Hi Skyugo, my little R9 has been some of the absolute best gun money I have ever spent. When I bought it several years ago, I was so impressed with it's 100% reliability over (I would guess) about 900rounds or more, that I came close to buying a second gun; one for the range and one for carry. I absolutly loved shooting it as the accuracy I got out of it was so much better that I was able to do with any of the nine or ten snub nosed revolvers that I have owned over the years.
The gun is not designed to be shot a lot. When I took it to the range, I would shoot about three magazines and then swap it out with another pistol for awhile to let it cool off. I really liked shooting it so much that I figured I would just plan on wearing the gun out and having more of them. I do not shoot it so much anymore as I like to keep it clean and lubed-up so it is ready to go when I need a pocket gun. I still may pick up a second one as it is a bitch to field strip for cleaning.
It is my first pick for big projects on the house or yard where I may or may not wear a shirt or do not want to sweat all over my larger IWB carried guns. Pocket carry rarely if ever gets the gun sweaty, even in the summer here.
I shot about 240 to 300 rounds of the manufacturer recommended non+P 115 and 124 gr. Gold Dots and the rest of my ammo was all ball Georgia Arm, Winchester White Box etc. generic ball ammo.
My two spare six round magazines carry in my other front pocket in a chopped nylon Uncle Mike's double mag pouch that works for 1911 mags as well in my front pocket.
I have owned several short barreled pistols and to keep a reliable one reliable, magazine and recoil springs need to be replaced on a generous basis. When I bought the R9 (used, like new), I just ordered new mag springs and bought half a dozen extra recoil springs right off the bat.
Last edited by Hogsgunwild; 09-29-11 at 13:09.
I have been searching and found some model 10-7 2" that i think i will buy anyway if the price is right. what would be a good price?
"The strongest reason for the people to retain the right to keep and bear arms is, as a last resort, to protect themselves against tyranny in government."
Thomas Jefferson
I don't disagree ,the j frame is certainly easier to carry, but I had a hard time talking myself into anything but belt carry myself. I also had reservations about buying a gun that I would have to feed different ammo, train with differently, and most importantly learn to reload in a way entirely different from what I had been accustomed to.
I also already had a pair of Hackathorn sights from Ameriglo that I got as part of a trade-in, and a holster that fit the 26, and a buttload of 9mm...
it ended up being more economical in my particular shoes that day I went to the gun show, but I could see myself buying a j frame later on in my life.
j frame vs small auto breakdown in my experience:
mechanical accuracy- wheel gun better
practical accuracy shooter can get -auto better
concealability -edge to the auto
reliability edge to the revolver
quick relaod- edge to the auto
ease of maintaining/lieklihood of parts breakage-edge to revolver
so as you can see it is still a coin toss-my true "deep cover" gun is a seecamp-as you can see -auto
my next step up is a J-frame revolver.
Most people can shoot a small auto much better than a j frame. I grew up with wheel guns and can shoot a clean (300- 30x score on a b27 target) when our club does a police qual shoot with a smith 36.
I have also done the same with a glock 27.
The key to small guns working is practice. way too many people grab a j frame but only practice with full size guns, don't practice ankle or pocket draws and that won't make you effective with the snubby.
It was common in wheel gun days for detectives to show up on qual day with a 4 inch k or l frame qual then carry a snubby -they did this because the snubbies are harder to shoot well. practice with the snubby is the key
I have practiced dry and on the range well over one thousand presentations from my ankle holster with my j frame and once you get the system down it is pretty quick- nearly as quick as drawing a belt gun from true concealment.
I went through this decision loop myself recently, as related to my backup gun. For the last two years or so, I've been carrying a Kahr PM9 as a daily BUG, and have frequently extolled it's superiority to the J-frame vis-a-vis sights, trigger, recoil, capacity, reload speed, etc.
A couple of months back, though, I decided that I'd better go ahead and actually do some training with my PM9, beyond the twice a year required qual. What I found was that, for ME, while the PM9 still shoots better, I simply can't find a way to hold the pistol while running it at speed without occasionally hitting the magazine release inadvertently, which, of course, makes a disappointing "click" occur when you want a "bang." The real problem is, when combining my big hands with the PM9's small grip, and the relatively "soft" magazine release button, it's very easy to release the mag JUST ENOUGH that it drops out of lock, without falling free - causing a FTF (slide forward on an empty chamber).
This never happened to me during our relatively sedate qualification course, when I have time to get a careful grip on the pistol and make sure all the fundamentals are right. When doing fast draws from concealment under time pressure, and trying to engage multiple targets while moving (read death grip on the pistol from adrenalin dump), I found the above "failure" happened with distressing regularity.
So, after years of saying the PM9 is the best thing since sliced bread, I've gone back to the 642 for a BUG (the fact that Bud's LE had no-locks for a RIDICULOUS price helped the decision). Yes, I lost capacity, and shootability, and reload speed - but, I figure if I ever have to really pull my BUG, I HAVE TO have complete reliability - regardless of how I'm grabbing the pistol.
Now, if you're looking for a deep concealment PRIMARY handgun, and you honestly can't carry a real gun (think G19 size), the single stack 9mms make a lot more sense than a J-frame, if you can find one that works for you.
WRT the G26, I've owned several, and, honestly, never kept one more than a couple of months. In a good IWB holster, there's functionally no difference in concealability between it and a G19 - which happens to be my primary carry gun. The G26 is way too large for pocket carry, and, for me, too heavy to carry comfortably on the ankle all day, so it simply fills no role in my system.
Regards,
Kevin
Thanks Kevin - I think you hit on a big factor with small autos that many overlook. That comfort/confidence in using a J-frame has always been my impression with them, as well. I have discussed this time and again with others and it seems to fall on deaf ears. Although, I used to train a lot with a 442, others assume their small auto bug will handle the same under stress as the duty weapon - can't imagine a greater miscalculation. Yet, most find it difficult enough to get time in on the main gun. My choice has always been a j-frame for that reason. I personally don't like the way the single stack short grip frames feel and I never could develop a memory for that stress grab. Just not for me.
This x 1000. I have a little SP101 that can be clipped on to any pair of shorts here in TX IWB or pocket carry. When its 110 degrees a larger auto is tough to conceal. Yes the slim single stack high caps would be better--but they require "garb". those little revolvers are grab and go. Mine is even a bit larger than nessecary as I wanted to shoot .357 and still have wrists. An Airlite with 38+p would be even more portable.
I'm not usually an ammo snob either but no one (NO ONE!) recommends 380/9mm Mak. 38+p is where it starts.
Nothing against the little 9mm semi-autos either. If you find a good one that works, make it your carry piece.
Last edited by TXBob; 09-30-11 at 17:00.
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