What is the most dead solid reliable pistol (autoloader) design ever?
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MythBuster
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That is pretty much true. The vast majority of quality modern designs are very reliable out of the box.
Charles Martel
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As opposed to the venerable 1911!
gandog56
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Gotto go with that. My KP944DC has less problems than all my other semi's.
briansp82593
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beretta, sig, hk, glock
delta53
Member
should be broken down by Price
I am shure if we broke it down by cost of the pistol Glock would win for low end because many people can't see paying another $300-$500 more for marginal increse in perfomance but some would gladly pay for any edge.
My hand build Springfield 1911 -HK-Sig- the-
rest
I am shure if we broke it down by cost of the pistol Glock would win for low end because many people can't see paying another $300-$500 more for marginal increse in perfomance but some would gladly pay for any edge.
My hand build Springfield 1911 -HK-Sig- the-
rest
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armoredman
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CZ wins price wise...cheaper than g-rock, and better....
MythBuster
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"I'm sure 1911A1's failed miserably in the sand and mud of WWI, WWII, Korea, Vietnam, and Gulf War I...please!"
No one said they failed miserably.
I said they did not always work 100%. The good old Garand, Thompson, BAR, Carbine and other US WW-II weapons did not work 100% in all enviroments.
Anyone claiming they did is very WRONG.
The 1911 like the Garand was the best in it's day. They were not perfect them or now.
There has been improvements in weapons since the days of Mr Browning and John C Garand.
No one said they failed miserably.
I said they did not always work 100%. The good old Garand, Thompson, BAR, Carbine and other US WW-II weapons did not work 100% in all enviroments.
Anyone claiming they did is very WRONG.
The 1911 like the Garand was the best in it's day. They were not perfect them or now.
There has been improvements in weapons since the days of Mr Browning and John C Garand.
PX15
Member
Without a doubt: GALESI
Pistols produced in Italy by old craftsmen.. Attention to detail, top quality materials, built to last a lifetime..
Always reliable.. Always extremely accurate.. It has been stated by the Italian minister of Antiquities and National Treasures that there has NEVER been a reported failure in a Galesi pistol.. Honest, that's what he said.
No longer in production as the original craftsmen are deceased, and the Italian Government has declared the "Galesi" line of pistols a national treasure.
No Galesi's can be exported from Italy, and if you have a Galesi and live outside the boundries of Italy you are required by International Law 43555-32445.2 (Passed in the United Nations 2/7/1967), to contact the Ministry of Historical National Treasure Management.. (US a signitory).
Within ten working days a large swarthy Italian man will arrive at your domicile requesting the Galesi. You should give the gentleman the pistol, any mags, and documentation you have in your possession. After you relinquish the pistol you will be reimbursed in Italian Lira the amount equal to $35.00 U.S. dollars. (The approximate cost of a similiar pistol sold in the US at that time).
The gentleman will ask politely for the pistol, ONE TIME..
Don't make him ask again.
Best Wishes,
J. Pomeroy
Pistols produced in Italy by old craftsmen.. Attention to detail, top quality materials, built to last a lifetime..
Always reliable.. Always extremely accurate.. It has been stated by the Italian minister of Antiquities and National Treasures that there has NEVER been a reported failure in a Galesi pistol.. Honest, that's what he said.
No longer in production as the original craftsmen are deceased, and the Italian Government has declared the "Galesi" line of pistols a national treasure.
No Galesi's can be exported from Italy, and if you have a Galesi and live outside the boundries of Italy you are required by International Law 43555-32445.2 (Passed in the United Nations 2/7/1967), to contact the Ministry of Historical National Treasure Management.. (US a signitory).
Within ten working days a large swarthy Italian man will arrive at your domicile requesting the Galesi. You should give the gentleman the pistol, any mags, and documentation you have in your possession. After you relinquish the pistol you will be reimbursed in Italian Lira the amount equal to $35.00 U.S. dollars. (The approximate cost of a similiar pistol sold in the US at that time).
The gentleman will ask politely for the pistol, ONE TIME..
Don't make him ask again.
Best Wishes,
J. Pomeroy
SwampWolf
Member
Third generation Smiths in general; the 945 in particular. VERY reliable platforms in my experience.
Galesi?
You mean like this one:
http://gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.asp?Item=68064966
There are a few more on Gunbroker.com - are these true collectibles?
Bill in SD
You mean like this one:
http://gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.asp?Item=68064966
There are a few more on Gunbroker.com - are these true collectibles?
