What is your Go to War Sidearm?

[Chief Wiggums]

SF Vet................ liked your post #233.
Fact is I've liked most of your posts....................

ditto
his comment about available , common ammo forced me to think about the same process for a firearm....

what is the most common (reliable) sidearm in existence?
Lord know , access to spare parts , extra mags ect is paramount.

Id say the Glock 19
for a boom stick....I'll go w a MB500

 

[mic214]

Out of what I have on hand, it would be between my Glock G34:



Or my G21:

 

[sipowicz]

I rarely fight dirty. But I do fight disheveled.

 

[PALADIN85020]

It would be one of these three; probably the Mark 23. Interestingly, the Mark 23 and USP standard magazines will interchange, and have the same capacity. All are in .45 ACP flavor.

John

 

[Echo40]

In the interest of keeping this thread on track, I'm through with the debate on the subject of dirty fighting. If folks wish to interpret that as a victory in their favor, then they may, but this isn't the place for such a debate as it's off topic and will only lead to the thread getting derailed and most likely closed, so I'd rather agree to disagree and get back on topic.

With that being said, I have also come to recognize that since I have intentionally neglected to include any specific context or scenario as a framework for the subject at hand (go to war sidearms) and left it up to the imagination of participants, that folks are obviously approaching the subject from multiple angles which in turn wildly differentiate the circumstances in which their opinions/arguments are based upon, ergo so do their stances on the peripheral subject of dirty fighting. With that in mind, there are obviously some circumstances, specifically those in which such a choice would make the difference between life and death, especially when facing a ruthless opponent who will not accept surrender nor take prisoners, ergo survival itself would take priority. Under such circumstances, more leeway on the subject must be afforded, and I can only conclude that such was the angle which those who were advocating for dirty fighting must have been approaching it from.

That being said, please let us put the subject to bed and keep the thread on-topic.

 

[Rustyt1953]

I rarely fight dirty. But I do fight disheveled.

You need a tactical steam iron.

 

[John Patrick]

You need a tactical steam iron.

Costs about double what a regular steam iron costs. Must be more better.

And you need two because two is one and one is none.

 

[giants1]

Yesterday, I was at an LGS looking at 1911s (thanks to the posts in this discussion). The topic of .40 S&W came up (I don't remember the context); LGS employee said that .40 S&W guns and ammo are becoming less and less common, .40 S&W ammo being in shorter supply than .45 ACP during the recent pandemic. I loosely followed ammo availability at Big 5 during that time and found .40 S&W available (usually) and more commonly available and a little more variety than .45 ACP. As of last night, big box store Sportman's Warehouse had much more .40 S&W available than .45 ACP (though less than 9mm).

I wonder if there's value in buying a .40 S&W cal. pistol for the purpose of available ammo during the next gun/ammo shortage and/or battlefield pick up and/or police distributing ammo in lieu of or as a supplement to law enforcement in SHTF, the .40 S&W being popular among law enforcement?

 

[Echo40]

Admittedly, as my username might suggest, I am somewhat biased when it comes to the .40 S&W cartridge, but I must say that despite persistent assertions by many that it is a dying cartridge which will soon fade away into obscurity, it remains to be in the top 3 cartridges in terms of sales on most websites, and the sheer amount of folks who bought .40cal pistols due to the sheer amount of low-priced yet high value police trade-ins on the market, I would be so bold as to say that .40 S&W has never been more popular yet more accessible as it is right now.

Besides, even if the .40 S&W cartridge was dying, the fact remains that because most .40cal pistols can be easily converted to 9mm Luger or .357 SIG with nothing more than a drop-in conversion barrel, most .40s you can buy could be easily made to fire other cartridges as well!

So yeah, if you can find a good deal on a .40cal pistol, (which shouldn't be too hard, since PDs continue to trade in their .40s) then I would highly recommend getting one.
Heck, shop around online and you should easily be able to locate some .40cal police trade-in Glocks, SIGs, or S&W M&Ps somewhere at a great price. So yeah, it gets my vote.

 

[Mark8]

It would be one of these three; probably the Mark 23. Interestingly, the Mark 23 and USP standard magazines will interchange, and have the same capacity. All are in .45 ACP flavor.

