View Full Version : 9mm: P30 or M&P
Deciding between the P30 LEM or 4.25" M&P. I own the P30's bigger brother, the HK45. I also carry a 9mm P2000sk V2 LEM daily. From a training POV, P30 seems the way to go. BUT M&P is cheaper in general and has better aftermarket support. I'm going to make a purchase in the next week. I just want you guy's opinions on both.
Jay Cunningham
05-15-10, 07:05
Dude,
They're both good guns. All you're going to get with this poll are people's personal preference.
I like to stick with the same platform for practice, training and carrying for familiarity and commonality. Unless you're thinking of transitioning to the M&P (or if you just want to expand the collection) get the P30.
Yes the M&P is great handgun with more aftermarket support but the P30 is probably the best built 9mm handgun available and since you've already got a vested interest in H&Ks I think it would be wise to stick with them.
Robb Jensen
05-15-10, 07:20
Deciding between the P30 LEM or 4.25" M&P. I own the P30's bigger brother, the HK45. I also carry a 9mm P2000sk V2 LEM daily. From a training POV, P30 seems the way to go. BUT M&P is cheaper in general and has better aftermarket support. I'm going to make a purchase in the next week. I just want you guy's opinions on both.
Since you already own and use HKs it's a no brainer get the HK. Consistency is the key.
I like my"Apexed" M&P 9L very much! but given your comments, I'd go with the HK. Get the M&P down the road at some point.
Agree with all the comments above - the ONLY reason I would give in favor of the M&P vs the HK is for PSHTF type scenario where you cannot send your HK back to get serviced when a part breaks. Unless you know someone with some pretty good connections you cannot get spare parts for your HK P30.
With the M&P you can buy and stock all the spares yourself.
But for commonality for carry and duty - stick with what you currently own/carry.
cheers
tire iron
really just gonna mirror what everyone else has said. If you already have an affinity for HK and carry them daily then you might as well stick with what you know. Just my two cents
CaptainDooley
05-15-10, 10:21
I own the M&P and love it, but voted for the HK because you already have a large investment in that platform and it just makes sense to stick with it.
this is more of a "truck or SUV" type question than a "ford or chevy".
IMO, more appropriate are comparisons between M&P and Glock, and between H&K and SIG or CZ.
Agree with all the comments above - the ONLY reason I would give in favor of the M&P vs the HK is for PSHTF type scenario where you cannot send your HK back to get serviced when a part breaks. Unless you know someone with some pretty good connections you cannot get spare parts for your HK P30.
With the M&P you can buy and stock all the spares yourself.
But for commonality for carry and duty - stick with what you currently own/carry.
cheers
tire iron
I would argue that the HK is more bomb proof and less likely to break. Also I ordered a USP mainspring housing piece, and a hammer, directly from the factory, with no problems.
if you can swing it go HK. the P30 is a really sweet gun, and you are already familiar with the platform.
that said the M&P's are very sweet. in 9mm i prefer the glock as far as striker fired polymer guns though.
Thanks for the responses guys. Seems everyone is giving the nod P30. I dryfired a buddy's P30 yesterday, and shot a APEXed M&P9(w/ Warren Tacticals) on Thursday, it shot pretty well.
I would say the M&P would need some stippling as the P30 could go without it out of the box. In the end, paying for stippling would put the M&P at where the P30 is. It makes more sense going P30. You guys are right about my affinity for HK. In addition to the HK45/P2ksk, I used to CCW a USP45c and also own a USP40c. I really do agree, that parts are easy to get for HKs, as many places stock them.
Seems like a P30 is going to be added to the stable :D.
Any more opinions would still be appreciated, as I will be checking up on the thread before I make a purchase. I will also be shooting some IDPA/USPSA with it, so any input on that would be greatly appreciated also. Thanks again guys.
After taking a class with Mr. Hackathorn a few weeks ago and listening to him praise the P30 I'm going to buy a P30S as soon as they're available.
Since you already have an HK45, the P30 makes the most sense.
Buy the P30. You are going to love the why she shoots. No Compromise.
I'm surprised at the amount of votes for the M&P considering the OP already owns and uses a number of H&K products :confused:
The M&P is a fine handgun and my daily carry, but there's no reason not to have some consistency, unless you're just looking to add to your collection or something.
BUT M&P is cheaper in general
Do what I do when buying a gun: when it comes down to a couple hundred $, cross that factor off your list.
The gun itself is the cheap part of shooting. .
