Suggestions for reliable semi-auto

F

frank2

New member
I have not had very good results with semi autos as far as reliabitity goes, could I have some suggestions for a good semi-auto. Something that will work no matter how you hold it, and will like most ammo. I guess I will concider Glocks again but I hate the way they fit me. I would prefer 45 or 10mm.
Thanks
 
frank2, if you ask the question to 100 different people, you will get 100 different answers.

There are lots of reliable semis out there. My impression from reading this is you have had some very bad experiences. What type of reliablitly problem have you experienced and with what guns?

Something that will work no matter how you hold it, and will like most ammo
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Unlike revolvers, the action of a semi auto is designed to move during firing. A firm grip is necessary to prevent user induced malfunctions.

I guess I will concider Glocks again but I hate the way they fit me
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I would suggest trying several other brands and find a grip you like. That will help you get the proper hold and avoid the problem I mentioned above.

I would prefer 45 or 10mm.
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You will be better served with the 45. It has a rounder easier to feed bullet shape. I wouldn't recommend the 10mm. It is a powerful round and would only exaggerate the problem you are already having.

I hope my reply doesn't sound like I am being hard on you, but you are asking readers to prove a negative. There are some good semis out there, but you have to do your part.

Good luck.
 
I've had good success with the following:
HK USP
HK P7M8-P7M13
Browning HiPower
Sig 239, 226, 228,225, P-210
Keltec P-32

I don't know if you are looking for concealed carry, but of these, the Keltec, P7M8 and Sig 239 are probably the most easily concealed. While the P7M8 is high if you buy new, there are a lot of them available as refurbs from police and military trade-ins. Sig 239s are usually a good buy, also.

That's my results. Others can and will differ.

All the best
 
The Charles Daly 1911 I first bought went back to the factory 3 times before thay replaced it. The replacement they sent me is in the shop now for the second time. It still dosn't run right, a lot of people have said the 1911's won't run right unless you have a solid grip on them. It dosn't really matter how tight I hold this thing it still won't feed.
The Browning Buckmark works sometimes but only if I give it very hot ammo.
The CZ-52 works perfectly but only with hardball ammo.
Fortunately my .40 Hi-Power has never misfed,at least I have something to carry even if it is not the most accurate gun.
And a gunsmith at a very well known 1911 custom shop told me that they did not consider the 1911 a good carry gun because of the grip/reliability factor and the more compact the gun is the more critical the grip becomes.
I would prefer a gun that wouldn't jam no matter what you do to it.
It may just be that you get what you pay for and I am buying cheap guns,I'm willing to change that.
 
Sounds to me like you may want a Snub-nosed .38 and not know it yet. ;) I suggest you get to your nearest gun shop post haste for a fondling session.
 
Unlike revolvers, the action of a semi auto is designed to move during firing. A firm grip is necessary to prevent user induced malfunctions.
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Most semi-autos are actually quite hard to limp-wrist into malfunctioning. Glocks are an exception to this (and I like Glocks). I tried to get my new CZ-75B to jam by limp-wristing it and couldn't; the gun kept working. Your Mileage May Vary and all that.

You will be better served with the 45. It has a rounder easier to feed bullet shape. I wouldn't recommend the 10mm. It is a powerful round and would only exaggerate the problem you are already having.
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Um, not true. 10mm ammo is available in a wide variety of bullet shapes. All of 'em, in fact. And for what it's worth, my 10mm pistols have been my most reliable. Alot of people have had the same experience. Not trying to be a jerk, just think you are dispensing sub-optimal info.

Now that I'm done with that :D , on to the topic at hand. Ruling out Glock and sticking to .45 ACP, I'd suggest you consider, in no particular order:

SigSauer P220
HK USP45
CZ-97
Colt Government Model
Kimber Custom
EAA Witness/Witness P
 
I'm with Will Beararms on this one. Try a revolver. You suddenly lose the mindset of "failure to feed, failure to extract". Every time I press the trigger on my S&W Chief's Special, it goes bang.
No exceptions.:)
 
Every time I press the trigger on my S&W Chief's Special, it goes bang.
No exceptions. :)
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Wow! We finally found the ULTIMATE WEAPON: A gun that doesn't run out of ammo! :D

I'd recommend the .45 ACP over the 10mm as well, but for a different reason than recoil. The cost factor rears its ugly head where the 10mm is concerned, and the added power just isn't that much really.

Since you've pretty much ruled out Glocks (which are my personal favorites), I'd suggest trying the following:

HK USP
Springfield Armory 1911
Kimber 1911
Ruger P97
CZ97

Most ranges will have these for rent. I recommend you try as many different .45's as you can. One or two of them will feel right, and then you'll basically have your decision made.
 
I find questions like this most amusing. If you want the most reliable gun in the world then get a single shot rifle. Like a Ruger Model 1. This mechanism is as reliable as the cartridge primer.

Regarding semi-auto handguns, you will find, if you really want the most reliable, in multiple shots, the Glock 17 or 19. There is no cute stuff here. No tricked out .45 M1911 race gun. There is no fancy gas system, nor a rotary bolt as in the Beretta M92.

The G17 and G19 are the most reliable semi-automatic handguns ever made. Proven over and over. I have both and trust my life and those of my loved ones to these marvels of simplicity.

