I recently picked up a P320 Carry. I did a rather in-depth comparison to the VP9 and PPQ in this thread:

https://sigforum.com/eve/forums...0601935/m/9880039914

Today, I had a chance to shoot, so I packed up the 3 and hit the range. As it happens, my normal range was closed for a class, so I went to another one. Ended up nice, cuz they had several other "next gen" striker fired pistols for rent. What's nice is they let you switch your rental. So I started with the FNS, switched to the M&P then to the Ruger American. All 6 pistols are 9mm.

See the thread above for my views on the VP9, PPQ and P320. I have a few comments for the others below. I shot 15 rounds slow fire (2 or 3 sec between shots) through each of the 6 pistols at 7 yards, all with Fiocchi 124gr FMJ. I used a traditional, or 50/50 sight image for all.

I started with the Walther PPQ M-2. As I mentioned in the previous thread, I like it, but I changed to Mepro night sights and the POI changed high. It also had the most noticeable felt recoil of the 6.


Next was the HK VP9. I'm a pretty decent shot with it slow fire, but not as good rapid fire. Still get a little finger rub from the mag paddle, even after filing it down. Better than the poke it used to be.


Then it was the FN FNS. I'd handled the FNX-45 before and the FNS-9 has similar grips. Very grippy, maybe borderline pokey. Dunno what size backstrap was on it, but I would've liked bigger. Ergos were fine, but didn't feel as nice as the VP9 or PPQ. Had a manual safety, but it was out of the way. The trigger had a little springy feel, not as crisp as the PPQ or P320, but better than the others. Call it an average trigger. One thing that stood out to me was the mag release. It worked fine, just kind of a weird shape with the oval hump. Overall, I was a little pleasantly surprised with it, so I put 10 more rounds through it at 10 yards, split between the two small targets.


Picked up the P320 next. Got the Talon grips on it just two days ago. Definitely helped the feel. Still hope someone makes some aftermarket grip options. It seemed to have the least felt recoil of the 6, maybe tied with the Ruger. I don't have a trigger pull gauge, and I don't think there's anything wrong with the pull, but I wouldn't mind if it was a touch lighter. After shooting all of the pistols, I came back to the P320 and shot 20/25 yards. Experienced a failure to fire I couldn't figure out. I was riding the reset and in the middle of the string got no bang. Waited for the hangfire possibility, then dropped the mag. Ejected a live round from the chamber, sans primer strike. Reloaded it in the mag and had no further problems. I swear I felt a click from the trigger break, but all I can think is I short-stroked. I'm not immune to short-stroking occasionally during rapid fire with long reset pistols, but slow fire was odd to me. Anyway, results at 7 yards:


Next in line was the M&P. My buddies have M&Ps with trigger work as nice as the PPQ. This one was stock, of course, and ranked last or close to last. This pistol works great, just no "soul" to it. They didn't have a 2.0 for rent. The flier was totally me (who else to blame?):


Last, but not least...well maybe least...was the Ruger American Pistol. Just picking it up before loading it, I think I muttered "heavy beast." Felt nose-heavy, even after loading. Grips felt real small, but again don't know what size was installed on the rental. Grips may be a misnomer-hardly anything grippy to them at all. Trigger felt rather mushy/spongy. But, it worked fine and I shot it good enough. Still, I wouldn't pay any more for the RAP than I did for the RAR ($300). It did have a soft felt recoil, which you'd expect when the pistol weighs as much as the rifle (slight exaggeration)!


I was surprised I shot the PPQ the worst, even accounting for the POI shift from the sights. It was the first of the day, maybe I needed to warm up. I still would like P320 grips that felt better, but I can't argue with the results. I will need to run a lot more ammo through it to see if I had a dead trigger or short-stroked (I tend towards end-user error). The FNS was a nice surprise, the Ruger left me a bit disappointed.

Nice eval and summery .

I have not shot or even handled the Ruger American pistol. My impression of the others more or less aligns with yours.

The medium grip module of the P320 just fits my hand very well. It is also most like the grip of my SIG P229, which is one of my most comfortable and accurate pistols to shoot. The trigger is very good, and personally I would not want the trigger pull weight on either of my P320s to be any lighter. I have a full-size P320 in .45 ACP and a compact 9mm and they both shoot well and handle recoil very well. Having shot the HK VP9 and the Walther PPQ, I was more accurate with the P320, and it wound up being my choice of polymer-frame, striker-fired pistols. The P320 just points very naturally for me and comes back on target in a very predicable fashion.

