Suggestions for Pistol + Carbine combo

[sbsyncro]

I do not own any "modern" semi-auto pistols (only revolvers) and thinking about picking one up in either 9mm, or 40 S&W. I love the idea of pistol caliber carbines, and would ideally find a combo. Actual intended usage TBD, but would likely be plinking/target shooting to start with and then I may decide to use the pistol for 3-gun later on down the road. Also the carbine would probably be a "camp gun" for desert and mountain trips.

Ideally the setups would share mags and calibers. I currently reload 9mm for some antique Walthers and Lugers, but I like the performance of the 40 (at least from what I've read) and don't mind picking up another set of dies.

Things I've seen that look interesting:

1. A Glock in 40 S&W with the Lone Wolf 9mm conversion + a carbine like a SUB-2000 in either 40 or 9mm (this would give me 2 pistols + a carbine in one of the two calibers)

2. Beretta PX4 Storm + CX4 Storm
(This would give me interchangeability of the mags and ammo)

3. Ruger Police Carbine + Ruger P-series pistol
(I love the look of the Ruger PC4, but I know nothing about the P-series pistols and I know the PC4 can be hard to find and a bit overpriced. I have 3 other Ruger rifles)

4. Glock in 40 S&W or 9mm with a Mech Tech systems carbine conversion
(I could also combine this with the Lone Wolf conversion as in #1 above, so this is really just a variation of #1 substituting the Mech Tech carbine conversion for the SUB-2000).

Would love people's actual experience as well as informed opinions!

Thanks,

B

[Lonestargrizzly]

Sig MCX and Sig 226.

[Calico1404]

A Glock in 40 S&W with the Lone Wolf 9mm conversion + a carbine like a SUB-2000 in either 40 or 9mm (this would give me 2 pistols + a carbine in one of the two calibers)


This but Stick to 9 especially if you reload, IMO. However if you like 40, go 40, you will find the 2 for a bit less then a 9 anyhow.

Or I would reco a 9mm AR upper with a mag block conversion lower. That way you can run 3 gun in the future with a 223 upper, 9 pistol and shotty of your choice. In the meantime you have a 9mm AR where its set as a plinker so reliability of feed is not a 100% concern to you.

[sbsyncro]

Sig MCX and Sig 226.

Is the Sig MCX available in a "featureless" (e.g. California legal) version? Also, I didn't realize it was available in a pistol caliber (one of my requirements)...?

[Lonestargrizzly]

Is the Sig MCX available in a "featureless" (e.g. California legal) version? Also, I didn't realize it was available in a pistol caliber (one of my requirements)...?

You can do whatever you want with it.

[sbsyncro]

A Glock in 40 S&W with the Lone Wolf 9mm conversion + a carbine like a SUB-2000 in either 40 or 9mm (this would give me 2 pistols + a carbine in one of the two calibers)


This but Stick to 9 especially if you reload, IMO. However if you like 40, go 40, you will find the 2 for a bit less then a 9 anyhow.

Why do you suggest that I stick with 9mm? Just cost or is there something else inherently better about 9mm than 40 that I should be aware of?

Or I would reco a 9mm AR upper with a mag block conversion lower. That way you can run 3 gun in the future with a 223 upper, 9 pistol and shotty of your choice. In the meantime you have a 9mm AR where its set as a plinker so reliability of feed is not a 100% concern to you.

Thanks - not knowing anything about AR-15 platforms, I didn't realize this was an option (particularly in light of the recent AW ban on AR lowers). Does this basically mean something like an AR lower but with a "sporting rifle" buttstock and a fixed magazine? (e.g. no pistol grip and no folding/telescoping butt stock)

[Calico1404]

Why do you suggest that I stick with 9mm? Just cost or is there something else inherently better about 9mm than 40 that I should be aware of?


^^^ I can not, will not get into this story hahaha! I say this just due to the fact that you already reload 9mm, save some dough.


