Do you prefer to train on one handgun brand/platform, or many?

[trunkjunk4321]

I think there’s something to be said about some shooting skills being transferable - maybe not between shooting clays vs pistol marksmanship or 600yd rifle marksmanship vs transitioning targets with a pistol, but getting good at maintaining sight alignment/picture while practicing a DA trigger pull or getting good at predictive shooting/maintaining consistent grip for follow up shots with a compact .45 will certainly make shooting your full size 9mm striker fired pistol feel easier, so there’s some benefit to branching out a little bit too.

That is a fair point for sure. I do shoot more than one gun but I just don't normally shoot more than one in any given range session. I just find that is more productive for me personally.

 

[kppd2000]

To be more clear, when you are practicing/training/taking handgun classes, do you prefer to rotate through different handguns, or do you stay consistent with the same model and/or same brand?

For me, I subscribe to the adage best expressed as

“I fear not the man who has practiced 10,000 kicks once, but I fear the man who has practiced one kick 10,000 times.” — Bruce Lee


I used to be Glock only for training. I shoot about 6000 rounds in handguns a year, and I tried to make about 4500 of them in Glocks. I generally took classes with the G17 or G45, but occasionally with the G48. Same with drills and range sessions.

I still enjoyed my CZ, Sig, Walther, Nighthawk, and other pistols, but I focused on training with a single set of pistols to become very familiar with the angles and exact feel of the firearms in my hands. I measured my par times for various drills with the Glocks.

However, I really didn’t like shooting the G48, and I hated carrying it. So I’m switching. But I’d like to try the same method.

Unfortunately, while I like the p365 XL and XMacro for CCW, I prefer the VP9F overall. They don’t have a similar feel to me at all. I’m trying to decide if I just train on the separate brands now, knowing I don’t have the time (or talent) to shoot as well as I would like, or look for a CC9, which will hopefully also hit the roster soon.

What do you guys do? Suggestions? Thanks in advance!

Completely agree with the Bruce Lee quote. I underestimated that and bounced around, but saw a huge improvement when I stayed with one platform

My regulars are a Glock 19 and P365 Macro. I used to be a G48 user, but it never felt right in my hand, and once I held the P365 I loved it and switched. Now I carry the G19 or the P365 X Macro. I know they’re very similar size, but the P365 is slimmer, and I have freedom week mags for my Glock so they both have their place in my rotation

I stick to my Glock 19 for any course I take. I have a number of different guns as well, CZ, M&P, etc, but I save those for personal range time and dry fire practice. It helps me focus more on the class to just pull out the trusty G19, and since I have 3 Glock 19’s I use one as my beater G19 that I don’t mind putting huge round counts through and I don’t worry about having to clean it or worry about having too many miles on firing pin etc

 

[Joker67]

My favorite pistol instructor said don’t be the guy who owns 10 different kinds of pistol but can’t shoot any well. Get good at a platform first then move out if necessary.
But that takes time and devotion and life has a way of getting in the way of that.

“Life is what happens when you are busy making other plans. “ Mark Twain

I train with CZ75’s the best I can and carry a P-01. I also have a P365XL . I don’t like the Sig platform but committed to it because it’s easy to carry . I take classes and have competed in USPSA from concealment with the P-01 and XL. The P-01 outperforms the XL and G19 for me. The G19 outperforms the XL in my hands under pressure in defensive classes and in USPSA. My philosophy is that if you are going to carrry it , you should pressure test your skill.
You can’t do that switching platforms.

My main training platform is a custom CZ SP-01 in both dry firing and action. I haven’t gotten to the level I want to achieve with that to justify switching platforms. For defensive classes I’ve used both the P-01 and P365Xl. For bedside it’s a P-01 or G19 with Freedom Week mags.

I own 2 P-01’s and 2 G19’s and will probably buy another full size CZ75

 

[JC2020]

Completely agree with the Bruce Lee quote. I underestimated that and bounced around, but saw a huge improvement when I stayed with one platform

My regulars are a Glock 19 and P365 Macro. I used to be a G48 user, but it never felt right in my hand, and once I held the P365 I loved it and switched. Now I carry the G19 or the P365 X Macro. I know they’re very similar size, but the P365 is slimmer, and I have freedom week mags for my Glock so they both have their place in my rotation

I stick to my Glock 19 for any course I take. I have a number of different guns as well, CZ, M&P, etc, but I save those for personal range time and dry fire practice. It helps me focus more on the class to just pull out the trusty G19, and since I have 3 Glock 19’s I use one as my beater G19 that I don’t mind putting huge round counts through and I don’t worry about having to clean it or worry about having too many miles on firing pin etc

Yeah, it’s a good idea. I’m trying out the VP9, and if I like it, I will get the smaller size and then a backup, all for the same reasons you mentioned.

