Smitty79 Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 I've been shooting 3 gun, Steel Challenge and USPSA for about a year now. I have a few friends who are just starting out in action shooting and I have been asked several times "What is a good pistol to start with?" For someone who has no idea what kind of shooting they want to do, I've been recommending that they shoot anything they can get their hands on and find what they like. But if an M&P40 or a Glock 35 is high on their list, go with that. I do this because those 2 are the most flexible guns I know of. Both can be competitive in USPSA Limited and L10 shooting 40 major. If you want to shoot Steel, IDPA ESP or 3 gun, toss in a 9mm barrel and have at it. If you reload and want to shoot USPSA Production or IDPA SSP, 40 minor loads work too. All this for a relatively inexpensive gun that lets you get your feet wet and try things out until you have enough experience to buy the gun that fits your favorite game. All other things being equal, I recommend the M&P because you can buy them with competitive stock sights. Not perfect, but infinitely better for our sports than the Glock stock sights. Are there any other guns that go back and forth between 9 mm and 40 cal as easily as these 2? For those of you with more experience bringing new people to action shooting, does all of this make sense? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted July 10, 2014 Share Posted July 10, 2014 "Are there any other guns that go back and forth between 9 mm and 40 cal as easily as these 2?" The Tanfos are very easy to change top ends on. I have a limited elite that has a .38 super top end with compensator (open with c-more), 40 (limited major, L10 major), 9mm (limited minor, L10 minor, 3 gunning, steel challenge with c-more). Good shooters and very accurate without a lot of fussing. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vincerama Posted August 1, 2014 Share Posted August 1, 2014 Your Glock 35 recommendation makes a lot of sense. Or a Glock 34 if they don't like .40. Local matches probably wouldn't enforce the "no conversion barrels" rule if you wanted to run a .40->9mm conversion barrel in the 35 to make it a 34, but like you said, downloaded .40s would run fine in production div. You can shoo the 35 in almost all divisions competitively. (obviously not revolver or SS). But to start off, a G35 in Limited-10 or production is great. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Hi-Power Jack Posted August 1, 2014 Share Posted August 1, 2014 I've been recommending they shoot anything they can get their hands on and find what they like. But if an M&P40 or a Glock 35 is high on their list, go with that. Sounds like great advice to me. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
mgardner Posted August 1, 2014 Share Posted August 1, 2014 Don't forget the Springfield XDm. The Glock, M&P and XDs are the 3 dominant beginner's pistols I see. They are durable and have enough aftermarket goodies for them that you can trick them out and keep them if you like them enough. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GreenDragon64 Posted August 2, 2014 Share Posted August 2, 2014 I'd have to agree with the above. The "big 3" of shooting sports currently are the Springfield, Smith, and Glock and they have lots of aftermarket support. I would suspect in the years to come. However, if HK's VP9 is successful and can get aftermarket support in the next few years it would be another viable striker fired pistol to compete with. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jayohee Posted August 2, 2014 Share Posted August 2, 2014 I still consider myself a noob and I shoot a Glock 34. It's easy to operate, clean and work on. It's also fairly inexpensive and has a ton of aftermarket support. If you can find a Gen 4 that's even better, I prefer using the medium beaver tail grip Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BoyGlock Posted August 2, 2014 Share Posted August 2, 2014 If budget is not a problem, get a 2011/1911. Its single action trigger makes it easier to learn to hit a target and hence a pleasure to shoot. If you can hit your target you tend to shoot more and learn faster. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Vincerama Posted August 3, 2014 Share Posted August 3, 2014 I'd have to agree with the above. The "big 3" of shooting sports currently are the Springfield, Smith, and Glock and they have lots of aftermarket support. I would suspect in the years to come. However, if HK's VP9 is successful and can get aftermarket support in the next few years it would be another viable striker fired pistol to compete with. I wonder why the Walther PPQ (5 inch, regular push button mag release) is not as popular. Great trigger for a striker gun. Some people say it's a touch "flippy" but I don't have first had experience with that. If the VP9 is vlaible, then the PPQ certainly should be. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwontanamo Posted August 8, 2014 Share Posted August 8, 2014 but there are so many choices and you can double dip into different divisions with 1 gun! I'm hooked on the sport and often times I tell myself to think twice before making big purchases. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
armydad Posted August 9, 2014 Share Posted August 9, 2014 My buddy has a Glock 35 and a 9mm barrel for an easy conversion. It's a fairly inexpensive option and super reliable, while offering great flexibility. I definitely agree that people new to shooting should begin by shooting anything they can get their hands on before buying a gun. My experience has been that most people in this sport are happy to let other people shoot their guns. And mgardner nailed it with the top 3 guns and all would do well for most shooters. I've graduated from a Glock 34 to a Glock 35 and recently purchased an STI Executive. I'm totally hooked on the 1911 platform. My learning curve in this sport has been expensive, mostly because I get impatient, but then again, you can never have too many guns! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Kwontanamo Posted August 10, 2014 Share Posted August 10, 2014 Armydad, I agree and I've also been in the same boat as you. Some of the bigger lessons i've learned while shooting was watching other people, especially the better ones and asking them for feed back. Once you have a good grasp of the fundamentals, it then becomes a mental game. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aglifter Posted August 10, 2014 Share Posted August 10, 2014 I always suggest GLOCKs - if nothing else, they hold their resale well/can always work well as a car gun, etc. A tuned M&P is a great gun, but I've seen far too much variation in S&W's production to recommend them for a beginner - although my new G20 won't group worth a darn either , so GLOCKs can have issues as well. My XDm 5.25s are my favorites, ESP w the PRP trigger, and they group well for plastic - but I still had one group much better than another. