Glock, ruger, or s&w?

[Trojan2184]

Hi all, I live in Illinois and am applying for my CCL. I have done a good bit of shopping around and have narrowed my choices for CC down to either the ruger sr9c, glock 26 or 27, and s&w mp shield....I have held, and fired each and each has positives and negatives. Just wondering what other's thoughts were....thanks!

 

[bolson]

Last year I faced the same decision......although I had narrowed it down to different pistols. I had decided I wanted a single stack 9 for comfort, so I excluded the glock pretty early in my process. I considered the xds, the taurus 709, ruger, kahr cw/cm, and the shield because they were in the price range I had in mind. For the money I may have got the ruger, but I couldn't get over the trigger, taurus felt good but also bad trigger and mixed reviews kept me away....ultimately I decided on the shield, $100+ less than the xds, decent trigger and I have no regrets. Recently my brother got the xds and we did a little comparison, before I was a little worried that after shooting it I may regret not buying it. That didn't happen, xds is a fine pistol, but not $120 better than the s&w, not any better really imo.

More important than what I think, you've handled 'em, what do you think? I'm curious to hear your pro's and con's.

 

[KevinD]

Honestly, with good carry gear (DON'T CHEAP OUT ON YOUR BELT OR HOLSTER!), you can carry a full size pistol way easier than you think, and thus any of your choices should be fine. I would stay 9mm because it's easier and cheaper to shoot with negligible differences in terminal effect, plus higher capacity. The Glock is a great gun and has higher capacity than the other two. It's simple and well supported. If lack of a safety bothers you, get a S&W M&P9c with a thumb safety, which is what my wife did.

No matter what you end up with, buy lots of ammo and good support gear. Put it through it's paces to prove it's reliability to you and carry with confidence. Also, no one else knows and they're not all staring at you... which will make sense the first day you carry.

 

[FL180]

Of the ones you listed I would chose the G26. Nice and small, good amount of ammo, will accept larger capacity magazines and 9mm is just as good as .40 but it's cheaper and you can carry more rounds in any given gun.

I would also add the XDs 9mm in either 3.3" or 4" barrel. 7+1 or 9+1 w extended magazine. This gun is just as small as the G26 but MUCH thinner! It's easier to conceal which means you will carry it more often. I have an XDs in .45 and love it, but every once in a while wish I'd gotten the 9mm version.

I'm also in Illinois and waiting for my license to be approved and mailed!

 

[farsidefan1]

I have the glock 26 (among others) so I'm not an unbiased person. I like the glock due to a consistent trigger pull with a short reset. The safety is between my ears. I also love the simplicity of breaking down and cleaning a glock. Simplicity is always your friend.

I am not a huge fan of the 40's. I had a glock 23 for 15 years and put thousands of rounds through it (without a hitch) but I find I'm better on follow up shots with the 9.

Also the glock 26 is NEVER a weapon anyone looks back on and says, "I made a mistake". None of the weapons you are thinking about is "wrong" so you will not lose out regardless of your decision.

 

[Bill Amsden]

G26 is my EDC of choice at this time, many others in the safe but this works and feels the best for me. My spare mag is a G17 mag on opposite side of my hip. Your choice, whatever you shoot the best and are most comfortable with is the one you should get.

 

[SR9]

I have had a Ruger SR9 full size for about 4+ years. It is my everyday concealed carry pistol. They hadn't come out with the SR9C when I bought, but I'm glad I got the big brother. I has a capacity of 17+1 rounds. I carry a spare mag most of the time. It is available in a 10+1 round version. I have 2 17 round mags. and 2 10 round mags. My state doesn't have a 10 limit, yet. but just in case I have them. As I said I carry all day everyday. I use a Deep Comfort, Pro Carry holster from theholsterstore.com in Florida. great gun, great holster. Go for it.

 

[Kennydale]

My first choice was the SR40C. At 62 shooting a handgun for the first time. I thought i would gravitate to the 9mm as being a softer recoil. I shot an experienced friends 9mm and 40S&W Rugers. I just fell in love with the .40S&W. One of the drawbacks of the SR40 & SR9 is the recoil spring is rather tight. It becomes a chore at first to rack the slide. (Not a bad idea to keep gun stored over night with slide locked open, at least till it becomes easier to pull back on it. and believe me it does become easier). The Ruger has by many people's opinion, way too many safeties on it. The manual safety for me as a new shooter, was something i wanted. It is easy thumb release but takes practice. The Ruger has a trigger safety like the Glock. The only safety they have that I dislike is the Magazine release safety (If mag falls out accidentally you can't fire off bullet in chamber). At $399 my Ruger was a good price. For my next firearm i would consider a gun without a manual safety. I like the M&P40C for that (Shields have manual safeties).

