Could those that have owned and fired 2 or more of these do a comparison between them? Please compare recoil, ccw effectiveness, reliability, etc.
If you have gotten rid of one or more, please describe why. If you could only have one of them, which would you choose to keep?
Personally I have only owned the G43x but I am interested in the other two and unfortunately there are no rental ranges less than 2 hrs away that have any to rent.
Thanks!
I've owned all three. I'll try to run them down as well as I can:
1. Mini-Glocks - owned a G43 and G43X. Own neither at this time. Both were generally pretty "snappy" with duty recoil (nothing terrible, certainly not +P through an airweight snub bad), and the near complete lack of texturing on the grips made them very "squirmy" in my hand - especially when my hands were wet/sweaty. On the up side, they're modern Glocks - I didn't fuck with them or run anything but standard capacity OEM mags, and they were both 100% reliable. Sold both, the G43 to fund a P365, and the G43X to fund a P365XL.
2. P365 and XL - owned both, still own the XL. The "gold standard" in size efficiency at this point - Sig really sprinkled the 365 with pixie dust to get it as small as it is and still run with 10+1. The grip texturing and contour are better, in my hands, than either Glock, but the P365 grip was SO small that it got to be tough to shoot at speed in my not enormous hands. The P365XL feels like it was MADE for my hand, perfect feel, fit, and size. Unfortunately, it's SO small that my strong hand nearly completely encloses the grip, so there's darn near nowhere for my support hand to anchor except against my strong hand fingers. This feels "funny," and I definitely notice it in rapid shooting drills. I strongly prefer the feel of the original curved trigger over the XL's "straight" trigger, but that's just an opinion. Both are acceptably accurate, and slightly "softer" shooting than the Glocks. I strongly dislike the XL's optic mounting system that deletes the rear sight completely, and, as I'm sure others will chime in, the magazines are rust magnets.
3. Shield and Shield Plus - owned both (the 2.0 Shield in both 9mm and .45), still own the Plus. I find the grip texturing on these to be just right - on the older 2.0s I took a sanding block and "smoothed" the grips ever so slightly (a couple of light passes, nothing more) on the left side of the grip (the one against my bare skin under a t-shirt). The original 2.0s felt "rectangular" in the hand, very much like holding a 1x2. The Plus grip's slight increase in girth makes it feel and anchor much better in the hand. I have noticed no "wiggle" or "snap" to speak of with the Plus in the limited amount of shooting I've been able to do with mine, and it's by FAR the "softest" recoiling of all of the models listed. The Plus is large for capacity - only very slightly smaller than the XL that holds 12+1 in a flush mag. Spare magazines are unobtainium, and the only factory optics mounting option is on a high priced "Performance Center" pistol with a bunch of "features" that turn me off.
At this point, of all these pistols, the only I still own are the 365XL and the Plus. I prefer the Plus - so much so that it and a 507K are at Maple Leaf customs getting direct milled/mounted. Once it's back and I've thoroughly vetted the combination, I'll probably get rid of the 365XL.
EXCELLENT!Originally Posted by psalms144.1
Just what I was hoping to see.
Thank you very much!
Pretty much my experience too.
365 is best size, esp for pocket carry. However mine did not run well with 147 HP's and I couldn't hit the broadside of a barn with it at slow speeds (never even tried fast).
43X much more accurate at slow speed and reliable with all ammo. Squirmy at high speed.
Shield plus (no experience with regular ones) by far the easiest to shoot both slow and fast and reliable. But it's the largest of the three and difficult to pocket (maybe ok with super large cargo pockets)
P365XL - Owned for 4 months, shot 641 rounds. It was reliable and accurate. I took it to one USPSA match. During a reload after a stage, I noticed the follower had barfed out of the feed tube. The FCU also "rocked" slightly in the grip during dry practice. I never noticed this under live fire. Magazines were arm and leg expensive. The previous and lack of SCD as well as stories of rust (magazines, sight aperture) made me conclude it wasn't robust enough for what I wanted. Nice pistol though.
G43X - Owned for 8 months, shot 608 rounds. It was reliable and accurate. I never liked shooting it, too snappy in recoil. I tried Talons, and a tungsten guide rod, but nothing worked. I carry AIWB, so the shorter slide wasn't a consideration for me. I sold it without looking back.
Shield Plus - I've only dry handled one in a Gun shop. I would really like to run one as a rental, as it really intrigues me.
Your experience with the G43X mirrored mine (I only fired about 350 or so out of my version).
I was hoping you had tried a Shield Plus so you could compare for me.
I’ve had a 48, 43, 43X, and 365.
43 barely holds more ammo than a j frame. For what I’d use it for, I’d rather have the j frame.
48/43X - these conceal about like a Glock 19 for me. If you want a truly compact Glock I think the 26 is their best offering. Conceals better for me than the 43X, shoots more like a full-size gun than any of them, and more reliability and longer track record.
I want to try a shield plus but the weight of it makes me question what it does that the 26 doesn’t. I haven’t found an answer yet so I haven’t bought one. Handling it though it does have a nice grip and trigger.
Now the p365…man I want to like this gun. I think of all the micro 9s it may be the best mouse trap. Especially if you want a red dot. But I had one that blew the back plate off (that issue supposedly has been fixed) and another that wouldn’t run well with 147 HST. Sig is gonna sig and I don’t want to throw my lot in with them.
So currently I don’t have any of them any more. I’ve settled on a 26 and a 642 as my small guns and that may be where I stay. I live around Chicago so I’ve been carrying a Glock 45 more than anything. Not the time or place for a small gun here.
I carry a G19 now, although I only carry when I go into the store on my way home or when we travel on weekends since I can't CCW at work.
However, the G19 can weigh on me a little bit for all day carry. That is what I liked about the G43X, it was noticeably lighter. So I was wondering if there was a lighter than G19 option that I might like better than the G43X. I handled a P365XL yesterday at the toy store but I haven't gotten to fire one yet. Unfortunately they didn't have a Shield Plus to do a direct comparison on. They had at least 7 or 8 P365 XLs in the case and no Glocks of any type.
I appreciate your comments and I don't blame you on the G45 and I sincerely hope you never have a need for it.
If weight is the primary driver I would go with something in the P365 family then. Good luck!
I don't own any of the three you mentioned, so I can't give you a comparison.
But I would recommend you take a good look at the S&W M&P 2.0 Subcompact 9mm.
http://www.smith-wesson.com/product/...pact?sku=12481
Available with or without a manual thumb safety, the Subcompact is more like a G26 in size. And like the G26 with G19/G17 magazines, the M&P Subcompact can also handle the regular M&P 15 and 17 round magazines of it's bigger brothers, unlike the Shield or the G43X.
Lot's of good choices in this size and weight class now. And M&P 2.0's are vastly improved over the older 1.0 series.
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