Shane Tuttle
Staff
Went to a couple of shops that rented guns recently. Three guns are up for informal review and not so sure opinions. Keep in mind that 1 of the 3 guns was just plain abused. This is just a brief overview of what I experienced. I left out intricate details since there's 3 guns I tried and wanted to keep it short at first until the conversation gets going.
1. M&P40: I kept putting it off trying out the M&P. I finally gave in. I did notice muzzle flip was a bit milder than my XD, but not by very much. I actually liked my XD better in almost every regard over the M&P. Most of it is probably familiarity. The backstrap installed definitely didn't fit my hand very well and wasn't as comfortable to shoot as I had hoped. The trigger break was very consistent, though. A little heavy, but smooth and consistent. I can see where most people claiming that the trigger smooths out after 200 rounds are talking about. I didn't care for the magazine disconnect location. It popped the mag loose twice during firing. The gun itself shot very accurately, even when I started to speed up my string of shots.
Overall, I do see where people really like this gun. I'm not clamouring over it, but I do like it.
2. CZ P01: Unlike the CZ 75 (for some reason I honestly don't know why), the P01 fit VERY well in my hands. The ergonomics on the grip was outstanding. The trigger wasn't the best in the world. The typical narrow slide design of CZ isn't my cup of tea. There just isn't enough meat to rack the slide effortlessly. No news there. I'm sure the steel frame certainly helped, but the recoil was very, very mild. Accuracy was very good.
I don't think the P01 is my cup of tea for concealed carry due to certain unfavorable features. But for a range gun, I'd be happy with it. Although, it makes me want the AR24 instead...
3. Walther P99: This gun looked and felt like it was gone through a torture test 5 times over. It was beat up worse than Joe Louis after his fight with Rocky Marciano. The trigger was TERRIBLE. Its accuracy was mediocre at best at the beginning. As time went on, it went to the toilet. The spread was 5 inches at 25 feet. It malfunctioned 3 times in 100 rounds. It felt good in my hand, but wasn't very comfortable to shoot. I couldn't finish my range time fast enough.
I hated this gun. I think the majority of the problems was it was a worn out abused gun. It really turned me off.
1. M&P40: I kept putting it off trying out the M&P. I finally gave in. I did notice muzzle flip was a bit milder than my XD, but not by very much. I actually liked my XD better in almost every regard over the M&P. Most of it is probably familiarity. The backstrap installed definitely didn't fit my hand very well and wasn't as comfortable to shoot as I had hoped. The trigger break was very consistent, though. A little heavy, but smooth and consistent. I can see where most people claiming that the trigger smooths out after 200 rounds are talking about. I didn't care for the magazine disconnect location. It popped the mag loose twice during firing. The gun itself shot very accurately, even when I started to speed up my string of shots.
Overall, I do see where people really like this gun. I'm not clamouring over it, but I do like it.
2. CZ P01: Unlike the CZ 75 (for some reason I honestly don't know why), the P01 fit VERY well in my hands. The ergonomics on the grip was outstanding. The trigger wasn't the best in the world. The typical narrow slide design of CZ isn't my cup of tea. There just isn't enough meat to rack the slide effortlessly. No news there. I'm sure the steel frame certainly helped, but the recoil was very, very mild. Accuracy was very good.
I don't think the P01 is my cup of tea for concealed carry due to certain unfavorable features. But for a range gun, I'd be happy with it. Although, it makes me want the AR24 instead...
3. Walther P99: This gun looked and felt like it was gone through a torture test 5 times over. It was beat up worse than Joe Louis after his fight with Rocky Marciano. The trigger was TERRIBLE. Its accuracy was mediocre at best at the beginning. As time went on, it went to the toilet. The spread was 5 inches at 25 feet. It malfunctioned 3 times in 100 rounds. It felt good in my hand, but wasn't very comfortable to shoot. I couldn't finish my range time fast enough.
I hated this gun. I think the majority of the problems was it was a worn out abused gun. It really turned me off.