I like the G19, but never really enjoyed the G48. I don’t CCW a G19 well, not like the p365 series. I don’t love any of the modern Sigs, but prefer the p365 to the other micro 9s. So I’m stuck when carrying a micro pistol. Or a subcompact/compact (X Macro)

My favorite pistol instructor said don’t be the guy who owns 10 different kinds of pistol but can’t shoot any well. Get good at a platform first then move out if necessary.
But that takes time and devotion and life has a way of getting in the way of that.

“Life is what happens when you are busy making other plans. “ Mark Twain

I train with CZ75’s the best I can and carry a P-01. I also have a P365XL . I don’t like the Sig platform but committed to it because it’s easy to carry . I take classes and have competed in USPSA from concealment with the P-01 and XL. The P-01 outperforms the XL and G19 for me. The G19 outperforms the XL in my hands under pressure in defensive classes and in USPSA. My philosophy is that if you are going to carrry it , you should pressure test your skill.
You can’t do that switching platforms.

My main training platform is a custom CZ SP-01 in both dry firing and action. I haven’t gotten to the level I want to achieve with that to justify switching platforms. For defensive classes I’ve used both the P-01 and P365Xl. For bedside it’s a P-01 or G19 with Freedom Week mags.

I own 2 P-01’s and 2 G19’s and will probably buy another full size CZ75

I really enjoyed the P-01, especially after CGW modifications, but I just didn’t shoot it as well as my Glocks. I’m moving to a new platform now, and I think I will stick with striker fired. I will compete, eventually, because you’re right; pressure testing is the best sort of test.

 

[Edgy01]

As an RSO I have had access to a multitude of pistols, which is very handy to get exposure, however back around 1986 (I’m old) I settled upon H&K due to their ambidextrous designs and inherent reliability. One of thr biggest things to adjust to is simply the mag release on pistols. They’re all over the place, except H&K which settled ona a design a long time ago and they’re consistent across their line today.

Dan

 

[Hindsight]

Yup, strictly 2011s for everything and all use cases.

 

[rodralig]

I mostly stick to the same platform for home defense, CCW, competition, and tactical/defensive classes. For the most part, I train and practice with Glocks. That said, I can usually switch to other platforms I own - CZ, Walther, H&K, etc., with only a minor drop in performance.

Every now and then, just for fun, I’ll add a bit of a handicap to spice things up. In tactical/defensive classes, I might run a larger caliber on day one, or bring out a safe queen, then go back to a Glock the following day. Recently, at a charity shoot, while most people were running Freedom Week mags, 9mm, and Staccatos... It was a LEO charity shoot, after all - I decided to run a Glock 21SF with factory 230gr ammo and 10-round magazines.

Aside from keeping things interesting, it forced me to focus on the fundamentals, especially accuracy. Finished 21/73.

That said, in retrospect, this probably explains why I haven’t been too enthusiastic about new handguns lately. I don’t think I’ve bought a newer handgun in almost four years. The PDPs, Hellcats, Echelons, M&P 2.0s, newer Sigs, and the like just don’t really excite me. They’re nice, but for the money, the performance gains don’t feel significant enough to replace my old-school Glocks and CZs.

Maybe I’m just getting boring. Or maybe the older stuff still works just fine. Or perhaps, just save for 2011s.

 

[Gawernator]

Do you only bang your girl missionary or do you want to try different positions? Haha

 

[JC2020]

I mostly stick to the same platform for home defense, CCW, competition, and tactical/defensive classes. For the most part, I train and practice with Glocks. That said, I can usually switch to other platforms I own - CZ, Walther, H&K, etc., with only a minor drop in performance.

Every now and then, just for fun, I’ll add a bit of a handicap to spice things up. In tactical/defensive classes, I might run a larger caliber on day one, or bring out a safe queen, then go back to a Glock the following day. Recently, at a charity shoot, while most people were running Freedom Week mags, 9mm, and Staccatos... It was a LEO charity shoot, after all - I decided to run a Glock 21SF with factory 230gr ammo and 10-round magazines.

Aside from keeping things interesting, it forced me to focus on the fundamentals, especially accuracy. Finished 21/73.

That said, in retrospect, this probably explains why I haven’t been too enthusiastic about new handguns lately. I don’t think I’ve bought a newer handgun in almost four years. The PDPs, Hellcats, Echelons, M&P 2.0s, newer Sigs, and the like just don’t really excite me. They’re nice, but for the money, the performance gains don’t feel significant enough to replace my old-school Glocks and CZs.