HK VP9: very good trigger and good grip ergonomics, although for me the SIG P320 is still more comfortable. I found the issue with the paddle magazine release stinging my finger to be quite annoying within 25 rounds. I understand that this can be improved with a Dremel or files, but I am reluctant to remove metal from the frame of a brand new pistol. The VP9 is also a longer and taller pistol than the P320 compact for no greater magazine capacity, so I saw it as being less well-suited for carry. I did pretty well with it, but I did not shoot it as well as the SIG, perhaps because of the trigger finger sting issue.

Walther PPQ: another nice pistol. Probably would have been my second choice although I might have gone with the DA/SA P99 AS instead. I do agree that this pistol seems to have a bit more muzzle flip than one would expect. Comfortable grip, but not quite as good for me as the SIG. I really prefer a grip without finger grooves.

Springfield XDs: I have only shot a few and they were pretty nice. They just don't seem to fit my hand as well. I can see why they are popular, however.

Smith and Wesson M&Ps: I haven't shot one for a good while. The ones I have shot had terrible triggers. I have read that they have improved. But I agree they just don't have any soul, if any polymer-frame pistol can be said to possess soul. Somehow I look at one and I just don't even want to pick it up. Stupid, I know. The ones I have picked up just didn't feel right in my hand.

FN FNS: Well, I have only shot the .40 caliber version, but I was favorably impressed. Not a terribly comfortable grip or grip texture, but it works. The trigger is less good than the SIG P320, HK VP9, or Walthers, but it wasn't bad. Overall I thought it was a solid weapon, and they have certainly been selling at any attractive price, recently.

Too bad you didn't have a Steyr M9 A1 to try as well.

Great concise evaluation!

Nice shooting too.

I have the PPQ and VP9 but have wanted a P320 Compact after trying one out last year at LGS factory shoot. I better get one while they are still somewhat readily available. LGS says they are flying off the shelves. SIG hit it out of the park with the P320.

What no glock?

JK....Nice write up. Looks like they all pretty much just shoot lead through paper.

Arc, I think you're only the second person behind 12131 to ID my username!

pblanc, my buddy has a Steyr and I've shot it before. Nice pistol, just not for me. Glock grip angle and odd sights. Can't recall what I thought of the trigger, recoil, or recoil though.

Grumpy, I started wanting a PPQ for a while. Finally found one at a great deal (I'm a bit of a cheapskate). I've had issues with it but not directly due to the pistol. First, hourglass shaped reloads seized up the slide, I'm guessing due to the stepped chamber. They were bad cases, but worked fine in my SP2022 and P228. Then a bad lot of Fiocchi led to FTEs, almost a squib (Fiocchi replaced the case). Then light primer strikes in cold temps (I think the previous owner frog lubed the striker/channel). Now night sights changed POI. Anyway, shortly after getting the PPQ the VP9 came out and I found a decent deal on the LE. Really wanted to love it, but it's just not quite right for me. Dragged my heels on the P320, because I didn't think much of the P250 (and still don't like the rather basic grips). But I'm a SIG guy at heart and had to try one, so I used tax return money to get one. Kinda funny that the one I wanted least is the one I seem to shoot the best. I wouldn't say it's the perfect pistol, but I like it more than I thought I would. Still need more rounds downrange to be sure, but it's starting off a winner in my book. Oh, and thanks for the compliment on the shooting, but it's just 7 yards. I open up at 20, and for some reason, 25 yards gets...iffy. That extra 5 yards gets me!

Amurr, I thought about tossing a Glock in the mix, but ran out of time and ammo at the range. Besides, everyone knows what a Glock feels like, right? And frankly I've shot them enough to know they're not for me. There's also a lot of truth to your statement that they all push lead through paper. They're all firing the same bullets. None of them are any deadlier than another. The differences between them would've probably gone unnoticed to me when I first learned to shoot. I wasn't tuned in enough to tell differences in trigger feel, grip, felt recoil. I think it's safe to say that all of these pistols (plus the Glock, Steyr, XD, etc) would all group nicely clamped in a vise (or some mechanical contraption). But the interface between individuals and different pistols is crucial. Which is why the best advice for someone not sure what they want is to shoot them all and buy the one you do best with. Put these exact same 6 pistols in 6 different peoples' hands and you are likely to get 6 different results (or at least 3-5).

This message has been edited. Last edited by: BuddyChryst,

Very interesting. Thanks for posting!