chambering a round upon drawing your gun. Takes too much time and what if you're in a struggle with someone? I leave my Glock 19/23 (whichever I'm carrying) loaded at all times. Spend the money and buy a good holster and you have nothing to worry about.fishwater99 said:
a 40 cal is fast yet has a good amount of knock down power, versatile gun indeed. This is the exact gun law enforcement officerscarry as well as myself.
Much lighter than some of the other handguns I've handled. Cleaning it is a snap. Complete disassembly takes about 10 seconds. Sights are large and easy to see and use. Not nearly as much kick as I expected with such a lightweight gun. The lack of safeties (save the trigger safety, which is not much of a safety once you put your finger on the trigger) was a selling point to me. I wanted something that I could grab quickly if awakened in the middle of the night and be ready to use in a stressful situation. But, then again, I don't have kids around. I keep mine loaded with Federal Premium hollow points. If someone breaks into my house, I don't plan on allowing them to leave.
that I would sale if you go that route. Has probably 25 rounds max down the pipe. Keep in mind when buying for the wife, that these revolvers that everyone is suggesting are usually hated by women because of their heavy trigger pull and most of all their kick. You want your wife to be willing to practice with it a little and I have never known a woman that liked a revolver, much less a small airweight revolver.
Not going to get in a pissing match because that is what happens with gun nuts. I am a gun nut. I have shot damn near every gun mentioned so far in this thread and here is how I would break them down.
SIG-smoothest, best shooting gun I have ever shot. End of story. Reliable and carried by many law enforcement and military personel. Best customer service in the business
Glock-fantastic gun. Not near as smooth or accurate but the most damn reliable semi-auto handgun that has ever been made. Not available with a safety, if that is a concern.
HK-USP or USP compact-fantastic handgun. Smoother than the Glock but has the worst customer service I have dealt with.
Ruger-I know this will offend the ruger owners on here but they should stick to making .22's. Sorry but they just don't stack up with the other guns mentioned.
Do yourself a favor, go to a range that rents guns. Many ranges rent handguns for $5.00-10.00 per session. Go spend a little money and try every single gun you are interested in. Hold it in your hand and see how it points. You want a gun that naturally fits your hand and points straight at what you are aiming at with little to no effort or adjustment for you.
I also like the S&W M&P but have not put enough rounds through it to recommend it yet but a lot of law enforcement officers are replacing their Glocks with the M&P.
SIG-smoothest, best shooting gun I have ever shot. End of story. Reliable and carried by many law enforcement and military personel. Best customer service in the business
Glock-fantastic gun. Not near as smooth or accurate but the most damn reliable semi-auto handgun that has ever been made. Not available with a safety, if that is a concern.
HK-USP or USP compact-fantastic handgun. Smoother than the Glock but has the worst customer service I have dealt with.
Ruger-I know this will offend the ruger owners on here but they should stick to making .22's. Sorry but they just don't stack up with the other guns mentioned.
Do yourself a favor, go to a range that rents guns. Many ranges rent handguns for $5.00-10.00 per session. Go spend a little money and try every single gun you are interested in. Hold it in your hand and see how it points. You want a gun that naturally fits your hand and points straight at what you are aiming at with little to no effort or adjustment for you.
I also like the S&W M&P but have not put enough rounds through it to recommend it yet but a lot of law enforcement officers are replacing their Glocks with the M&P.
I have the new Desert Eagle 1911 that came out last year in a .45 and absolutely love it. I paid just over 600 for it and for the look it comes in for that price its really hard to beat. I've put almost 1000 rounds through it and have had absolutely no jams, misfires, or any other boogies. It's modeled after the Charles Daly version and made in Israel.<div>
</div><div>As for the .40 I recently bought the Springfield XD(M) .40 compact 3.8 and been very happy with it but haven't fired it too much. This is gonna be more of my personal protection weapon as I plan on putting the viridian X5L or C5L laser/light next. Any way you go your making the right decision in supporting the 2nd Amendment brotha!</div>
</div><div>As for the .40 I recently bought the Springfield XD(M) .40 compact 3.8 and been very happy with it but haven't fired it too much. This is gonna be more of my personal protection weapon as I plan on putting the viridian X5L or C5L laser/light next. Any way you go your making the right decision in supporting the 2nd Amendment brotha!</div>
I can't find the video now but you need to see it. It is a guy in a jewelry store behind the counter, perps come in a they draw, he draws, he is a dead man trying to rack his slide. If you are not comfortable carrying one in the chamber you should use a revolver.
