So. I really want to get a small CC pistol that weighs less than my beloved Stoeger Cougar but with enough firepower to protect myself, a few nuns, or a batch of scared marines should ISIS show their sorry butts while I'm at Wal-Mart replenishing my beef jerky stash.
I figured I'd stick with 9mm and dragged Husband over to Big Boys to look at a few. He's a revolver guy so we are already starting out with friction. Plus, he is a gun guy, knows way more than I do (just ask him) and he hovers. That whole in your personal space thing is great on a honeymoon but it wears thin over the decades, especially when you are trying to rack a slide and he's leaning over your shoulder monitoring your progress and reminding you to not point the gun at anyone. I looked at a SW Shield (sounds like a lot of guys on the forum like it), a small ruger, a Glock 42 (43?) and an Springfield XD. The second time Husband removed a pistol from my hand without permission, I smiled at the clerk, thanked him and walked out. I am sure he noted the steam coming out of my ears. I love the man with all my heart but why provoke an armed woman?
So, the next day, I went up to H&H ALONE. While there, I talked to a terrific lady gun instructor who was shopping, and handled another Shield and Springfield as well as a Berretta Nano and a Walther P22. I wanted to check out a Glock and a Ruger but for whatever reason, they were out. Much more relaxed flying solo. I liked the feel of the Shield, Walther and the Baretta. The Springfield felt "okay." Going on my own was the best plan, possible.
Today, I dragged Husband down to the range to shoot a few pistols and see how it went. I started out with the Shield. First of all - the magazine is retarded. Or I am. It was nearly as hard for my sad hands to load as is my Cougar magazine and I'd left my speed loader at home. Husband didn't offer to help, smart man. I liked the way it felt in my hand, it had a very manageable recoil, I liked the trigger and it was darn accurate. So that was a winner.
I then tried the Glock 43 and was so excited because I've heard such good things about it. The magazine was super easy to load (who knew this was a thing? I thought they were all torturous). It felt good in my hand. But... I didn't really like it. It had an unpleasant recoil. It kept throwing brass right in my face like it had a mean streak. I mean, it seemed intentional. It was quite accurate and I hit the X and mostly in the center circle. But, no. No fun to fire. Disappointed because I had such high expectations.
I then was REALLY excited to try the Ruger. I have an SR22 and love it and expected to love this one, too. The magazine was easy to load. But then I picked it up. Oh no. Hated it as soon as I held it in a shooting position. It did NOT fit my hand. All the buttons and the whole grip were just - off. It was like it had been crafted for a different species or something. Only goes to show what a huge difference that can make, individually. I shot it and hated the trigger. HATED it. It was tossing brass around - mildly as compared to the Glock but way more than the Shield. The recoil was fine and it was actually pretty accurate at the target - as good as the Shield but I truly took a dislike to the thing. It was personal.
I next tried a Bersa. Again, easy to load the magazine (you have no idea what a big deal this was to me) but I didn't really like how it fit in my hand and the recoil was distracting. It was shooting to the right so I didn't really trust it. Just not fun and I didn't see anything to make me want to bring it home.
I got around to the Springfield XD and I didn't know anything about the gun and didn't expect much. The magazine was pretty easy to load and then I took it up to the lane. I liked how it felt in my hand and when I shot it, OMG, I loved it. I was so surprised! The recoil was just nothing, there was no brass attacking me, the trigger was sane and it was super accurate - I hit the X and filled up the center circle. I'd had such low expectations that I came out of the lane to swap out for the next pistol and was just staring at it. Husband asked me if something was wrong and I told him my mind was blown.
I decided to shoot it some more, reloaded it and practiced shooting it at different parts of the target and at different distances. It was accurate, throughout.
I then went back and retried the Shield (to compare) and also shot a couple of heavier guns just because I had time and ammo.
There are a couple of pistols I'd still like to try and I am worried the Springfield will still be heavier than I want for a CC. This has been fun for me, not so much for poor Husband.