 

[Rocketgeezer]

All fine weapons, in fact I have a G26 and a 27, and have shot the Ruger and the Smith, if your looking for max concealment I would say the Shield, shooting at the range go with the Ruger or G26 the 27 has a bit to much muzzle flip and recoil to do well at the range, now some guys do great with the 27, and it is a 40 which has a bit more firepower than the others, as far as I know there is no issues with any of them so it would boil down to which ever one YOU like the best,

 

[BUmmedic]

Having owned (and carried) Springfields, Rugers, and Glocks, I can speak to several of your possible choices. First, as KevinD said and SR9 attested to above, with the right gear you can conceal almost anything, and do so comfortably and confidently. I've carried a full-size 1911, 3.8" XD(M), 3.3" XD-S, SR9c, and Glock 19 and 26. I have consolidated to 9mm for those reasons listed above and more, and my EDC now is the 4" Glock 19. I don't own Springfields anymore, although I still do love them, but have consolidated down to the two Glocks, and a couple of Rugers (the SR9c... which is a great firearm... and soon an LC9, although this is planned as my wife's EDC). I never liked the way the S&Ws felt in my hands, so I can't speak to the M&P line or the Shield. The Springfields are incredibly soft shooting guns, and IMHO, are very well-built. I just couldn't see keeping them around with the Glocks, which seem to now fit me better (and my wife), and you can't beat the simplicity or the reputation. For the price ($400 OTD at my dealer), please check out the SR9c... you'd be hard-pressed to find more gun for your money, and you get a flush 10rd mag with a 17rd backup in a very concealable package... accurate as hell, feels very comfortable to carry and shoot in my hands, and seemingly won't die no matter what people try to do to it... and hey, made in the USA. In the end, it's a very personal choice, and I can't tell you what to get. You need to see them, feel them, and shoot them (hopefully you have some place that will let you). Just know that size isn't the end-all-be-all, as you can hide anything if you do it right.

 

[RobbK]

I would go with the SR-9c , S&W M&P c. or a Springfield XD-SC. the fact you can put a full size mag/grip is more handy than it might at first seem. Personally I own the Springfields

 

[Stengun]

Howdy,

I own 4 Glocks, 0 Rugers, and 0 S&W autos ( one old 70's Model 15 38 Special ).

My Glocks are 2-.40S&W, a 10mm and a .45acp and zero 9mm.

I'm just not a fan of the 9mm.

Someone said not to go cheap on a holster and carry belt and I disagree.

I carry all of my Glocks in a $15.00 Glock holster ( one of them is over 15 years old and still looks new ) and a $15.00 belt from either WalMart or Academy Sports. I wear either a Wrangler or a Dickie's belt, nothing fancy or high dollar, but you do have to get one that's stiff and will NOT roll over top to bottom.

I also carry OWB and have been carrying Glocks this way for 21 years.

Paul

 

[Matt.Trump]

I would probably stick with a Ruger they are reasonably priced, also they are used about as much in competition shooting as Smith & Wesson. Always admire the revolvers...

 

[Chrisdrummer]

I've always been a big fan of Springfield XD's but yesterday, following a five month wait, finally scored the Glock 30S I've been wanting. Not only was is discounted bye $50, but there was a free range bag promotion going on and the bag itself was really nice. To ice the cake, they had Federal Hydra-Shock in stock. Knowing I was on the list I got the Crossbreed holster and 100 rd. of FMJ for Christmas.

Back to your question; A long-time XD fan, I had to admit to myself that my groups were much tighter with my buddy's 9mm Glock than with my XD9 I was planning on getting an XDs when the Glock 30S came out, so I got on the list. Sunday I'll see how this Glock compares and will post something.

 

[RobbK]

I've always been a big fan of Springfield XD's but yesterday, following a five month wait, finally scored the Glock 30S I've been wanting. Not only was is discounted bye $50, but there was a free range bag promotion going on and the bag itself was really nice. To ice the cake, they had Federal Hydra-Shock in stock. Knowing I was on the list I got the Crossbreed holster and 100 rd. of FMJ for Christmas.