If the gun is just for fun and not conceal carry, get a kimber 1911. Most fun I have had shooting. You just look at the target and the bullet goes there. However, I carry the Glock 23 because I know it will fire when I pull the trigger.
The gun you are most proficient with is your best choice but if I am facing a hoodrat on crack I want something that makes BIG holes. A well trained shooter is deadly with a .22 but the average person under the stress of a home invasion isn't going to be thinking shot placement. FBI stats show that 80% of shots fired by trained LEOs miss inside 10 feet. The OP should get a well made firearm in a sufficient caliber (FBI test show 12"-14" penetration needed to reach vital organs) and PRACTICE. My choice is a 357SIG, I carry a Glock33 or Sig P229, my first choice for defense is an M4 style carbine.
I have two kids under five in my house and a pistol on each side of the bed, pick your poison. It's not like I am sitting at work waiting to shoot an intruder.
I understand that YOU feel safer, but it is too much to think about when, God forbid, you do need to use that weapon. I carry a Glock as a duty weapon and ALWAYS have a chambered weapon. I can tell you from experience, if you have not practiced pulling that weapon, racking a round and pushing down range (all under stress mind you) you WILL NOT think about racking that weapon. I saw too many times on the firing line of the academy, instructors handing officers unloaded weapons for simulations just to see their reaction during a live fire. 90% will pull the trigger with nothing happening, look at gun like it's broken, pull it again and then think to rack one in. If the weapon is for fun/targets, then by all means get what you aren't scared to handle comfortably. I will also say that we had 2 or 3 officers with Springfield XD's and they had a lot of double feeds and "stove pipes" from bad magazines. I believe Springfield has fixed that problem, but the original mags had metal feed guides at the top that slowly bent outward and caused the problems.
i have a 20 pump and a 12 semi always ready to go. and i've shot many pistols, just haven't owned one. i'm buying one to have fun shooting and for a keepsake or something that i can pass down, many years down the road. i want something to have fun with shooting with the guys. i've had the best accuracy with 9's, but from my experience all 9's are easier to shoot. i've just enjoyed shooting 1911's from the power standpoint and the over look. the guy who mentioned the eagle .45, i've seen it and heard good things and it's one i'm considering along with the springfield.
OK, so I've been down this path. Started looking for 2, one for daily carry (for me), one for the wife's bedside drawer.
Started with two 9mm S&W's (M59's). Too heavy/bulky for me, too complicated for her. Fun to shoot, though. And cheap.
Went through a Glock (meh, rubbed blisters on my thumb), Sig, finally a 1911. I _love_ the 1911. Fits my hand well and makes me grin ear-to-ear when shooting. Plus the added bonus of being a disciple of the Prophet John Moses Browning. But couldn't carry it. Went through several models, ending with a lightweight colt commander. Still felt like a brick.
Finally settled on revolvers. I carry a S&W j-frame ultralite .357 mag. She has a stainless K-frame next her bed. Both are simple to operate, share common ammo, shoot .38 (cheap) and .357 (ammo availability), and very much the KISS principle. The j-frame is under a pound (unloaded) and just drops in my chino pocket w/o showing (decent pocket holser required $20). Plus, I have a Marlin 1984 lever rifle that's chamberd for .357, so in a SHTF situation, I've got three weapons that all share very commonly available ammo.
All that said, I dearly loved my 1911 and wish I still had it. But I can't abide a safe gun. If I don't use it, I don't keep it.
Anyhow, that's where we ended up. Your mileage may vary.
Started with two 9mm S&W's (M59's). Too heavy/bulky for me, too complicated for her. Fun to shoot, though. And cheap.
