My favorite carry, from an ease-of-use/comfort/firepower compromise perspective, has been my Walther PPS M2 in 9mm. I carry it in a Kydex clip-on IWB holster.

But I've become enamored of the 1911 platform. I shoot my 1911s better than anything else I've ever owned. Better even than my SIG P210A. Plus I'm thinking it would be advantageous to normalize the MOA across my carry pistols.

So I'm thinking of switching-out my PPS M2 for a compact 1911 in 9mm. My research suggests the closest thing to my PPS M2 in a compact 1911 is the Springfield 1911 EMP 9mm.

I fondled one, today, at one of my LGS'. Liked everything about it--though, surprisingly, the trigger did have a little >< bit of creep. Perhaps that's something that would work itself out with break-in?

So, if you own one: What are your thoughts on it?

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

A family member owns one, and I got to shoot it a fair amount. As received, it was a Jammamatic. Sent it back. It came back with a new slide, and I don't recall what else. After repair it was a sold little pistol. We tried all the different JHP ammo we had on hand to see what it would choke on. It functioned literally 100% with everything. After repair I would have felt confident carrying it.

Production 1911 types routinely have different triggers, i.e., great, good, bad, horrible or whatever. I would suspect the same with the little EMPs. The trigger may or may not improve....

I have owned my EMP since they first came out. It just fits my hand like a glove, and is more accurate than I am. I carried it for a while, and then got lazy and carried my P3AT. I have zero plans to ever get rid of this gun.

I bought a used one several years ago. It has been a solid gun. No issues ever. I love shooting it and it is accurate and fun to shoot.
At the time my EDC was a Kimber Ultra Carry and I carried it for a good number of years. I would rather had a 45 then 9mm back then.
Now I carry a FN 509 midsize. More ammo capacity.

I have an EMP4. I love it. The trigger has a bit of creep and it’s never went away. Someday I will pay someone to get rid of the ambi safety and give it a good trigger. They are great guns.

I love mine. (9mm)No issues with it at all. Like above, it fits my hand perfect and shoots to point of aim.
I carry it whenever possible.

I've had mine for 2 yrs or so, When I first brought it home it ran like @#$% so off to SA it went. I listed all the problems I was having and asked if they would open the chamber a pinch so I could use what ever ammo the store had. I had read of others having problems with their EMP's and that most thought the Custom Shop did the repairs? When mine came back it ran amazing and at the same time stupid accurate to boot. In the last 3500 rds the EMP has out run my Glock Gen 3 model 19 in dependability and it will be the last gun to leave

I bought an EMP4cc or whatever they call the 4" two tone bobtail with golf ball stippled front strap and G10 grips.

Trigger was a little creepy so I stoned the sear and hammer hooks to spec on an Ed Brown sear jig, and polished the surfaces with flitz. I sorta cut the secondary angle on the sear, but not as much as I would on a target pistol. Tuned the sear spring to 4 lb pull with light take-up to keep the sear spring tension as high as possible. Safety still prevents any sear movement.

Now I have to shoot it and see how it runs. Hopefully it's OK since it's a 4" commander-ish ramped barrel and not a 3".

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Lefty Sig,

Bought my EMP after a disastrous experience with a Kimber Solo. (Long rant)
It was a night and day experience. The EMP eats everything. It has never jammed or failed in any way. That’s after 10 years of shooting.

Thanks for the feedback, guys.

Re: The trigger: It's just a very little >< bit of creep. I'd prefer it be absent, but it's not a show-stopper. In combat-rate shooting I've found most creep magically disappears, anyway

I have the originals in 9mm and .40. Have had the 9 for about 7-8 years and .40 for 10 years. Great little pistols and I took advantage of the coupon Springfield included with the the purchase. Might be selling the .40 soon as I much prefer the 9 because it’s lighter. But then again .40 ammo is easier to come by these days than 9. Oh the decisions.

I carry IWB. As with most 1911s, it’s heavy and bulkier than your polymer pistols. But there’s just something that fits so well with a 1911.

quote:

Originally posted by Edmond:
I have the originals in 9mm and .40.

I'd almost consider the .40 S&W, as I remain convinced it's the best SD round in a semi-auto today, except I'm already going up slightly in size & weight as it is. The .40 S&W version is 7 oz. heavier. Somewhere you have to draw the line

quote:

Originally posted by Edmond:
But there’s just something that fits so well with a 1911.

