HK VP9 or VP40

[dcmdon]

Makes sense. I don't mind the kick of the 40 cal, but today I went with a friend who has a Glock 23 and I did enjoy the Vp9 more out of the two.

Its not a matter of "minding" or being able to "handle" the recoil of a .40. People learn better when they aren't being recoiled against. The 9mm recoils less and performs adequately. Its a better caliber for a new shooter. Period.

I've corrected a half dozen shooters who had recoil problems because they shoot too big of a caliber too soon, too much. One was a young Boston cop who was introduced to his new .40 cal Glock and immediately immersed into target focused shooting with no grasp of the fundamentals. Bad Bad Bad.

Just get a 9 and learn to shoot it.

 

[dcmdon]

NES hates on the .40 alot. I started with a .40 for my first gun and if I could do it over again I would have started with a 9mm or even a 22lr like the ruger sr22. If you wanna learn the fundamentals of marksmanship, nothing better than a .22, you can shoot 500 rounds in a day without issue and its affordable. That said if you can only buy one, the 9mm will offer more versatility than the .22 as it is a suitable self defense cartridge. good luck with your search and welcome to the most fun game on earth

Yeah. And the 9mm should actually be your 2nd gun. Like M4 says, Make the first a .22

If you have the cash, a great combination is a Glock and a .22 conversion kit. I use mine all the time. I'll practice with the .22 kit then switch to 9mm and finish.

Don

 

[rkwjunior]

Witnessed a friends girlfriend fire a .40 for her first time ever shooting a gun. As soon as she was taught how to properly hold the gun she shot it just fine with no complaints. People need to stop with this .40 snappiness crap, people make it sound like its a 44 magnum and it becomes a mental thing, seriously.

Black guns are more scary and super powerful, that's what someone told me.

 

[Artifact]

Yeah. And the 9mm should actually be your 2nd gun. Like M4 says, Make the first a .22

If you have the cash, a great combination is a Glock and a .22 conversion kit. I use mine all the time. I'll practice with the .22 kit then switch to 9mm and finish.

Don

I would start with an elastic band and then move to a BB gun, then a .22, then a .38 and finally a 9mm.

 

[Cuz]

Picked up the Vp9 today. Thanks to everyone for the input
View attachment 158076

Congrats on your purchase. I'm sure you will enjoy it, they are very sweet shooters.

-Cuz

 

[dcmdon]

Witnessed a friends girlfriend fire a .40 for her first time ever shooting a gun. As soon as she was taught how to properly hold the gun she shot it just fine with no complaints. People need to stop with this .40 snappiness crap, people make it sound like its a 44 magnum and it becomes a mental thing, seriously.

Black guns are more scary and super powerful, that's what someone told me.

Yeah. Lets see how she does in 6 months after she's developed a push that takes another year to correct.

- - - Updated - - -

I would start with an elastic band and then move to a BB gun, then a .22, then a .38 and finally a 9mm.

Make fun all you want. I cant' tell you how many "proficient" shooters there are who push or flinch and most of them dont' know it. All im saying is that if you start out slowly, you won't have any regrets.

I can usually trick them into demonstrating it by telling them to pick up and shoot a gun that they think is ready to go. When in fact its empty. click PUSH.

 

[rkwjunior]

Yeah. Lets see how she does in 6 months after she's developed a push that takes another year to correct.

What? HAHAHAH I think we are talking about a worst case scenario here, this isn't competition shooting.
If anyone here holds a gun properly, push will not develop, anyone can develop bad habits even with a .22, lets not blame the caliber or make more excuses.

I'm not worried about my wrists or "push" if a psycho on bath salts is trying to butt rape me...It's not always gonna be a paper target shooting for bulls.

 

[Supermoto]

I push on the gun. As long as it is after the trigger press its is beneficial.

 

[Rate_of_Twist]

I push on the gun. As long as it is after the trigger press its is beneficial.

I've often wondered how long it takes someone to develop a post shot push like that... I figure by the time you run through a few hundred thousand rounds it probably comes naturally

Really cool to watch in slow motion

 

[Supermoto]

I've often wondered how long it takes someone to develop a post shot push like that... I figure by the time you run through a few hundred thousand rounds it probably comes naturally

Really cool to watch in slow motion

It doesn't take that long, the problem is if you try to do it, then it is easy for it to become a pre ignition push.

 

[dcmdon]

What? HAHAHAH I think we are talking about a worst case scenario here, this isn't competition shooting.
If anyone here holds a gun properly, push will not develop, anyone can develop bad habits even with a .22, lets not blame the caliber or make more excuses.

