Greatest 9mm Ever Made

[SAFireman]

Sig gets my vote. P228 for me

 

[S-W4EVER]

I believe the main reason the BHP is such a good pistol is because it was developed by two firearms geniuses, John M. Browning and Dieudonne Saive. In 1935 it probably was the best and for some of us it has stood the test of time.

 

[EPVegas]

I will jump in on the side of the Beretta, but they are both beautiful in their own way

 

[Well Armed]

CZ 75 series
Beretta 92 series
Sig P226/P228/229 series
HK USP and P30
Walther P99AS
Beretta PX4
Colt 1911s

Glock is towards the bottom of the list. Yes, Glocks are very good, popular, and highly reliable utilitarian pistols, but the "greatest???" Not even close. I buy Glocks and other polymer strike-fired handguns because they're relatively inexpensive, disposable, dime a dozen, light weight, and easier to EDC. If I were to buy a pistol that I'd have pride of ownership or as a collectable, BBQ gun, heirloom, etc., Glock doesn't come to mind.

Browning Hi- Power is an icon pistol, but I'd put CZ and Beretta above it. There's a reason why 1911s, CZ, and Berettas are still popular and going strong, and Browning Hi- Power isn't a big seller at all.

 

[Well Armed]

No THAT is how you start an argument!

If he would have said Glock 19 was "the Greatest 9mm Ever Made," on a S&W forum no less, that would have started a riot lol. A Browning Hi- Power is a respectable nominee.

 

[shawn mccarver]

After the trials resulting in the M9's selection, it seems everyone upped their 9mm game, and it has gotten better since then. Here is my list of 9mm pistols that will serve you well:

Beretta M9, PX4
Browning High Power Mk III
CZ75B
FN509
Glock 17/19
HK USP, P30, or VP9
Ruger P89
SIG Neuhausen P210
SIG Sauer Mk 25 or M11
S&W M&P 9 2.0
Walther P5, P88, P99, PPQ, PDP

There are probably others, but that's a pretty good list of guns that will not let you down.

 

[huntsman22]

 

[otis24]

I like the HP but I think that the CZ-75 edges it out a bit. I have a Beretta 92 but it is too bulky for me to want to tote it around.

I think the CZ75 is a great pistol. I had the CZ75 compact. The thing that I disliked about it is that the slide sat inside the frame. Great for accuracy but doesn't give you a lot to hold onto to rack the slide.

 

[Ματθιας]

I think the finest 9mm of all time is the, in all of its machined and mechanical goodness, P.08 Luger. It's, just, beautiful.

But if I'm running out the door with a 9mm, my top three choices: G19X or a Jericho 941 or a Sig Sp2009.

 

[max503]

Glock maybe better for you, NOT for me. I shoot the Beretta just fine.

Something about the Beretta/Taurus just makes it an easy to shoot pistol and that means a lot.

 

[SAFireman]

May be the HK p7 series.....how about a p7m13?

Or, if we want to be really contentious.....a Colt 1911 in Super 38 This one happens to be one of my all-time favorite shooters, and a carry gun.

 

[pacecars]

I do love the Hi Power and Glocks do work I must confess that I only have one 9mm now. Once I got my hands on the Wilson EDC X9 the rest went down the road

 

[chief38]

I will judge the "best" by category. IMHO comparing a specialized gun to one of the same caliber for a different purpose makes little sense to me.b Here are my picks:

Target Shooting: SIG P210
Concealed CCW/EDC: SIG P365
LEO purposes: Glock 19
Design, material functionality, QC, looks: Belgium Browning Hi Power

 

[mtgianni]

I shoot well with both the CZ 75 and Browning HP, If I were going into a gun fight at pistol cartridge ranges, I would go with the Uzi model B and stick mags.

 

[erikpolcrack]

Great answers here, and I certainly upvote the Browning and the Beretta, but the Sig P226 has been one of my very favorites since they first came out.

 

[Glenn R. McMannly]

I do enjoy the P220 series.

 

[richrd]

I traded my G17 for a B92 and never looked back.

The decocker is a non issue. leave it off and treat the gun like the double action it is.

