HK Heckler and Koch USP Reviews

[Ralph]

I cant believe anyone could give this thing less than 5/5, and heres why:



Accuracy: Before I got this thing, my pistol of choice was my colt .45, and I was a respectable shot with it, being able to put a mag into about a 6 inch group at 50 feet; good, but not great. So I liked the feel of the H&K and figured Id buy one, and it turned out to be an AMAZING decision; as it turns out Im much better than a respectable shot, but my colt is not By the end of my first time out (after adjusting the sights), I was putting all 12 rounds from the mag into a single hole at the same 50 foot mark. If anyone is complaining of accuracy problems, I swear its them and not the gun. Hell, despite my current groups I still think the gun is more accurate than me. 5/5



Trigger: A sweet and sexy double action thats smoother than wiping your butt with silk. Absolutely no complaints, and I dont think you could get a much better trigger job from a smith. Whats more, you can adjust the amount of slack in the trigger, so if it isnt perfect for you out of the box, it will be. 5/5



Ergo: I have smallish hands, but I still love the way this thing feels. Everything is accessible with my trigger hand without having to remove my finger from the trigger. No complaints there. 5/5



Recoil: Compared to my colt, MUCH lighter recoil. Granted, it is a bigger gun, so Im sure that takes a bite out of the felt recoil, and if I had to describe it, Id say it feels like a SIG .40 had a child with a Glock 9mm, and that would be it. Very comfortable, very manageable, very quick follow up shots 5/5



Aesthetics: I opened the case it came in and developed an erection. 5/5 Haha...but kidding aside, beautiful finish, professional look, you name it and its got it. Whats more, it looks like new every time you clean it up. My colt has a bad habit of drying out on me when I store it, but not this thing. When I pull it out of its case its got just as much oil on it as when I put it away and its ready to roll. I ALWAYS would have to oil the slide on my colt before shooting to prevent jams; the finish just promotes the evaporation of oil. Not on my USP though. Literally apply oil the way the manual instructs and youll get that same erection you got when you first saw it every single time...if I could have gotten that finish on my wife I would have 5/5 haha...



Function: I fed this thing the most nightmarish reloads you could imagine. Each one was slightly different in size; completely inconsistent, terrible quality, you name it and this ammo had that problem. The USP ate all the ammo but jammed twice, both times on rounds that were the ugliest Ive seen...pretty much ever. I loaded those two trouble makers back in and it ate them the 2nd time without even burping. With ammo thats worth a damn, Ive yet to have any problems. The slide is SMOOTH as glass. I cant express enough how much of a joy this pistol is to shoot. I could spend all day shooting with it and still be sad to see the sun set. Also, these guns were designed to be able to fire 20,000 rounds of +P ammo without malfunction, so really, after 20,000 shots of regular .45 ACP, youd still probably have 15,000 shots to go before you had to start worrying. These things are so over engineered its almost absurd. Whats more, you can fire +P and +P+ ammo through them if/when the unfortunate time comes when you have to defend your family, and I couldnt think of a more dependable, accurate, better feeling pistol for that task. H&K should offer a deal where you get to try 100 rounds through the gun, and if you arent satisfied, you get a no questions asked full refund, because after just 1 shot youll be hooked. If youre anything like me, youll take that first shot and have to pause for a second while you wonder if that shot really just felt that good, or if you were just imagining it, so you take the 2nd shot to see, still in disbelief that it could feel that great to shoot, and by the 3rd youll start wondering what youre going to do with all your other pistols, because you couldnt see yourself ever wanting to shoot them again with this thing around. My colt is jealous...and if my wife read this review I think she would be too...hahaha 5/5



Overall: In case you couldnt tell, I absolutely LOVE this pistol, and would marry it if it could bake and do my laundry too. Also, let me take this time to say that a hand gun is like a pair of shoes in that one size does not fit all. This particular piece fits me so well it makes me want to cry out of happiness. You might not have a similar experience, but that is not necessarily the guns fault. What it comes down to is unbiased fact. Does the gun care what you may try to feed it? Hells no, its just hungry, 5/5. Is it accurate? More than almost everyone who will buy one, 5/5. Is it sexy? Oh God yes, 5/5. Are the mechanics and engineering behind the design any good? As close to flawless as I have yet to see, 5/5. Try this gun, and you will buy this gun. I rest my case...

[little-wilbur]

Has anyone fired a HK mk 23 here. I have one in my sights for 2399.00 cdn and want to know... if its worth it? I couldnt find a review category in this sight. the USP is the closest thing i gather.

[g4l]

Hows this thing compare to a Sig? Im not sure what I want next but this seems different, is it worth the money? Im thinking the compact model.

[V.Whytt]

This is an absolutely amazing gun. I picked up an almost unfired standard USP .45 at a local gun show for $550, an absolute steal if you ask me! This thing fits in my hand perfectly, which is good as Im just learning how to shoot(Anti-gun parents). As such, take that and the fact Im a minor into consideration when reading this review. When I took it to the range for the first time(and unfortunately my second to last so far, studies and not having a car have gotten in the way) I was amazed at how manageable the recoil was. How come everyone keeps telling me 45s with polymer frames have excessive recoil? I shot one hundred rounds that day and another hundred at my next trip and it never got unpleasant to any degree or jammed. As for accuracy, I wont even post what I got, as they were my first times shooting an auto. However, my stepfather, who is in the National guard(now currently deployed to Balad, Iraq) was able to get about 1.75 groups at 15 yards, and he only uses his pistol when required. After the training he received before being deployed, Im sure he could do much better. Only complaint I have is with the mags, which are a little beat up by the previous owner and hard to load after the first five rounds. Could probably be resolved with the used of an speed loader, though. Many people at the range were impressed with both its aesthetics and performance when they tried it out, and it even convinced one guy to get one himself! By the time they were shooting, however, the paper was so riddled that I couldnt get a good guess at their groupings. Hope to go to the range this weekend, if Im over this damnable flu by then, and if anything changes with its performance will update it. Though new to using firearms, I understand two hundred rounds is not near enough to test a guns real merit. I hope to bring a few friends and show them you can be liberal(extremely so in my case) and still recognize the need for civilian ownership of firearms. A principle, might I add, thats not that hard to understand. Goes to show you the average intelligence of the American politician...(Or member of the media for that matter)

