[elb1179]

Hooray! The tax return came and the wife says I can use some of it to upgrade from my Helwan. I am really excited but am having some difficulty in picking a new semi-auto. Since we have a fair number of users on here, I thought I would throw out some of my "requirements" and see what everyone comes up wtih for suggestions.

1: Lefty friendly
I am a southpaw and the Helwan has been killing me. It has a right-handed safety. The good thing is that I have learned to shoot fairly well right-handed, but I would really like to carry with my dominant hand. I would prefer a gun that has no hand specific safety (as opposed to reversible) so if I ever have to shoot with the other hand, I don't have to worry about making my way to the other side of the gun to take the safety off.

2: 9mm or .45
I am torn. I love shooting .45 but want a caliber that a starving student can afford to chew through some ammo with. I have a feeling that as a student, I'll probably end up with a 9mm and get a nice .45 after I have been out of school a few years. As for .40, I have shot it a few times and didn't like the muzzle flip I got. I much preferred the .45's recoil.

3: Concealability
For pretty much the rest of my life, I will be in business/business casual attire due to my line of work and school. So something that will conceal well in that type of setting would be great. I'm not necessarily looking for a pocket pistol here, as I anticipate having to buy a tuckable holster but I am certainly not wanting a government 1911, either.

4: Price
I am looking in the $500 range. I can't go much higher than that and I am willing to go with used, so I am not picky that way.

So far, I have had my eye on the Walther P99 or P99C AS as well as the standard Glock 19 or 26.

So...any suggestions on what to look at?

 

[tapehoser]

Ruger P345.

Ambidextrous safety and really, really nice to shoot and hold. Nicely balanced gun. Tough as nails too.

But then, you might check out the new Springfield XD 45 ACP. Not sure about that safety however, but for the price, you WILL be happy.

 

[Sambolijah]

I'm a lefty too.
I use a Glock 23, but the 19 is the 9mm.
No safeties to flip off, ambi frame, and i'm very comfortable using my left middle finger to eject the magazine.

The only thing I can't do is the slide release, but Glock makes an extended slide release. I never use the thing anyhow.

 

[tapehoser]

Get the .45 now. You won't regret it. You MAY regret the purchase of a 9mm later in life.....like me.

Anyhoo, the new Springfield XD .45 ACP with a 5" slide can be had for $505 from Impact Guns. I should know...my buddy bought the first one they had shipped to their store.

 

[iampacking]

my best range buddy is a lefty and swears by Glocks.

 

[scallywag46]

Don’t count out the 9mm. I like the low recoil and ease of shooting. The practice ammo it cheap and Federal has a new round call the HST which comes in many calibers. This is looking to be very impressive as a carry round. It’s reasonably priced and with superior expansion and penetration it’s like moving up to the next higher caliber. I shoot a 9mm Sig P239 and it shoots like a dream. Some good guns that I have looked at are Glock, Kahr (very nice conceal gun), Springfield, Sigarms (about $100 more than you want to spend unless you can find a used one like I did), Bursa Thunder (still good but maybe one step down but a little cheaper too). Check on the Impact arms site, they have a lot of info on the guns themselves and prices. I would suggest going to a good range where you can rent guns and try some out. Now that’s what I call fun shoppin.

Hey Hey... Stay safe out there!

Scallywag

 

[scallywag46]

There is a guy on KSL classifieds that has a Springfield XD40, Karh P45, and Karh P40. Price looks good.