Albert Einstien can be quoted:

"Everything should be as simple as possible, but not simpler." The Glock 9mm pistols fit that bill quite nicely.
 
frank2,

It may just be that you get what you pay for and I am buying cheap guns,I'm willing to change that.
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I'm not going to tell you that you can't buy an inexpensive gun and have it be reliable (there are a lot of inexpensive, reliable handguns on the market). However, as with a lot of things, you generally get what you pay for.

I would echo the advice of some other posters. If you want a very reliable .45, get an H&K USP.

Shake
 
Do a search in this forum for the words "Common problems" in the title. September11 did a whole bunch of surveys a month or so ago. The replies to these posts are a fountain of factoids. :D

The pistols with the best "no problems" rating were Kahr (86%) followed by Glock (76%), Wilson (75%), HK and Sig (72%) and CZ and Beretta (71%), and a bunch of others below 70%. Numbers of votes vary widely and in most cases is not statistically significant.


- pdmoderator
 
No offense taken Castlebravo. I have two ears and eyes and one mouth. Therefore I look/listen twice as much as I speak. It is easier to learn that way.

I have experienced the "limp wristing" with a couple of Glocks and a S&W that I owned a few years back. But as you said YMMV.

As for 10MM, I was more concerned about power factor than reliability there. I have the impression the poster has bad feeling towards semi autos in general and was wanting us to talk him into feeling better about them. I felt that a Hot(for lack of better term) load like the 10 might not be the right way to go.

But you raise and interesting question. I have read your posts here and elsewhere, and have browsed parts of your website, your are very knowledable about the 10MM. Do you feel it is too much gun for the beginning to average shooter? I ask because I have been a died in the wool 9MM shooter but I am curious.

Thanks for helping me get my info up to speed:)
 
Thanks for the info so far.
Now first to clear up a couple of things. I'm not really a novice shooter,although my experience with a semi-auto pistol is fairly limited. So as far as recoil sensitive goes...my current favorite for close deer hunting and general plinking is my Contender 14 in 45-70. I have to do some reloading tomorow, I got kind of carried away again and burned up my box of 50 300gr hp. I load them down a little but they still pack a tremendous punch. And I have done some competition shooting with my Contender 30-30.
Next, The purpose of this gun would be for ccw and if can squeese dual purposes out of one gun I would like to use it for some very close deer hunting.Say 25 yards and 100 lb deer. The deer around here are generally pretty small. I have bigger dogs.So a 10mm may be a good choice. If I can find one that functions.
 
Frank,
Are you using the factory suplied Chip McCormic shooting star magazines? If so get some magazines with rounded metal folowers. Since I switched to magazines from Clark Custom Gunworks and WIlson, I havent has a single problem with my daly.
 
Thanks for the info so far.
Now first to clear up a couple of things. I'm not really a novice shooter,although my experience with a semi-auto pistol is fairly limited. So as far as recoil sensitive goes...my current favorite for close deer hunting and general plinking is my Contender 14 in 45-70. I have to do some reloading tomorow, I got kind of carried away again and burned up my box of 50 300gr hp. I load them down a little but they still pack a tremendous punch. And I have done some competition shooting with my Contender 30-30.
Next, The purpose of this gun would be for ccw and if can squeese dual purposes out of one gun I would like to use it for some very close deer hunting.Say 25 yards and 100 lb deer. The deer around here are generally pretty small. I have bigger dogs.So a 10mm may be a good choice. If I can find one that functions.
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In that case forget everything I have said to this point. I was indeed making faulty assumptions based on the available info.:o

Check out Castlebravo's web site. At the bottom of the page you will find links about the 10MM cartridge and the guns that shoot them. I think the answers you seek are there for the looking.
 
P99Man, I have introduced 2 women to shooting through my GLock 10mm. Both of them were in their early 20's and had never fired a handgun. One was very afraid of guns and thought only Cops and Soldiers should have them. Both proved to be quite profecint using UMC and other "light" plinking loads, accuracy didnt seem to diminish when I progressed them to Silvertips and Cor-bons. The advantage of having a student that has zero experiance with a gun is that they have no preconceaved notions about recoil. Neither of the new shooter complained about recoil and I never brought it up...it was a non issue. I simply instructed them on the proper grip, stance, gun safety etc. I told them that the gun would move in their hand when fired, like they had seen in the movies, but it wouldnt hurt them and they wouldnt drop it if they held it properly. I hade gun-buddies raging me for starting timid ladies out on a "bucking demon" like the 10mm. But it seemed to work out very well, they both own guns now and enjoy target shooting. The 10mm dosnt kick that bad anyway. If they had been shooting .38 wadcutters all day, and then picked up the 10mm the perceaved recoil would have seemed much worse. 99% of recoil controle is mental. Ask folks that shy away from "hard kicking" guns like the 10 and 45 to describe what they experiance during recoil. Very seldom will they say painfull or even uncomfortable. I have found its the fear of recoil, noise and muzzle blast, not the actual kick that keeps most recoil-shy people from shooting major calibers. Put it out of your mind, focus on the sights and trigger controle, let recoil happen..dont even think about it prior to the shot. I'm not a big guy, about 6-2 135lbs, and not overly machismo or egotistical guy, but I find very few handguns uncomfortable to shoot. just dont psych yourself out, and dont let recoil scare you away from a fun new toy or effective tool.
You want to know the honest truth? I also have a 9mm P99 and unless I fire one right after the other, I cant tell a real diference in the 9mm and 10mm recoil. the 10mm is louder and has more muzzle blast, but as for what I actualy feel in the palm of my hand, there is negligable difference.
 
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