Tactical: Low cost, high quality used 9mm pistols

[Leviathan]

S&W 5906 stainless steel Police trade ins:

http://www.centerfiresystems.com/SW-5906.aspx

Argentine Hi-Powers:

http://www.southernohiogun.com/featured-products-1/argentine-hi-power-9mm.html

   The Hi-Powers will go fast.  They are great pistols and the Argentine ones were made very well.  Police guns are great buys because the average LEO only goes through a few thousand rounds in a 25 year career and very few of them carry the same pistol their whole career.  These were probably traded in by a department that decided to jump on the polymer framed .40 bandwagon later than most.  Hope this helps out someone looking for a handgun.  9mm is cheaper than just about any other round and even though it has gotten bad press in the recent past the modern JHP really performs much better than the old stuff and for the most part negates the less favorable stuff about this caliber.  Everyone should have a 9mm in their bug-out gear for when  SHTF because this is the most common round in the world.

Levi

PS - Wanna know how accurate my 4" barrel XD is?  I won 2 charity matches with it, beating 30-something other guys with everything from Colt 1911 Gold Cups and Sigs.  I pissed a lot of guys off the last 2 years.  When it comes down to it, as long as you have well maintained well made equipment (well made does not mean "designer" crap), it is more about the operator behind the weapon and his/her training, confidence, and dedication to hone their abilities.  This means shooting a lot.

[Drewthetexan]

Nice.

If I weren't about to blow my wad on the AR I might consider the S&W.

But, I do already have a 9. :)

[Shirow]

I'm about to pick up a 9mm handgun, been looking at a Springfield XD9 but haven't really made a decision yet..

[Leviathan]

I have an XD 40 and I can not recommend the XD series strongly enough.  BUY IT.  One cool thing about the XD also is cheap magazines.  Plus, you can slightly modify Beretta 92 M9 mags and they will work in them.  I will reply soon with a more in depth report on the XD as soon as I get done stuffing my face and I find the email I sent to a guy asking the XD vs. Glock question.

EDIT:

OK, I can't find that email where I went into great detail, as I tend to do too often much to the annoyance of people.  But any way, In my opinion the XD is a better pistol than the Glock.  The XD is better designed as far as the trigger group goes.  Glock triggers feel squishy like airsoft toys.  XD triggers are smooth and break cleanly and with consistency.  The XD is tighter than the Glock, producing better accuracy.  This is undeniable.  Glocks are loose and sloppy, being the AK-47 of pistols.  They will work every time but they are not for precision work.  XD's are plenty loose, but use locking lugs and counter acting tension to make the pistol function as if it was much tighter.  Glocks are inherently unsafe.  I know 3 police officers who have shot themselves with them.  This is a national epidemic in every nation whose police use Glocks.  Yes, you should always use propper trigger control and NEVER place your finger on the trigger until you are going to fire, but this is also why they design fans with screens to keep people from sticking their fingers in any way.  Glocks have no external safety at all.  One guy I know that shot himself with a Glock did so because he said that he chased a guy through the woods that night and when he went home and removed his weapon from the holster a stick he had not seen was resting on the inside of his holster and it pulled the trigger when he lifted it out.  That dept. is now using XD's.  XD's have a grip saftey.  Absolutely nothing on that pistol will function until you wrap your hand around that weapon, pressing the grip safety down, and physically pull the trigger.  You can not even operate the slide.  One thing that the Glock does have on the XD though is that Glock has the toughest finish on the market and it is patented.  But that is a moot point for me because I don't plan on submerging any of my guns in sea water for 3 months.  I also HATE glocks because of the ridiculous grip angle.  It is very uncomfortable for me.  And I do not like the finger grooves becaue I don't want some Austrian engineer to decide where he wants me to place my fingers on the grip.  They are both fine pistols but I simply do not like Glocks.

Levi

[Shirow]

Yeah, I'm not a huge glock fan either. The other gun I'm contemplating is the Sig P229 but I'm not really for sure yet.

[Drewthetexan]

Last time out at the range I got to fire a magazine through a guy's XD9. I definitely liked it.

I'm not a glock fan either. They are good pistols, and their reputation is deserved, but like Levi said, awkward grip angle and goofy field stripping.

[Leviathan]

Shirow, you missed a huge deal on used P229, as Swiss police recently rearmed.  You could by one for about $250 in great shape.  It even came with a ridiculous retention holster that would get you killed.  I guess the Swiss police value the lives of criminals over their police.  How European.

Levi

[Shirow]

That sucks.