Best target 9mm for budget?

[firestar]

I know I have been asking alot of questions about 9mm target guns latly but I can't decide which one to get.

I want it to be as accurate as a good revolver (S&W 586, Colt Python, etc.) but I don't want to pay too much for it. I would say my absolute top price would be $500-600. It can be new or used but it has to be a 9mm with a decent trigger and good sights.

I shoot at 50ft two hand, standing up without a brace or rest.

I have heard good things about the CZ line and Browning Hi Powers. Is there any other gun I should check out.

I have a Beretta 92fs now and it is decently accurate but I have to work so hard to make it so. I want something that is easier to shoot accurately, better sights, better trigger are a must.

I don't care about anything but how well it shoots. What the pick for accuracy?

 

[Sprout]

It's not my cup of tea, but a Glock 17 is pretty accurate and about in the right price range. Actually, at 50 feet almost any major service pistol should be plenty accurate--all are capable of one-hole groups--the rest is going to be ergonomics. Me, I like the CZ

 

[Handy]

This gun should be under an inch at 25 meters, OR BETTER. The barrel is fixed, extended and weighted. Delayed blowback action. Light overtravel stop trigger, target grips.

There are few 9mm pistols made that have this kind of intrinsic accuracy, especially if they have recoiling barrels. None come dressed like this for that little money. There is no better dollar to accuracy bargain.

http://www.gunsamerica.com/guns/976300881.htm

 

[CZF]

YOU ARE RIGHT ABOUT CZs. I'm sure you are wanting a
gun with Adjustable target sights?

The CZ85 Combat is quite nice. Some report less than 2 inch
offhand groups with them.

There are not many used ones for sale. choice of satin nickle,
duo-tone (rare) and polymer or glossy blue (classy) in 9mm.
I'm sure 85 Combat owners will be glad to talk you into buying
one:

CZ PISTOLS.
"FEEL The STEEL!"

 

[10-Ring]

I have heard some nice things about the CZ's & getting one w/ adjustable sights might be the ticket. But, in my experience, I'd go w/ a used Glock 34...longer sight radius & barrel, 3.5# trigger, adjustable sights and extended mag & slide release.

 

[Sactown]

I'm in the same boat. Looking for another 9mm. I'm leaning towards a new Glock 34. In 9mm, I already have a CZ75B SA and Sig 225. Damn 9mm's breed like rabbits!! Well on the way to my goal of at least one gun from every mfg. Anyone seen the Kahr T9 yet? Better yet, anyone got a review of the T9?

 

[firestar]

Sactown,
How do you like the CZ-75B SA? Is it accurate enough to seek out or is it just decent?


Handy,
Do you have any more info on the Benelli? I am a stranger them. How is the trigger? What does it feel like in the hand. It looks good and I am thinking about it very seriously. Is $595 a decent price for this gun? Is there any after market help if it breaks? Thanks.

 

[Sactown]

My CZ75B SA has a creepy trigger. I don't know if anyone else's is like that. There's a fair amount of take up, then there's a slight notch, then the trigger release. It's not really smooth compared to my 1911 triggers. Trigger is adjustable for overtravel only. The slide to frame fit is pretty loose. The pistol shoots high and left from the factory. The sights are rather small and for 3-dot type, rather dark (like the dot's arent' really white). For a target type pistol, you would think they would add adjustable sights. It fits my hand really well and has ambi safety. I've never had a FTF from many different types of ammo. Magazines drop free, although the finish on the mags gets worn away pretty fast. Take down and cleaning is easy. It has a low bore axis and doesn't seem to have as much muzzle flip as my Sig 225 (but the Sig has a shorter barrel). The polymer coating or whatever they paint the gun with is pretty tough. If you're worried about cosmetics of your guns, be sure that when you cock the hammer with your thumb that you don't cock it too far back as the hammer will hit the frame and rub off the finish on the hammer. Personally, I don't think I would purchase it again. Hope this helps.

 

[stevec]

Most accurate cheap 9mm...

For me, the most accurate, affordable 9mm semi-auto is the Browning GP Comp. Between the tighter barrel lockup, longer site radius and lighter trigger, my group sizes are cut by 2/3.

Kind of hard to find, but if you keep your eyes open, you should run across one in a month or two on the auction sites.

Steve

 

[ojibweindian]

My CZ-75 is wonderful, and I don't think you'll be disappointed.

 

[Kahr carrier]

Browning Hipowers are well proven 9mm and can be had for a decent priced in the used market ,as well as the Sig 226 you can find some police trade in ones for reasonable prices.

 

[Handy]

I have never been able to find a Benelli to examine. But I will stand by this one simple statement:

Fixed barrel pistols are GREATLY more accurate than any production short recoil weapon. Period.

If you spend $2000 on a SIG 210 or very custom 1911, you can get the same sort of accuracy which is commonplace in most every fixed barrel gun. I have an HK P9S and a P7. They'll shoot the one inch groups, even with their short sight radiuses. So will the old Steyr GB. All of these are combat guns, not target weapons, yet outshoot just about everything else. Even the reprehensible Hi-Point is known for it's excellent accuracy-fixed barrel again.

The B76 was designed as a combat arm. But like the P9S Sport, the designers realized how much accuracy potential the basic weapon had, so they extended the barrel and sight radius, tuned the trigger and put target grips on it. They did not do anything to the action, that would be redundant.

The only question in my mind is the trigger. Benelli is a good company and makes other target pistols, so it should be good. The grips are oversized and can be contoured as you like. Otherwise, find a set of slim combat panels. Mags are availble from CDNN. Benelli has a US importer, so warranty issues should be supported just fine.

