Best 40S&W pistol….

[BehindBlueI's]

P226 has been my favorite, followed closely by the P229.

 

[Noble Sniper]

My first pistol was a Beretta 96, but at the age of 18, it was a bit chunky for me w/ factory plastic grips. It was a very smooth shooting pistol though (what 92/96 isn’t, though?)!

I don’t see much use in a .40 for me right now, so I no longer own one. That being said, if the same model that @Noble Sniper is looking for (CHP 4006TSW, I believe) popped up at a good price and I had the play funds, I’d absolutely jump on it as I’ve always wanted one.

Barring that, a 96 w/ slim G10 grips, a P226/P229, PX4, or USP would be my choices. Or a G22/23/35, but those are “serious” pistols. I’d only buy a .40 to play with, so I’d make it a “fun” gun.

That would be the one!!

 

[Lee11b]

Nothing like an ALL metal Sig P229 to handle the 40 S&W. But a Glock 23 is enjoyable to shoot as well.

 

[DadSmith]

P226 has been my favorite, followed closely by the P229.

How much smaller is the P229 than the P226?

 

[BehindBlueI's]

How much smaller is the P229 than the P226?

Something like .60" shorter length wise but .10" thicker. They won't share a holster, or at least a good holster, due to the girthiness of the P229.

 

[grillak]

The M&P 40 2.0 is my favorite polymer frame .40 pistol. I've got the compact 4", standard full size 4.25" and the full size 5" model.

As far as metal frame, I had a P229 once that was a pretty sweet shooter. But I'm more of a striker-fired pistol fan, so it's been a while since I've shot a metal frame .40. That may change, as I am trying to avoid buying a new Sig P320 40 and making it an AXG model. Love the aluminum grip module in my 9mm P320, so I'm betting I'll like the .40 just as well, if I decide to go ahead and buy it. And not many people will own an AXG .40 model, so it will have a uniqueness factor to it.

I'm not doing a very good job of talking myself out of buying it.

I don't need another 40.
I don't need another 40.
I don't need another 40.

i love my p320 .40. i'm thinking of going with a wilson combat grip.

i'd like to try a p229 in .357 sig before i buy a barrel (hint, hint).

i'm very interested in a full sized m&p 40 or 45. who wouldn't want a pistol designed for the .40?

i need to get to the range this weekend. anyone with a .357 sig want to meet up at indy arms saturday? around noon? i'll let you shoot my hipoint.

 

[grillak]

I don't have one yet. I have 1000 40 Short & Weak nickel plated brass that needs a gun to shoot it in. I've been putting off buying one, but a police trade in S&W M&P 2.0 40, or a Sig P226 40 I would jump on if it's around $300-400.
The only ones I've seen lately are the M&P 1.0, and the Sig P226's are running $500+ for trade in. I'm looking forward to the Red Wave and a drop in gun and ammunition prices.

there was a place with pd trade in p226s in .40 for $399 a few weeks back. can't remember who it was though. they were oos when i decided to grab one.

that's when i got a reeeaalllly good deal on the g23.

 

[STEEL CORE]

22/23/27

 

[STEEL CORE]

No Blue don’t put the thought in my head!!!!
My 1995 G-27 2.5 Gen needs to retire like me soon.
Been looking for a Gen 3, to replace it, Jenkins has Gen 5’s and had, trade in Gen 4’s for $300 as new and I resisted the urge.
Don’t jinx me.

 

[92FSTech]

For me it's easy: Sig P229.

Sig designed the gun around the .40, and it shows. Recoil is very manageable, quick recovery and follow-up shots are simple, and the gun holds up to the abuse. Yes it's kinda bulky, but mine has been 100% reliable and is a treat to shoot.

My early experiences with a Glock 27 almost ruined me on the Glock platform altogether. Nasty muzzle flip, and hard to hold on to. My brother's G23 isn't much better. There are documented issues with the G22 and WMLs causing malfunctions...the platform just doesn't adapt well to the .40. I did finally end up with a G26, and that was a fantastic little gun in 9mm.

The Beretta is a great gun as well. I own a couple in 9mm and love them...but with the locking block cracking issues and reputation (deserved or otherwise) for slide cracks, the added energy of the .40 just isn't ideal in that platform, either.

XDs, M&Ps, H&Ks...they just don't do anything for me in any caliber. I've never shot a 3rd gen Smith in .40, but I will say that the all steel variants I've shot in .45 make me think that they would handle the .40 pretty well.

So my answer is the P229, but I'd be willing to give a 3rd gen Smith in .40 a try.

 

[Mgderf]

I've only owned or shot a single .40S&W, so my opinions are limited, but I really do enjoy my Baby Eagle.
I don't care for striker fired pistols, and I don't want a fantastic plastic anything.
Give me an all metal pistol.
You can have the Mattel crap.

