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HK USP .45 best polymer gun ever?

45acpForMe

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Nov 21, 2008
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Yorktown, Virginia, USA
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There are several categories to compare when you define "best" but I will agree it is a great gun.

I like mine for the following reasons:
- it goes bang when I pull the trigger
- it eats all ammo reliably
- it fits my hand
- it is light enough
- it has 12+1 capacity (big plus)
- cost is reasonable (I got a great price on mine)
- SERPA makes a holster for it :)
- it has a decocker (in my version)
- it has a manual safety
- the slide can be racked while safety is on. This is great for chambering a round or removing a round (visiting schools) but I have heard some people complain that they prefer the a manual safety to lock the gun in battery so that holstering or any other movement won't get it out-of-battery.
- it shoots great (accuracy)
- recoil is light
- trigger pull DA is ok but SA is great
- it is easy to break down and clean
- it looks good

So all in all it is one of my favorite guns.

Best is going to be relative to the person judging the criteria that meets their needs though.
 

deepdiver

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Apr 2, 2007
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Buying a gun is a lot like buying shoes. For any activity there are a lot of different choices many with similar but slightly differing features. The right one for YOU is the one that fits you the best and works the most naturally with your body.

The HK USP is certainly an excellent firearm by objective measure. There are also several other sidearms that are excellent by the same objective measures. We are not a gov't agency trying to find a one size fits all sidearm to be issued to numerous people of a wide spectrum of physical attributes. You need to find the sidearm that best fits YOU and THAT firearm is the 'best' in your world.

For me the answer is no, the USP .45 is not the best. There are ergonomic features that I do not like and do not fit me well.
 

deepdiver

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marrero jeff wrote:
but still, its an HK! In all reality you're right, there are lots of excellent guns out there, im just trying to see how many more HK fans are here.
Then why not a thread titled - "Who else is an HK fan here?" :?

:cool:
 

Superlite27

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Joined
Jul 12, 2007
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Location
God's Country, Missouri
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45acpForMe wrote:
There are several categories to compare when you define "best" but I will agree it is a great gun.

I like mine for the following reasons:
- it goes bang when I pull the trigger
- it eats all ammo reliably
- it fits my hand
- it is light enough
- it has 12+1 capacity (big plus)
- cost is reasonable (I got a great price on mine)
- SERPA makes a holster for it :)
- it has a decocker (in my version)
- it has a manual safety
- the slide can be racked while safety is on. This is great for chambering a round or removing a round (visiting schools) but I have heard some people complain that they prefer the a manual safety to lock the gun in battery so that holstering or any other movement won't get it out-of-battery.
- it shoots great (accuracy)
- recoil is light
- trigger pull DA is ok but SA is great
- it is easy to break down and clean
- it looks good

So all in all it is one of my favorite guns.

Best is going to be relative to the person judging the criteria that meets their needs though.



"Hk...because we're better than you."



I just noticed.....my XDm .40 has most of the nifty things listed above except for that decocker thingie that mechanically drops the hammer on a loaded chamber. I use my trigger to do that. If I don't want my gun cocked, I don't cock it.

Oh, your "big plus" of 12+1 is kinda "small plus" for me. I've gotten used to 16+1.

Oh,I likemy factory match barrel too.

(Hey, just gotta support my company of preference!)

XDm....brought to you by the fine folks who also brought you the M1A.
 

emcsqrd

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Jul 1, 2009
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Haven't had the privilege of shooting a HK 45 yet, I do have a HK USP-9 that is very sweet. I have become particularly fond of my FNP-45 though. It most of the features of the HK 45, but it is 15+1 capacity. Over 500 rounds through it, no failures of any kind.
 

Basic Guy

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I'm a big fan of the HK USP 45. I was a die hard 1911 guy until I bought my USP. I still likemy 1911's but the USP has become my go-to-gun for full size, service pistol.

Of the many things I like about it is the fact that I could get it ordered without the de-cocker. I don't like the idea that under stress I might possibly thumb the safety off too far and drop the hammer - needing touse the DA trigger. The reason I carry it cocked and locked is so I can start with a SA trigger pull.
 

crisisweasel

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Feb 3, 2009
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Pima County, Arizona, USA
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I just bought an HK45C. So far I like it - pleasant to shoot, but only have about 30 rounds downrange with it so far.

