To 9MM or not
 

I am looking to purchase a 9mm (in Canada) and I would appreciate recommendations. I have looked through other posts - must admit I really liked R.Lee's Sig Sauer.
I am not looking for stopping power/home intrusion (ie larger caliber 40 or 45) unless there is a real convincing argument. I am a member of a gun club- so it is for target practise. Already use a 22(cheap ammo).
In no particular order of preference - current selection that I am considering:
Beretta 92FS /Brigadier
Sig Sauer 226
Glock 21
CZ 85 ( BTW I am left handed).
Much appreciated.

I just bought the 226R in .40 a few months ago. Very happy. Accurate and VERY easy to break down and clean.

I thought you had to be a member of the Canadian Intergalactic National Defense Corps Special Arms Division to get a handgun in Canada?

But seriously, The Sigs are great. Go handle the many different flavors SIG has as personal feel is important.

HK USP 9MM....

If you got the stroke....a SIG P-210

Browning HP...Belgium

CZ

I have both Belgium HP and a Kimber 45...but in the caliber you are looking at, there are so many excellent weapons it is a Hobson's choice.
Shoot first, choose later.

Sig or HK.

I have a Beretta 92FS in 9mm and I just bought a Sig P239 in 9mm, the Sig seems like a nicer pistol, although I will always like the Beretta. My brother and father are both detectives and they swear by their Sigs. Everyone I know who has a Sig has more than one, interesting!

i just shot my p226 today...great gun. Find a CPO one for around $500...I don't think there is a better "deal" out there.

http://nostatic.com/images/shots.jpg

Todd.

Nice shooting. I'm going to take my new Sig P239 to the range next Saturday. My father and brother both love their Sigs and each have them in .45, .40, .380 and 9mm.

That was my first 40 rounds of the day at 7m. The first 4 are the ones to the left...then I settled down. Later I finally figured out how to properly use the damn sites...not only have I been anticipating/flinching, but I also wasn't bringing the front dot down low enough.

Practice, practice, practice...

Excellent work! I'm going to start shooting more frequently. Now that my son is old enough to go to the range with me, it's more fun and we both really enjoy the time together. The "women-folk" think we're crazy, but at least we're spending time together and having fun!

I read that a liberal running for Canadian Prime Minister has pledged to outlaw handguns if elected...and that this has resulted in a sales boom for handguns up there.

Targa, you can't go wrong with any of those you listed. SIG is, of course, my first choice for reliability, ease of use, ergonomics, accuracy, etc. CZ is probably the sleeper of top quality guns. They will someday give SIG and Glock a run for their money. Grab one and it just feels so right in your hand. They're dirt cheap too. I can't imagine having a Glock as a first handgun. They are neat guns, but they are different. I can't get over not being able to see the hammer. Beretta is on my shopping list, but I'm after an H&K P7 first. H&K is another great gun, but they ain't cheap.

I have a FN High Power (Belgium) and it's the best pistol I own.

The current liberal government (Paul Martin) wants to ban guns. Obviously not the solution to the problem - but I don't want to re-open that debate.
Those who are interested in purchasing hand guns are having a difficult time because dealers do not want to stock inventory if the legislation will be proposed after the upcoming election.
Those who want to get rid of their handguns are not sure what to do - lose the privilege....
Furthermore, in Canada you do not have the opportunity to try out the handgun before you purchase. You just hope that someone/member in the gun club has the model that you are looking to try.
So far, I have tried: 92FS (single stack mag- law is limited to 10 rounds); Glock 22, and CZ75. Have heard great things about Sig- but no opportunity to try a few rounds. SIG has quite the line up: just in this thread: 226, 210,239. Difficult choice.

Nostatic - not familiar with CPO.

Targa, what did you think of the CZ? It was a 75B and not an old 75, right?

You can actually get the SPHINX guns in Canada. That makes me jealous. Those are the Swiss CZ clones (like the 75 not the 75B), the Rolex of the CZ clones. Very, very nice 9mm.

Shuie is was a 75B and also the ambi-dextrous 85B. Liked them very much. The only thing holding me back, is that someone I know and respect (with far more expertise than I) said that there were some quality issues with CZ and that you get what you pay for.....
I will look into Sphinx. First I hear of them.

Shuie- what do you think of the Solothurn CZ75 clone? I got one a long time ago when CZs weren't sold here. (I've been very happy with it).

Cant say that Ive even heard of it. There are so many of them. The CZ75 is the most copied and widely used service pistol in the world for good reason :).

I checked gunsamerica real quick and found a couple of Solothurn AT84s. IIRC, AT84 was the designation for the SPHINX. The Solothurns on GA are Swiss stamped. I dont remember what the stamp on mine said, but these could be a newer version of the SPHINX. Swiss CZ clones are a good thing. A SPHINX would easily cost 2 or 3x what they are asking on GA for the Solothurns. I may have to pick one of those up :)