 

[88E30M50]

While the P229 and P226 are on the top of my .40 favorites list, the CZ SP01 in .40 is a great choice too. That all steel railed frame feels a tad nose heavy but it does a great job on keeping the muzzle down when shooting. It is a bit heavy for EDC for me, but it really is a sweet range toy. The 75B in .40 is a great shooter too, but without the rail, you get a bit more muzzle rise. It’s all steel and right about at the top of my comfort level for EDC. Mine is tuned with a great trigger and has sentimental value so it does not get EDC at all though.

 

[Hoosier45]

While the P229 and P226 are on the top of my .40 favorites list, the CZ SP01 in .40 is a great choice too. That all steel railed frame feels a tad nose heavy but it does a great job on keeping the muzzle down when shooting. It is a bit heavy for EDC for me, but it really is a sweet range toy. The 75B in .40 is a great shooter too, but without the rail, you get a bit more muzzle rise. It’s all steel and right about at the top of my comfort level for EDC. Mine is tuned with a great trigger and has sentimental value so it does not get EDC at all though.

I have always thought the SP01 would be the perfect gun for .40.

 

[88E30M50]

How much smaller is the P229 than the P226?

Like BBI says, there’s not a huge difference. The P229 is more like a commander sized P226. The grip is a bit shorter but depending on the magazine base plates installed, it comes out nearly the same as the P226 grip length. Both have 12 round standard capacity. You can run P226 mags in a P229 but not vice versa.

Even though the P226 mags are a bit slimmer, and just a bit longer, you can get 13 round Mecgars but I have not seen 13 rounders for the P229. I’d love to see Mecgar come out with 13 round P229 mags that use the same flush baseplate as the P226 13 rounders.

 

[88E30M50]

I have always thought the SP01 would be the perfect gun for .40.

One day, mine will make a trip to spend time with The Wizard to realize the potential that the gun has.

 

[edporch]

For me it's easy: Sig P229.

Sig designed the gun around the .40, and it shows. Recoil is very manageable, quick recovery and follow-up shots are simple, and the gun holds up to the abuse. Yes it's kinda bulky, but mine has been 100% reliable and is a treat to shoot.
-Snip-

On another forum awhile back, there was a man who was an Air Marshal (if memory serves) who said he'd fired 40,000 rounds through his P229.

The agency he was with was changing to another pistol and he was told to turn his P229 in.
He liked his P229 and tried to buy it like some departments allow, but they made him turn it in.

 

[92FSTech]

On another forum awhile back, there was a man who was an Air Marshal (if memory serves) who said he'd fired 40,000 rounds through his P229.

The agency he was with was changing to another pistol and he was told to turn his P229 in.
He liked his P229 and tried to buy it like some departments allow, but they made him turn it in.

And that's why you don't work for the Feds...I doubt there's any federal agency that will offer buybacks to their officers. Too much entrenched bureaucracy to allow that sort of flexibility, even if it makes logical sense by simultaneously benefitting their employees and saving tax dollars.

My P229 (old-school pre-rail, DA/SA) was my first duty gun, and when they retired them and told us that we could buy them back, I wasted no time whipping out my wallet...didn't even ask how much.

 

[BehindBlueI's]

On another forum awhile back, there was a man who was an Air Marshal (if memory serves) who said he'd fired 40,000 rounds through his P229.

The agency he was with was changing to another pistol and he was told to turn his P229 in.
He liked his P229 and tried to buy it like some departments allow, but they made him turn it in.

Fed agencies can't sell their guns, including to agents. It's a Bill Clinton era executive order, IIRC.

I've got well over 65k rounds through a P226 .40. Only breakage was the front sight fiber optic came loose and I broke the decocker lever. God knows how many times it was pressed before breaking, given life fire and dry fire work. Sig replaced both under warranty with no issue. I had to send the slide for the front sight, but they sent me the decocker lever and let me install it myself.

Both P226 and P229s were tested to failure by the manufacturer and other entities. You can expect a service life of at least 80k rounds through either before frame cracks become a concern, but many (most?) will develop some cracks in the frame rails somewhere between 80k-100k (ish). Eventually it'll get bad enough to cause malfunctions or failure, but there's not many people running that many rounds through them. Note this is actually an area polymer pistols excel at, Glocks are often documented running well over 100k without cracks due to the flex of polymer.

 

[Noble Sniper]

You gentlemen have me seriously considering. P229…….

 

[VERT]

80,000 x $0.40 = $32000.

I never understood the argument that .40 S&W wore out guns. That said I do think 9mm makes more sense from a budget standpoint and when taking into account training a group of shooters in a department that differ widely in size and stature.