Small Single Stack 9mm Recommendations

[Hurtaaron]

1. All else being equal, sometimes the first one to come through with a stellar deal gets the pick of the buyer: making it the best value for the buyer.
2. My journey is that I later find something else I like better and repeat the process over and over taking months to find, "the one."
3. There is always another, "the one," but normal people probably don't go my route and just be content with what they have.
4. Enjoy!

Thanks!
I may end up grabbing a shield 2.0 at some point as well.

 

[doddg]

Thanks!
I may end up grabbing a shield 2.0 at some point as well.

1. From everything I've read: you can't go wrong!

 

[quangtran1]

My motto: My favorite gun is my next one.
That said, over the years, I've developed a complete trust in my Glock 19, 26, my Sig P226 Legion, and my CZ Rami. I won't ever get rid of those.
As far as the OP, I don't think you can go wrong with the M&P Shield (1.0 even), or a Walther PPQ Compact, or the darling of the moment, the P365. A lot of people like me appreciate the unique Kahr trigger. I love all my Kahrs, they just don't have enough capacity to make me feel comfortable.

For myself, when I test a handgun, I look at the size of the grip, and the trigger reach distance. Everything else is secondary. I have small hands, so the ability and comfort of those items are paramount. I don't even pay attention to sights because 1) They can be replaced, 2) I don't truly depend on sights for 5 yards or shorter. I don't pay attention to recoil because I overcome that with my grip and stance. If I do my things, all my guns are accurate. The bottom line is whatever you get, you just have to practice a lot with it.

1. All else being equal, sometimes the first one to come through with a stellar deal gets the pick of the buyer: making it the best value for the buyer.
2. My journey is that I later find something else I like better and repeat the process over and over taking months to find, "the one."
3. There is always another, "the one," but normal people probably don't go my route and just be content with what they have.
4. Enjoy!

 

[1775usmarine]

S&W 3913, or CS9

 

[throttletony]

Shield, PPS, G43, and Sig365 should all be solid.
I've been very pleased with my Shield (v. 1.0) - and for the price, you can get the gun and a case of ammo to get some real trigger time for the price of the other guns. PPS is surprisingly good as well, and is often overlooked.

I'm sure you've seen the mixed feedback on the Sig365 - it seems like whatever small hiccups it had upon release (some spring issues, trigger stuff as well??) have been largely fixed. If I owned one, I would carry with confidence after putting 500 rds thru it.

 

[doddg]

My motto: My favorite gun is my next one.
That said, over the years, I've developed a complete trust in my Glock 19, 26, my Sig P226 Legion, and my CZ Rami. I won't ever get rid of those.
As far as the OP, I don't think you can go wrong with the M&P Shield (1.0 even), or a Walther PPQ Compact, or the darling of the moment, the P365. A lot of people like me appreciate the unique Kahr trigger. I love all my Kahrs, they just don't have enough capacity to make me feel comfortable.

For myself, when I test a handgun, I look at the size of the grip, and the trigger reach distance. Everything else is secondary. I have small hands, so the ability and comfort of those items are paramount. I don't even pay attention to sights because 1) They can be replaced, 2) I don't truly depend on sights for 5 yards or shorter. I don't pay attention to recoil because I overcome that with my grip and stance. If I do my things, all my guns are accurate. The bottom line is whatever you get, you just have to practice a lot with it.

1. That pretty well sums up everything I've learned here in 1.5 yrs.!!!

 

[mcapo]

S&W 3913, or CS9

Highly underrated firearm! Still can be had for decent prices too.

 

[Hurtaaron]

And it is done.
Appreciate everyone’s input!

 

[Dead Duck]

As long as you don't get that Springfield XDS-9. I think it's the 3.3-inch that has all the recalls lately.

Anything else you should be good to go.

 

[Tyler-The-Piker]

In the pic it looks like a hole in the grip safety, that indicates post-recall

 

[Dead Duck]

Holy Crap!
I was just kidding. That gun really had a recall? Now that's funny.

 

[Hurtaaron]

Holy Crap!
I was just kidding. That gun really had a recall? Now that's funny.

haha! Are you serious? They had a pretty stinky recall like 5 years ago. I did come across it during my research. I think a lot of people were really worked up about it, but it's all old news now. The one I have is (in INGO language) "G2G".

 

[AngryRooster]

haha! Are you serious? They had a pretty stinky recall like 5 years ago. I did come across it during my research. I think a lot of people were really worked up about it, but it's all old news now. The one I have is (in INGO language) "G2G".

Springfield gave us plenty of reasons to be worked up about it. The entire thing was as F'ed up as a football bat. One of the several reasons I'll never own a Springfield again.

 

[Larry!!!]

Sig 365 is the way to go if you are comfortable carrying astriker fired pistol. I have carried aGlock 43 for a couple summers but shot a Sig 365 a while back and now have oneon order. Smaller, higher capacity,feels and shoots much better to me.

 

[JBP239]

Sig 365 is the way to go if you are comfortable carrying astriker fired pistol. I have carried aGlock 43 for a couple summers but shot a Sig 365 a while back and now have oneon order. Smaller, higher capacity,feels and shoots much better to me.

I bought a P365 a couple of weeks ago and shot it for the first time yesterday. I like it a lot, i put about 100 rounds through it and it was flawless. The size vs capacity is great and it is more comfortable to shoot than most guns of similar size. I would say it is my favorite small gun. I was concerned about reliability but it seems like Sig as gotten the bugs worked out over the past few months.

I've been carrying a Kahr PM9 the past couple of years and like it a lot too. It has been 100% reliable also and I have no complaints about it. I just like the capacity and night sights that are on the P365 a little better. I do think the Kahr fits slightly better in my Desantis Nemesis pocket holster than the P365 for pocket carry.

I had a P290RS that I carried for a short time. I love hammer fired guns but just couldn't get used to the trigger on this one. I never felt I was as accurate with it as I wanted to be, it just didn't feel natural. I traded it off.

Not sure this falls into the small single stack category but I carried a P239 9mm for awhile. It was a a fantastic shooter but the size/weight vs capacity just isn't up to modern standards. If you don't mind carrying a heavy gun it's great but it's only 8+1 and feels like you are carrying a brick strapped to your belt and can be difficult to conceal depending on what you are wearing. The accuracy is great and it's one of those guns built like a tank that you could severely abuse and it would still function.

I've tried a few other small single stack 9mms, range rentals or ones owned by friends. The Beretta Nano would be one I would consider. I liked the trigger and accuracy but I prefered the PM9 slightly. I thought Shield was ok, no complaints but nothing stood out either(kind of like the Honda Civic of small single stacks). The G43 is nice but I'm just don't like the feel of Glocks in general even though I think they make great guns. So for me I haven't found any that I like as much as the P365 or PM9 but it's mostly a matter of personal preference.

 

[Expat]

View attachment 69888
And it is done.
Appreciate everyone’s input!

Just a reminder... he picked one and bought it.