I'm not worried about my wrists or "push" if a psycho on bath salts is trying to butt rape me...It's not always gonna be a paper target shooting for bulls.

Developing a flinch or a push, master level shooters not withstanding, is far less likely to happen if you start with something unintimidating.

Of course anyone can develop bad habits with a .22. But it is much easier for a new shooter to put the trigger time in and not become mentally spent. I don't know how long you have been shooting for, but it sounds like you have forgotten that for many people its somewhat stressful even if they don't admit it. And even with a .22.

When I give a private lesson, people always ask how much shooting time they will get. Since one of the benefits of a private lesson vs a big class is trigger time. I tell people that we can spend an hour and a half if they want. But that they will most likely be pretty mentally spent after 45 minutes.

And its true. I force students to set up their grip and stance, then focus on squeezing the trigger sllllooooowwwwwllly. After the first couple of mags we focus on trigger and front sight. Often they are still jerking the trigger so I have them point the gun at the backstop, then close their eyes and FEEL the trigger as they squeeze is very gently. This is work. I don't just hand them a mag and let them rip. Every round should teach them something.

Once I see them starting to fade, we come off the .22 and I let them try the .38 spcl and 9mm or whatever they want really. I usually have my Les Baer 1911 with me as well. But this is just fun. Its not learning.

Then at the end, I let them rip. Just for fun. Often, if the lesson has a couple of people and one has never shot, the totally new shooter will be doing better by the end of the day than the person with a bit of (bad) experience.

 

[doublerunner]

I'm new to the game and am planning to pick up my first pistol. Through friends and rentals I've been able to try out the following: SW M&P40, Glock 23, Beretta 92, and some other SWs that I can't recall the models of. All were 40 cal and I thought I was set on that being the first caliber I would get.

I've been doing a lot of research and found the HK Vp40 and after feeling it in some stores I got very interested. Mass Firearms School only has the Vp9 and I went there this morning to try that out and absolutely loved it. So now I'm wondering if I should get the Vp9 or chance getting the Vp40 without trying it beforehand. ...Cheaper ammo does sound appealing...

My uses would be primarily range just to build my skills and home defense with occasional carry here and there. Any input from some more experienced people?

I know you already made your purchase, but I wanted to throw this out there. I have shot both the VP9 and VP40. And after having a little bit of training with both, I shot them both equally well. And it sounds like you probably will as well. You state your main usage is home defense. So what is most important in home defense? I think most everyone will agree it is to stop the threat. If you shoot both equally well, what will stop the threat better?

 

[Varmint]

I know you already made your purchase, but I wanted to throw this out there. I have shot both the VP9 and VP40. And after having a little bit of training with both, I shot them both equally well. And it sounds like you probably will as well. You state your main usage is home defense. So what is most important in home defense? I think most everyone will agree it is to stop the threat. If you shoot both equally well, what will stop the threat better?

VP45. If you're limited to 10 rounds, might as well be .45, no?

Anyone compared carrying VP9 to Glock 19? Seems like the Glock is smaller and easier to conceal.

 

[mark056]

VP45. If you're limited to 10 rounds, might as well be .45, no? ...

This...

To me unless you have an older model 9mm for which pre pans are available or one of the newer pocket 9's the chief liability of any of the really great new 9's are the cripple mags here in Mass. If you can handle it go .45 except I don't think a VP 45 is available yet. I hope HK comes out with one.

 

[Rate_of_Twist]

VP45. If you're limited to 10 rounds, might as well be .45, no?

Anyone compared carrying VP9 to Glock 19? Seems like the Glock is smaller and easier to conceal.

Yeah, VP9 is a nice Pistol but is substantially bigger than a 19. Given preban mags or a free state its hard to justify the extra size for the same capacity.... Add on top of that the HK likes to get $60 for mags you can't find, and it stacks against the VP series in a hurry.

Overall a VP is still the best striker fired Pistol trigger out of the box in MA. It's a really well built Pistol with good ergos. I dislike the VP40. For whatever reason the decided to increase the slide dimensions. It's seems cobbled together to me in that they rushed to get it to market or they are trying to make the slide work for other purposes in terms of fabrication

 

[UtahGetMe2]

I know you already made your purchase, but I wanted to throw this out there. I have shot both the VP9 and VP40. And after having a little bit of training with both, I shot them both equally well. And it sounds like you probably will as well. You state your main usage is home defense. So what is most important in home defense? I think most everyone will agree it is to stop the threat. If you shoot both equally well, what will stop the threat better?

Home defense to have something upgraded from a bat, but got the 9 mm for now to get proficient with shooting at the range.

I figure a 9mm is a big step up from a bat. There will be others down the road...