Looking into a compact

[dehos]

I have been putting some thought into getting my first compact potentially for carry in the future once I take the class. A little background I only own 1 handgun and I am fairly new to gun ownership.

I plan on going to the range later this week to rent a few and I wanted some suggestions about compact guns that are highly recommended and newbie traps to stat away from.
I plan on trying the hellcat pro, Glock 48 and mp 2.0 compact as they felt good in my hand. (I have smaller hands).

The Hellcat pro has the U notch sights so I am interested in seeing if I can get the hang of that as well.

 

[RFBfromDE]

Does the maker of your existing firearm make a compact version?

 

[XCheckR]

Good approach trying them. Some seem snappy. Two others you might consider are SW CSX and Walther CCP

 

[Bountied]

G19, P320C, those are the only 2 I have and I like both. I have a G43 as well and a .38 snubby that I call sub compacts. All would carry well.

 

[DocPeanut]

If you’re willing to drive up to Owings Mills to guntry, I have a hellcat original, Glock 43x and a 365x you’re welcome to try out

 

[Bountied]

If you go to the range to rent a gun go with a friend or bring your own gun. They may not want to rent to a single person that does not have their own gun. It can be a red flag but maybe not.

 

[dehos]

Does the maker of your existing firearm make a compact version?

I have a Beretta 92fs currently.

 

[dehos]

If you go to the range to rent a gun go with a friend or bring your own gun. They may not want to rent to a single person that does not have their own gun. It can be a red flag but maybe not.

Yeah I am planning on going with my wife. I recently learned about those rules from this forum as well.

 

[wingsfan]

A couple others to check out are the Sig Sauer P365x and the FN Reflex.

 

[Blaster229]

I will just say this. What does "feel good in the hand" mean? New shooters just go to a range or store because someone says "You need to see what feels good", without even knowing that person's level of experience. People here say it all the time. "Rent a few guns and see what feels good".
Feel good just holding a pistol is different than feel good when you know a proper grip.

I'd throw fifty bucks to someone (an instructor) to spend an hour with you while you try to see what "feels good" feels like trying different pistols.

 

[Coehorn]

The Springfield XD9, in original trim, is the single greatest small man hands pistol ever made.

It is ergonomically perfect. I purchased the ported model when they came out ions ago. And more since then. You can't make an XD9 not feed and fire. I've tried. Sideways shooting, gun upside down shooting and the 1911 limp wristed debate shooting, and they never fail to work. And that's with every flavor of 9mm that's out there. All brands and all bullet weights.

Find a good shop that is willing to place six or so pistols on the counter. Then close your eyes and have them place a pistol in your hand. No peeking. No brands. No salting the plate with preformed bias.

Second to the XD9 would be any semi that has a scaled down 1911 grip. They fit girly hands very well too.

Best of luck.

 

[dehos]

I will just say this. What does "feel good in the hand" mean? New shooters just go to a range or store because someone says "You need to see what feels good", without even knowing that person's level of experience. People here say it all the time. "Rent a few guns and see what feels good".
Feel good just holding a pistol is different than feel good when you know a proper grip.

I'd throw fifty bucks to someone (an instructor) to spend an hour with you while you try to see what "feels good" feels like trying different pistols.

Feels "good in the hand" to me means the grip feels comfortable and ergonomic, I can comfortably squeeze the trigger with the correct part of my finger, rack the slide, and operate the mag release without fully breaking my grip.
I like the idea of a trainer though.

 

[Blaster229]

Find a good shop that is willing to place six or so pistols on the counter. Then close your eyes and have them place a pistol in your hand. No peeking. No brands. No salting the plate with preformed bias.

This is a ridiculous thing to do.

 

[Mightydog]

Have you looked into the 92FS compact? I prefer the version without rail. Cleaner lines.

 

[outrider58]

If you have smallish hands, add a Sig P365 to your rental list. It will be a bit snappy. Any gun you try, you will want to be able to shoot repeatedly without reestablishing your grip after each shot(hint-hint-hint; if you have to reestablish your grip after each shot, you need to work on your grip technique).

 

[Squaregrouper]

This is me, and may not work for anyone else...
One of the first things I do when fondling a new pistol is get a feel for the natural point of aim. Different hands hold differently so what works for you may not work for me. Personally, I despise the way most Glocks point (43x and 48 are exceptions), yet the H&K VP9 is like I'm pointing my finger. Sigs and Rugers tend to work really well with my hands too.
Try it, this testing method may work for you as well.

 

[Slackdaddy]

I will just say this. What does "feel good in the hand" mean? New shooters just go to a range or store because someone says "You need to see what feels good", without even knowing that person's level of experience. People here say it all the time. "Rent a few guns and see what feels good".
Feel good just holding a pistol is different than feel good when you know a proper grip.

I'd throw fifty bucks to someone (an instructor) to spend an hour with you while you try to see what "feels good" feels like trying different pistols.

Having 25+ years of firearm experience, mostly on the Fudd side of things (Hunting long guns, Mini-14/30s, GP100s, SP101s, etc),, and putting 10s of thousands of rounds down range,, When I decided to get more involved in Self defense and step over to semi auto hand guns,, I bought a few compacts and SC handguns,,
Then admitted defeat and paid for some professional training of the basics.
After training it took another 2-3 purchases to find what I liked,, it ended up being a CZ Compact PCR. I could have saved a lot of money and few purchases getting the training FIRST

 

[4g64loser]

I will just say this. What does "feel good in the hand" mean? New shooters just go to a range or store because someone says "You need to see what feels good", without even knowing that person's level of experience. People here say it all the time. "Rent a few guns and see what feels good".
Feel good just holding a pistol is different than feel good when you know a proper grip.

I'd throw fifty bucks to someone (an instructor) to spend an hour with you while you try to see what "feels good" feels like trying different pistols.

This. Build solid technique before worrying about a new tool.

And as a bonus the majority of experienced instructors tend to have at least a couple different handguns.

 

[gforce]

Concur with the guys above, if your grip is good it completely changes how the pistol feels. I found it took quite a few rounds to start developing a grip i'd even consider acceptable, so don't be discouraged if it's not instantly perfect. Quality instruction is worth its weight in gold, and 20x its weight in ammo. I've been shooting my whole life, however only really learned how to shoot a pistol in the last 2 years after some professional instruction and lots of practice. Still a work in progeress.

This is a primer I found useful on grip.

 

[smokey]

Here's my old m&p9 compact(now subcompact size in 2.0) next to my 43xmos. They're roughly the same height and length with a +2 mag in the m&p, but the 43x is much easier to carry and I shoot better with it. The lighter weight and narrow width makes the 43x easy to carry(even with the sight popping up above the slide). The g19 length grip makes it easy to shoot.

If it's specifically for carry, I'd check out the hellcat, p365, and g43xmos (specifically the mos version to get a rail and ability to mount a red dot). If it's not for carry, then stick with full size. Cz makes some great guns for the money.