HKPRO Forums banner

Coming full circle with HK and the Svelte Striker Fire

4K views 25 replies 13 participants last post by  sabre675 
#1 ·
I've worked as an LEO for nineteen years and started out as a rookie cop carrying a USP 40. Then after my sheriff allowed us to carry 45's, I sold my USP 40 to another deputy and moved up to a USP 45 (what a great gun).

Fast forward seventeen years, two agency changes, and years of carrying Glock's by employer directive, and I have come full circle back to an HK in .40 S/W.

I picked up a VP40 last week for my birthday and I finally was able to get out to the range today to put it through its paces. I have to say it is fabulous! The .40 is a snappy round, no other way to put it, but the VP tames down that "snap" very nicely. The ergonomics are smooth and I really like the paddle mag release over the "push button" type found on most other pistols. The trigger is very smooth with a crisp reset. Dimensionally it looks and feels so much better than many others manufactures pistols. With the different sized interchangeable grip panels the gun fits my hand like a glove.

My son, who is a novice shooter, described the VP40 as "better balanced" compared to the Glock 23 gen 4 he brought out to our range session. We did an impromptu shooting comparison between the G23 and the VP40. I found the VP had reduced muzzle rise compared to the G23. My son said he was better able to grip the HK than his Glock when shooting. Don't get me wrong, Glocks are wonderfull pistols, but the folks at Heckler and Koch have definitely raised the bar in the striker fire market. Firearm Gun Trigger Airsoft gun Gun barrel


The VP40 will now be my off duty EDC, once I get some Trijicon HD sights installed and qualify with it. (Unfortunately I still have to carry a Glock at work.)

I like the VP series so much I've nicknamed the HK VP "The svelte striker fire". Its that good!
 
See less See more
1
#3 ·
Congrats! My first HK was/is still a USP 40 and love it. The VP40 is on the radar but on hold as two others are looking to come before it... maybe 4 if things work out this weekend.
 
#7 ·
Its funny HK is just figuring out all it takes to make Zee Americans happy is to give them a cheap striker fire pistol and some AR15s and were happy! Now if they could make a 5.56 gun in the $1500 range and a 308 gun in the $2200 range, they may start really giving the competition a run for their money...
 
#15 · (Edited)
Tough to say, according to our firearms instructors, they collected 5 handguns, had a bunch of our guys test them all, then the person that writes the checks made a decision that no one agreed with as very few chose the compact HK with the LEM trigger. That being said, it wasnt a bad gun by any means, it just takes time to get used to the heavy LEM trigger and most would prefer a full size gun with larger capacity for a duty weapon. I could go off into the thoughts of those being forced to carry it as someone somewhere lined someones pockets to get the contract (much like Colt/FNH, Beretta and others with mil/LE exclusive contracts) but maybe there was something to it. Most federal LE carries either the Sig P220/226/229 variants, HK P2000/P30(L)/UCP-C, or a Glock 22/23 depending on the agency and contract given, where as most local/state carries Glock 17/21/22, M&P 9/40/45 and oddly enough one city here even issues Remington 1911s. Could be the deal they were offered, the person making the decisions having a personal interest or history, cost now/service life end cost, etc. Im sure us little people wont ever get a straight answer thats for sure.

Edit - realized your statement may not be directed at anything I previously said - a lot of it is liability... specifically with a lot less liability if everyone uses the same weapon with a good history behind it as well as other agencies using it too. Many smaller agencies allow armors to certify a weapon for an officer to use on duty outside of the supplied weapon, and sometimes authorize a backup weapon as well, but that varies by agency and rarely applies to federal.
 
#17 ·
Thanks for your reply. I guess I'm just confused about needing a restriction in the first place. My father was a LEO back in the day and told me stories about carrying a Smith and Wesson model 29, or the Dirty Harry gun. He told me the only time he had to fire shots on his job, is the only time anyone ever said anything about his pistol being longer than the department policy. That being said, I would think they would just have a list of approved guns and call it a day.
 
#22 ·
A lot has changed since your dad was a cop... I actually had a big response typed out, but its not fair for me to really get into it on a public form especially since its a pet peeve of mine, if you want to chat more about why liability has become the number one concern id be happy to chat over PMs.
 
#18 ·
Let me put it this way! You buy a Sig or an HK and something goes wrong and have problems getting it fixed, people have a tendency to start griping about how terrible their products are! I think Sig and HK products are great! I own both and have no problems.only one complaint! HK DA/SA pistols are not as good as the Sigs ! I have Sig P320SK and the Compact and a friend has the VP9. I prefer the Sig and he reluctantly agreed! I think they are both great but user has to decide ! No sense debating which is better as they both sell well and great pistols! Now,maybe they they could make the P30SK trigger pulls like a CZ Rami .....yes, I have the P30SK and not too happy with the DA pull!
 
#26 ·
Not to derail but we had two T&E 320's, one in .40 n one in 9mm. Liked em a lot. VP shot a lil better accuracy wise for us though. No issues the short time we had them.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top