The owner of my favorite gun shop told me that the worst thing about a GLOCK is they always go bang.

No. Nope. Never. Always a test before it goes in the holster.

And I don't buy new s&w products, so I avoid the return shipping costs. Regards 18DAI

The closest I came to this scenario was a new G19 that I purchased just before a road trip. I simply wasn't going to carry it untested, so I made a drive out to the country, put two quick mags through the gun (no problems), took it home for a quick clean/inspect/lube, and then had it with me for a week.

But I still didn't feel completely comfortable, and had it out for a more complete test as soon as I returned from the road trip.

Everyone has their personal comfort level, but like most here, I have a deep need to establish that something works before I rely on it for self-defense. Regardless of the brand name.

If absolutely forced into this situation, I'd probably get a slightly used Beretta.

quote:

Originally posted by Voshterkoff:

quote:

Originally posted by YooperSigs:
If forced to, choose a quality revolver.
But even then, avoid carrying an untested gun.

Funny that the example I always tell people about was a S&W M15. My folks had it loaded for a while, but the first time they took it to the range it stopped working after two cylinders. I like to test with my carry ammo, full magazine and topped off, and try each magazine at least twice, if not more. If I had to, I would buy a Glock to carry untested.

I've had a brand new revolver and quality ammo jam on the second round. Needed tools to clear it.

I wouldn’t carry without shooting it first! I had a Glock 29 that every time I thought it was done with failure to feed it would start right back up again. Needless to say after two years and probably 500 rounds of Underwood and Fenix hot loads I gave up and sold it to a pawn shop.... Loved the power but way too unreliable Jesus my Ruger LCP 2 didn’t mess up that much!

hypothetically if I were to by a new gun in the common commercial types, and some ammo and be forced to use it asap under circumstances in which that was the only thing available to me. HK and some premium HD ammo (its a system after all). but otherwise this borders on beyond dumb. Why would one ask this??

H&K or Glock would be my first choice if I had to grab a pistol straight out of the box with no test fire before use.

I would be ok with Steyr, Beretta, SIG, S&W, Walther, Ruger and CZ as I have never had an issue with any of those, chances are good that any of those would work well out of the box. This applies if I was to be using standard good quality FMJ ammo. If I was to be carrying anything other than FMJ, I would require test firing with the ammo before carry.

Actually, a 1911, even from a major brand such as Colt, SA, S&W, etc., is about the only new pistol these days that I would require test fire on before use. Too many 1911s require at least a bit of tweaking or magazine swapping to reach an acceptable level of reliability.

Brands such as Taurus, SCCY, Kel-Tec, Kahr, etc, I have no experience with and would have to put at least 200 - 300 trouble free rounds of the ammo I was to carry through before trusting them.

As a note, guns today seem to be of better, more consistent quality than they were 40 years ago or so.

always carry a knife.....

If I were given a pistol from a reputable manufacturer and it would manually cycle ammo and would move a pencil when dry fired I would if I had to. At the end of the day I don’t test a lot of things that I bet my life on so i guess everything in perspective. However, proving the proper function of a pistol is a good excuse to sneak out of the house for some range time.

I would be comfortable with anything I could detail strip. I would PREFER not to do so, but I can certainly think of circumstances where it could be necessary.

A few punches, needle files, some feeler gauges & 2 Bic pens(firing pin check), maybe some aluminum snap-caps, if the hypothetical allows, and I'd feel comfortable knowing I'd checked everything reasonably possible.

If all you had was enough ammo for carry and were unable to shoot your new gun for whatever reason, the only gun that comes to mind would be a Glock 19. I would not be comfortable without shooting it but I believe it would act like every Glock I have had prior. Like others said, they just work.

if I had no other choice, to never fire the weapon I would go Glock 43x or G19

quote:

Originally posted by Rob1972:
I would be comfortable with anything I could detail strip. I would PREFER not to do so, but I can certainly think of circumstances where it could be necessary.

A few punches, needle files, some feeler gauges & 2 Bic pens(firing pin check), maybe some aluminum snap-caps, if the hypothetical allows, and I'd feel comfortable knowing I'd checked everything reasonably possible.

How would you know if it feeds, if there are ejection problems, point of impact, and how would you handle it under stress, at speed?

I don't think that I could do it. Test I must, period.

But if there WAS one gun THAT I HAD NO CHOICE but to go with...Gen4 G23. I've owned four so far (though now back down to three again), and shot several others when they were still relatively new; all have run dead-nuts reliable right out (or soon out) of the box.

If I had to do it, I'd do it with a Glock.

HOWEVER... my Gen 4 19 had several failures to feed on the first magazine I put through it. Nothing since, but that first magazine had me suspicious enough of the gun to really put it through its paces before I felt safe carrying it.

So, yes, ammo is expensive and unobtanium right now. I'd still suggest running at least a couple mags through a new carry gun. Carry it without doing so at your risk, and I would suggest, only do so in the most dire of circumstances.

OP you have been on this forum for over a decade so one could assume that you already have a PDW that you’ve broken in and trust. You’ve undoubtedly read Para’s thread about taking advantage of the (previous) quiet time to stock up on ammo so I’m wondering why you posted your question...

If you don’t have the means to buy a box of ammo please PM me and I’ll send you one on me. In the mean time keep using your (hopefully) trusted pistol.

Ahem ...:

quote:

Originally posted by kalford:
To clarify, my post is hypothetical in nature and in no way indicative of my own carry regimen. ...
To reiterate, this is not a solicitation for advise or endorsement of carrying without testing. I think we all know the value of that. This is more of a theoretical exercise discussing the merits of designs and manufacturer's ability to produce them as expected.

[Emphasis added.]

Nope nope nope. I have a buddy that picked up a brand new 365 that had cycling issues right out of the box. Whether it was a result of tight tolerances, being made on a Friday or Monday, or a bad mag is immaterial. I would NEVER carry something I hadn’t already fired and found to be completely reliable.

I hope the OP's question was one of those "rhetorical" questions, perhaps intended to be thought provoking.

Hopefully it is not an actual dilemma the OP is facing.

Anyone having been at this shooting thing for a while will have a story of some new gun that did not initially function well. It happens.

That being said, if in some alternative universe where I'd have to make such a decision, I'd choose a medium frame Glock or an HK P30 or HK45.

quote:

Originally posted by Voshterkoff:
If I had to I would buy a Glock to carry untested.

this

specifically a G19.

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