best handgun

First Look: New Walther CCP M2

When Walther released the original CCP it was met with much anticipation. Straight blowback 9mm is too much to handle, but Walther’s piston system known as “softcoil” offered to reduce recoil below standard Browning systems. The “softcoil” also applied to the recoil spring which didn’t need to be as heavy and so the gun is easier to rack. The combination of softer recoil and easier slide operation was appealing to newer shooters and those more sensitive to recoil. Where the original CCP lost some of those users was that disassembly required a tool.

Walther has learned from that experience and responded to public demand with the CCP M2. Take-down is now tool-less, but all of the original benefits remain. To see just how easy it is now, and have a closer look watch the video below.

The rest of the pistol remains generally unchanged. In fact the specifications of the original remain true:

CALIBER: 9MM
BARREL LENGTH: 3.54″
TRIGGER PULL: SA 5.5 LBS
TRIGGER TRAVEL: 0.27″
CAPACITY: 8 RDS
OVERALL LENGTH: 6.41″
HEIGHT: 5.12″
SAFETY: MANUAL + 1 AUTO
WIDTH: 1.18″
WEIGHT EMPTY: 22.33 OZ

You may have noted that also remaining is the longer trigger pull and reset. Longer is a relative term. Compared to other Walthers it’s longer, compared to most handguns it’s about normal. I love Walther’s trigger for range time, but for a learner’s gun or self defense I think a longer pull is an added level of safety.

I’m curious to see how well the gas system tolerates the wide variety of rounds I like to run through guns. From 165gr down to 65gr will be tested. Each with their own unique recoil signature and pressure spikes. Having stripped and reassembled the CCP M2 a couple of times I don’t find it any more difficult that most modern handguns. It’s just different. I’m sure there will be haters out there because it doesn’t break down like a Glock, but this isn’t a Glock. There are only so many ways a gun with a fixed barrel can be disassembled.

Are Handguns and Cars Alike?

There is what you want, what you have, and what you think you need.

Ever wonder why there are so many makes and models of cars? After all these years one would think that the ideal car, truck, van, etc would have already been designed. It’s easy to laugh at such a thought when thinking of cars, but what about handguns?

After 17 years of professional shooting and having worked in the industry as an instructor as well as a bit on the retail side I’ve collected some wisdom for you: there is no perfect handgun.

Spend $80 for a Hi-Point or $5,000 for a Nighthawk (or approximately 60 Hi-Points). Will you find the perfect gun? NO. There is no such thing as a perfect gun and it irks me every time I hear a salesman attempt to tell someone that they will only ever need one handgun and that brand X is the answer. It is extra offensive when I hear it said to new shooters.

There are guns that are easier to learn with, and there are guns that are better for concealment. The most important factor in selecting a gun is what most often gets over-looked: what is the intended purpose of the gun? I don’t claim to have all the answers, but this chart might help. Below is a simplification and consolidation of 17 years of being paid to shoot and the experience from owning a few dozen handguns. Consider these factors when considering your first gun, or even considering your tenth: Home Defense or Range, Level of Learning, Concealed Carry or Competition

Size

Big: A larger gun gives more to grip and higher capacity. Fewer reloads on the range. If you’re not worried about concealment, there’s no reason to have fewer rounds to defend your house with.

Your Hand: What matches your hand most comfortably? Fit to consider (have an experienced shooter help with this) includes reach for controls and length of pull to the trigger.

Small: The smaller the better within reason. If a gun is too small for easy use of controls then it’s too small for you. The stock or grip is usually the toughest part to conceal which unfortunately also dictates capacity.

Barrel length and magazine capacity may be factors in determining the class you’ll be shooting in. Consult the sanctioning body’s guidelines before spending money on a gun. A longer barrel equals longer sight radius (distance between sights). The length will also result in higher velocity and more stability of the projectile. These two combined usually result in better accuracy without increased training.

If the barrel is too short for the powder to completely burn you’ll see some flash. By the time your brain processes this the danger may be already gone. Keep in mind that a cute little snubby will likely also be a fire-breathing dragon.

Not as important for concealment as grip length, but a factor in your guns’ power. Shorter barrels generate less muzzle energy and sometimes not enough for a defensive round to perform as intended. Problems with cycling and the projectile itself not doing all the magic tricks described on the box.

A longer barrel with a lower caliber can outperform a shorter barrel with a higher caliber (ie. 4” 9mm Glock 19 hits harder than a 3.8” 45 XDm). The longer sight radius makes it easier to aim and delivers more energy on steel targets.

Trigger Pull: This is a sticky point for a gun that will be both for the home and the range. Target shooting is easier and more fun with a short, light, and crisp trigger but those same characteristics will just as likely result in shooting the cat, neighbor, or tv during a high-stress home defense scenario. Stick with the middle ground or find a good Single Action/Double Action and learn how to use them.