Went through a Glock (meh, rubbed blisters on my thumb), Sig, finally a 1911. I _love_ the 1911. Fits my hand well and makes me grin ear-to-ear when shooting. Plus the added bonus of being a disciple of the Prophet John Moses Browning. But couldn't carry it. Went through several models, ending with a lightweight colt commander. Still felt like a brick.
Finally settled on revolvers. I carry a S&W j-frame ultralite .357 mag. She has a stainless K-frame next her bed. Both are simple to operate, share common ammo, shoot .38 (cheap) and .357 (ammo availability), and very much the KISS principle. The j-frame is under a pound (unloaded) and just drops in my chino pocket w/o showing (decent pocket holser required $20). Plus, I have a Marlin 1984 lever rifle that's chamberd for .357, so in a SHTF situation, I've got three weapons that all share very commonly available ammo.
All that said, I dearly loved my 1911 and wish I still had it. But I can't abide a safe gun. If I don't use it, I don't keep it.
Anyhow, that's where we ended up. Your mileage may vary.
"shooting for fun" to me means a 9mm, because that is the cheapest caliber to shoot outside of a .22. Assuming you want a semi-auto, you will probably find that it will burn through ammo FAST as you are plinking. A revolver, not as much. What this means is that you can burn through 100 rounds easy at one range session.
With this in mind, you can buy 100 rounds of 9mm ammo for $20-24 at Wally World all day every day. I haven't priced .40 or .45 ammo, but it is noticeably more expensive - like $32+(at least) per 100 rounds. Yes I am a cheapskate, but add this up over time, and you will figure out why, with two kids at my house, 9mm is my "fun shooting" caliber. More practice with a less-powerful caliber >>> less practice with a more powerful caliber.
9mm will do just fine for what you want it to do. With the right hollow points, it is fine for home defense should you need it. And with most modern 9mm pistols comes a 17+ round magazine capacity, so even if you miss 80% of the time within 10 feet, you will have enough chances for 2 hits per magazine.
Of course, if money is no object and you just want a powerful handgun, 10mm is ALWAYS the answer.
With this in mind, you can buy 100 rounds of 9mm ammo for $20-24 at Wally World all day every day. I haven't priced .40 or .45 ammo, but it is noticeably more expensive - like $32+(at least) per 100 rounds. Yes I am a cheapskate, but add this up over time, and you will figure out why, with two kids at my house, 9mm is my "fun shooting" caliber. More practice with a less-powerful caliber >>> less practice with a more powerful caliber.
9mm will do just fine for what you want it to do. With the right hollow points, it is fine for home defense should you need it. And with most modern 9mm pistols comes a 17+ round magazine capacity, so even if you miss 80% of the time within 10 feet, you will have enough chances for 2 hits per magazine.
Of course, if money is no object and you just want a powerful handgun, 10mm is ALWAYS the answer.
Are you a Navy Seal you bad ***? Do you like to shoot your Glock and ball ammo underwater at imposing targets, Jonathan Brandis style?
The poster wanted a gunchamberedfor.40cal and fun to shoot.XD40 is a popular choice amongst homeowners and police as well. Just look atthe pubs out there for evidence. Also,theXD feels aboutas good as a handgun will feel in your hands, which is a hugefactor in purchasing and getting rounds down target. Personally, the Glock is slanted too far back for my taste and introduces much more practice time to get familiar with the recoil and flare to get sights back on picture. And the XD breaks down just as easy as the Glock and has thesame moving parts, if you have evercleaned both guns before. And the XD40 weighs more than the G23, which would actually helpdissipate muzzle rise. If you are worried about muzzle rise, get the tactical full frame model.
