Many of you have been watching the Army trials for the Modular Handgun System (MHS) over the past few years. A lot of vendors jumped in – and a few stayed away. Here’s a quick review, so you know the rest of the story.
Back in the early 1980s, the Army started looking for a new handgun to replace the Colt 1911, which had been in service since… wait for it… 1911. After some false starts, it came down to two players, Beretta and SIG Sauer. The 92F and the P226. I own both handguns. They’re both great. I like the 92G better than the 92F because the slide-mounted decocker is only a decocker, and not a combo decocker and safety. Be that as it may, they are both great battle guns made of steel.
About the same time that the Army was making its decision, Gaston Glock started selling his GLOCK 17 in the United States, just missing all the fun.
Some say that Beretta got the nod from the Army because they had intel on suitcase nukes. Could be. Like I said, I own both and I like both handguns.
Fast forward… Back in the early 2010s, the Army started looking for a new handgun to replace the Beretta 92F. After some false starts, it came down to two players, GLOCK and SIG Sauer. After SIG was snubbed about 30 years ago, who would have guessed that just after the specs came out for the MHS, SIG would release its brand-new, first-ever, polymer pistol. Hmm… Did I mention that after the GLOCK 17 was introduced in 1986, every major firearms manufacturer released a polymer pistol, except… wait for it… SIG Sauer?
Miraculously, SIG released a modular, polymer pistol available in 9mm, .40 S&W and .357 SIG right after the Army decided it wanted a modular, polymer pistol available in any pistol caliber except .45 ACP. The contract is worth over ½ Billion dollars. I also own the SIG P320, and it is also a very fine pistol.
If you’d like to shoot a Beretta 92G (it has a Brigadier slide which is more robust than normal), the SIG Sauer P226, the GLOCK 17 or the SIG Sauer P320, drop me a line and I’ll meet you at the range. Bring some 9mm with you.
In my last article, I told you about my new Browning Hi Power and the work I was going to have done on it by Robar Guns. The plan was to have them…
- Add a longer beaver tail and a bobbed hammer
- Do a trigger job to reduce the 9lb. trigger pull
- Refinish the pistol from high gloss to satin
Well, since then I realized I do at least one trigger job a week for other folks, so surely I can do my own! I ordered a new bobbed hammer and wide, flat trigger from Cylinder & Slide, along with an awesome spring kit from BH Spring Solutions, along with a set of hand carved walnut grips.
I’m thinking I won’t need the extended beaver tail with the new hammer, and the finish looks great with the new grips. I saved some money and spent some time on the bench with a great pistol. Can’t beat that! I’ll post some before and after shots when I get done.
In the meantime, consider improving your shot time by ½ a second with a small tweak to your pistol presentation. Here’s how I learned it from Pat McNamara. (Careful, he’s got a potty mouth.)
When you pull from the holster, your pistol should come online with your target as you push forward to the target. Many shooters, arc the pistol, like they’re fishing. Many shooters, scoop up to the target from below. In both cases, this wastes time and motion. You cannot prep your trigger or prepare to fire until your sights are aligned. If you do any practice at all, you can probably pull from your holster and take your shot between 2 ½ and 3 seconds.
Consider if your pistol comes on target right in front of your face. You can push forward to the target with a flat presentation. While you’re pushing forward, you can prep your trigger. You can bring it right to the break point. When your arms get to full extension, you can drop the hammer and fire the round. This will save you at least ½ a second!
During a dynamic critical incident, you may need to fire several rounds very quickly. If you’re on target with the trigger prepped right in front of your face, you can get off two or three rounds before your arms reach full extension, and your shots will be on target. That’s a great advantage with just a little practice. The key is a flat presentation to the target. If your gun is moving down to the target (in an arc) or moving up to the target (in a scoop) you will not be able to prep your trigger safely, if at all.
Remember that third rule of firearm safety? My finger does not go on the trigger until I’m on target and ready to fire.
When I pull from the holster, my trigger finger is on the frame, outside the trigger guard. When the pistol comes online, in front of my face, it’s on target. Finger goes on the trigger and I begin to prep. When I get to full extension, the hammer drops and (hopefully) we get a bull’s eye.
See you at the range.
JoeGLOCK