Clean: Trigger pull is one of the most important disciplines to learn (after safety). Have an experienced shooter help you learn the difference between a mushy/gritty trigger and a crisp one. I recommend something with a notable pre-travel and discernable wall with a crisp brake. Revolvers can be great for this

NOT A RACE GUN: The trigger pull length and weight may very well be the deciding factor between a shot that saves your life and one that puts you in jail. Keep this in mind. The 4-6lbs that most guns come with is good. Learn your trigger!

Aftermarket performance parts in a carry gun are a liability that you may very well have to explain when you punch a bunch of random holes all over the place instead of in the bad guy.

Reset: Regardless of the total trigger travel it is a short and crisp reset that will give you the fastest follow-up shots. The lightest trigger in the world with a long travel will turn into sloppy strokes of the finger if the reset is too long. If you aren’t familiar with trigger reset ask an experienced shooter.

Caliber Cost: If you’re looking at a range gun consider how often you’ll be shooting and what the total cost will be for you. A lot like considering a car that require premium vs regular gasoline; what will feeding the gun cost you? Ammo prices vary wildly, but in general 45 ACP will cost you about 25% more per shot than 9mm. Would you prefer five boxes or four for the same price?

Comfort: Two main schools of thought here. Either get the most comfortable thing for you to shoot until you’re comfortable with shooting to move to a bigger caliber (ie. .22lr to 9mm) or start with the caliber you want to use later on and learn that caliber. There are good arguments on both sides. What will probably settle it for you is determining if you are willing to buy more than one gun.

Capacity: “Knock-down power” is mostly shot placement not caliber, so chose the caliber you can shoot well. The smaller rounds will likely mean higher capacity, a lighter gun, and potentially less cost. It is for these reasons that I converted from .45 ACP to 9mm.

All Three: You’re going to shoot a lot of rounds as quickly as you can and demand the most out of your gun. See the three columns to the left for the major factors here.

Extras Night sights, external safeties, loaded chamber indicators, cocking indicators, de-cockers, fiber-optic front sights, multiple magazine options are all important factors that either fit what you’re looking for or don’t.

A salesman may try to hook you on one particular function or tell you that it’s not important, but all of these things impact the way you will shoot the gun and the way it fits your purpose. Decide what you want and don’t want by trying multiple platforms before you buy. Ideally find a place that will let you rent until you’re worn out or find a friend with a collection. Let them explain the functions, but don’t let them tell you why that function is the best/only thing you need.

Bringing it all Together

I hope at the least this serves as a general guide of things to consider or at least be aware of when considering a gun purchase. The analogy I always use when explaining to a customer is that guns are a lot like cars. Even though (sadly) not everyone has bought a gun most have bought a car. We all drive different cars and very few are still driving their first car. Even if you decide on a four-door sedan there are hundreds of options out there. This is for a reason: we all have different needs, taste, budgets, and priorities. It all comes down to identifying what you need, want, and can afford and then finding the gun that matches those most closely. The next time you look at a mile-long row of black steel and plastic smile that there are options and you’re not stuck driving a Geo metro cross-country or trying to park a Suburban downtown. Either option could be done, but not nearly as comfortably as it could be in a different car.

The Army’s New M-17 Handgun: Tactical Rifleman

We have written a lot lately about the Sig 320. It has won the ICE contract and was recently selected by the Army as the winner of the Modular Handgun System (MHS) competition. The team at Tactical Rifleman has created a great video explaining the Army’s decision to procure the Sig Sauer M-17.

The gun in this video is the Sig Sauer P320 RX. This is a full size P320 Pistol that is close to what the US Army will be replacing the Beretta M9 pistol with. The Army will call their version of the P320 the M17, it will be the full size model like the one in video. It also will come in a FDE color and have an ambidextrous manual safety and unlike the RX variation that I have in the video this will not come with the Romeo One red dot sight.

The new M17 beat out many other pistols including the model that Glock before is was picked earlier this year. I feeling for the biggest reason that this one beat out all the others is because of the modularity of this pistol. Like most others that were put up you can change the size of the grip, some all you could do was make the grip larger with add on panels not any smaller.

With the Sig you can completely change the complete lower half of the pistol from a smaller to a larger size grip. I could also see the in the future the Military might also purchase different complete upper slides (with barrel) so that the M17 can then be changed to a compact or sub-compact model without have to purchase a different pistol all together.

Because to the trigger pack being the serialized part of the weapon another thing that you can is change the caliber of the firearm by changing the complete upper slide and the magazine for the caliber of chose. I do not see the Military doing this to the M17. Currently Sig Sauer does have a voluntary safety recall and they are also updating the newer models before they ship out.

The changes that are being made are a new trigger shoe that will have a thinner profile and reduced mass. Also the slide is updated that will feature a disconnect notch near the striker assembly. Both of these update changes are expected to refine functionality for the pistol and improve both its safety and performance.

