Opinions on these .40 cals for my next purchase (hopefully today!)

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  • Dec 16, 2012
    7
    I have done my research on all of these and held all of these but have not shot any of them yet. I am torn as to what I should do so figured you guys could help!


    My goal in purchasing:
    Looking for a .40 that I can use as home protection and have fun at the range with. I want something with a thicker feel to it, as you may notice in the style of these guns. I am interested in the compact models. I've been shooting my grandfather's 9mm Browning HP he took home from WWII, but I have decided to clean it and lock it away for my children one day.



    The Choices

    Beretta PX4 Storm Compact .40
    +I love the feel of this gun!
    -The store clerk proceeded to tell me that this gun was junk despite great online reviews?

    Sig P250 Compact .40
    + My original choice, love the feel
    +Great price
    -Read bad to OK reviews

    Walther PPS .40
    +Read great reviews
    +heard many great first-hand opinions
    -Feels kind of thin

    Opinions greatly appreciated.:D
     

    -Z/28-

    I wanna go fast
    Dec 6, 2011
    10,642
    Harford Co
    Glock 23?

    Personally not a fan of .40 because of the snappy recoil, but the Glock is a solid affordable choice.
     

    BradMacc82

    Ultimate Member
    Industry Partner
    Aug 17, 2011
    26,177
    Storm, should do fine if all you use is FMJ rounds. HP's tend to chew up the feed ramp (a portion of which is a polymer-type material) which can lead to malfunctions. There's a reason MSP got rid of them you know. ;)

    Sig - No experience with, so I can't comment.

    Walther - PPQ might be a better option, has gotten great firsthand reviews, and from a resident gunsmith at that.

    And just to make your decision harder I'll add one more to look at - M&P series. Lots of agencies have moved over to these, and with a few easy-ish to install parts from Apex, you got one hell of a shooter.

    I shoot 2 of them out to 105 yards regularly and have a better than average hit ratio.
     

    BradMacc82

    Ultimate Member
    Industry Partner
    Aug 17, 2011
    26,177
    Glock or M&P. If you want "solid", Beretta 96.

    Agreed there. My 96D definitely tames the .40's snappy nature very well.


    Not the easiest to shoot accurately quickly (for me anyways), but very pleasant for a .40
     
    Dec 16, 2012
    7
    Has anyone heard of the Beretta PX4 being a bad shot. The clerk said this gun has been returned by police for being very inaccurate. Then again I was at Gander Mtn. so who knows if that's true.
     

    mopar92

    Official MDS Court Jester
    May 5, 2011
    9,513
    Taneytown
    Glock or M&P. If you want "solid", Beretta 96.

    M&P if you like to tinker. Glock for solid reliability. Both are reliable out of the box.

    Be careful with 96D. The older ones had issues with frames cracking after high round counts of +P ammo.

    My choice would be the M&P 9 or .45 just cause they're so reliable ammo is generally common. And the APEX parts make the trigger so nice. I'm not a fan of .40 but it is a good HD/SD round.

    Buy a box or two of each ammo you want to use then make sure it functions completely in your gun. After that buy a case of the same ammo and take a training class.
     

    mopar92

    Official MDS Court Jester
    May 5, 2011
    9,513
    Taneytown
    Has anyone heard of the Beretta PX4 being a bad shot. The clerk said this gun has been returned by police for being very inaccurate. Then again I was at Gander Mtn. so who knows if that's true.

    Issues with hollow points chewing up the feed ramps and the baseplate dropping out of the mags dumping ammo.
     

    Turbo2Point4

    Active Member
    Feb 19, 2012
    430
    i've shot and held different glocks and M&P's, personally i prefer the M&P. i'm waiting for my paperwork to come back on a .40 range kit, my wife has the 9 range kit, and i really liked it so i figured i'd try the .40
     

    BradMacc82

    Ultimate Member
    Industry Partner
    Aug 17, 2011
    26,177
    Issues with hollow points chewing up the feed ramps and the baseplate dropping out of the mags dumping ammo.

    Bingo. :thumbsup:

    They're not bad shooters, I've shot a few and they can be accurate.

    But for MY money, there's better options available.

    (For MY money I picked a 4" M&P .45 and a 4.25" M&P 357 SIG. With a few Apex parts for each. The .45 has a 3.5# trigger, the 357 SIG is about 4.25 to 4.5# trigger.)
     

    mopar92

    Official MDS Court Jester
    May 5, 2011
    9,513
    Taneytown
    would the 9mm models of the guns I mentioned be a better choice?

    Right now sort of but 9mm and .45 are being bought at panic prices. And ammo is semi hard to find. But lower recoil, higher ammo capacity and nearly the same performance from 9mm compared to .40. With quality hollow points. So typically yes. But right now they're nearly equal.
     

    FrankOceanXray

    Ultimate Member
    Oct 29, 2008
    12,018
    .40 is snappy.

    M&P. A lot of departments use it. S&W is doing good to make the gun just right, too. A lot of kinks have been fixed a while back.
     

    BradMacc82

    Ultimate Member
    Industry Partner
    Aug 17, 2011
    26,177
    The only reason I didn't suggest a 9mm M&P, is with the .40 you can drop in a 357 SIG barrel and pack more ft/lbs of energy than even the .45ACP puts out.

    I love my .45's, but the number's don't lie. Although availability and price of ammo can be a issue at times.
     

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