I figured I'd stick with 9mm and dragged Husband over to Big Boys to look at a few. He's a revolver guy so we are already starting out with friction. Plus, he is a gun guy, knows way more than I do (just ask him) and he hovers. That whole in your personal space thing is great on a honeymoon but it wears thin over the decades, especially when you are trying to rack a slide and he's leaning over your shoulder monitoring your progress and reminding you to not point the gun at anyone. I looked at a SW Shield (sounds like a lot of guys on the forum like it), a small ruger, a Glock 42 (43?) and an Springfield XD. The second time Husband removed a pistol from my hand without permission, I smiled at the clerk, thanked him and walked out. I am sure he noted the steam coming out of my ears. I love the man with all my heart but why provoke an armed woman?
So, the next day, I went up to H&H ALONE. While there, I talked to a terrific lady gun instructor who was shopping, and handled another Shield and Springfield as well as a Berretta Nano and a Walther P22. I wanted to check out a Glock and a Ruger but for whatever reason, they were out. Much more relaxed flying solo. I liked the feel of the Shield, Walther and the Baretta. The Springfield felt "okay." Going on my own was the best plan, possible.
Today, I dragged Husband down to the range to shoot a few pistols and see how it went. I started out with the Shield. First of all - the magazine is retarded. Or I am. It was nearly as hard for my sad hands to load as is my Cougar magazine and I'd left my speed loader at home. Husband didn't offer to help, smart man. I liked the way it felt in my hand, it had a very manageable recoil, I liked the trigger and it was darn accurate. So that was a winner.
I then tried the Glock 43 and was so excited because I've heard such good things about it. The magazine was super easy to load (who knew this was a thing? I thought they were all torturous). It felt good in my hand. But... I didn't really like it. It had an unpleasant recoil. It kept throwing brass right in my face like it had a mean streak. I mean, it seemed intentional. It was quite accurate and I hit the X and mostly in the center circle. But, no. No fun to fire. Disappointed because I had such high expectations.
I then was REALLY excited to try the Ruger. I have an SR22 and love it and expected to love this one, too. The magazine was easy to load. But then I picked it up. Oh no. Hated it as soon as I held it in a shooting position. It did NOT fit my hand. All the buttons and the whole grip were just - off. It was like it had been crafted for a different species or something. Only goes to show what a huge difference that can make, individually. I shot it and hated the trigger. HATED it. It was tossing brass around - mildly as compared to the Glock but way more than the Shield. The recoil was fine and it was actually pretty accurate at the target - as good as the Shield but I truly took a dislike to the thing. It was personal.
I next tried a Bersa. Again, easy to load the magazine (you have no idea what a big deal this was to me) but I didn't really like how it fit in my hand and the recoil was distracting. It was shooting to the right so I didn't really trust it. Just not fun and I didn't see anything to make me want to bring it home.
I got around to the Springfield XD and I didn't know anything about the gun and didn't expect much. The magazine was pretty easy to load and then I took it up to the lane. I liked how it felt in my hand and when I shot it, OMG, I loved it. I was so surprised! The recoil was just nothing, there was no brass attacking me, the trigger was sane and it was super accurate - I hit the X and filled up the center circle. I'd had such low expectations that I came out of the lane to swap out for the next pistol and was just staring at it. Husband asked me if something was wrong and I told him my mind was blown.
I decided to shoot it some more, reloaded it and practiced shooting it at different parts of the target and at different distances. It was accurate, throughout.
I then went back and retried the Shield (to compare) and also shot a couple of heavier guns just because I had time and ammo.
There are a couple of pistols I'd still like to try and I am worried the Springfield will still be heavier than I want for a CC. This has been fun for me, not so much for poor Husband.
and I gotta say that while you may like the Springfield, you will have better luck with customer service and resale with the Shield or the Glock. But...that's strictly your decision.