Bill in SD
What an interesting and imaginative tale. All along I thought that they were banned from importation by the U.S. Gun Control Act of 1968 after which (the U.S. being their primary market), they went out of business. If swarthy Italian gents are roaming around looking for these, obviously they've overlooked Pawn shops as many sit there gathering dust.
Seamusalaska
Member
Hands down, Glock. I suppose you Could jam them by putting the rounds in backwards but I wouldn't swear to that. Next, Ruger KP-90. Incredibly reliable.
Someone should start a poll. I know Glock would probably win even though I don't own one. I have owned a 35 and 27 and didn't like the grip at all. I think with time the new S&W M&P models and the Beretta PX4 will take a lot of Glock and XD fans to their side. I have two XD's and trying to sell one of them to buy another M&P.
PX15
Member
Birukun:
Bill... I must fess up and admit that the only thing collectable about the 25cal. Galesi pistol is if you happened to be stupid enough to buy one for your first pistol, and are a sentimentalist.. Like I did in 1966, and like I am today.
In truth my particular Galesi never met a full magazine of ammo it liked enough to feed and fire all of them without some sort of malfunction.. That was true in 1966, and the other day when I shot the sucker it still holds true. But, hey, it only cost $35.00 new, and if I had actually shot someone with it I suspect it would just have made them mad.. At least it wasn't an RG14... (Of which I'll admit I had one of those too...)
Still, makes for a nice reminder of when I was young and stupid, as opposed to now when I'm old and stupid.. Some things never change. (But, my cc pistol is now a 9mm Walther P99c/AS, which is deadly accurate, and has never met a magazine full of ammo it didn't like....)
Best Wishes..
ARTiger: Ah, you just gotta love tales of fiction involving old firearms, eh? If you happen to run up on a nice Galesi at a pawn shop cheap please remember not to tell me about it.. I've got mine, and don't want to hog the market for those other folks who might want a shiny pos for their very own.
Best Wishes to you also..
J. Pomeroy
SniperStraz
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PX15... Was this supposed to be a joke, or were you formerly misinformed?
PX15
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SniperStraz:
Ah.. A feeble attempt at a joke from an increasingly feeble old farts mind..
However, truth be told, I really had no clue about whether the Galesi was worth a poop or not. I know I had $35 and that was the price of the Galesi new, so that's what I bought..
What I REALLY wanted was an old used Colt Cobra for sale nearby but it was $65.00 and too pricy for a college student. I've always loved the Cobras and DS's and later on managed to aquire three.
I know this thread was about pistols as opposed to revolvers, but in my 50+ years of firearms ownership I've found the old Cobra's about as reliable as any autoloader I've ever owned, and that's a small pile.
Sorry to confuse you with my attempt at humor.
Best Wishes,
J. Pomeroy
Ah.. A feeble attempt at a joke from an increasingly feeble old farts mind..
However, truth be told, I really had no clue about whether the Galesi was worth a poop or not. I know I had $35 and that was the price of the Galesi new, so that's what I bought..
What I REALLY wanted was an old used Colt Cobra for sale nearby but it was $65.00 and too pricy for a college student. I've always loved the Cobras and DS's and later on managed to aquire three.
I know this thread was about pistols as opposed to revolvers, but in my 50+ years of firearms ownership I've found the old Cobra's about as reliable as any autoloader I've ever owned, and that's a small pile.
Sorry to confuse you with my attempt at humor.
Best Wishes,
J. Pomeroy
PX15
Member
Birukun:
When I bought the Galesi it was my first new pistol and if I remember correctly (we're talking 40+ years ago) pistols were simply not as reliable as they are now. Small pistols, of dubious quality were of course more prone to failure, and at $35.00 my Galesi would not be placed at the top of any "quality pistol" heap.
When new the Galesi would feed pretty well, (I was unkind to the little sucker when I said it had never met a mag. full of ammo it liked), but with less than reasonable self defense reliability. After it "hung-up" on me from time to time I bought something else and just put it away. In the early 1970's I "loaned" it to an Aunt who worked nights, and warned her it might not go bang everytime, but for her situation it was better than nothing.
A few years ago I retired and my wife and I moved next door to this Aunt and she brought the old Galesi out and offered it back to me. It had never been fired since I loaned it to her, and in fact had locked up with rust. I got it freed up and ordered a new set of springs for it off the internet and when I got it back together it shoots just fine, but still hangs up now and then. I had hoped a new mag. spring and recoil spring would make a difference, but it didn't.
The Galesi was a low end import.. It was shiny, had fake pearl grips, and was a neat "looking" little pistol. I've never heard from other Galesi owners and for all I know I just got a bad one, and the rest were super?