Maybe I’m just getting boring. Or maybe the older stuff still works just fine. Or perhaps, just save for 2011s.

I’m really slowing down on purchasing every handgun that catches my eye as well. Glocks are not exciting, but they are reliable and all work exactly the same way. Although I really love my HK VP9F, and will use just that (with maybe 2 more of the same platform as backup).

Several of my past instructors who are also LEO, with access to everything, have settled on Glocks over all the newness. I really think training consistently in a single platform allows for the greatest end performance.

Do you only bang your girl missionary or do you want to try different positions? Haha

I think it’s more about realizing that there’s One girl, and settling down. There’s much more growth potential that way.

Yes, there’s always the new hotness, but it never amounts to more than a number of awkward and heated workouts together.

 

[Sheepdog1968]

As an RSO I have had access to a multitude of pistols, which is very handy to get exposure, however back around 1986 (I’m old) I settled upon H&K due to their ambidextrous designs and inherent reliability. One of thr biggest things to adjust to is simply the mag release on pistols. They’re all over the place, except H&K which settled ona a design a long time ago and they’re consistent across their line today.

Dan

Where I have been super faithful to one brand are shotguns. It’s the Mossberg 500/590 series and I started shooting in 1978 at age 10. Tens of thousands of rounds through that platform. My hands just know how to move. Pretty faithful on self defense pistols. I stopped experimenting in 2010’s and settled on Sigs and Glocks.

 

[MarkH]

Have you been able to field strip it? I still need to shoot mine, but that takedown lever refuses to turn, I almost myself trying, I just ended up with sore thumbs.

Takedown was very stiff the first few times I used it. At the risk of asking a dumb question, you are locking back the slide before you use the lever?

 

[M_N04H]

Takedown was very stiff the first few times I used it. At the risk of asking a dumb question, you are locking back the slide before you use the lever?

Yes. Since posting that, I shot abt 200 rds, THEN I was about to turn the lever. Was still a bit stiff but I was able to take it down and work on it.

That first attempt before shooting it though sheesh, thought I was going to myself trying to turn that lever.

 

[weaverftw]

Yes. Since posting that, I shot abt 200 rds, THEN I was about to turn the lever. Was still a bit stiff but I was able to take it down and work on it.

That first attempt before shooting it though sheesh, thought I was going to myself trying to turn that lever.

I had the same experience with my p365 and echelon. After a few takedowns they both became much easier

 

[mountain_yokai]

I say I'm gonna do this with everything...cameras, guns, dive gear, golf clubs...here I am, tho, in my mid fifties with 40 softball bats, 10+ gloves, 3 sets of golf clubs, 5 camera rigs and dive rigs...and 7 guns...all different. Variety is the spice of life they say...

 

[joefrank64k]

I like to train with all kinds of arms. But that’s mainly from simple curiosity. I like knowing the particular manual of arms for various platforms.

What I find is that, while they’re not identical, they mostly rhyme.

That said, back in the day, when I was assigned to a specialized team, we were allowed to pick one sidearm (92FS) and we could pick from two SBRs: Either a Colt CAR-15 or an HK MP-5SD. That was to help with mastery of the platform.

As I’ve posted before, I chose the MP-5SD. Shot the heck out of it, but I would still occasionally train with the CAR-15 in case things went a bit sideways and I needed to employ it.

All that said: I carry one gun 16/7 (NAA .22 Mag revolver) and add another ‘as needed’, haha!!

The ‘other’ is always some flavor of a striker or hammer-fired polymer pistol (Glock, M&P, Beretta, HK, SA, etc).

Like I mentioned, they rhyme. I find I can conceal, draw from concealment, and get hits with all of them.

Now let me walk all this back a bit, haha!!

As I’m getting older, I’m starting to appreciate focusing on one or two manufacturers to simplify things for CCW. I see it reducing down to the NAA revolver and Glocks…or M&Ps…or HKs. Haha!!

 

[ikeo1]

I’ll always keep my Glocks and rotate other firearms. When it comes down to it they’re reliable and accurate.

I think CZ is coming for the US though. M&P’s are solid options.

If you want to shoot better though, get at least one 2011 in the stable if you can afford it.

One striker and one hammer fire pistol. It’s a different shooting experience

 

[MunnyShot]

Multiple platforms. BattleField pickups FTW

 

[M_N04H]

Considering grabbing an M9A1 while it's on sale right now

 

[ChallengerScatPackClub]

Train with the ones you carry. Spend more time with the one that is hardest to shoot.

 

[weaverftw]

Train with the ones you carry. Spend more time with the one that is hardest to shoot.

This is generally good advice but shooting the g19 and DWXc are so much more fun than the p365….