ChanceMcCall
Member
I ran into a guy the other day that is carrying his Detonics Auto Nine as his primary everyday carry gun. Other than Miami Vice reruns, I haven't seen anyone carrying one since the 1990s so I was a little more than surprised.
These guns got a bad rap when they were new over recoil and cleaning, but they were the smallest 9mm at the time. I owned one and never thought the recoil was out of line but I mostly shot .45ACP. I did not think it was particularly hard to clean when compared to guns like the Luger or the Ruger Mark II, but that was me. Obviously, the bad press affected the gun because they didn't sell well and are actually pretty rare.
I carried mine as a backup to my Detonics Combat Master in .45ACP for several years until it went to the back of a gun safe where it has been (except for an annual cleaning) ever since. When Glock came out with their 30, the Detonics .45 also went to the safe.
There is no question that Detonics made high quality guns until they ran into financial problems. Their guns were more accurate and more reliable than the other manufacturers at the time. They had features no other production guns had.
So when the guy showed up packing his Detonics I had to shoot it. The accuracy was great, the single action trigger was great, and if it was shot empty, it would make a great substitute for brass knuckles.
All of that said, the gun is very heavy for a modern carry gun. The double action trigger, while very smooth, is also heavy. If they made them today, they would also be very expensive. I realize that there are still some everyday carriers using 1911s, but I gave them up because of size and weight for the Detonics Combat Master, and then changed to the Glock 30 first, the Glock 36 next, and currently a Springfield Armory XDs still in .45ACP. I do not want to go back to all that weight.
What are your thoughts? Is the weight worth the higher quality pistol? Should those Detonics come out of the safe?
These guns got a bad rap when they were new over recoil and cleaning, but they were the smallest 9mm at the time. I owned one and never thought the recoil was out of line but I mostly shot .45ACP. I did not think it was particularly hard to clean when compared to guns like the Luger or the Ruger Mark II, but that was me. Obviously, the bad press affected the gun because they didn't sell well and are actually pretty rare.
I carried mine as a backup to my Detonics Combat Master in .45ACP for several years until it went to the back of a gun safe where it has been (except for an annual cleaning) ever since. When Glock came out with their 30, the Detonics .45 also went to the safe.
There is no question that Detonics made high quality guns until they ran into financial problems. Their guns were more accurate and more reliable than the other manufacturers at the time. They had features no other production guns had.
So when the guy showed up packing his Detonics I had to shoot it. The accuracy was great, the single action trigger was great, and if it was shot empty, it would make a great substitute for brass knuckles.
All of that said, the gun is very heavy for a modern carry gun. The double action trigger, while very smooth, is also heavy. If they made them today, they would also be very expensive. I realize that there are still some everyday carriers using 1911s, but I gave them up because of size and weight for the Detonics Combat Master, and then changed to the Glock 30 first, the Glock 36 next, and currently a Springfield Armory XDs still in .45ACP. I do not want to go back to all that weight.
What are your thoughts? Is the weight worth the higher quality pistol? Should those Detonics come out of the safe?