Help with handgun purchase....

Hubby is looking for a new carry piece for work (Armed Security). He wants to stick with a .40S&W. Presently looking at the Springfield XD40. Also looking at Glock, but isn't thrilled about having to look at them--only reason would be plenty of duty gear available which is also part of the consideration. Anybody want to weigh in? Recommendations? C'mon! Ya know ya wanna! Oh, and don't go crazy with price--we're not rich.

 

Charli, I have 3 XDs, a 4" 9mm, 3" SC 9mm and a 4" .45auto. these are by far my favorite handguns of the many I own. The 9mm holds 16 rounds, even the 3" SC does. Although it comes with a 10rnd mag also.

I have the 3" SC everywhere it is legal to carry with my permit. And WVa is pretty liberal about that. I live really close to Va and my permit is good there too. Md on the other hand...

I worked armed security for 4 years in Calif. I would have gladly carried the XD there if it had been available. It 's accurate and very reliable.

MikeS.

 

I'd go

S&W M&P.... These are well recieved on the defensive pistol shooting circuit. Good placement of control and most importantly, it functions.

Secondly I'd go Springfield XD. All mags are chromed so they drop free very easily and are easy to wipe clean. Good placement of controls as well. Loaded chamber indicator on top of slide.

This means you can make sure there's a round in the chamber w/o racking the slide back.

Cocked indicator pin on the back of the slide means you know it's ready to fire because the striker is cocked.

Glock is good to, but a little block. Otherwise very relaible.

I'd pick one among those three in .40 cal.

 

I personally own 1 S&W and 2 Glocks. The Glocks, in my opinion, are one the most reliable handguns out there when it comes to semi-auto. Of course there's nothing more reliable than a revolver but you lose round capacity. The only complaint you will hear is that the Glock does not have a "real" safety. The Glock has a trigger safety that works well. In my opinion if you pull your gun out and point it at someone, you don't want to be worrying about a safety. The only real safety you need is your trigger finger.

 

+1 on the XD40

I currently use a 3" Sub-compact 40 as my carry piece. I have tried both Glock and the XD, and liked the XD way better. It has a regular grip angle plus the added 1911 safty feauture, on top of that it way put through the sae touture test as Glock and passed with flying colors. Of course everyone is different and I highly recommend you shoot a variety before you buy one.


PS If he gets the XD and wants a good conceal holster I higly recommend the Cross-Breed Super Tuck.

http://www.crossbreedholsters.com/

 

I carry the XD .45 service model at work. I really want to love the gun, but had some failure to feed issues. I carry a glock 30 (subcompact .45) off duty and I love it. In my experience if you want reliabilty and an armor tough finish go with a Glock.

Some people dont like the grip angle, go hold a few guns, glocks, xd's Smith M&P's. See what fits the hand and points naturally. Keep in mind, no matter what you decide on, you have to be able to feel comfortable trusting your life to it.

 

Thanks everybody! He's tried both and likes both more or less but really likes the XD. He wanted more some "reviews" so I posted for him here because I figured you guys would know! I told him there was a "guns and hunting forum" on TW and he was like huh?! I told him "yeah, one stop shoping for all my hobbies." LOL!

I think this ^ is the sort of thing he's looking for in terms of what yall think. He likes his current gun okay, but is not thrilled with the long trigger, but at the time it had good reviews (now, of course, not so much) and it was relatively affordable, it felt good in his hand, and well, we were even less rich then. He's up for requal and wants the new gun before the Aug. 23rd class. At least we can write it off on the taxes.

No safety isn't really an issue as he hopes it never actually has to come out of the holster, but if it does..... well, you know.

If I'm counting correctly, so far we're 3 and 3....lol!

 

I have this in .40 S&W and I love it:

http://www.magnumresearch.com/Expand.asp?ProductCode=MR9413R

 

I used a SIG P229 @ work and I loved it...but outta the two that you listed-the XD would be my choice.

Glocks seem like good pieces but I seen several with longterm use/wear issues.

 

He would definately agree with you there. He's looking at level 2 holsters for the most part. He's done some more research on duty gear and the Glock seems to be winning in that department. His current gun was a real b*tch to find a holster for, and he doesn't want a repeat of that.

 

Thanks again guys, for all the information!

 

My XD FTF issues may have been cuz the slide rails were a little dry. Glocks I've found can be bone dry and I've never had an issue. XD rails need to be wet. So now every night before i go out, I wipe the slide rails and put a fresh drop of oil on them.

 

Hmmm..that's definately an issue...FTF is no good when you need a gun to save your butt in a situation. His comment on the oil was "Well that's a pain in the ass" LOL! Especially since sometimes ya gotta run to work in a hurry...

 

As recommended above, whatever feels good in the hand. Your husband is not new to firearms so semi-auto is the ticket, IMO. The Glock seems to have the reliability record of those listed. Personally I prefer my S&W M&P in 9mm for grip angle and feel compared to the Glock. It has never misfired or jammed but has not been out that long for statistics. I don't own an XD but have shot several which seemed reliable. Basically the Glock, M&P, and XD are all striker type pistols with about the same features, capacity, and price. I really like the Sig pistols but they had pretty much priced themselves out of range even when I had my shop and FFL years ago.

The other part of your question is that the Glock would win in the related equipment options like holsters, mag. pouches, and the like.

 

Took 5 different 9mm's out to the range today. I needed to funtion fire a M&P that I had done a trigger job on. I did several multi target, from concealment, drills and had the best results with my Glock 19. I like the way the M&P feels in my hand better. However my times and hits, while close, were still better with the Glock. At least today.

Beretta pistols should not be left out of this thread either. Mine was right in there today, compared to the others. It' been a proven design and the military's pick in 9mm for awhile. The Beretta 96 in 40 S&W is a dependable, and accurate, 12 round semi-auto sidearm with duty gear available from many makers.

Long overdue stress relief at the shooting range today.

 

Sounds like fun at the range! Thank you! As of right now, he's looking at the Glock 22--He wanted the 35 (in spite of the fact that he doesn't need a tactical to practical-lol!), but there's no duty gear for that one. He's like me--we just get exited about guns....