So I have a lot of the different compact carry pistols available today. I’ll go over 4 of the most common ones out there getting all the fame and glory right now. With the exception of the Kimber R7 Mako because it’s so new, these all have an excellent backing of aftermarket accessories and upgrades. Something to keep in mind when making a selection because if you choose an oddball or less common pistol then find you don’t like something about it, you may not be able to make any changes due to lack of aftermarket parts.
The 4 pistols I personally own and will go over are the following (Top to bottom in the photo):
1: Springfield Hellcat - 9mm
2: Glock 43X - 9mm
3: Kimber R7 Mako - 9mm
4: Sig Sauer P365 SAS - 9mm
They are all very small, very concealable, and can be quite accurate for their compact size. But there are pretty significant differences in how comfortable each one is to hold and fire as well as overall accuracy
The most comfortable of them all to hold and fire is by far the Glock 43X. This is due to the fact that the 43X has a full grip sized handle and does not rely on a magazine to act as a wobbly integral bottom portion of the grip. The Glock is slim and feels extremely solid in the hand since the entire grip is all frame. Couple that with the legendary Glock reliability and aftermarket 15 round double stack magazines and you can’t go wrong! Best part is that the Glock 43X 15 round mag doesn’t even require an extension so it is the same exact overall length as the standard 10 round single stack Mags.
The Springfield Hellcat is probably the second most comfortable to hold and shoot with extended magazines followed very closely tied in 3rd place by the Sig Sauer P365 and Kimber R7 Mako.
Now for accuracy:
They can all be quite accurate with specific types of ammo.
The Kimber R7 Mako is by far the most accurate of the bunch that I own. It shoots a few different types of ammo with amazing accuracy and still shoots even the cheapest ammo quite well. This is probably due to a good trigger, comfortable grip stance that tames recoil and of course the excellent machine work that Kimber is known for. In every test I’ve done so far with the 4 pistols, the Kimber is the most accurate with every type of ammo used in each gun. It is very forgiving and seems to shoot itself with extreme accuracy at close ranges of 5-7 yards. Different grip forms and hand pressures all seem to work well for accuracy with the Kimber. It will even impress at distances of 10-20 yards where with certain ammo it will actually shoot as well as many high quality full frame pistols.
The second most accurate is the Sig Sauer P365. It shoots everything pretty good and is very accurate with some of the higher power +P loads. The Sig has an excellent trigger that aids in accuracy at longer distances of 10-20 yards.
The Glock 43X is plenty accurate with most types of ammo you throw at it and is nipping on the heels of the P365. The Sig will edge out the Glock on the Target with just about everything but they are close enough that either one would be an excellent choice that you could count on for reliable accuracy in a self defense situation. The Glock seems to throw a couple rounds off in la-la land in every 10 shot string since it is much more sensitive to hand grip pressure points than the Sig and Kimber. You have to “think” about your grip and pressures when shooting the Glock to maintain accuracy where the Sig not so much and the Kimber you can pretty much shoot however you want and expect good results on the target.
The Springfield Hellcat seems to be the pickiest of the bunch. It shoots well enough, but nothing that great. While accuracy is acceptable at 5-7 yards where most self defense situations may occur, as you step out to 10-15 yards it’s accuracy becomes kind of disappointing. It also has the worst trigger of the 4 pistols. I’ve tried different grips and applying different pressure in various places but just can’t get it to shoot nearly as accurate as the other 3 pistols.
If concerned with recoil in a compact 9mm, stick with the lighter bullets at lower velocities and recoil is easily manageable for most anyone. I personally prefer some of the fast hard hitting +P 9mm loads with 115gr bullets because they are very accurate but they really make these small pistols jump sharp and hard in the hand. Not exactly what I would call comfortable to shoot but due to the high levels of accuracy the +P ammo delivers for me that is my choice.
So that’s my couple cents. Hope this gives some good insight on some of the more common compact carry guns out there. Head to a store that stocks all these pistols and see what fits you best. While the Hellcat is very comfortable and shoots with perfect reliability, it’s gritty trigger and lesser levels of accuracy put it in last place on my list. The Kimber, Glock, and Sig would all be excellent choices for overall performance in comfortability, dependability and accuracy
