Softest Recoil 9mm for $300

I'm not knocking on a little sparkle, but that Pavona has a touch too much sparkle for me.

I'm still deciding on a number of guns - PX4, Cougar 8000, P89, P95, Sars Mega, and a few others depending on price. I'm hoping a deal pops up within the next week, otherwise I plan on just ordering online at the best current price.

This may not be too scientific as grip strength and camera angles are a factor, but I've been watching a ton of youtube videos to try visually gauge recoil ... it seems that the big steel CZ and clones have the lowest muzzle rise out of the guns I've been considering.
 
Piko your list is interesting and looks as if you are budgeting in the $300./400.00 range.

While I don't have any experience with any of those particular guns I do have experience with the EAA Witness guns. Particularly with the 380 Pavona and the 45acp alloy Compact.

I too have smaller hands and smaller frame so grip size does make a difference. but this in my impression.

The Witness Pavona 380 is also a blowback design. the gun itself is roughly the same size and weight as my wife's Springfield XD Mod2 4.0 9mm yet slightly smaller than my Taurus PT92C 9mm. The 380 Pavona shoots just as hard recoil wise as both those 9mm.

Now the Witness Compact 45acp alloy framed gun is the exact same size as the 380 Pavona and to my surprise has a much lower felt recoil than any of the guns mentioned above in this post. This gun is so pleasant to shoot that it is on my next to buy list.

I have not shot a full size model of the Witness 45acp or a 9mm model but I would bet that they are even softer shooting than the others. The Pavona 380 and the 9mm can be found new for about $300.00 as can the full size polymer models.
 
The “sparkle” in the Pavona isn’t as sparkly as could be expected. My wife has the purple version and unless you are in he right light speckled is a better descriptor than sparkly. Now that may just be the purple version that’s like that.

What I find quite enjoyable about this particular gun is that it’s quite nice actually. Given the price, I expected much worse. What we got was an easy to rack slide, smooth DA and a softer recoil than her PPQ. Both are chamerbed in 9mm. Double action on her is 7.5-8lbs and the SA is 4.5-5lbs. I’m not really sure I could ask for more given the price we paid for this.

She finds it very comfortable to hold, I find it less so. It’s not uncomfortable but it’s just not quite like my Witness Elites. Similar but not quite. It’s also not as ergonomic as the PPQ, but I find few things are. Ultimately not my gun, so that point doesn’t matter much. I’ve been tempted to try one of the Witness Compacts and see if it’s as nice as the Pavona.
 
I'm not really knocking the sparkle....too much. I don't have any experience with Tanfoglio, but my Sarsilmaz pistol is closely related and it's a real gem. Sarsilmaz has the B6P compact that is comparable to the witness compact. I have the SAR K2P which is comparable to the Witness P Carry.
 
The Pavona I have is Black and gold and with mine you have to look really close to see the speckles. Have looked closely at the B6P and would not hesitate to buy either that or another Witness. Wife is looking also for another and I'm trying hard to direct her to a 45acp XD or Witness.
 
I agree with the Px4 recommendation. I had one in .40 that had very mild recoil. I have rented a Px4 Compact in .40 that was also mild, so a 9 mm full size Px4 should be outstanding in that regard. I think it has to do with the rotating barrel to some extent. Make sure you are OK with the long heavy DA trigger, or check Wilson Combat for a lighter hammer spring.

You are correct that the Cougar should be good also, especially with its metal frame. They bought the tooling from Beretta IIRC. Have never owned any Stoegers but should be OK, Turkish pistols have a decent rep. All my Berettas have worked perfectly, so the Px4 is my choice of the ones you are considering.

Both Rugers should be good, I shot CorBon out of my P95 with no discomfort. The P95 would be my choice over the bulkier P89.
 
I'm one of those USPSA nuts - and CZs, Tanfos, Glocks and STI 1911s seem quite popular among the USPSA production and limited shooters who have plenty of cash to travel and compete. We are all looking for how fast can I get the front sight back on target after the 1st round, and transition to the next target - e.g, flat shooting and consistent sub .20 second splits.

I do see some polymer new gun owners out there who are just getting started, but about a year in they are all looking at Stock IIs, CZ SP01s, Shadow IIs, Tactical Sports, and STI Edges.. (and up).
These guns are generally all built on a heavy steel frames, 38oz-46oz, with full dust cover to soak up the recoil. Most are CZ or 1911 based.

147gr 9mm is the least flippy "defensive" round and with the right recoil spring, very good grips, a solid grip, and c. 5" barrel the muzzle barely rises at all.