Exactly

I haven't decided to pull the trigger on this, yet. It's kind of spendy and, in all honesty, my PPS M2 serves its role well. But I am in heavy ponder mode.

I’m not sure if it’s the best, that could be debated until the end of time. However, caliber is one of the few diversities I believe in. Ammo becomes short in a particular caliber, those shooting the .40 or .357 SIG might have less difficult of a time finding ammo.

I owned three Springfield 9mm EMP pistols. One worked, one didn't, the third one I never fired and ended up selling it before I used it.

I liked the guns enough, but not enough... Still, I will see one in the case at one of my LGS and think "should I get another one?" I haven't and probably wont at this point, I'm very happy with my MR918s.

Its my carry gun. My runs like a clock, has never had a hiccup, and is surprisingly accurate for having a 3" barrel. Ergonomics are fantastic. I upgraded the sights (which were getting a bit dim), grips, and ditched the ambi safety for a RH shooter.

I got mine from a guy who bought a safe queen, got a bunch of mags (8!), put a hundred through it, and decided it was did not suit him. That's okay, it is certainly suited for me!

I owned a 9mm EMP for a few years and then traded it for something..... I'M AN IDIOT...wish that I had never let it go....fwiw

Having small hands, I love my 4” EMP in 9mm.

Never a problem and a tack driver.

quote:

Originally posted by mike28w:
I owned a 9mm EMP for a few years and then traded it for something..... I'M AN IDIOT...wish that I had never let it go....fwiw

Ah, seller's, or, in your case, trader's remorse. I can see that happening.

I've only ever traded or sold four firearms. In each case I knew, without a doubt, I would never shoot them again. The only one I ever kinda sorta regretted was my G22, and that was for sentimental reasons only: It had been my first center-fire pistol and I had purchased it on the day Bill Clinton signed the Brady Bill.

So anyway... I'm still on the fence regarding this one, though I'm leaning towards grabbing it. I just shoot those darn 1911's so well :P

ETA: One minute I'm "Yeah, I'm gonna get this" and the next I'm "Eh, I don't really need it."

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

They are very nice, a friend has one, and I have shot it.

If you like the 1911 platform, don't buy an EMP in 9mm until you have tried a 938. My 938, with extended finger magazine for 7+1 is my daily pocket carry in a DeScantis Nemesis. Don't even notice it's there, and it shoots beautifully.

FWIW, since I don't own one:

I seriously considered buying a 9mm EMP as my second 1911-style pistol way back when. It just fit my hands so nicely, even if the grip angle was not playing nice with my Glock mentality. But all of the internet chatter regarding its unreliability at the time more or less chased me off. I wound up buying the scandium S&W E-series Commander instead, which for me has been a good pistol but it didn't satisfy the 9mm 1911 itch.

After I took this job with our gun shop we were then regularly bringing in EMPs in both 9 and 40. The proverbial carrot remained in the line of sight for this old nag but alas I resisted the temptation. It wasn't easy, however. Of those guns that we sold, we would occasionally hear back from their owners on how their EMPs were. Most reports were quite positive, but maybe a 1/4 to a 1/3 of the feedback in our limited sample cited cycling problems right out of the box. At least a couple of owners did send theirs back to SA for repair; I myself never heard how it went (nor did I remember to ask) but I do know that they didn't complain about their EMPs afterwards. I now own four 1911s and thanks to the political shenanigans that SA did a few years ago and Bill Wilson introducing an even bigger carrot in his EDC X9, I have effectively quashed any lingering desire for one. But sometime I wonder what might have been.

Regarding the triggers: thanks to my job at the shop I've been able to experience over the years many Springfield 1911 triggers that more often than not have some amount of creepiness and ofttimes a heavier break when pitted against comparably-priced 1911s by others, especially for those models below a certain price point ($1200ish). My own Loaded was easily that way, and most Range Officers that we get fit that that description to a tee. Ironically I have encountered less objectionable traits with the triggers of the less expensive MIL-Spec 1911s. Not long ago we had a Gov't MIL-Spec that had one absolute gem of a trigger onboard, one that easily felt as sweet as anything from Dan Wesson or the more far expensive 4-figure SA 1911 offerings. It wasn't the first time that happened, but in truth most of the time the MIL-Spec trigger is about what one would expect for a $600 1911.