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I was recent asked, what is the best, top of the line handgun in a .40 caliber? Since I'm still fairly new to guns, I immediately thought of a Glock or Springfield but I truly don't know who else makes this same caliber. Can anyone help? This is assuming money is no object.

I doubt anybody can tell you what is the "best" as any answer will be what works best for them and is subjectable based on their opinion. Fist thing I would consider is how it fits my hand and how the sights line up with my grip. Next would be re-coil and how fast I can come back on target for a second shot. Personally I do not like Glocks as they do noy have the right grip angle for my hands and I am not going to change how I shoot just to be able to line up sights for a specific manufacturer, they work very well for others and are fine guns. There are lots of quality guns out there, Sig's, M&P's and XD's come to mind as cannot go wrong, are reliable and should last a lifetime.

H&K or SIG.

Yeah - what salty1 said. As well as HK, Kahr, and others.

There are a large number of gunmakers who make .40's.

Try this: Go tohttp://www.budsgunshop.com, access their
"Power Search" function and fill in the search criteria to include
"Caliber = .40".

You should get a few pages of results for all the gunmakers that
Bud's sells. They are in Kentucky by the way, but offer very good
prices and service via FFL's in your neck of the woods.

SIA

I sold my H&K. Wasn't comfortable with it.
I have never owned a Sig, so I have no opinion.
My Glocks work fine, no complaint.
My XD is my hands-down favorite. Comfortable to shoot, accurate and I think it looks peachy-keen.

OP's question is a bit too broad, as nearly every semi-auto pistol maker offers all of their full size and mid size models in .40-cal these days, and many subcompact models as well.

And "best" (as has been said) is subjective based on the particular requirements of the user, grip size and angle, types of safeties, trigger style and performance etc (a nearly infinite list of possibilities).

If you ask "most expensive" this is a quantitative subject that can be researched and given as fact. I don't happen to know off top of my head, but I'd imagine one of the various 1911 custom makers has a few very expensive .40-cal models (I know I've seen .40 offered on numerous STI 1911 pattern guns that are listed on their website in the $1,500 range).

I personally own Glock .40s and trust them with my life daily (as do most FBI agents and a large number of state and local law enforcement agencies). Over 10-12 years I have "trained" myself to shoot them accurately, but must admit that shooting a Glock well could train your hands to not shoot other guns well (as I recently found out while trying to shoot a Sig P225).

I've been impressed with every Sprinfield XD I've ever held and shot, though I don't own one (too similar to my Glocks). H&K USP line is also top notch. And my above comment is not a knock at Sig, they built extraordinarily high quality handguns (just different in some ways - while very similar in others - to a Glock). Beretta and Walther also make fine handguns. Ruger, Smith & Wesson, Taurus .... like I said, an almost infinite list.

Best bet is for the buyer to go hold a number of these guns in his/her hands. Dry fire the triggers (with permission of the gun shop, of course). Narrow down your favorites to two or three or four and go rent those guns at a range that rents guns. Fire the same (or similar) models and see which you like best.

Only other advice on .40-cal is to be aware that it does have a pronounced kick to it. Nothing like a Magnum round, but noticeably more "jump" and "felt recoil" than a 9mm in the same size firearm. I used to downplay this until I started to develop some relatively mild numbness in my hands and wrists (possibly early onset carpel tunnel - need to see the doc) and realized how much more difficult the .40 can be to control than a 9mm when your hands aren't working at 100%

Any question of "best" will always involve subjectivity, but when it comes to quality, accuracy, reliability, H&K first, then SIG, a close second.

The best is the one that best suits you.

I can probably think of five or six manufactures which produce top quality .40 pistols. It would be very difficult to pick "best". As everyone has noted, the best for you, may not be the best for me.
That being said, of all the pistols I own, or have shot any significant number of rounds through, the only one that has never had a malfunction, FTF or FTE, or stoppage of any sort is my HK USP .40. It is not my favorite as I am a 1911 guy at heart and am more accurate with the 1911 platform, but as far as 100% reliability, this is the only gun (1000 rounds plus), that I can give that award to.

Like GOP said. But I would say Sig 1st.

I'm with H&K and Sig.


The Glock 22 has well documented issues with wear on the frame as well as trouble when adding a light.

My limited experience with Beretta has been perfect too, but that's 9mm.

bdickens wrote:The best is the one that best suits you.

+1.
As you can see to the many responses, the answer depends upon the person, not the gun. So, to you, the only answer that counts is yours. Try as many as you can, then, when you choose for yourself, I bet 99.9% of the people will tell you "good job".

Glock 23, hands down. High quality, low price. The second may be XD40.

HK and Sig are fine but higher price.

I love my Sig P229 Double/Single with Hogue grips and night sites! Try one out and see how it sits in your hand.

My wife has a Springfield XD Subcompact .40, but we haven't been to the range with it yet.

(I can tell you that it will take an INCREDIBLE performance for the Springfield to overcome the Sig in my opinion. . . even if it is a little easier to conceal.)