Well, I finally got to shoot it. Best things: seems really accurate and recoil is very mild. Worst thing... well, you'll have to read the following to get the story on that.
This is my first handgun, so you'll have to excuse my inaccurate descriptions and misuse of handgun terms, but I'll do my best not to mangle the account too much.
1. We used the targets that have five different circles to shoot at. I kept one of the targets for just my shots. I shot ten rounds at each of the five circles on the target. I put all but one or two out of ten shots inside the eight-ring on each of the five circles at about seven yards (it wasn't clearly marked on the range but one of the guys who worked at the gun shop said it was about seven yards).
The outter ring on the five circles was number 7 and the circles were 4 inches in diameter. I put one to four out of the ten shots in the 10 ring on each circle.
(BTW: is this good/very good or just typical accuracy for a handgun/shooter?)
Two of the guys who work for the gun shop wanted to try it out. They both shot it very well and one said it was one of the best groups he's ever shot. We all really liked the triangle sights.
One of the guys remarked that he felt like he was literally poking the target with his finger (he also said it feld like a "phaser"). He really liked the trigger and made a point of stating that he didn't like Glocks. The other guy said he was sold and said that he was going to get the M40.
2. The recoil was very mild. I could quickly get back on target. I shot over a hundred rounds with it and felt like I could have kept going all day. My hand was getting tired from gripping the gun but there was no soreness at all from the recoil.
I tried a few rounds on my friend's Glock (I think its the 22 -- its the full-size .40 caliber). It definately affected my hand -- not a lot, but I could tell I wouldn't have wanted to shoot it nearly as many times as I'd shot the M9. I've shot the .40 caliber version of my M9 (the M40) and it sure didn't recoiled as much as the Glock did.
My friend said he might get an M9 for his wife who does not like his Glock (or the 44 mag. -- go figure) because of the light recoil.
(BTW: I shot his 44 mag. -- first time I've ever shot a 44 mag. Wow! I thought it was going to jump right of my hand! I had a good grip on it, but it shifted up in my grip anyway. Two shots was enough for me. And you should have heard the remarks from everyone else on the line when he set that thing off: "Man who is that, what is that thing?" A couple guys came by just to see what he was shooting. He has it for hunting wild pigs.)
3. The trigger pull was great. Comparing it with the glock my friend had I'd say it was definately not as long or hard. I have shot a 9mm Glock, the 17, and I'd have to say this was definately a better trigger feel and less recoil. I was much more accurate with the Steyr.
4. I got a few cases tossed at my head, but not a lot. Don't know if this was as bad as Petej88's M40 or not. I did see a couple of scrates on the top of the slide like Petej88 described, but its only a couple and I did shoot 150 rounds. Haven't decided if I should send it in for this or not.
I've been told that "all autos will throw a case back at you once in a while." What do you think about that observation? Is this typical of 1911's or Sigs or Glocks, etc? Should I just live with it?
5. I shot 115 gr. and 124 gr. FMJ's and 147 gr. JHPs (Silvertips). They all shot great and fed and ejected just fine (except for once when I had the magazine out -- see below). I didn't notice a difference at all in the recoil between the 147's and the 115's or 124's which is good because I wanted to use the 147 JHP's as my self defense round (and I already ordered a case of 147 gr. Gold Dot Hollow Points, so I'm glad it liked the 147's).
6. I like the grip a lot (I have small hands) and it seems to point very naturally; it was very accurate in my very inexperienced hands.
The one and only problem:
Now for the one weird/bad thing: twice the trigger wouldn't pull after I'd loaded the magazine and released the slide, like the safety was on. I checked the saftey and it wasn't on -- you definately have to consciously put the safety on with this gun, you can't do it accidentally.
The first time it happened, I think I tried pulling the trigger a few times (pointing at the target, of course) because I wasn't sure if I was pulling hard enough. But it wouldn't budge. So I popped the magazine out and pulled back the slide enough to see that I had a round in the chamber, but not enough to eject it (keeping it pointed down-range, of couse). I then pointed it back at the target and pulled the trigger and she went off fine (although it jammed when ejecting the case, but that was because the magazine wasn't in and the case fell down toward the magazine well).
The second time happened many rounds later, but I was being careful to note what I was doing in case it did happened again. This time I knew I had released the slide with the slide catch/release and not by pulling back the slide. When I felt the trigger resist again, I let up and, keeping it pointed down range, took a look at the gun. Nothing seemed unusual and the safety wasn't on. I don't remember doing anything to the gun but pointing it back at the target and pulling the trigger again (although, as I mention in a reply later in this thread, I may have pulled the slide back to make sure I had a round in the chamber). It went off.
I vaguely recall thinking the second time that I could feel the little saftely lever on the trigger (like the Glock's) sticking out and it seemed like it hadn't been sticking out like that before when the trigger wouldn't move. That was just a fleeting thought, though, and I can't be sure.
Anyway, that's it. I'm hoping whatever the trigger problem was that it was caused by "user error" and that I will never see it again. I love this gun and hate to say anything bad about it, but I thought you guys would want the whole scoop.
Any thoughts? Should I send it to GSI immediately or put a few hundred more rounds through it first and see what happens? I'm new at this so any suggestions as to how to proceed or ideas on what I might be doing wrong would be greatly appreciated.
Any other Steyr M9 or M40 owners have a similar experience?
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[This message has been edited by adad (edited January 10, 2000).]
. I'll definately clean it before going to the range again!