Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns 2019 Handgun Surprises?

Pick one, if you have one.

For me it was the S&W Shield 45acp.


I haven't owned a semi-auto in 45acp since the early 90's. I bought a Shield this spring and was very impressed with how well it shot, ease of carry and how easy it is to control.

Handgun dots. I shot with them almost exclusively in 2019 and I’ve been surprised at what a tremendous difference they’ve made, and how minimal the drawbacks have been.

What is a handgun dot?

Red dot on a handgun

Thanks! I’ve been looking at those.

More of a confirmation than a true surprise, but the Sig P365 was exceeded my expectations.

The Sig P365 was definately a surprise. Very compact high capacity and easy to hit with.

Ditto. Trying to determine the best way to affix a Fastfire to a Glock 19, that ain't MOS from the factory.

Still have a hard time with the idea of them not coming apart with the 'back and forth' of the slide. But if blue says they are good, that works for me.

I bought a Shield 45acp when they first came out and agree with your assessment of it...

Edit to add: guess I should include the same about the Sig P365 I picked up recently...

I did a lot of shuffling in my firearms collection this year and ended up buying three S&W revolvers that I've wanted for years- well, sort of.

Got a model 60 in 3", which is what I've wanted for years. Opened up the rear sight, painted the front sight, changed grips, worked over the action. Love it- no surprise.

I'd always read great things in my youth about the "K-22 Masterpiece" and it's accuracy and hoped to own one one day. I did buy a 6", 10 shot 617 about 15 years ago and decided it wasn't accurate enough, and was way too heavy, so I sold it. Recently I toyed with the idea of buying a used model 17, but common stories of sticky extraction and knowing that S&W no longer warrantied them, scared me. Additionally, research for hard data beyond, "it shoots better than I do" or "when I do my part.." which seems to litter all the discussions about them on forums, indicated to me that maybe they never were quite as accurate as I remembered- or maybe the gun writers back then got hand picked samples. But I bought a new 4" 617 anyway, opened up the rear sight window, and worked over the action. I was fairly happy- again, no surprise, but I've also always really wanted a 4" model 63.

I thought having the 617 would stave off my desire for the 63, but it didn't. For awhile, the 63 came in a 5" model, but I never liked the looks of it. S&W discontinued that and now they only come in a 3" model. I'd always envisioned the 4" model as the quintessential outdoorsman's gun and loved the look it had. I watched the sales on Gunbroker for months and shopped at gun shows, but they always sold for way more than I wanted to pay- usually in the $700+ range.

I finally took the plunge and bought a new 3" 63, opened up the rear sight window, (it came with a fiber optic front sight which I loved), played with a bunch of different coil springs, changed grips, and.. I love it! Way more than I thought I would. In fact, after shooting both the 4" 617 and the 3" 63 for hundreds of rounds each, I greatly prefer the feel of the 63. Then, I decided to do a side by side shoot to measure my practical field accuracy. To make sure it was even, I decided to compare 40 round, two hand groups. 40 rounds was chosen because it was the lowest common denominator of full cylinders- the 63 is an 8 shot, the 617 is a 10 shot. Turned out that I shot them both exactly the same. I did it 3 times each to make sure the first wasn't a fluke, same results. Now I'm left questioning whether I even really need the 617.

Another mention of the 365 Sig. I got one a few months ago and it's now my EDC. I'd looked at several of the new class of small, easily concealed, good capacity 9X19's before choosing. The Sig is just an all-around solid choice. Mechanically it has been flawless. It has a very solid seeming physical presence and gives me plenty to hang onto for shooting, but at the same time disappears in a strong side, behind the hip, IWB holster. I don't even know it's there, it's not even a problem driving. Very happy with it.

Didn't like the two tone of the new Glock 48 but loved the concept. I was about to cave when they came out with one in all one color. One of the first kids on my block to get one & I love it.

I don't know about surprised, but I'm happy with my latest handgun purchase.

Mine has been the M&P45 2.0 Compact. Its only compact in barrel length, same grip/magazine as the full size. Its a real beast without the associated recoil.

Pleasantly surprised by the quality, trigger and accuracy of the American-made SIG P-210.
Bob

Ditto! - On the 9MM, Sig P-210 Target. It wasn't a surprise as I've always wanted a Sig P-210.

I found it amongst a special display of high end and custom 1911's at Scheels and the
Sig was the least expensive pistol of the lot. I got more than a fair trade for the guns
that I brought in.

So I then I went home for a couple more firearms and traded in for a new
S&W Model 41 Target pistol, .22 LR. I haven't compared the two new pistols
side by side but they look similar in size and both are drop-dead-gorgeous
in appearance.

I have shot both separately under outdoor-cold-windy Dakota winter weather conditions
and I am way more than satisfied with everything about these two handguns.


Sig P-210 Target:
https://www.sigsauer.com/store/p210-target.html

S&W M-41 Target:
https://www.smith-wesson.com/firearms/model-41

I caved in and bought a two tone. I wished that I had waited for an all black one but it's not worth trading it in.

Without it being an MOS you’d have to get it milled. A local shop here did mine and cerakoted the slide for $180ish.

I’ve seen some Burris dots fail and it wouldn’t be my first choice. A few friends have used them as a “proof of concept” optic to make sure they liked the idea and then upgraded to a better dot.

Might be worth it to have the slide milled to accept adapter plates. Then you can use whatever dot you decide you like. And with plates it would be easier to resale later if you decided to.

My 2019 handgun surprise was finding a 1971 manufactured Colt Detective Special in almost new condition.

It'll be carried a LOT now, as a back up for my Sig P-365.

Always wanted one of these, and now I finally own one.

Virgil B.

My 2019 surprise was I decided I would try switching over to polymer striker-fired guns for regular use after using DA/SA or DAO metal framed guns for a long time, and I actually found a couple (CZ P-10 and Steyr M9A1) that I actually liked the triggers on.

With lots of rumors of impending gun control coming in 2020 in Colorado, I spent money on guns and ammo I normally wouldn't have. PC L Comp, Colt Custom Shop Rail Gun Commander, and both flavors of G48's. Of those, I shoot the Rail Gun the best.

Rumor is Colt will reintroduce the Python at the 2020 shot show. I will probably purchased the Glock 44 though.