The poster wanted a gunchamberedfor.40cal and fun to shoot.XD40 is a popular choice amongst homeowners and police as well. Just look atthe pubs out there for evidence. Also,theXD feels aboutas good as a handgun will feel in your hands, which is a hugefactor in purchasing and getting rounds down target. Personally, the Glock is slanted too far back for my taste and introduces much more practice time to get familiar with the recoil and flare to get sights back on picture. And the XD breaks down just as easy as the Glock and has thesame moving parts, if you have evercleaned both guns before. And the XD40 weighs more than the G23, which would actually helpdissipate muzzle rise. If you are worried about muzzle rise, get the tactical full frame model.
the reason the xd is popular with homeowners is b/c it looks cool with all it's little safety measures and high bore axis and as of a few years ago, there was more incentives for shops to sell them. And that grip angle on the glock helps control muzzle rise by the way. I have cleaned both guns as I owned an xd for about 4 months (I had one right after they changed the name from hs2000 I think to xd) and yes all guns have the same basic parts (barrel,springs,etc.) but there are differences in designs obviously or we would call all handguns glocks (patents you know). Sorry to hurt your feelings, but you can always pawn that xd off and not feel self conscious about it anymore. And while we are at it, just because you see Jose cuervo in every magazine add and every husky 50yr old woman drinking it in their margaritas doesnt make it good tequila. Slap a high price on something and market the hell out of it and the masses will buy it.
I'm not trying to compare the Sprinfield XD to any other handgun out there. I don't know squat about handguns....as I posted elsewhere in this thread I wanted to buy a handgun, tried a whole bunch out, and the Sprinfield XD 9 worked better for me than the others in my desired price range.
Anyway, I'm just posting to say the safeties on the Springfield XD models are not something you have to think about. The rear grip safety is automatically depressed when you grip the gun for firing. The trigger safety is depressed as you pull the trigger. The safeties are only there to keep the gun from firing unintentionally. If you grab the gun by the grip and pull the the trigger, the safeties are automatically depressed.
I don't know anything about the third safety, since I haven't seen the latest model.
I actually didn't care for the safeties when I first tried the Springfield. I thought the gun seemed a little busy, and I was more interested in a Glock. After several rounds of firing, though, the Springfield seemed to fit me the best. Now that I have the gun, I appreciate the simplicity and effectiveness of the safeties.
Maybe it is a piece of ****. I've never had mine jam up, but I only take it to the range 4 or 5 times a year. I am pretty confident that a full clip of hollow points will give me all the protection I need if I'm ever in that situation, though.
Anyway, I'm just posting to say the safeties on the Springfield XD models are not something you have to think about. The rear grip safety is automatically depressed when you grip the gun for firing. The trigger safety is depressed as you pull the trigger. The safeties are only there to keep the gun from firing unintentionally. If you grab the gun by the grip and pull the the trigger, the safeties are automatically depressed.
I don't know anything about the third safety, since I haven't seen the latest model.
I actually didn't care for the safeties when I first tried the Springfield. I thought the gun seemed a little busy, and I was more interested in a Glock. After several rounds of firing, though, the Springfield seemed to fit me the best. Now that I have the gun, I appreciate the simplicity and effectiveness of the safeties.
Maybe it is a piece of ****. I've never had mine jam up, but I only take it to the range 4 or 5 times a year. I am pretty confident that a full clip of hollow points will give me all the protection I need if I'm ever in that situation, though.
it looks cool, performs just the same at a cheaper price than glock, and has more safety features for casual shooting. grip angle is whatever floats your boat. personally, i like more straight up and down. and most homeowners and casual shooters feel more comfortable griping it than a glock. not self conscious about buying another xd, i don't want to be another geek on the street blowing smoke up peoples asses about "glocks."</p>
after round thru a Ruger without any problem......Very durable and dependable guns..........Plus, it's an American made gun, unlike many of the others that have been posted on here..........
in the judge "slings" the shotin a wider pattern at close-range.
i dont know how to test that theory, but i know you can fill a doorway at 15' with small size shot.
another thing is that000 buckshot has the same diameter as a .38 caliber bullet. getting hit once with a load of.410 triple-aught's is like getting hit 5 times with a .38.
that gives you four more holes for blood to drain out. possibly more, if some pass through.
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i dont know how to test that theory, but i know you can fill a doorway at 15' with small size shot.
another thing is that000 buckshot has the same diameter as a .38 caliber bullet. getting hit once with a load of.410 triple-aught's is like getting hit 5 times with a .38.
that gives you four more holes for blood to drain out. possibly more, if some pass through.
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