A wider frame that allows the support hand to actually grab something helps alot - as do grips with real texture. (LOK/VZ/SCALES/G10/etc)

back to the topic at hand, ide suggest a CZ variant, as much steel as you can manage, 9mm 147gr..... carry-able = CZ 75 P01 or CZ 75 Compact clone.
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or the Glock G42 in .380 for pocket carry if .380 and 7-8 rounds will do. (I'm a huge fan - very shootable)
 
I think the Stoeger Cougar has the rotating barrel system like the PX4. If that system softens recoil on a polymer framed PX4, it should do more so on the metal framed Cougar.
 
I own a number of fullsize metal-framed 9's, and recently picked up a Star BM.

This little pistol is surprising; it's a lot heavier than you'd think, even with the steel frame. I can't tell for sure if it's heavier than my B Super, or my CZ 75, but it's real close to it, despite being a much smaller package.

I won't call it a compact, since I can easily get my pinky on the grip. But the barrel is less than 4 inches (3.75 I think).

So, weight is relative... it's a bit over 2 lbs. Nothing to panic over in my opinion. But that weight in a tight, solid package, really soaks up the recoil in a way other smaller guns don't show. This shoots like a much bigger gun, the accuracy is better than I expected. Extremely pleasant shooter.

Some potential hidden positives for bad wrists: the BM has a shorter slide than the Beretta 92, CZ 75 (or lots of others). So while it's heavy, the weight is in your hand, not so much being held out from your hand. It "feels" maybe a bit more controlled.
Also, I've noticed that the slides on Stars are smooth and relatively easy to rack, compared to some others. Maybe it's the mass of the slide, requiring less resistance from the spring.
 
YouTube is a valuable resource for this sort of thing. The Military Arms Channel is one of my favorites. He is pleasantly surprised by the PX4 and there are some good, clear views of the recoil. It's a longer video but the depth is nice. He was also surprised that it ate everything he fed it, including some questionable ammo. (It mirrors my own experiences with the impeccably reliable PX4.)

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Eg18fqJap8E

If you want to see another rotating barrel design that looks even more impressive, check out Grand Power. The same channel reviews their P1. Watch that recoil!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6VRLP-diwj8

Sootch did a nice review on their P11. I like his channel too.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ldavwc1WYfE

The only reason I haven't dived in on the Grand Power is that I've never seen one in person. The PX4 seems to have a lot more available in terms of holsters and accessories. As Grand Power gets more established in the United States, I'll be looking forward to encountering their products.

Another benefit of these polymer-framed rotating-barrel designs is that they dampen recoil without adding excessive weight. This could become a factor if you ever decide you want to carry them all day.
 
spacemanspiff said:
I am curious about the recoil in a full size 1911 in 9mm
Click to expand...

The recoil is light, but when I was shopping for one there were no bargains to be had. I think the STI was the lowest price I found, and it was $600-$700.

The recoil wasn't just light in 9mm (and a 38 special I fired once), but the pistols were nice overall, and gave very good accuracy. I recall reading a review of a 1911 9mm with a six inch slide; it dampened recoil so thoroughly that the owner needed to run warmer than average loads for it to cycle.

1911s also have the advantage of a wide range of recoil springs at modest prices, so the feel of the recoil is readily tuned.
 
I do not know if you can get it for 300 bucks any more, but take a look at the Bersa Thunder 9 UC Pro.

I have one and had it out today shooting.

I have been having problems shooting my Shield 40 that also has a 9mm barrel. Just could not get used to the grip and my groups were sub par and actually not groups. Been working on my grip and have actually found a few flaws. But still the Shield was not as accurate as I am accustomed with other semis.

The Bersa has a little more of a grip area so I took it out to do a stare and compare and shoot with the Shield.

With the Bersa at 10 yds I was an inch (ish) low ( I attribute that to shooting the Shield so much lately), but the groupings, and they were groups, were 2 inches.

The big thing was that I immediately noticed (re-noticed) virtually no recoil and it was easy to quickly shoot follow up rounds and be pretty accurate.....much better than the Shield.

The Bersa has approximately 3,000 rounds through it since purchased in 2013and never a problem. Same with my 45 of the same model.


I did a quick google and the were over 400 bucks which is much more than I paid for mine.

Give them a look.

Here is a review:

https://www.personaldefenseworld.com/2015/11/gun-review-the-bersa-thunder-pro-ultra-compact-in-9mm/
 
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