Now, since you already own a couple of other HK pistols, then the P30 would be the logical way to go.
There isn't any issues with 147gr ammo, it isn't a P7. I have shot a few thousand 147gr rounds through my fleet of P30s without issue.
Maybe i took that one failure to feed, too much to heart. I do prefer 147gr in 9mm.
If cost is not a factor, stay with H&K. The P30 is a nice pistol and does not deviate from what you already have.
I think an MP45 or HK45 is a good debate, as is MP40 or P30 .40.
IMO, Glock is still king of the 9mm. Everone should own one. If cost is a big factor, check out a G34 or G17 if you haven't already. Inexpensive, easy to find parts, mags and equipment.
Do what I do when buying a gun: when it comes down to a couple hundred $, cross that factor off your list.
The gun itself is the cheap part of shooting. .
Now, since you already own a couple of other HK pistols, then the P30 would be the logical way to go.
If cost is not a factor, stay with H&K. The P30 is a nice pistol and does not deviate from what you already have.
I think an MP45 or HK45 is a good debate, as is MP40 or P30 .40.
IMO, Glock is still king of the 9mm. Everone should own one. If cost is a big factor, check out a G34 or G17 if you haven't already. Inexpensive, easy to find parts, mags and equipment.
Cost is really not a factor. Otherwise, I'd be on some other polymer platform(Glock) before I went HK. I couldn't stand Glock ergos, and that is why I was seeing you guys opinions on the M&P, due to it's improved ergos over glock, seeing if it was a viable platform for switching from the HK platform. From all the responses, it seems it's best to stick with the HK platform. I do think the P30 has better ergos than the M&P, since the small backstrap for the M&P seemed a little big even compared to the medium on the P30.
As for the M&P, I do plan one on getting one sometime down the road, as I do think it is a really nice piece of kit.
I hate both platforms. But, between the two, get the H&K.
John_Wayne777
05-16-10, 11:10
TheKatar is right...a lot of it will boil down to personal preferences based on factors unique to the individual. I'm already heavily invested in the M&P...so for me changing to another gun would be a pain. It's far from a perfect platform, but they generally do work and they are really easy to shoot well. You can customize one pretty easily and they generally don't require a lot of tlc to keep working.
The P30 may be the best built, best engineered handgun on the market. With the LEM trigger system it is a superb handgun. If I didn't have the M&P as an alternative to 9mm Glocks I would go with the P30. I've spent a fair amount of trigger time behind the P30 and I've grown to like it quite a bit.
In general what I want in a handgun is for it to work out of the box to keep working with little maintenance over a lot of rounds, and to "fit" me well enough that I don't bleed too much when I shoot it and don't have major issues with the controls. Those requirements can be met by either the M&P or the P30.
My advice? If you find the HK45 to your liking, buy two P30s, the requisite carry and support gear, and then as much ammo and training as you can afford. Learn to use it well. Then pretty much forget about habdguns unless you identify a gap in your carry that a new gun will fill.
Love the P30 although I'm really enjoying my G4 Glock 17's right now. As JW said, seriously consider LEM trigger, they seem to be much more available recently. Mags are not as hard to find or as expensive as HK 45 mags so stock up. I have not had issues with weak ammo but it does like 124gr. NATO 124 is great for this pistol since it's basically +P. Parts are nowhere near hard to find as they used to be. Consider the Heinie Quik sights. Too bad Warren doesn't make sights for this pistol but the Heinies are pretty close. It's a very accurate pistol that reeks of quality manufacturing. Raven holsters are great if you are willing to wait but Comp-Tac also makes a variety of holsters. Buying two is also good advice. Oh and clean and lube it well before first shooting as HK puts that sticky grease on their P30's. Seems like much more on those than on new HK45's. I think that and getting used to the long slide release may be the major source of new P30 complaints.
Dragon Slayer
05-16-10, 18:26
I would take a Glock 19 over either one of them, but if the choice is between the two I rather have the M&P. The reason is if you develop a problem with the HK you are going to have a terrible time with their customer service and availability of parts.
A couple friends that had HK's and had problems with the guns had incredible problems with customer service and one of them was a P30.
Even some police departments and state patrol's are getting rid of the HK's. Another factor is price and availability of parts.
Just my opinion.
Again....parts are no longer an issue. I am familiar with the parts situations of the past, including for military customers but that has been fixed in the last year or so. Finally.
