Best 3 gun pistol on or off roster?

[ShockBros]

Nice troll post...

You'd best be carrying at least six of them. Good luck with that platform.

Haha yeah i can't keep everything straight. Especially My aim! I meant 34... I'm checking it out today.

[dwalker]

Get a full size 1911 in 9mm, either a Kimber or a Springfield and your gun part of the problem is solved. Shoot a few paper targets with both the 1911 and the G19 side by side and you will see the difference.

LOL... NO. Single stack and multi-gun do not mix, unless you want to shoot Heavy.

No! A red dot will slow down a beginner big time.

Strongly dis-agree. I think generically a new shooter is better off to start in Open using a red dot. The reason for this is to take away some of the mental workload while the shooter is learning. A new shooter has enough on his plate moving from array to array, reloading, maintaining proper grip, breathing, etc. without adding in sight alignment and sight picture, both of which can take years to develop. A red-dot makes a lot of sense and lets the shooter concentrate on mastering the fundamentals while still making thier hits.

I would take a hand gun course and keep practicing with your G19. After a couple months, look at the Springfield XD comp or the CZ SP variants. I've also seen guys shoot 3gun and win with Sig 229s and Beretta 92s. So there is that.

I do not dis-agree with a handgun course, education and training is almost always a good idea. However a pistol that actually works for the task is far better to train with than making do. When you make do you learn bad habits which must be unlearned later. That is counter-productive.

I own or have owned pretty much every commonly used 3-gun pistol, from the XDM to the G17, Canik, 2011, CZ's, etc. and my advice to you is the same I give any new shooter- go try a bunch of different pistols that are suited to the task, fits your hand and your budget, and go from there. Most 3-gunners I know will be glad to let you fire a few rounds through thier pistol to see how it fits you.
I went from the XDM- great accurate pistol but the grip safety gave me issues here and there,
to the G-Lock 17, which is super accurate but the trigger sucks. No matter what you do the trigger is going to suck. If you think are ok with the trigger sucking try a CZ, 2011, or even a decent Sig 226 and you will literally hate the Block trigger.
Then the M&P VTAC. Super accurate and once I put the Apex trigger in it it was OK. Very comfortable gun to shoot, probably the best ergos out there. I still sue it as my back-up gun often.
Then to the 2011. Once you shoot a dialed in 2011 you're likely done with all other pistols. Smooth, easy to shoot fast, super accurate and a lot more reliable than they are given credit for, they are worth every penny. A new STI DVC is about 2K-ish in my area of TN. I know they are somewhat hard to get in CA, but they are out there for sale quite often.

I have also used:
CZ P-09. Great accurate gun, soft shooter and with the CGW parts in it it is super reliable. I stopped using the CZ/Tangfo because while mine had not broken yet, many others had. When people were carrying extra slide releases with them because they were braking I sold mine. Which I regret. I will likely pick up an AccuShadow soon, but likely will not use it as a match gun.
HKp30- great gun, but a couple of small issues for me. The ergos are awesome however.
Beretta 92- really good gun, but the decocker on the slide kills it for me. The trigger in mine is excellent
Steyr L9A1- this is an EXCELLENT match pistol. Low bore axis, better than average trigger for a poly gun, and very very accurate. ONLY issue is getting a holster for it. LAG made me a really nice holster, but they said they would never do another one.

Probably a few more, but basically I try and stay away from DA/SA guns that must be decocked prior to the start. This means the SIG 226, Beretta, HK, CZ's, etc. are second choices and not used for anything other than the odd monthly match.

For someone starting out the striker fire guns- XDM, GLock, and M&P are terrific because you can just dump them without having to think about the safety.

But really, I go back to get out there and shoot some different pistols to see what you like.

ETA: I think the easiest way to get into a "2011" style pistol these days is to find a RIA "1911 A2 DS", which run under $1000, have Hayes Custom Guns do thier reliability package to it for about $300, and go shoot. You end up with a gun that is really close to a full custom 2011 for half the price.

[k1dude]

Strongly dis-agree. I think generically a new shooter is better off to start in Open using a red dot. The reason for this is to take away some of the mental workload while the shooter is learning. A new shooter has enough on his plate moving from array to array, reloading, maintaining proper grip, breathing, etc. without adding in sight alignment and sight picture, both of which can take years to develop. A red-dot makes a lot of sense and lets the shooter concentrate on mastering the fundamentals while still making thier hits.

Every beginner I've ever seen that showed up to a 3-gun match with a red dot got absolutely spanked into dead last or near dead last. They didn't have a basic grasp of a good and fast presentation. So they spent gobs of time moving the gun around hunting for the dot instead of shooting. That doesn't happen with iron sights. Not only that, it puts you into Open Division which is where all the best shooters are.

I understand what you're saying, but not for newbies. If you have a pretty good draw and presentation, I might agree. But it still puts you in Open. If you liked getting spanked all the time because you're a glutton for punishment, go for it.

[dwalker]

Every beginner I've ever seen that showed up to a 3-gun match with a red dot got absolutely spanked into dead last or near dead last. They didn't have a basic grasp of a good and fast presentation. So they spent gobs of time moving the gun around hunting for the dot instead of shooting. That doesn't happen with iron sights. Not only that, it puts you into Open Division which is where all the best shooters are.

I understand what you're saying, but not for newbies. If you have a pretty good draw and presentation, I might agree. But it still puts you in Open. If you liked getting spanked all the time because you're a glutton for punishment, go for it.

I used to think the best way to train new shooters was iron sights, but I have since changed to a red dot on a 22, followed by a red dot on a centerfire. It just takes away the hardest thing to learn really lets shooters develop proper grip, stance, and other mechanics. A shooter will gain confidence faster and develop good habits that will translate into being a better shooter down the road.
About a year ago in a 3Gun Show Podcast Craig Outzen talked about when he started shooting competitively he was told to go right to open, and he did and how big a help it was for him to do so. Now he has also done well as a tac Irons or Factory (depending on organization) shooter but he started with an open gun in USPSA, which helped solidify my viewpoint on the method I was already using.

[fawndog]

If you shoot a Glock 19, then it will be easy to transition to the G17 or G34. The price will benifit you too with the extra ammo you can buy.

[REDPANDA]

If you have smaller hands then the Glock and CZ Tactical Sport may present issues. Reducing the grip profile is possible but an extra cost.

CZ75 SP01 will have a slimmer profile by simply changing the grips. The CZ grip to slide angle is more natural.

Mags shouldn't be a reason to buy a Glock. The right pistol that fits and shoots well for you should be the driving force. Wasting money on the wrong pistol greatly outweighs the cost savings for magazines.

[Lead Waster]

Any firearm with practice will work well.
With your budget, go for the SP-01. The practice will yield results quicker than the Glock.
I have gone through this before. Every time, I go through this we newer shooters and they seem to want to stick with what they already have. When the do make the switch, they get mad at me for not having them change quicker.
The SP-01 and 1911 are just easier to shoot. Heavier to reduce the recoil and a cleaner trigger, means less work to get better results.
Yes, it can be done with any firearm, but why make it harder on yourself?

To answer that ... to get better at the sport.

If your equipment gives you an edge when you start out, you won't be able to iron out your mistakes. ie; if you shoot a 1911, it will mask a lot of trigger technique mistakes that another pistol won't, because it's forgiving.

If you shoot "cheater guns", it will mask bad technique.

But again, it's just for fun ... shoot whatever you want/can afford.

I think it's more fun to start with a regular non-tricked out gun and try and get good with it, then trick it out or get a "better" gun after you've played the sport for a while ... then you'll really appreciate the upgrades.