I'd like to hear from MK23 Socom owners please!

[Mylhouse]

I had been saving up for a while for a hyper-accurate .45 or 10mm. I had a custom-made 1911 in mind (Double stack built on a STI frame and Caspian slide...$1500 range). Well, I found a deal on a HK Mark 23 in like-new condition that was too good to pass up, so I bought it.

I took it out shooting yesterday, and it shot great. As accurate or more accurate than anything I'VE ever shot. I found one thing disconcerting, however, and that was the fact that after only 150 rounds, the barrel was losing a lot of its finish. A couple of spots behind the o-ring, on the underneath where the recoil spring abuts it, and on the top of the barrel hood. Is this normal?

My next question is whether or not you fellow Socom owners think the beast REALLY IS as accurate as those well-fitted custom made pistols. They claim it in their literature, but I've never test driven a custom 1911 to its accuracy potential, so I wouldn't know.

Should I sell the HK and use the $$$ for the custom 1911? Or should I keep it? Selling it and buying 3 or 4 Glocks or whatever less expensive pistol is out of the question. I've got those bases covered, so please don't suggest that. I want to own at least one big $$$ pistol that will shoot like a laser beam and that I can be proud of when I open the safe...

Thanks for your input!

 

[ether]

I don't own a MK23, but I carry one on TV

If the MK23 shoots well for you, I'd keep it. I suspect your pistol had been fired very little before you got it. I also suspect you haven't fired many SIGs, Glocks, or HKs. The "chatter" your seeing on your barrel is very common to guns like these due to the way the barrel locks up with the slide. The muzzle locks up tightly with the end of the slide, and the finish on this area will wear the more you shoot it. When the slide recoils, it also rubs across the top of the barrel's chamber. SIG doesn't even bother bluing the tops of its chambers because this area comes into so much contact with the slide during recoil. If you ARE familiar with these pistols, and your MK23 is losing considerably more finish than these types of pistols normally do, then there might be something wrong.

 

[Robert the41MagFan]

As long as it is not actual metal being scraped off the barrel, there is no problem. Rubbing through the blueing is normal for a semi auto pistol. If it does seem excessive, it could be due to lack of proper lubrication of the barrel. There should be a very light coat of oil on the barrel.

Won't get into the likes and dislikes of this pistol. There are arguments that can be made that this gun is too large and not ergonomically friendly. Other like yourself making the claims of extreme accuracy. The romance of a particular firearm is just that. A romance! And you will know when you like something and when you don't. Don't let anyone convince you otherwise. You enjoy the pistol. Keep it! You don't, then get rid of it. Guns are just to expensive to own one that you don't truely enjoy.

Robert

 

[Mylhouse]

Thanks

Ether,

I'm VERY familiar with the guns you've mentioned. The barrel on the MK23 isn't blued, it is coated with a Roguard type finish.

Robert,

The non-blue coating is the reason for my quandry. I don't know if they wear differently (see: scrape and flake off), or if there is a potential problem. And believe me, I've never been known to UNDERlubricate my firearms. But I see your point about the "romance" of firearms and the lore surrounding them, and it's a good one.

 

[DAKODAKID]

I used to shoot only 1911's, my regular old
Colt 1991A1 and even the tricked out 1911 race
guns with all the bells and whistles..
The place where I shoot had the MK23 for rent
so after all that I read and heard about them
I shot it, continued to rent and shoot it etc.
I finally bought one and it IS as accurate as
the fancy 1911's (and more durable than any of
the raceguns based on the "torture tests")
Well, a couple years later and over 20,000 rounds
through mine it still shoots like NIB, barrel wear
and all..
Nothing beats a tuned 1911 trigger,
nothing even comes close,
but since I got my MK23 my 1911's
sleep in my gunsafe...
Oh yeah, the MK23 is one incredible machine...
My favorite all time handgun with only the P7
coming 2nd with the 1911 coming in at 3rd place.
I have a big time "romance" with my MK23 and they
do like to run "dry"...Don't over lube...
As far as the "Its too big' argument, It is also
my petite wife's favorite pistol which really
suprised me the 1st time she shot it,and my 14 year
old sons favorite also...

Did I mention that I love this pistol....lol

 

[Mylhouse]

Dakodakid

Thanks for replying to my query both here and on HKPRO. I knew that before too long, you'd get your 2 cents in! I've followed your posts for awhile, and noticed that just as Ala Dan is a HUGE Sig 220(A) advocate, you are a HUGE HK .45 (namely MK23) advocate. I find it interesting that since you've gotten a couple of P7s, that you feel the P7 is the only pistol more accurate than your Socom. Both during shooting off a rest or shooting free hand, I found that the Socom was noticeably more accurate (and precise) in my hands (I brought both to compare).

And BTW, my wife thought it shot like a dream also. She said, "It doesn't feel or shoot as big as it looks!" Just because of the way it looked, she was scared, thinking it was going to be like shooting a .454 Casull! Apparently, so did the slack-jawed onlooker in the stall next to us!

 

[krept]

Definately keep it. Heck, aren't they going to be discontinued soon? I'm sure 1911 race guns are going to be around forever.

 

[DAKODAKID]

Hey Mylhouse, I am still not used to the
trigger on my P7 but it is still more accurate
than my MK23.
I have never shot my pistols from a rest, I kindof
feel like that is cheating. lol
I went shooting after work (12 hour day) and was
practicing shooting the MK23 in double action only
left hand and right hand with the support hand.
I was mentally and physcially drained and could
not concentrate good enough to get good trigger
control in single action. (hey, you gotta learn to
shoot under all conditions)
I still got decent groups but not the tight little
groups that I can usually do...
I guess this is my $.04 worth...lol
Welcome to the world of the MK23!!!!!