HK customer service has also improved, now its merely mediocre instead of godawful. I keep looking for some sign that HK's entry into U.S. manufacturing has meant a more meaningful improvement in CS. I see some indications it has. Not enough yet, but some.
...
My advice? If you find the HK45 to your liking, buy two P30s, the requisite carry and support gear, and then as much ammo and training as you can afford. Learn to use it well. Then pretty much forget about habdguns unless you identify a gap in your carry that a new gun will fill.
My HK45 is tack driver and a great gun overall. The best combat .45 out there IMO. It was reason why I'm considered going P30. I am planning to get two P30s and focus my funds elsewhere. Holsters-wise, I have about 3 CTACs for other guns and have a MTAC on the way for the HK45. Probably will have CTAC/MTAC for IWB work. Considering getting a Raven, and probably will for OWB duty. The Comptacs can tide me over the crazy wait time.
Again....parts are no longer an issue. I am familiar with the parts situations of the past, including for military customers but that has been fixed in the last year or so. Finally.
HK customer service has also improved, now its merely mediocre instead of godawful. I keep looking for some sign that HK's entry into U.S. manufacturing has meant a more emanigful improvement in CS. I see some indications it has. Not enough yet, but some.
Yeah, parts aren't that hard to get. HK CS has improved, and even HK President, Wayne Weber, said it was something that he was going to address and improve.
I own the M&P and I recently purchased a M&P C, that being said I still want a P30S :D
I'm a little biased towards the P30. I've put just over 10,000 rounds through two different P30s (one DA/SA and one LEM) over the past 4 months without a single issue and very little maintenance. The ergonomic design and the LEM trigger has been great.
Meanwhile, the increasing number of documented issues with M&Ps (and 4th Gen Glocks) makes me very hesitant to consider a new-production striker-fired pistol. It seems like a lot of guns are going back to S&W for a fairly wide range of issues. However, there are a lot of very proficient shooters and highly-regarded instructors who swear by M&Ps, which obviously says a lot.
All I can really tell you is the P30 is an excellent pistol and it carries a superb reputation for design and quality. You simply don't see any "issue threads" for the P30 like those you see for Sigs, M&Ps, Glocks, etc.
Good to hear the CS has improved at HK. Since parts don't seem to be an issue - I see absolutely no reason to move away from the HK platform.
cheers
tire iron
gtmtnbiker98
05-17-10, 07:10
Good to hear the CS has improved at HK. Since parts don't seem to be an issue - I see absolutely no reason to move away from the HK platform.
cheers
tire ironAbsolutely no issue, outside of personal preference for something new.
I hope I don't sidetrack this thread, but I don't really believe that parts are non-issue with HK.
Year ago it took a month to replace a FP bushing on my P7 under lifetime warranty; there were none available elsewhere.
Month ago I asked them if it would be possible to buy spare slide release levers for P30. No, not available, don't know when.
Color me skeptical.
The P7 has not been made for some time so you can't expect parts availability from anywhere.
HK is not the only source of HK parts. For example.
http://www.hkparts.net/shop/pc/HK-P30-Parts-c205.htm
I don't normally go straight to the manufacturer of any firearm when looking for parts. It takes too long.
TheSmiter1
05-17-10, 10:15
The P7 has not been made for some time so you can't expect parts availability from anywhere.
HK is not the only source of HK parts. For example.
http://www.hkparts.net/shop/pc/HK-P30-Parts-c205.htm
I don't normally go straight to the manufacturer of any firearm when looking for parts. It takes too long.
If you can buy them at all from the manufacturer, that's a plus. I tried to order a part from Glock (trigger bar w/ trigger), and was denied. I thought most firearms manufacturers do this?
There are people who know a lot more about buying parts on this forum than me. I'm only concerned with my personal needs. So maybe one of them will chime in.
The P7 has not been made for some time so you can't expect parts availability from anywhere.
HK is not the only source of HK parts. For example.
http://www.hkparts.net/shop/pc/HK-P30-Parts-c205.htm
I don't normally go straight to the manufacturer of any firearm when looking for parts. It takes too long.
Fair enough on P7. P30, however, is a recent entry that's not too new (been out for at least 2 years?) not to have parts, especially considering it is supposed to be their front-runner for a 9 mm service pistol market.
Re going to manufacturer vs. other sources: given price of HK parts (that little P7 bushing, for example, was $90), I don't want to pay that kind of money if they are supposed to replace it for free.
Powered by vBulletin® Version 4.2.5 Copyright © 2024 vBulletin Solutions, Inc. All rights reserved.