[H-7]

I just bought an HK USP Tactical .45 and its freaking awesome. something about the gun I just fell in love with it. one of my next will be the MK23.

But I pretty much lucked up found it at a local gun store with in door range. They had it used for 749.95, its was pre-owned by one of the owners and only had about 200 rounds. the owner had it less than a year as well. they let me shoot a usp fullsize for free and gave me the line. i figure a gun with $1115 msrp for 750 was a sweet deal.

This gun is so accurate, light recoil. Everything is in good reach for my hand. i like the light feel of the bottom but heavy top. its easy to field strip. i love this gun.

[maxwell]

I own one in .40 Cal. Best gun I have ever owned. Absolutely reliable with almost any ammo. Accurate and comfortable to shoot. Try this link for holsters. They have several good ones for the USP.



http://www.firestoreonline.com/index.as ... tegory=492



I Have the Tagua Paddle holster. very comfortable, holds the gun tight to my body for good concealment.

[Catalyst]

Hi nightnurse... current wisdom suggests that storing a gun with a fully loaded mag is tough on the spring.... unless you are carrying.... having a stick with a couple rounds less than capacity in the weapon and a second mag similarly loaded stored nearby may prevent future problems

[CPB]

Night Nurse:

Springs in clips will fail depending on use. The more rounds you run through your weapon the faster the springs will wear out (work harden due to constant compression and stretching). Clips left loaded or empty, will have springs in much better shape.



FWIW, I have had a Tactical .45 ACP for a couply years now with regular use. I have yet to have any issues with spring clips.

[SPINE69]

Just got back from looking at this gun. Seems SWEET. It's between three guns, the HK USP compact in a 9mm, the glock 19 or the Sig 229. I really like the fact that HK comes with a manual safety as well as a hammer lock with key(kind of like the taurus). I have only been shooting regualarly for abut 2 months and am not sure if I am comfortable with the Glock 23 because of the lack of safeties. Good guns but I dont consider a safety built into the trigger an actual safety, and Yes I know the most important safety is the one between my ears as well as keeping your finger off the trigger until ready to shoot. Call me overly cautious. I have not had the opportunity to shoot the HK USP Compact and wanted to hear what people thought of the 9mm in terms of recoil. With the weight of this gun i would think there is not much recoil. So far the only thing that I noticed when compared to the glock is that it seems a little top heavyr. If anyone can comment on this and tell me how it affects shooting if any I would appreciate it. Also, is it too big for conceal carry. Right now I have the Taurus Millenium Pro 9mm and looking to move to something different. The taurus has been nothing but outstanding 1500 rounds later, just time to make a change. Sorry so long and thanks for your responses in advance

[kuma]

Spine69 - I'm not a big fan of 9mm. I have comparable .40's in both Glock and HK so may be able to give you some comparison. They are very very different guns. Here's my take: My accuracy is about the same with both. I don't worry too much about the "safety" issue myself, but for someone relatively new to shooting **OR** who doesn't shoot all the time, your concerns about safety really ARE important - don't let anybody knock you for being cautious!!! (If you are a frequent shooter, my apologies - I couldn't tell from your post over how long you'd put those 1500 rd through your Taurus or if you'd shot much before that...) As to recoil - I think the HK, like you said, being heavier, has a little less recoil than my comparable sized Glock. However, I think the Glock settles back on target a little better for the next round. Reliability has been stellar for both brands from the moment I bought them (unlike a Kimber I had no end of problems with). I've easily put a thousand through the HK and easily 5-10,000 through my Glocks. Probably more, actually. Both guns are very easy to take down, but with the Glock, you must pull the trigger in the take-down sequence ... something unsettling to some. The HK has a bigger trigger guard which makes it possible to shoot with thicker gloves than the Glock. I couldn't tell if you've shot the Glock much (if so, you already know this): the biggest difference is the trigger pull. Glocks take some getting used to. I'm used to it and I like it (totally a personal preference). If you've not shot a Glock much, I STRONGLY encourage you do so before buying one - you may hate the trigger. The HK has a more "standard" feel to the trigger. About recoil: I have never shot the HK 9mm. However, I have experience with the .40 USP standard and the .45 in USP standard AND compact and I think that while there is some difference in recoil, both .45's were VERY manageable regardless of the frame size. And I'm not a gorilla - I'm "lean build" in the upper body and arms. This being the case, I assume the same will hold for the 9mm and you will be fine. Given your valid concerns about safety, I'd point you toward HK - they ARE great guns. Having said that, at present my "favorite" gun out of the pile of pistols in my gun safe, the one I carry concealed, is my Glock 27 - a .40 with 10 rounds that lays in the palm of my hand but has surprisingly light recoil and great accuracy for the size. It also accepts the high-capacity mags from my full-sized Glock .40. I'm sure you'll get passionate reviews from both sides as each brand has a strong, loyal following, but really, all three are good quality guns ... Hope this helps