I need a new handgun...lets talk guns today. :D

Hypothetical question. If you could have only one handgun for all purposes, home defense, range, and carry, what would it be? Let's say under $600 new.

I'm leaning towards a 9mm, Glock 19 or a Walther PPQ (the newer version with the button mag release, not the goofy lever).

 

They are being used in combat despite what you may have seen. Apparently they are becoming very popular within the spec-ops community from what I have been told. People are also starting to put them on their carry guns as well. And to be clear, I define "combat" as any fight where someone is shooting back at you. But to your point if it's only going to be used as a range gun than no real reason for the redundancies.

 

My stainless Ruger P89.

 

Ruger SR9C. Not a very "cool" gun but extremely practical and good for the $$.

 

Glock 23 - same as the 19 but in 40cal. With a light attached while in home defense duty.

 

G19 would be great choice. 9mm is cheap to shoot day-to-day, and just as effective as anything(.40,.45) with modern loads.

 

only thing against 9mm right now is ammo is super hard to find (in michigan anyways). Most come in a 40 option also and is much easier to find (along with 45)

 

Have you checked out the ballistics on some of the +P+ 9mm rounds? Holy crap. Local SERT team just switched back to 9mm from 40 because the ballistics are dam near equal now and their training ammo costs went down. I know a few of the guys on the team and they were die hard 40 fans until they started playing around with some of the high velocity 9mm offerings. They are converts now, preferring to have "more rounds to solve more problems" lol. Then again I'm a weirdo who's favorite round is trhe 357 SIG.

 

I go by what my late father always said: "A man only NEEDS three guns:
A 30-06 Springfield (meaning any bolt action 06)
A 12-guage shotgun
and
A .45 acp.

So, going on his timeless advice, if I was limited to one handgun it would be a .45.

 

I have read alot of the ballistics stuff that claims the faster little bullets are packing as much energy as the big slow bullets but I still prefer the larger rounds. Right now my personal favorite is the Glock 21. Reasonably inexpensive, 13 rounds, big bullets and always goes bang. No replacement for displacement and all...

 

Oh hell. Maybe locally there, and right now. But one can buy it both easy and cheaply online right now anytime of the day. I've got at least 2k of it currently. Half of that is the +P and +P+ Underwood, Atomic, Corbon, Black Hills, Remington, and Buffalo Bore. I love all my .45s(3x1911s, 1xP90), but if the SHTF today and had to go to war, I'd grab the G17.

Fwiw, the Underwood +P+ 115gr Gold Dot runs well over 1500+ fps from a G17. 124gr runs 1350ish fps. Thats .357Sig energy. My current fav tho, is the Underwood +P+ 147gr Gold Dot. 1200fps from the G17, awesome expansion AND optimum penetration. And having 18rds on hand doesn't hurt either.

Bottom line is, statistically, there's very little difference between 9mm, .40, and .45 regarding stopping power. They all perform about the same with todays modern loads. So why limit one self to less rounds and more recoil?

Another fwiw, 100rds of good ol brass cased fmj 9mm usually runs around $27-30 currently. At least on line.

 

40/9mm is pretty much interchangeable - it really comes down to personal preference and ammo availability. 9mm is a military round, 40 is more likely to be carried by your local pd. For me, wife works for local SD and they use 40 so that's what we have in the house.

 

They seem to be really popular on the BIG guns: FNP and HK type stuff. Those guys shoot a lot of suppressed and it gets the sight up over the can.

 

I find the good stuff online but very little practice junk ammo online. I bought a bunch last year so I don't mind but a buddy just bought his first gun and can't find ammo to save his life. Some decent bulk deals online is it

 

Buddy of mine has that FN in 45 with a can. Man is that thing fun to shoot with the reflex sight. It's almost like cheating once you get the hang of it.

 

A used Sig P239

 

Agreed. They are.

You will start seeing them carried on patrol more often also in the next few years.

 

Hey, that's what I'm carrying today. Although not used. Well, it's been to the range, so it has been used. Purchased NIB though.

-steve

 

Reflex/red-dots on handguns are awesome. You put red-dots on rifles all the time to make sight-acquisition easier and faster. Same principle applies to handguns. I would definitely put one on a larger handgun like a full size 1911, or FNP45 for range work.

 

What a horrible thought! But, if push came to shove, I can't imagine going without a 1911. The government put one in my hand when I was really just a boy, and it was love at first sight. They are a bit bulky for concealed carry.