Back to your question; A long-time XD fan, I had to admit to myself that my groups were much tighter with my buddy's 9mm Glock than with my XD9 I was planning on getting an XDs when the Glock 30S came out, so I got on the list. Sunday I'll see how this Glock compares and will post something.

ACK you have a glockfection treat with liberal use of your XD and hopefully it will clear up if not you will sadly be lost to the glockside forever shooting the same gun no matter what model it is!!!

LOL hope you enjoy your G30

 

[Chrisdrummer]

Okay, RobbK you got me. I'm well aware of all the Glock fanboys out there, but I don't see myself becoming one Took the Glock to the range today. It performed as expected. It's the first polymer .45 I've ever shot and I liked it much better than the 1911's I've shot in that caliber perviously. At 15 yds. I did pretty good, but am still adjusting to the trigger. The size was a bit awkward for me at first since I'm used to shooting the larger XD. Finally quit trying to force my will on the gun and just gripped it comfortably and went with the flow. By far, it's my most comfortable carry piece in its Crossbreed Super Tuck, combat cut. I always carried the XD at 4:00 o'clock, but for some reason the 30s feels better at 3:00.

I will not be abandoning my other guns, since my selection is based upon caliber, rather than brand. I'll still plink with the M&P/Walther .22, the XD9 will remain in my nightstand safe, but the .Bodyguard .380 will rarely see the light of day now. I was never crazy about it anyway, but if nothing else, it was small. I would think that most shooters would have a gun that worked its way into last place with regard to preference. That one is mine.


That's it in a nutshell. I have a new carry piece and still like the others in my safe for various reasons specific to the gun. Good job, Glock.

Oh....now the wife wants on, too. To go with her XD compact, XD sub-compact, both Smith Bodyguards (wheel & semi) and her AR.

 

[Pir8fan]

Hi all, I live in Illinois and am applying for my CCL. I have done a good bit of shopping around and have narrowed my choices for CC down to either the ruger sr9c, glock 26 or 27, and s&w mp shield....I have held, and fired each and each has positives and negatives. Just wondering what other's thoughts were....thanks!

I couldn't decide so I have the lc9, the 30s and the m&p.

 

[Redtape]

I also faced a similar decision about a year ago and I ended up buying a nice gun that I love, but it's too big to carry all the time. I found myself leaving it at home or in the car because it was too heavy and bulky (over 20 oz.). I came to the conclusion that a carry gun that's sitting in the car doesn't accomplish my objective of having a full time carry gun. Therefore, I'm currently in the market for a smaller, lighter, pocket pistol that I can carry comfortably all the time. There are a lot of pocket pistols out there, but I think I've settled S & W, M&P Bodyguard (when I can get one). There are many other good guns available, but I stray from my point.

Now for the part that will draw a lot of flak my way........... I also insist on having a manual safety on any gun that I am going to put in my pants. A lot of better shooters than I will begrudge me that opinion, but it is going to be in my pants and not theirs. I don't understand why they are so down on a manual safety's when you don't have to set the safety "on" if you so desire. Anyway that rules out a lot of guns from my prospective, and that includes all the Glocks and a lot of other fine guns unfortunately. I like the new Glock 42, but..........

Considerations not to overlook, 1) size, and 2) safety.

 

[BUmmedic]

Glock, ruger, or s&w?

I'm not a big big guy (5'10" and 220#) and can and do comfortably conceal a Glock 19 with an extra mag on my weak side hip. In fact, fell asleep on my weak side today on the couch and woke up on my strong side. Nothing felt incredibly jabby. I haven't had to change pant or belt sizes, and I didn't have to make a lot of wardrobe adjustments (not tucking, etc.).

I don't think I would ever conceal or carry anything chambered in less than 9mm, and always something that will accept an extra-capacity full-size backup mag. If it's my G19, I have 15+1 loaded and an extra 15, G26 gives 12+1 and an extra 15 (G19 mag with an X-grip), and SR9c gives 10+1 and an extra 17.

I did carry XD-S's for a while in both 45ACP and 9mm, with the standard mags +1 loaded and two extra capacity mags as backups. Even though concealing them was definitely easier and "more" comfortable, between less rounds, possibly needing two reloads, the recall, and the already-experienced comfort of concealing a double stack, I felt the little bit of extra comfort was not benefit enough.

 

[martyay]

I have an LC9 and like it except for the long trigger pull. I'm still trying to get used to it.