John

Great choice!

In the spirit of this thread and preventing someone from finding this out in a go-to-war situation, I'd like to point out that the USP45 magazines won't work in the Mk23, you'll need to replace the floor plate with the one for the Mk23. HK is selling this part, so it's just a matter of getting this inexpensive piece of plastic and replacing the floor plate on your USP45 mags, but you really have to plan and do this before the fight.

The other way around it works, Mk23 mags will work in any full size USP45. There will be a little gap at the front, but it's no big deal, it's pretty much cosmetic. If you're running both pistols, you can put Mk23 floor plates on all your mags and they will work in both guns.

 

[Dogbone44Spl]

I have not read thru this whole thread. But I'd carry what I was issued. For the weight of a hand gun I'd rather have an extra belt of ammo. Or more magazines.

 

[jschmidt]

Your go-to-war weapon is whatever your go-to-war branch issues you. I have a full sized M&P 9. But assuming Russia invades, I'll probably rely on my Benelli Nova

 

[Buford57]

I haven't gone looking for trouble since they quit paying me to. If I had to, I keep a bug out bag with extra mags for the .45 Witness that lives in the nightstand. I was once accused by the former state HS wrestling champ of not "fighting fair" after I had him in cuffs. I told him the city didn't pay me to fight fair, it paid me to win, and today that meant taking his sorry self to jail. I did not accept his request that I remove the cuffs for a rematch.

 

[Shark Bait]

If I have to go into a fight instead of away from one, then capacity and reliability are king. I'd have to choose my M&P40.

 

[MP-5]

 

[sotexas]

My custom .45 with a whole bunch of mags and my lever action 44mag rifle

 

[Robspeire]

First I carry Situational Awareness which is backed up by an
SA Loaded 1911 .45 & S&W PC Shield .45. when I am out and about.
Home, first line of protection is German Shepard & Boxer mixed who refuses to sleep inside & stays on front porch & free to come & go. (He ran off all the coyotes)
Have a Rem 11-87 12 Ga. with light & extended magazine along with the 2 handguns mentioned.
Although Tenn. is open carry I believe concealed is best.

 

[forrestinmathews]

I wonder how many dirty fighters might be able to say the same at the end of the line?

They'll all say they have no regrets. Then they and St. Peter will all pop a top and laugh at you. Nice guys finish last. Who dares wins.

 

[BillyMagg]

Probably this 1971 Browning HP that I bought new, although I too do not like the the 9mm. The other choice would be my standard issue Colt 1911

Yeah, I'd have to agree, nothing spins on the forefinger like a Browning Hi Power, nothing!! having said that, I traded my .40 Hi Power Practical, with the "Pinky" modified trigger with no mag safety off on my first stainless Springfield Armory Loaded stainless,,, I bought a gorgeous 68 9mm Hi Power similar to the one some MACVSOG boys suggested my Dad take a couple of out of two cases in the back of his MC-130E Combat Talon.. they said take a couple of these Major, we shoot em dry, drop em, and run like hell... you might as well take a couple. Well, they were clean with no serials so he passed on a mighty generous offer,,, I bought one in memoriam,,, gorgeous yes, nasty as can be trigger with the mag safety, heck yeah!! so when it comes right down to it, that Loaded stainless, and a sister "Super Tuned" Springers are what I can hit with... a little too heavy to spin on your finger,, but that's what I keep that Browning for... it spins great, but I just can't hit **** with it... lol.. oh, and be careful if you spin anything on your trigger finger,,, really careful...

 

[SF VET]

an innocuous way to spend time for some of us, is to go full "Walter Mitty" and imagine, and think about what we would prefer in various situations. Very few us have, or will ever have to really experience such circumstances, or even have a choice of a sidearm if deployed.

But.... perhaps consideration could be what single firearm would be "best" in the desert, the swamps, in salty places, the arctic, or clandestine ops. Or with with US or guerrilla forces. Or in urban or rural places. Or like SFC Tom C, my comrade in the Delta, who just had a shoulder bag full of grenades ready to go.

Just part of the enjoyment we can experience as firearm enthusiasts.

Maybe two, a derringer and a Desert Eagle. Have a fun and safe weekend....

SF VET