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ToddKS Posted August 10, 2014 Share Posted August 10, 2014 I am an XDm guy but I encourage new shooters to come to one of the local ranges that rent guns and test drive the big 3. For a $15 rental and a couple boxes of ammo they can shoot any gun on the wall then swap it for a different one 5 minutes later. Repeat until you have tried them all if you choose. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lstone Posted August 11, 2014 Share Posted August 11, 2014 My learning curve in this sport has been expensive, mostly because I get impatient, but then again, you can never have too many guns! Well said armydad. Mine has become an addiction. My wife said I dont want a gun collection! I asked here how many is a collection? Next purchase bigger safe Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Quackhead Posted August 13, 2014 Share Posted August 13, 2014 (edited) CZ 75 Tac Sport .40. All factory with 1.8# straight trigger, three 17 rd mags - $1100. Only add ons needed, IMO,(optional according to individual preference) :Extra mags - $47 ea., $35 FO front sight, $35 extended thumb safety, $25 stainless full length guide rod, $30 20 rd base plates, slimmer $85 aluminum grips and a $65 wide aluminium magwell. I only have about 500 rds through it with 0 malfunctions. It has defeated guns costing 3x as much in it's 5.5 minutes of actual match shooting, unmodified. It is a factory IPSC/USPSA L/L10 purpose built gun. The best bang for the buck, IMO. ps, I'm just a noob though, only been practical shooting about 3 weeks..sorry about the crappy fone pic, but u get the idea. Edited August 13, 2014 by Quackhead Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
trgt Posted August 13, 2014 Share Posted August 13, 2014 I still consider myself a noob and I shoot a Glock 34. It's easy to operate, clean and work on. It's also fairly inexpensive and has a ton of aftermarket support. If you can find a Gen 4 that's even better, I prefer using the medium beaver tail grip ^^^ agree! I shoot CZ now, but it's more knowledge on the maintenance and tuning, less simple to shoot with DA first pull and manual decocking to start a stage. Glock was super reliable for me, easy to upgrade production stuff without a gunsmith, I'd easily recommend g17 or g34 to a first timer, and you see folks around here who have taken those to Master level. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MIWildcat Posted August 13, 2014 Share Posted August 13, 2014 I'd have to agree with the above. The "big 3" of shooting sports currently are the Springfield, Smith, and Glock and they have lots of aftermarket support. I would suspect in the years to come. However, if HK's VP9 is successful and can get aftermarket support in the next few years it would be another viable striker fired pistol to compete with. I wonder why the Walther PPQ (5 inch, regular push button mag release) is not as popular. Great trigger for a striker gun. Some people say it's a touch "flippy" but I don't have first had experience with that. If the VP9 is vlaible, then the PPQ certainly should be. I would highly recommend a Walther PPQ as an option for a new shooter. I have the 4 inch I'm using in competition and I have a 5 inch I should have in about a month. Overall, the trigger is better than my old Glock (which was a well modified trigger at 2.5 pounds) and I like the feel better than the Glock (mine had tru-glo sights). I sold the Glock earlier this year and I haven't looked back. Much better choice, IMO. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cwgibson Posted August 13, 2014 Share Posted August 13, 2014 PPQ and don't look back. Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk HD Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
CSStreett Posted August 15, 2014 Share Posted August 15, 2014 GLOCK all the way to M class. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JMike Posted August 17, 2014 Share Posted August 17, 2014 CZ 75 Tac Sport .40. All factory with 1.8# straight trigger, three 17 rd mags - $1100. Only add ons needed, IMO,(optional according to individual preference) :Extra mags - $47 ea., $35 FO front sight, $35 extended thumb safety, $25 stainless full length guide rod, $30 20 rd base plates, slimmer $85 aluminum grips and a $65 wide aluminium magwell. I only have about 500 rds through it with 0 malfunctions. It has defeated guns costing 3x as much in it's 5.5 minutes of actual match shooting, unmodified. It is a factory IPSC/USPSA L/L10 purpose built gun. The best bang for the buck, IMO. ps, I'm just a noob though, only been practical shooting about 3 weeks..sorry about the crappy fone pic, but u get the idea. The CZ Tac Sport is one pistol I would love to have, even though I don't really need one! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
aahunt03 Posted August 18, 2014 Share Posted August 18, 2014 I also recommend the G34. Its built for this sport, cheap, and has great features competition shooters look for. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
alma Posted August 18, 2014 Share Posted August 18, 2014 I still consider myself a noob and I shoot a Glock 34. It's easy to operate, clean and work on. It's also fairly inexpensive and has a ton of aftermarket support. If you can find a Gen 4 that's even better, I prefer using the medium beaver tail grip^^^ agree! I shoot CZ now, but it's more knowledge on the maintenance and tuning, less simple to shoot with DA first pull and manual decocking to start a stage. Glock was super reliable for me, easy to upgrade production stuff without a gunsmith, I'd easily recommend g17 or g34 to a first timer, and you see folks around here who have taken those to Master level. The TS is SAO so no DA to worry about. Great gun. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
derekmelton Posted March 2, 2016 Share Posted March 2, 2016 Bang for buck. The XDm 5.25 comp Springfield 9mm is hard to beat. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DarksideCZ Posted March 4, 2016 Share Posted March 4, 2016 If very budget minded I like to reccomend the polymer eaa witness. You can get the 9mm model for under $300 and when they decide to make the move to an all steel gun they can keep their mags and pouches. Also you can build 21 round mags that fit the USPSA limited 140mm length for under $35 each! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Recommended Posts
Create an account or sign in to comment
You need to be a member in order to leave a comment
Create an account
Sign up for a new account in our community. It's easy!
Register a new accountSign in
Already have an account? Sign in here.
Sign In Now