If the gun is too weird for you, get ready to spend well over $1000 for something approaching its accuracy in an auto. Otherwise, don't waist your money on a gun with a floating barrel. Buy a Ruger Blackhawk in 9mm if it has to be accurate and 9mm.

 

[MoNsTeR]

I would look at a 9mm 1911. Springfield and Dan Wesson both have affordable models with adjustable sights, around $600-$700. I'm hoping to get hold of one of the DW's later this year, I already have a .45 and love it.

CZ's have creepy triggers. They can be staged, but that can be hard to do consistently. Theoretically a good 'smith can get them acceptably crisp, but I've yet to see one myself. My experience with 'smithed CZ triggers is one CZ 85, one Springfield P9, one EAA Witness, and one Baby Eagle, all very light but still creepy.

Hi-Power triggers are crisper but very, very heavy. Removing the magazine disconnect, plus a trigger job and spring change should get a Hi-Power to where you want, but your final total could be pretty high. $550-$600 or more for a Hi-Power with adjustable sights, another $75-$100 for the trigger job, more if you want premium parts put in. Plus, you might get hammer bite. I recently bought a Hi-Power myself. The factory trigger was heavier than my DA wheelguns. After removing the mag disconnect it's about even with many stock auto SA pulls. I'm going to change the hammer spring in the next couple of weeks, I can tell you how that works out if you like.

 

[RON in PA]

You may be asking the impossible. You want accuracy comparable to a Smith 586 or Colt Python, but I doubt that it is obtainable in a 9mm service gun. A SIG 210 might do it for you, but you are talking over $2k and the target version of the High Power is rare and expensive.

Most service nines are able, with their favorite loads, to stay in 3" at 25 yards. The Army has figured out how to get the M9 (Beretta 92) to shoot as well as target 1911s, but who has access, as a civilian, to the Army's armorers.

My suggestion is to try out some 9mm pistols and find one that you like. Have the trigger worked on, if necessary, and spend your time finding a load that shoots well. Then practice. By the way, SIGs have good SA trigger pulls, the best out of the box 9mm that I've felt.

One more suggestion: if you want accuracy on the cheap in a semi-auto get a .22 LR target pistol.

 

[emc]

My Springfield XD9 will group five shots into 2 inches at 25 yards with CCI Blazer 115gr FMJ. Haven't had the chance just yet to go ahead and try reloading for it just yet.

FWIW,

emc

 

[Mark IV Series 80]

The 9mm with the best combination of low-price and accuracy that I have fired is the Helwan Brigadier.
IIRC it's a licenced copy of the Beretta 951.

It's single action, has an 8 shot magazine, and works only with ball ammo.

I've seen these guns on sale for less than $200.00.

 

[Sean Smith]

This looks like a replay of the last post on the subject, where people make inappropriate suggestions of whatever 9mm they like. Service pistols don't deliver (rare exceptions aside) bullseye-type accuracy.

CZs DO come with test targets, though, so I guess you could fish through several boxes of CZs and pick the one with the tightest group.

 

[Master Blaster]

I love reading about stock glocks that can shoot under a one inch 5 shot group at 25 meters. I doubt that glock would even dare make that claim.

Custom smiths use kart barrels to get this accuracy in a .45, which has a very tight and adjustible barrel fit. and you must use custom ammo. The beretta that can do this is made by AMU pistol smiths and involves machineing out the aluminum lockup area on a 92 receiver and replacing it with a machined steel insert
and fitting a barrel bushing to the front of the slide and barrel by hand.

I never heard of a smith fitting a glock barrel here in the us.

Glock does make a lonslide compensated model, but I have only seen one, and I think it was around $1500

 

[Walt Sherrill]

If you want a TARGET pistol, you probably don't have enough money...

While CZs come with test targets, in comparing notes with many other CZ owners, there seems to be little relationship between those targets and how the gun really performs. (I think the tests are more a functionality test than an indication of accuracy.)

I've got a CZ-85 Combat, had a CZ-75B, have a Browning Hi-Power and had a SIG P-210-6. Out to 20 yards there wasn't that much difference in any of them, but the P-210-6 was clearly the best and seemed to shoot well with less effort. Beyond 20 yards, the SIG had a distinct edge -- and was the easiest with which to hit consistently well.

With trigger jobs, the CZ-75/85 line will shoot with any service pistol most people can afford, and better than most. From the factory, the triggers are generally good, but not great. (Most of the 75SAs seem to be better, and the 97Bs seem to be the best.)

I think it really comes down to trigger work and ergonomics: if the gun fits you well, the CZ will do very well. My Browning HP (an older one, made in '63) feels great, and is dead-on. But so is my 85 Combat. If I were forced to give one up, it would be a hard choice.

Newer HPs all seem to need trigger work, and need it badly. Most CZ probably need a little. The SA's need less. SIG P-210-6 need only a 10-round magazine (grin).

I've had a pretty good Glock 17, and like them a lot, but didn't think mine was as accurate as my CZs. But that may be simply because the CZ fit my hand better; it may be different for others.

THe only Glock that even halfway interests me, anymore, is the 34.

 

[45R]

Go with the CZ, you wont be disappointed. Great gun and easy to maintain. Its reliable and accurate.

 

[Al Thompson]

One thing to consider is the ammo. The PPC target folks tend towards JHPs. I've had very good results with Gold Dots myself. I've also had one 9mm that did not like ball ammo. Test thouroughly before writing a particular gun off.

Towards the end at TFL, someone who is a PPC shooter posted some comments about the S&W Perrformance center 9mms and the accuracy he was able to get with one. I would imagine STI has some good shooting autos as well.

 

[modifiedbrowning]

Check out the Walther P99. It is an accurate pistol.