Thanks - not knowing anything about AR-15 platforms, I didn't realize this was an option (particularly in light of the recent AW ban on AR lowers). Does this basically mean something like an AR lower but with a "sporting rifle" buttstock and a fixed magazine? (e.g. no pistol grip and no folding/telescoping butt stock)

Go featureless (thordsen, exile, monsterman, grip wrap ++ fixed stock), run a mag block with colt style 9mm mags, you can then remove the block and toss a 223/556/7.76x39/300AAC etc upper and do whatever else you want to do. That is the only reason I mention the AR platform is due to the versatility.

[Scratch705]

is option 4 even legal in CA?

i thought we can't own those carbine conversion kits for pistols.

[sbsyncro]

is option 4 even legal in CA?

i thought we can't own those carbine conversion kits for pistols.

Yea, that was another one of my questions. Since you basically end up with a carbine with a "pistol grip" and detachable magazine...

on Mech Tech's web site they say the following:

"As far as Mech-Tech is aware, the CCU in and of itself is legal in all States. We do know that in the case of California the combination of the CCU and a pistol lower becomes illegal under current law. If and when Mech-Tech becomes aware of any other special circumstances such as California, we will publish this information. Again, the customer has the responsibility to determine the legality of the combination in their circumstance. "

Which means I might have to go the route of one of the other choices.

[CGT80]

I played with a magwell adapter for an AR 9mm, that a friend had. Neither of us could get it to run right. Originally, I wanted to use the same lower for 5.56 and 9mm and I do 3 gun.

Instead, I bought an 80% 9mm lower for colt mags and built a dedicated 9mm carbine that is as close as possible to the 5.56 that I also setup for 3 gun. It was well worth the money to have two dedicated rifles that both function great.

If you want to share mags, glock is the only choice I know of............and I don't do glocks.

9mm is most common for our 3 gun match. The 9mm carbine with a 16" barrel packs a good punch compared to a 9mm pistol. Moving steel targets is no problem. 9mm pistol can sometimes be limiting if they don't have targets adjusted for 9mm, and that is where my 40 pistol can help out, even with my light reloads. I used to run the 9mm AR for short stages and the 5.56 for 100+ yards. Now, our match requires the same rifle for all stages. The 9mm is good to 100 yards, but I haven't tried it on the longer targets.

In the end, it was just better to have dedicated guns and mags than to compromise by trying to share parts, and the AR gives you so many options and it is easy to build one the way you want it. They can get expensive and I ended up at $1800 into my 9mm AR with mags.

[sigstroker]

What would your plan for the "camp gun" be? It wouldn't be any good against 4 legged critters other than bunny rabbits. Although you could get a lever action .357 Magnum and a Coonan pistol. The Coonan isn't really modern though, it's based on the 1911 platform.

[sbsyncro]

What would your plan for the "camp gun" be? It wouldn't be any good against 4 legged critters other than bunny rabbits. Although you could get a lever action .357 Magnum and a Coonan pistol. The Coonan isn't really modern though, it's based on the 1911 platform.

Bunnies, maybe, but more likely just shooting cans and "reactive" targets for fun. If I'm purposely hunting 4-legged or winged critters, I'll bring the right tool for that job.

[dvs762]

get a featureless keltec sub 2000 in the mag and caliber of your handgun and you can use mags and ammo in both. plus it folds for storage in a nice little package.

[sigstroker]

I played with a magwell adapter for an AR 9mm, that a friend had. Neither of us could get it to run right. Originally, I wanted to use the same lower for 5.56 and 9mm and I do 3 gun.

Making an AR shoot 9mm reliably isn't plug and play. There's a lot of stuff on the market that doesn't work, or work well. That's why the 9mm AR thread in the autoloader forum is so big.

If you want to share mags, glock is the only choice I know of............and I don't do glocks.

Untrue. There's the Ruger that OP mentioned above, and the Marlin Camp Carbine. The 9mm Camp Carbine unfortunately uses Smith mags, unless you can find one that had a magwell conversion. The .45 uses 1911 mags.

[Lonestargrizzly]

CX4 and 92FS is a good choice.