My favorites
by Pablo Birriel
(Newport News Va)
I can't even tell you how many firearms I have owned. My father was in the military and I have always been around guns. I have owned everything from a cheap Raven .25 automatic to a Sig M2 in .45 ACP. My favorites are a CZ82 in 9x18 and a S&W Sigma in .40. I know many will groan but I can explain.
The Sigma has been bad mouthed by almost anybody you can imagine and in the early years they were pretty valid gripes. However the last batch pretty much got it right. With some modifications from the lessons learned we got the M&P.
I never cared for the Glock. I didn't like the way it felt in my hand. I had also seen several failures with their safety trigger and an ammo dump to the ground courtesy of the polymer magazine. I also didn't care for the fact that the rounds weren't fully supported. I did feel that the design itself was a good one and that is what attracted me to the Sigma. The Sigma is pretty much a modified Glock design, so much so that they pay a royalty fee to Glock for copyright infringement. However, the grip is better, it has steel magazines and the rounds are fully supported.
The only knock on the gun has been its trigger pull, which resembles a Glock with the NY trigger. There is a simple modification that can be done to lighten up the trigger and it makes it a winner for me. It is accurate, simple, reliable and cheap. All of the things I like. I have never had a FTF or FTE with the pistol.
My other favorite is my CZ82. I love this gun. I have owned many guns in the 9MM Makarov caliber and have found them inherently accurate. This one is no exception. It carries thirteen rounds plus one more. It has an octagon rifled barrel which gives a little more zip to the round and it can really put them where you want them to go. It is not the lightest gun you can carry but its weight allows the snappy Mak round to purr. It has an excellent trigger and very good sites. On a good day, I can put those rounds inside of a quarter at combat distances and on a regular day a fifty cent piece.
The only problem I have is that ammo manufactures have mistaken this round for a chubby .380. I believe that a 100 grain FTX Hornady round at 1100 fps would be nothing to sneeze at. I recently spoke to a Hornady rep and they stated that there will be a release of this excellent caliber in their critical defense line but I have no idea of its final configuration.
I just would like to add one thing. To all of you out there considering purchasing your first firearms, please don't allow firearm bigotry to influence your purchase. Pick your gun just as you would your mate. Go on dates with them, to the range of course and make your final decision based on what you like. If you do this you will never be disappointed.
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