HK USP Questions

P

Patrick Murphy

New member
I'm thinking of purchasing a USP Compact .45 Variant 9 for cocked-and-locked carry. If I can't find one (my FFL is very resourcful and thinks he can get one), I may go for the full-size .40 (the .45 is too big). Variant 1 is OK there since they all have spurred hammers.

Any problems that you know of with either?

What should I expect to pay for each of these? My dealer ballparked the Compact at $700 which seems mighty high. What do you folks think? Thanks.
 
I owned a full-size 40 cal USP and I found it way to big to be practical for concealed carry. Fantastic gun though, I wish I hadnt sold it. I would wait for the compact if this is going to be used for day-to-day carry.
 
I have a HKUSP 40 varient 1 and like it very much, but would not carry it concealed because I do not feel that I am large enough. If you are the right size go for it, you will not be diappointed.
 
I carry a USP .45 Compact, it's a great gun, I am up to 1400+ rounds without one malfunction. it has replaced my Wilson Combat CQB and my Wilson tuned Colt Combat Commander for everyday knock-about carry. I paid $675.00 NIB.
 
Try Cal's for a price. Cal's can convert a V1 to a V9. Note: the V9 is not SA only; it is DA/SA without a decocker. I'd stick with V1.

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I can't speak about which gun is better for carry, I live in New Jersey and don't have a CCW permit, but I've shot both pistols. The full size .40 is an excellant weapon, but then I wouldn't pass on a .45 compact. Both are extreamely dependable and I have no problem with the recoil of either gun. You can't go wrong with either choice. As for the $700.00 price tag, it's within $50 bucks of what they cost in my area. Good luck on your purchase.
 
Unless you are going for deep cover, I feel the Hk compacts are small enough; even the .45. Shoot, a smallish friend of mine has successfully concealed a fullsize .45!
 
I had a full size USP .40 but fealt it was to big for concealment, it got replaced w/ a GLock 23 and I have no regrets. It was a great gun though, I just didn't have a reason for 2 similiar .40 cal guns.
 

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My 45C was low/mid $600s from the cheapest dealer in the area (he's a gunshow-only guy).

There's no such thing as a "minor" reliability problem, so I'll just say I had 4 failures to feed in the first ~800 or so rounds. I sent the gun to HK Repair and they did an extractor adjustment. It's been perfect in the 400 or so rounds since with various kinds of factory ammo (WinClean, UMC, Lawman, American Eagle, and ProLoad).

Some of the HK boards have mentioned a few firing pins breaking. It seems to be related to lots of dry-firing. It also seems to affect guns manufactured in/around 1995 (KF date code).

Honestly, the firing pin issue (if it is an issue) is my only reservation about the USPc. My opinion is HK should come out with a public statement saying (1) how much dry-firing is ok -- if any and (2) whether or not there is a problem and which weapons are affected. I personally think a serious pistol of such obvious quality should be able to take plenty of snapping. Then again, the hammer seems to hit the pin awfully hard and this may give a reliability edge with hard primers. Maybe it's a tradeoff? Maybe it's not even a problem.

Other than that, problems with USPs seem to be few and far between.
 
I have owned a 40F and a 357c. Neither ever jammed once. I would highly recommend either. My only gripe was the grip, too sharp for me. A little customization fixed that
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I have the full size 40 and 45 USP. I like them both and they both have been 100 percent reliable. The C - compact models seem to have more issues with problems. The firing pin problem was resolved with metalurgy in the firing pin according to an HK rep that I talked to. Apparently they wanted it super hardened and to hit much harder to ignite any primer. The result was that they could fracture with lots of dry firing. The issue supposedly was resolved although I know of no recall. Contact your local HK rep for more detailed info.
 
The full sized .40 version should be slightly cheaper than the .45 Compact. The dimensions of the two guns are not that far off from each other.

USP .40
194 mm in length
136 mm in height
32 mm in width

USP .45 Compact
180 mm in length
128.5 mm in height
34 mm in width

The .45C is shorther in the grip than the .40, but it is also slightly wider.
 
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