I think many of the commenters at loadedpocketz have missed the point that many reasons for pistol selection also have to to do with subjective as well as objective reasons. When I first saw Bobby Simone carrying his Glock 19 on NYPD Blue I thought, "Man! I have got to have one of those!" I'm sure I paid a premium for it, too, as this was 1994, maybe '95. But I could never shoot it well. It always bummed me out. I really wanted to love the gun but couldn't and I'm not saying it wasn't a well-built piece. I'm sure it had to do with that trigger and my technique and it could have been worked out but, with so many pistols to choose from, I decided to just find something I could work without having to use entirely different techniques with the one pistol. Finally, in 2008, I gave up and traded it in for a Sig P229 and loved the way it shot. Now I have gone striker-fired and have most of the M&P semi-auto lineup (sans Bodyguard and revolver) and love them.
The Shield is very nice but, in the holster, it doesn't seem to balance as well as my Ruger LC9. With less than a two ounce difference, the LC9 feels much, much lighter; almost unnoticeable. No idea why, I'm still thinking "balance". Shooting results are about the same but the carry aspect makes me give the nod to the LC9. I'm going to take advantage of the Alien Gear "2-fer" offer to see how this issue works out with an IWB holster.
You see it all the time in video reviews and many commenters have called it correctly, "'Wow! This gun feels better. I shoot it better. But I like my Glock better.' Glock owner logic." Don't be Glock-owning Rob Lowe. Get the pistol that best fits you.
Jake - Do you carry the old LC9 or the newer one? I have the older version and have yet to get used to the long trigger pull. I know it is there for safety but I always seem to pull with it. A friend recently purchased the newer model and I shot his. Huge difference in trigger pull. But that could come with some safety concerns too. At least it has a manual safety which I know some people (Glock owners in particular) do not like.
I know what you mean about it pulling a little. Not enough to make much difference for social work but I couldn't shoot at distance. Weird thing is the Shield does the same thing. Most of my shooting is with a '73 Peacemaker so I do more single action trigger pulling. Might be part of the problem?
I have the old, original model. But with modifications. I got the Galloway steel guide rod and the heavier recoil spring. Both of those were lesser mods, though. The biggest shooting improvement came when I removed the mag safety. I don't think it's a lighter pull but it feels like it because the trigger pull is so much smoother.
I'd give the LC9s a try but, once again, there's that trigger with the "dohickey" safety. Not mentioned above is that I also got a Ruger SR9c but still couldn't get the results I wanted and I believe part of the problem was that gun also has the dohickey in the trigger.
It's just me and I know it. I know what you mean about the manual safety. Both my Shield and the LC9 have it. I sold off everything else with a manual safety but these two only came with it when I bought them) but it could take me a long time to get used to walking around with it "off".
I shoot best with my Glocks. I never likes the S&W. So again, shoot what works for you. I carry either a G19 or a G23 every day IWB. I will reserve judgement on a single stack Glock until I shoot one. I don't see the logic in less capacity though. YMMV.
Jake, I shoot left with the Shield but I'm convinced its due to lateral displacement of my trigger finer, and not the weapon's fault. Regardless, until I can figure it out 100%, I hold at 3 o'clock and do pretty well for myself. You make good points about subjective reasoning when it comes to selection of a CCW. The problem for Glock is that they came late to the party. A lot of people have already found a carry gun that works for them because there are a bunch of good ones already on the market.
I'm going to see if I can't, at the least, learn to compensate by shooting a few IDPA matches. I know I can hit the plate, I ran a few stages at my SASS club range with my LC9 and had no real problem. Even pulling the trigger as fast as I could.
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JakeLonergan 9 years, 8 months ago
I think many of the commenters at loadedpocketz have missed the point that many reasons for pistol selection also have to to do with subjective as well as objective reasons. When I first saw Bobby Simone carrying his Glock 19 on NYPD Blue I thought, "Man! I have got to have one of those!" I'm sure I paid a premium for it, too, as this was 1994, maybe '95. But I could never shoot it well. It always bummed me out. I really wanted to love the gun but couldn't and I'm not saying it wasn't a well-built piece. I'm sure it had to do with that trigger and my technique and it could have been worked out but, with so many pistols to choose from, I decided to just find something I could work without having to use entirely different techniques with the one pistol. Finally, in 2008, I gave up and traded it in for a Sig P229 and loved the way it shot. Now I have gone striker-fired and have most of the M&P semi-auto lineup (sans Bodyguard and revolver) and love them.
The Shield is very nice but, in the holster, it doesn't seem to balance as well as my Ruger LC9. With less than a two ounce difference, the LC9 feels much, much lighter; almost unnoticeable. No idea why, I'm still thinking "balance". Shooting results are about the same but the carry aspect makes me give the nod to the LC9. I'm going to take advantage of the Alien Gear "2-fer" offer to see how this issue works out with an IWB holster.
You see it all the time in video reviews and many commenters have called it correctly, "'Wow! This gun feels better. I shoot it better. But I like my Glock better.' Glock owner logic." Don't be Glock-owning Rob Lowe. Get the pistol that best fits you.
My $.02.
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Razorback 9 years, 8 months ago
Jake - Do you carry the old LC9 or the newer one? I have the older version and have yet to get used to the long trigger pull. I know it is there for safety but I always seem to pull with it. A friend recently purchased the newer model and I shot his. Huge difference in trigger pull. But that could come with some safety concerns too. At least it has a manual safety which I know some people (Glock owners in particular) do not like.
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JakeLonergan 9 years, 8 months ago
I know what you mean about it pulling a little. Not enough to make much difference for social work but I couldn't shoot at distance. Weird thing is the Shield does the same thing. Most of my shooting is with a '73 Peacemaker so I do more single action trigger pulling. Might be part of the problem?
I have the old, original model. But with modifications. I got the Galloway steel guide rod and the heavier recoil spring. Both of those were lesser mods, though. The biggest shooting improvement came when I removed the mag safety. I don't think it's a lighter pull but it feels like it because the trigger pull is so much smoother.
I'd give the LC9s a try but, once again, there's that trigger with the "dohickey" safety. Not mentioned above is that I also got a Ruger SR9c but still couldn't get the results I wanted and I believe part of the problem was that gun also has the dohickey in the trigger.
It's just me and I know it. I know what you mean about the manual safety. Both my Shield and the LC9 have it. I sold off everything else with a manual safety but these two only came with it when I bought them) but it could take me a long time to get used to walking around with it "off".
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57plymouth 9 years, 8 months ago
I shoot best with my Glocks. I never likes the S&W. So again, shoot what works for you. I carry either a G19 or a G23 every day IWB. I will reserve judgement on a single stack Glock until I shoot one. I don't see the logic in less capacity though. YMMV.
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TonkaSal 9 years, 8 months ago
I love my shield and will not be replacing it. I'm a fan of Glocks but for CCW, the shield is still the best choice on the market. IMO
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Loadedpocketz 9 years, 8 months ago
Jake, I shoot left with the Shield but I'm convinced its due to lateral displacement of my trigger finer, and not the weapon's fault. Regardless, until I can figure it out 100%, I hold at 3 o'clock and do pretty well for myself. You make good points about subjective reasoning when it comes to selection of a CCW. The problem for Glock is that they came late to the party. A lot of people have already found a carry gun that works for them because there are a bunch of good ones already on the market.
Reply
JakeLonergan 9 years, 8 months ago
I'm going to see if I can't, at the least, learn to compensate by shooting a few IDPA matches. I know I can hit the plate, I ran a few stages at my SASS club range with my LC9 and had no real problem. Even pulling the trigger as fast as I could.
Reply