HK P7 vs Shield vs M&P Compact

USMC586

USMC586

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So I have been waiting for that call..... "Your shield is in". Months of waiting, tons of reviews read, sleepless nights, do you really need it?, talks with myself in the car, you know the gun collector abnormalities. Well for us that are afflicted it is quite normal to ponder these types of thoughts.
So my rant really comes to this. Where does my P7 fit into the Shield, and M&Pc category? So looking at the specs I came up with this.
SHIELD M&Pc HK
Barrel 3.1 3.5 4.13
Length 6.1 6.7 6.54
Height 4.6 4.3 5.00
Width .95 1.2 1.14
Weight 1.18 1.35 1.73

The 36 year old HK has specs that are are pretty damn close to "new technology", not bad for the old man. Anyway the numbers are great and all but does someone have pics or videos comparing these guns?
Your thoughts?

Hey I tried to adjust the specs several times but they keep comming out mismatched,sorry.
 
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The P7 for me is scary accurate. What is your experience?
 
Chase said:
The P7 for me is scary accurate. What is your experience?
Click to expand...

The same, it's an absolute tack driver and a joy to shoot. Smooth, smooth, smooth, ultra fast follow up shots and minimal recoil. One of my favorite guns of all time.

I love my S&W's but my HK's are like Rolex's. Then again my 586 3" is just as impressive in it's own right.
 
Really no pics of a Shield next to an HK P7?
If there are no pics, does anyone own both and care to comment?
 
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There are only two compact 9mms that I would trust with my life. One of them is the H&K P7.

HampKP7-small_zps9aa7bddd.jpg


The other is the Smith 3913NL.

3913-RIGHT-1280_zps51fb8589.jpg


Both of these guns are reliable, concealable, powerful enough, and uncannily accurate. Other than that they both spill empty shells all over hell and back, they don't get much better than these two. As for the Shield, I can't comment, as I am more than satisfied with these. I consider them both pinnacles of the special purpose-gun-making art.

John
 
I own a Shield and a 9C, I have owned P7s, both in 8 and 13 round. I enjoyed the P7s but tired of having a gun too complicated to work on and impossible to get parts for. Magazines are/were obscenely priced. Fire an extreme course of fire with a high round count and you could feel the blisters form on your trigger finger. It was accurate and extremely safe to have when my children were younger.

I have both the Shield and 9C because different guns have different purposes. The Shield is thin like the P7M8, the 9C thickness is like the P7M13.

I consider all dependable, all accurate. But I can get both Smiths for less than the current market value of a P7.
 
The P7 is a fabulous pistol to be sure, but its manual of arms is idiosyncratic. I've looked at them and thought about buying one for twenty years, but I'd rather have something that has a manual of arms that matches other guns I depend on, which unfortunately rules that one out, for me. The Shield has the benefit of a manual of arms that matches Glocks and other striker-fired pistols (if you ignore the manual safety, which I do).
 
I carried a P7M8 for 8 years...great gun but a bit heavy for a single stack nine...and you really need a well designed holster to accommodate the odd weight distribution. I would go with the shield....:)
 
USMC586 said:
I love my S&W's but my HK's are like Rolex's.
Click to expand...

I should have never read this thread. Basically I went from my USPc to a Shield. Spent more on the Shield + upgrades than I got for the USPc. :(
 
Had a P7 many years ago... It was an interesting gun. The slide on mine would grate when retracted if the gas system was dirty, so I tried to send it in and have HK take a look at it. The gun was purchased brand new but was imported by someone other than HK (:confused:). Long story short, they wouldn't touch it for warranty. I've bought many guns over the years since then. Not a single one of them has been an HK...

In regard to performance, the Shield is smaller and lighter than the P7. It fits the hand better too. The P7 has a better trigger, if you can tolerate its unique functioning. Accuracy is a bust between the two for practical CCW use. A big item for me is that I am a believer that defensive pistol calibers should start with a "4". Try and find a P7 in 40 nowadays.
 
VMaxSplat said:
Had a P7 many years ago... It was an interesting gun. The slide on mine would grate when retracted if the gas system was dirty, so I tried to send it in and have HK take a look at it. The gun was purchased brand new but was imported by someone other than HK (:confused:). Long story short, they wouldn't touch it for warranty. I've bought many guns over the years since then. Not a single one of them has been an HK...
Click to expand...
Your loss pal. If you take a cruise, & stop at some island in the Bahama's, & purchase a Minolta camera there, or any other brand, & have problems with it back in the States, do you think Minolta USA will fix it under warranty. No chance. They didn't import the camera, so they don't offer a warranty on it. You would have to send the camera to the company that imported it from Japan to the Bahamas. That's what the term "gray market" means. A product that is imported through other than normal channels. My boss had a Mercedes that wasn't sold here in the States, but somehow ended up here. The dealer wouldn't even look at the car except for oil changes. If they didn't import it & sell it, [and make a small profit on it],why should they warranty it? You should have sent your P7 to the company that imported it into the States & had them repair it. GARY
 