But if we're going to talk about the greatest, it has to the Wilson series. for those who can afford them.

 

[Goony]

A Belgian Hi-Power is not going to let you down. However, I briefly owned an Argentine version that was a complete jam-o-matic.

 

[ladder13]

P226 or CZ75

 

[Glenn R. McMannly]

I think the CZ75 is a great pistol. I had the CZ75 compact. The think that I disliked about it is that the slide sat inside the frame. Great for accuracy but doesn't give you a lot to hold onto to rack the slide.

I agree. I owned a CZ-75 Police model that was a rough LE/mil overseas trade in.

Gun looked like hell but ran just fine. But that little slide with the itty bitty serrations was like trying to pull a slippery trout out of its nest when racking.

Down the road it went.

 

[WardenRoss]

My favorite. If you consider shot-placement vital, this is the master.

 

[Grayfox]

I'm a 1911 guy. But the 1911 shouldn't be chambered in 9mm. You actually have to scale back Ol' Slabsides to make it work with the 9mm cartridge. No, a 9mm 1911 is nothing more than blasphemy and for wussies who can't handle a real pistol.

OTOH, The Hi-Power is a world class combat pistol designed specifically for the 9mm cartridge. Its proved its bones in countless conflicts all over the world for close to 90 years now.
I completely agree that its the greatest 9mm pistol ever made.

 

[Ingramite]

One Picture = One Thousand Words

https://smith-wessonforum.com/attachment.php?attachmentid=672154&stc=1&d=1710086146

 

[JJOG]

1 BHP
2 German made Sig P228.

 

[Yaworski]

I didn't care for Sigs when Browning was importing them as the BDA45. Never looked at them again.

 

[BLACKHAWKNJ]

The Hi Power has been produced almost exclusively with steel frames, a big +++ in my book, and compared to the M1911 it'is a breeze to field strip.
Only design flaw is since JMB and Dieudonne Saive designed it around the 9MMP it cannot be chambered in other rounds without a major redesign and tooling. IIRC the 40 S&W chambering wasn't that sucessful.

 

[LVSteve]

I knew a former VIP protection guy from the British army. He said they used Sigs because in their testing the Brownings were found to have shot loose before the completion of their training regimen. That was enough of a real world review to convince me that the H Power legend should be treated with caution. It's not the last firearm I've come across where the reality and the legend don't necessarily join up.

I've handled or fired quite a number of 9mm pistols from a wide variety of manufacturers and countries. They all have their features and quirks, but never have I found myself saying, "Oh no, not this, I'd much rather have a Hi Power." I own superior designs (IMHO) myself, but whether any of them will ever be successfully used in combat will be a matter for history long after I'm dead.

 

[chiefdave]

I'm 75 and this is the first time I've seen "greatest" and "9mm" used in the same sentence. At least the BPH is all steel.

 

[BB57]

I'm a 1911 guy. But the 1911 shouldn't be chambered in 9mm. You actually have to scale back Ol' Slabsides to make it work with the 9mm cartridge. No, a 9mm 1911 is nothing more than blasphemy and for wussies who can't handle a real pistol.

There was a time when I'd have agreed with you.

But 9mm hollow point performance has dramatically improved to the point that many of the, offer excellent expansion and penetration.


When I saw that begin to occur, I started rethinking my choices and weighed 9mm versus 45 in the context of A zone hits in practical pistol stages of fire.

Power factor differences aside, in terms of number of A zone hits in a given period of time I can land 4 A zone hits with a 9mm in the same time it takes me to to land 3 A zone hits with a .45 ACP, and that was after 20 years of shooting the .45 ACP in matches.

There's a reason they penalize the 9mm with the minor power factor. And yet the effectiveness of a modern, well designed 9mm hollow point in a defensive shoot isn't significantly different than the effectiveness of a .45 ACP hollow point.

Now, if we were limited to shooting FMJs then absolutely, the .45 ACP is king.

 

[marinevet]

I do love the Hi Power and Glocks do work I must confess that I only have one 9mm now. Once I got my hands on the Wilson EDC X9 the rest went down the road

My EDC in a 9MM