Battle of the Budget 9mm's

Sigarms228 try buds gun shop.com. That's where I got mine because they had the best price but I was able to handle one at my LGS first.
 
Sigarms228 try buds gun shop.com. That's where I got mine because they had the best price but I was able to handle one at my LGS first.
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Thanks but yeah I am looking to be able to handle one first. I plan to go shooting soon so I am going to check my LGS again. I would like to have more options to recommend to new shooters or those that ask but to me it would be important to be available locally so that potential buyer could handle it and get repair/warranty support easily if need be.
 
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My vote is for the Taurus PT111 G2. I've had mine for about 6 months and nary a problem. The ergo and decent factory trigger make it a great shooter. Also, the felt recoil makes it very manageable. It's good to go right out of the box. It handles all my reloads nicely. I guess you can tell I'm partial to it. Taurus has a winner with this one!
 
leadcounsel, really appreciate you putting my thoughts into words there...

Seems like the SAR B9C is well worth getting. I am saving up for the Glock 34, been hankerin for one of those since the first time I shot one. looks like I might have to put that on hold and get EAA to try out... have the prices been pretty steady on the EAA's recently? I would hate to wait on getting one till after the 34, and end up missing out on such low prices.

By the way, this thread has been great and I am loving everyones input. Love it when I can learn something new.

My bud went to a gun show today and ended up leaving with the SD9VE. He is stoked about it and I'm sure it will serve him well for years, it was the best deal he found and I think he already had his mind made up before he stepped in the door. I may be getting some time behind its trigger soon, if so I will post my thoughts!

Keep up the responses, I'm always looking for a good deal on things that go boom :)
 
I agree with Lead council's most recent post. however, I would point out that I did get a lemon from century. my Canik TP9 wouldn't enter battery about 80% of the time and I'd have to manually push the slide shut after every shot. century's customer service was great, turn around time was only a couple of weeks and I never had another problem with it other than accuracy, and heavy trigger(likely related issues). however that's not a problem with century, that's a problem with the canik.
 
If he MUST have a 9mm, and it MUST be in the price-range specified, I recommend the Canik sold at Academy. I have one that I am trying to wear out, and it's not cooperating with its planned obsolescence. It gobbles up ammo that other 9mms won't feed reliably, and the trigger gets better, the more rounds I run through it. Cz parts and magazines interchange, and it has no magazine disconnect. Others mentioned in this thread might, I'm not sure.
 
For mostly conceal carry purposes the Smith&Wesson Shield is ideal n can had for about $350-390.
For an all around high reliability all around range n home defense the Sig 2022
Is great value n a solid reliable Sig
 
I've always liked to go used over new when it comes to budget.

Get him to a range with rentals though.

The only new hand gun I would recommend to a new shooter is a hipoint. They resell for within a Jefferson of their purchase price, they work, and a whole lot of people with more expensive guns think having one is worthwhile.
They aren't comfortable to shoot a lot at the range though.

Putting up any more money than that I would want to have them shoot it first.
 
Can't figure out the quoting option as I apparently don't spend enough time in debates around here, lol. So to address leadcounsel:

I'll give you quality workmanship on the Turkish clones as that is what they are known for. The only reason that I still lean towards used from more well known manufacturers is parts availability and service. Century arms has imported from a lot of manufacturers that no longer exist. Where does this leave the owner of such a product when he needs a trigger return spring or firing pin roll pin?

Also, on trading/selling firearms, typically the cheaper models take more of a hit financially as there are more of them in the wild. Supply and demand anyone? Anybody ever traded in a Taurus? Liking a gun is no reason to rewrite basic economic rules.

Also, when I speak of buying used I am not talking of scouring the earth for one off 6 shot derringers in 5.7x28. Used Glocks, M&Ps and XDs are a stable at many brick and mortar gun shops. As it stands now, they can also be had in the $350 range. That brings a company that at least stands a good chance of being around to sell regular maintenance items when the shooter needs them.