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N4KVE said:
Your loss pal. If you take a cruise, & stop at some island in the Bahama's, & purchase a Minolta camera there, or any other brand, & have problems with it back in the States, do you think Minolta USA will fix it under warranty. No chance. They didn't import the camera, so they don't offer a warranty on it. You would have to send the camera to the company that imported it from Japan to the Bahamas. That's what the term "gray market" means. A product that is imported through other than normal channels. My boss had a Mercedes that wasn't sold here in the States, but somehow ended up here. The dealer wouldn't even look at the car except for oil changes. If they didn't import it & sell it, [and make a small profit on it],why should they warranty it? You should have sent your P7 to the company that imported it into the States & had them repair it. GARY
Click to expand...

Thing was, I wasn't out of the country, the P7 was purchased at my LGS alongside other HK products. There was no apparent distinction between them and obviously HK made and sold the gun for a profit at some point. Since they were selling to other importers, they should have honored the warranty or made it clear up front. In the end, this event cost them much more than it did me.
 
HK is known for notoriously poor customer service. It isn't just with civilian purchasers either, PD I used to work with had the same issues when it came to purchasing spare parts or sending pistols in for repairs.

The P7 is a great little shooter. While a little heavy, it is more of the balance that I think is the issue. It is also harder to find modern holsters for it.

We have a student that comes to us a couple times a year for class. He actually brings three P7's and switches out when they become too hot to handle.
 
The P7 is my absolute favorite "compact" 9mm by far. The trigger is the best factory trigger I've ever felt, the recoil is minimal due to the low barrel axis. 100% reliable. I love mine and carry it often. It is heavy for a 9-shooter, but it carries well in this IWB leather/kydex hybrid holster.
Holsters4.jpg

Sorry, I don't have a Shield or M&P9c to compare to.
 
VMaxSplat said:
Thing was, I wasn't out of the country, the P7 was purchased at my LGS alongside other HK products. There was no apparent distinction between them and obviously HK made and sold the gun for a profit at some point. Since they were selling to other importers, they should have honored the warranty or made it clear up front. In the end, this event cost them much more than it did me.
Click to expand...
Sorry your LGS didn't "make it clear up front" that HK USA didn't import the gun, but how is that HK USA's fault? While HK in Germany made the gun, according to you, HK USA didn't import the gun. Again, the actual importer should have honored the warranty. If I go to a camera store in the USA, & purchase a camera that was sold by Minolta Japan to Minolta in England, but the camera store owner somehow got a great deal on these "grey market", cameras, Minolta USA would not do any warranty work on the camera as they didn't import it. If it were me, I'd have never stepped foot in that LGS again, as THEY sold you a HK that was not imported by HK USA. But, that's just me. That's why if you read the New York times you will see many great deals on cameras. Trouble is many of them were not meant to be sold in the USA & have no warranty in this country. GARY
 
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USMC586 said:
So I have been waiting for that call..... "Your shield is in". Months of waiting, tons of reviews read, sleepless nights, do you really need it?, talks with myself in the car, you know the gun collector abnormalities. Well for us that are afflicted it is quite normal to ponder these types of thoughts.
Click to expand...

Really? You may be pretty disappointed when you finally get a Shield.... It's a gun, like other guns. It's not a 3913 by any stretch of the imagination...

On my list of guns it's right near the top of guns I'd give up first. I prefer the 9c and 3913 more.
 
Lost Lake said:
Really? You may be pretty disappointed when you finally get a Shield.... It's a gun, like other guns. It's not a 3913 by any stretch of the imagination...

On my list of guns it's right near the top of guns I'd give up first. I prefer the 9c and 3913 more.
Click to expand...

Some people like Fords, some like Chevys. I wouldn't part with my Shield 40 under any circumstances. Love my FS 9 also, but I knew what I was giving up to get the slimmer gun. (approx 10 rounds or 5 if I went with the c)

The Shield is fantastically comfortable in the hand and recoil is minimal.
 
I guess I stirred the thought pot a little, which is ok to get people talking. I did not intend on getting the hate train rolling. My mindset was to get a comparison of a Shield and a P7 and how close the old technology is to the "new" Shield. Here is a pic of my HK P7, USPc and my 340 for a size comparison.
Also my P7 carry set up.
P1010052-2.jpg
P1010057.jpg

P1010157.jpg


My Shield desires are not one of fulfilling a dream scenario; I have a few dream guns. It is just trying to convince myself that I should preserve my HK via a Shield purchase. I have a Shorty that has been my current carry piece, but I want to save her as well. Here are a few of my favorite S&W's.
P1010078.jpg
P1010090-1.jpg
 
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