My pistols of choice now are my Sig P239 and my Walther P99c/AS (I also have the full size Walther P99/AS). Both of these pistols are absolutely reliable, and I would and do place my life in their hands. I also have a S&W 3913 which is 100% reliable too.. I think any MODERN pistol of reasonable quality should be always reliable, and I think generally they are.
I wouldn't keep a firearm I couldn't rely on, with the exception of my old sentimental Galesi.. (Which is unloaded and packed away, so reliability is not a problem).
Four decades make for a lot of changes, and I think pistol reliability has been one of them..
Best Wishes,
J. Pomeroy
When I bought the Galesi it was my first new pistol and if I remember correctly (we're talking 40+ years ago) pistols were simply not as reliable as they are now. Small pistols, of dubious quality were of course more prone to failure, and at $35.00 my Galesi would not be placed at the top of any "quality pistol" heap.
When new the Galesi would feed pretty well, (I was unkind to the little sucker when I said it had never met a mag. full of ammo it liked), but with less than reasonable self defense reliability. After it "hung-up" on me from time to time I bought something else and just put it away. In the early 1970's I "loaned" it to an Aunt who worked nights, and warned her it might not go bang everytime, but for her situation it was better than nothing.
A few years ago I retired and my wife and I moved next door to this Aunt and she brought the old Galesi out and offered it back to me. It had never been fired since I loaned it to her, and in fact had locked up with rust. I got it freed up and ordered a new set of springs for it off the internet and when I got it back together it shoots just fine, but still hangs up now and then. I had hoped a new mag. spring and recoil spring would make a difference, but it didn't.
The Galesi was a low end import.. It was shiny, had fake pearl grips, and was a neat "looking" little pistol. I've never heard from other Galesi owners and for all I know I just got a bad one, and the rest were super?
My pistols of choice now are my Sig P239 and my Walther P99c/AS (I also have the full size Walther P99/AS). Both of these pistols are absolutely reliable, and I would and do place my life in their hands. I also have a S&W 3913 which is 100% reliable too.. I think any MODERN pistol of reasonable quality should be always reliable, and I think generally they are.
I wouldn't keep a firearm I couldn't rely on, with the exception of my old sentimental Galesi.. (Which is unloaded and packed away, so reliability is not a problem).
Four decades make for a lot of changes, and I think pistol reliability has been one of them..
Best Wishes,
J. Pomeroy
TOADMAN
Member
9mm Glocks...
Qualifiers
You left out a few things that are rather important to auto pistol operation. namely, the ammo! Ammo isn't perfect, and bad rounds do happen, even from the top factories. And a bad round will screw up even the most perfect pistol's record of reliability.
As far as the design goes, for me, the history has to play a part. Everything jams, sooner or later. Even if you have 10,000 rounds through your particular pet and it has never jammed, all you can truthfully say is that it has never jammed yet.
The 1911 was our service pistol for over 70 years! This longevity was not due to an accident. And it is still one of the most popular pistols today, over 20 years after it was retired from frontline military service.
Glocks, Sigs, H&Ks, etc. are reliable guns, but they will have to be in use for another 50 years or more before that can come close to matching the history of reliability of design that the 1911 has TODAY.
An individual gun can be flawless, or a POS, or somewhere inbetween. But taken overall, with the history of the entire production to look at for reliability, one design stands above all the others. And we call that one the 1911.
You left out a few things that are rather important to auto pistol operation. namely, the ammo! Ammo isn't perfect, and bad rounds do happen, even from the top factories. And a bad round will screw up even the most perfect pistol's record of reliability.
As far as the design goes, for me, the history has to play a part. Everything jams, sooner or later. Even if you have 10,000 rounds through your particular pet and it has never jammed, all you can truthfully say is that it has never jammed yet.
The 1911 was our service pistol for over 70 years! This longevity was not due to an accident. And it is still one of the most popular pistols today, over 20 years after it was retired from frontline military service.
Glocks, Sigs, H&Ks, etc. are reliable guns, but they will have to be in use for another 50 years or more before that can come close to matching the history of reliability of design that the 1911 has TODAY.
An individual gun can be flawless, or a POS, or somewhere inbetween. But taken overall, with the history of the entire production to look at for reliability, one design stands above all the others. And we call that one the 1911.
Charshooter
Member
That is not easy to answer because it depends on the circumstances. If you have one pistol and live where you can’t repair it, the Glock 17 is way up there. If you know how to work on them, the 1911 is very good. I’m going to pick the Sig P220 because it is the only automatic pistol I carried much. I like the Walter PPK but I have not shot mine nearly as much as one does to determine its functionality. It is just a good conceal pistol for me the few times I need it.
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