A canik or tristar may be a fun to shoot and especially at it price point, but parts break, and I want to replace them and keep training on my defensive guns.

Did anybody catch that this is the consumers first handgun?!?
 
I don't own a Sar B6P, but I do own the Sar K2-45. 14+1 of big ole .45acp goodness. And definitely the most ergonomic high cap large bore semi I have ever handled. The 21sf I owned previously isn't even in the same state, let alone the same ballpark compared to the Sar. I carried it on duty and weight is the only reason why I still don't carry it. The Turks make a top notch gun, period.

As to service, my Sar came with a cracked grip panel. A couple of emails to the company, I had three sets of new grip panels with new screws and a multitude of swag. Not too shabby for a company on the other side of an ocean, lol.

So another vote for the Sar. My second choice would be the Smith. While my ex-wife got the Sigma 40ve in the divorce, it is a fine weapon, and the heavy trigger is an easy fix. If the new SDs are anything like the last Sigmas, they are some of the best budget firearms going, IME.
 
The Stoeger Cougar is $300 at Academy - and that is not even shown as a sale price.

The Stoeger Cougar is a re-branded Beretta Cougar and is a quality gun. When Beretta developed the polymer-framed PX-4, the aluminum-framed Cougar's distribution was moved to Beretta's Stoeger subsidiary and the tooling was sent to a factory in Turkey for cheaper labor. Not only is the gun a sound design that is well executed, but it has solid customer support by Beretta/Stoeger.
 
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Funny how most don't read the previous posts before responding.

The OP stated nearly 20 posts ago that is buddy went with the SD9. [emoji3]
 
Funny how initial responses to an individual question can develop into a general discussion of a topic. :eek:
 
O4L, it is funny how people don't read every previous post, or more specifically, everything inside one particular post. For example, in post #45, the one you're referring too as the post Brando1992 stated his buddy grabbed the SD9, which he did, Brando1992 goes on to state, and I quote,

Brando1992 said:
Keep up the responses, I'm always looking for a good deal on things that go boom
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Hmmmm, wonder what he means by that? So maybe we need to think, read and proof read before we type, eh?:D
 
mrray13 said:
O4L, it is funny how people don't read every previous post, or more specifically, everything inside one particular post. For example, in post #45, the one you're referring too as the post Brando1992 stated his buddy grabbed the SD9, which he did, Brando1992 goes on to state, and I quote,



Hmmmm, wonder what he means by that? So maybe we need to think, read and proof read before we type, eh?:D
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I read the entire thread, including that entire post.

I just think it is funny that people are still telling him what his friend should buy when he has already made his purchase. :D

It's just an observation that I have noticed in many threads, in many forums.
 
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I have the 40 caliber version of the S&W. It is an okay gun, neither great nor terrible.

If I wanted to spend $350 or less on a full-sized 9mm pistol, I would have looked at a surplus place like CDI Sales. They normally have quite a few surplus service pistols from around $250 on up. The ones I have bought have been carried a lot and shot little.

I paid around $250 OTD for my Star Super B, for instance.
 
I just think it is funny that people are still telling him what his friend should buy when he has already made his purchase.
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It's still a very relevant question for those searching for a gun.

I'll add that while it may have been an anomaly, the SW Sigma is the only gun I've every seen completely disintegrate while in use. I was with my buddy at the range and his SW Sigma frame shattered into pieces while he was firing it. SW honored the warranty and replaced it with a new one, which my friend promptly traded away at the LGS for a different brand.

I've heard good things about the Taurus PT111 and for $200 it's hard to go wrong. In full disclosure, I've owned one pistol that was total garbage unreliable and it was a PT 140 Millenium. Two trips to Taurus could not fix it. I since purchased a PT 145 Pro (reluctantly) and it's worked like a champ. So every company can have some bad runs.

It's a good discussion with a lot of good $300 +/- options. The lesson is that in todays market don't think you need to spend north of $500 to get a great handgun.
 
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