You can support Tactical Rifleman by purchasing one of their T-shirts: https://shop.spreadshirt.com/Tactical…

For more videos, go to http://www.tacticalrifleman.com/

Photo courtesy of the US Army

First Look: Canik TP9 SFx from Century Arms

Century Arms and Canik USA have expanded the TP9 line once more. The TP9 SFx is a competition-oriented model akin to the Walther Q5 Match. With a 5.2″ barrel the TP9 SFx has the length to not only squeeze more velocity and power out of 9mm rounds, but also provides a lengthy sight radius.

The increased velocity from a 5.2″ barrel is a welcome feature for anyone who shoots steel or bowling-pin matches. At some of these matches the target must be knocked over or off of a stand to count as a hit. 9mm is loved for its affordability, availability, and low recoil, but needs speed to have knock-down power in the most literal sense.

Aside from the longer barrel and lightening cuts on the slide, another slide cut makes the TP9 SFx stand out. This TP9 is ready for optics. As you’ll see in the video above, the TP9 SFx is not only pre-cut for optics, but includes mounting plates to accept most of the common reflex-sights. An interesting bonus is the inclusion of an optional charging handle to make racking the slide easier with an optic installed.

The rest of the gun is mostly unchanged from the basic TP9 design save two changes in controls. The magazine release is extended (second size option included), and the slide lock/slide release has a nice flare to it to make releasing the slide very easy. Other specifications and facts can be seen below as taken directly from the product webpage.

SKU	HG3774G-N	HG4192G-N	HG3774D-N
COLOR	Tungsten Grey	Tungsten Grey	FDE
UPC	787450434783	787450476806	787450446816
CALIBER	9mm Luger	9mm Luger	9mm Luger
CAPACITY	20+1 rds.	10+1 rds.	20+1 rds.
BARREL	5.2”	5.2”	5.2”
OVERALL	8.27”	8.27”	8.27”
HEIGHT	6.2”	5.7”	6.2”
WIDTH	1.3”	1.3”	1.3”
WEIGHT	1.83 lbs. unloaded	1.83 lbs. unloaded	1.83 lbs. unloaded

Comes with industry standard dovetail sight cuts that are compatible with a large variety of aftermarket sights
Warren Tactical sights with red and green fiber optic front sight
Removable Red Dot cover – Rear sight installed in cover to eliminate interference with certain Red Dot sights
Four Red Dot interface plates
Match grade barrel
Improved single action trigger
Lightening cuts on slide
Forward slide serrations
Reversible ambidextrous cocking lever
Extended ergonomic slide release
Adjustable length reversible magazine release buttons
Two extra sizes of magazine catch extension
Striker status indicator
Cerakote over phosphate
MIL-STD-1913 Picatinny rail
AFC magazine coating
Comes with two mags., poly holster, paddle attachment, belt attachment, interchangeable backstraps, cleaning rod, brush and a limited lifetime manufacturer’s warranty

As you can see the TP9 SFx is competition ready out of the box. Once again Century Arms and Canik USA have managed to provide us with an excellent handgun at an excellent price. As far as real-world performance I’ll get the gun out to the range soon for my standard battery of tests.

Reloaded: The Grand Power K-100 Pistol

Grand Power has been called the best pistol you’ve never heard of. As a fan of their guns that has been raving about them for years I take offense to that. As you’ve seen in our article on the Q100 I have a small collection of Grand Power pistols and that’s for good reason, they’re awesome. Recently we took the K-100 out for a range revisit and reminder of why we like the gun.

The K-100 is the work-horse of the lineup. Duty-gun sized including the capacity and user comfort that comes with the sedans of the pistol world. Specs can be found on the product page.

If you’re not familiar with Grand Power one of the things that makes them different is the rotating barrel. Forget the claim about low bore axis, I think even Remington claimed that with their RP9. The real benefit of the rotating barrel is the absence of the lock-up clunk. Everyone who’s shot a Glock knows what I’m talking about. Tilting barrels require right-angle pieces of steel to pass over one another. This increases perceived recoil with abrupt shifts in weight and spikes in linear energy transfer. That simply doesn’t happen with a rotating barrel.

Why don’t more handguns feature this? Cost. More machining is required and to an arguably higher degree of accuracy for the Grand Power design. This means it costs more to make, and often that cost is passed to the consumer. I’m okay with that because Grand Power pistols are not meant for those wanting the quick and easy. Grand Power is the line shooters graduate to once they’ve learned enough to appreciate the finer things in a gun.

Speaking of finer things, a steel chassis inside the frame and four back straps that actually change the feel of the gun have been Grand Power features for years not months. If you’d like to learn more about these beautiful guns you can either visit the Eagle Imports website, or watch the informative video below.

Finding the Perfect Handgun: What You Want, What You Have, What You Need