What I'm trying to ascertain is whether or not you get "that much more gun" for HK's considerable price, over a Glock or Springfield or S&W. Only time will tell.

That said I have nothing bad to say about it yet.
 

The Wolfhound

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Sep 3, 2009
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Henrico, Virginia, USA
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H&K USP 45 Compact turned out to be smaller than most of the other "Compacts". All the other good H&K features in a smaller package. 8+1 with factory mags and 10+1 with optionals. Conceals very nicely. Great power in a smaller package.:D
 

tcmech

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marrero jeff wrote:
may i ask why kind sir?


I like the HK, but I don't believe it is a better gun than glocks, springfields, smith and wessons, or sigs. I probably missed a couple other brands that make equally good weapons.

I personally carry aglock 36. I will say that I am a believer there is no such thing as too much gun or too many bullets, I just don't feel like carrying the extra weight
 

Big_Grumpy

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Apr 1, 2010
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Location
, Wisconsin, USA
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Rhetoric but funny. I was a hair's fart from buying an HK45 before I came to my senses and realized I could by a great pistol, accessorize and buy ammo and still come under the cost...

An open letter to the gun community from HK’s marketing department:In a world of compromises, some people put the bullets in the magazine backwards…But it doesn’t matter, because our gun is on the cover of the Rainbow Six video games. Look how cool that SEAL coming out of the water looks… If you buy a $2,000 SOCOM, you will be that cool of an operator too. And chicks will dig you.
At HK, we stuck a piston on an AR15, just like a bunch of other companies have done, dating back to about 1969. However ours is better, because we refuse to sell it to civilians. Because you suck, and we hate you.
Our XM8 is the greatest rifle ever developed. It may melt, and it doesn’t fit any accessories known to man, but that is your fault. If you were a real operator, you would love it. Once again, look at Rainbow Six, that G36 sure is cool isn’t it? Yeah, you know you want one.And by the way, check out our new HK45. We decided that humans don’t need to release the magazine with their thumbs. If you were a really manly teutonic operator, you would be able to reach the controls. Plus we’ve fired 100,000,000 rounds through one with zero malfunctions, and that was while it was buried in a lake of molten lava, on the moon. If you don’t believe us, it is because you aren’t a real operator.
By the way, our cheap, mass-produced, stamped sheet metal guns like the G3 and MP5 are the bestest things ever, and totally worth asinine scalpers prices, but note that cheap, mass-produced, stamped sheet metal guns from other countries are commie garbage. Not that it matters, because you’re civilians, so we won’t sell them to you anyway. Because you suck, and we hate you, but we know you’ll be back. We can beat you down like a trailer park wife, but you’ll come back, you always do.
Buy our stuff.
Sincerely
HK Marketing DepartmentHK. Because you suck. And we hate you.
 

curtiswr

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Jul 11, 2008
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Just a few days ago I was reading a thread on a guy that had an H&K frame crack/rupture/split wide open, while using factory ammo. He called H&K and their response was ultimately "If it comes broken in the box, fine we'll fix it. But if it happens while shooting it's either the shooter or the ammo."

I'm not sure if the thread was on here or one of the other forums I browse.

For a polymer pistol I think it's fairly difficult to beat a Glock. Maybe that's just me, but I can't justify spending 900 dollars on another plastic gun when I've got a Glock that I love because as long as I do, it will do everything I need it to and is comfortable for me. Not to mention that Glock customer service is pretty darn good.

Ultimately, I just don't think I'm a fan of H&K guns.
 

The Wolfhound

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As a frequenter of some HK forums, I have not seen that report. That attitude is not consistent with HK customer service. Enjoy your Glock, I will enjoy my HK. If I see you at the range, we can trade for a few rounds and each appreciate a fine weapon. The only experience I have with Glocks is trying the fit at gunshows. I found that I do not like the fit in my hand. Since I never got past that, I have never had occaision to shoot one. I liked 1911s, Sigs, Berrettas, and loved HKs. To each his own.
 

marrero jeff

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Mar 25, 2010
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marrero, Louisiana, USA
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geez guys, not need to get so serious, we all have a bias towards a certain brand whther we like to admit it or not, my purpose for posting this thread was not to convert all of you to Hk but to start a funny conversation because i know you glock guys hate us Hk guys :) HK ALL DAY
 
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