Is your handgun accurate?

[Que]

Have you ever owned or shot a handgun that wasn't "accurate"? Almost every gun review or information put out about a handgun that I see or read, says the gun is "accurate". So, what has been your experience with inaccurate handguns? I'm not sure that I've ever shot one. I could have, but mistakenly blamed myself for being incapable of operating the gun effectively.

HiPoint Handguns - Page 3

Come to think of it, if I sold a gun in the classifieds, can I get $50 more if it's "accurate"? Would I be required to take $50 off if it's inaccurate? I think gun stores should be required by law to post whether a gun is accurate or not! Maybe something like, "This gun is guaranteed to be 70%-80% accurate" or "Guaranteed to be 90% accurate." Requiring 100% accuracy may be too much to ask outside of 1911s and CZs, but as consumers, we have the right to know if the manufacturers are selling inaccurate guns! I need to investigate this.

 

[shibumiseeker]

I have had some guns I shot much better than others, but for the most part most handguns if clamped in a rest shooting quality ammo will be more accurate than I am.

 

[AllenM]

I had a Para 40 that was the most inaccurate gun I ever owned. I think that is when MCF&G instituted the 5 mag minimum after I shot FNS with it.
Nothing I did to it helped either

 

[printcraft]

Can we settle for consistent?

I seem to always have a flyer or 3.... I wouldn't fault the gun(s) on that however.

 

[eldirector]

I have a revolver that was so lead-fouled that I could barely hit paper at 10 yards. Had it SCRUBBED, and it is notably more accurate. Not that *I* can hit anything with it, but I can at least keep it on the paper now.

I also shot a snub-nosed revolver that wasn't what I would call accurate passed 5 or so yards. Was it the actual gun? Or the fact that the sight radius so short the front and rear sights almost touched?

As an aside: I have read some comparison articles in gun rags that showed the relative bench-rest accuracy between several handguns. I don't know at what point you would call something "inaccurate", but some guns are much less accurate than others.

 

[Bapak2ja]

I had an Uberti 1873 Cattleman that shot consistently high left. I found If I aimed at the lower right corner of the target page I could put one in the bulls's eye. Contacted Uberti and sent it back for repairs. They replaced the barrel, saying the sights were misaligned. When it came back, it was far more accurate.

My first pistol was a Glock 26. I loved the feel, grip, size of that piece. I really enjoyed shooting it. I had Trijicon night sights installed by Midwest, Mishawaka when I bought it. Never could shoot well with it. It just never seemed to be accurate. I had a couple other folks test it. They said it was "OK." Even had a couple of the good marksmen at Freedom Firearms (when it was still H & H) test it for me. Again, it was "OK." But I could not do well with it.

Eventually I started looking for a Taurus 24/7. I wanted an external safety. Just was not comfortable with the Glock safety system. Taurus had what I wanted. Found one in the neighborhood so I went to try it out. Using WWB I made the sellers steel targets ring like bells on Christmas Day. Man, that thing was accurate! I could hit my target every time with it!

I concluded the problem was with the Glock, not this shooter. Very happy with the Taurus 24/7 Gen 1. Gonna keep that one—unless I have a boating accident on Lake Wawasee.

 

[calcot7]

Uhhh...... I think you must have forgotten High Powers right?

Have you ever owned or shot a handgun that wasn't "accurate"? Almost every gun review or information put out about a handgun that I see or read, says the gun is "accurate". So, what has been your experience with inaccurate handguns? I'm not sure that I've ever shot one. I could have, but mistakenly blamed myself for being incapable of operating the gun effectively.

HiPoint Handguns - Page 3

Come to think of it, if I sold a gun in the classifieds, can I get $50 more if it's "accurate"? Would I be required to take $50 off if it's inaccurate? I think gun stores should be required by law to post whether a gun is accurate or not! Maybe something like, "This gun is guaranteed to be 70%-80% accurate" or "Guaranteed to be 90% accurate." Requiring 100% accuracy may be too much to ask outside of 1911s and CZs, but as consumers, we have the right to know if the manufacturers are selling inaccurate guns! I need to investigate this.

 

[Kirk Freeman]

Who cares? It is just puffery. Buyer beware and all that. I don't mind the teeth talk about handguns being "highly ack-a-writ".

Only 1 in 1,000, maybe 1 in 750 can shoot up to their handgun.

I really could care less, "accurate" is just marketing. I want it to be easy to manipulate with one hand. I want it to be flat to conceal. I want it not to have any sharp edges. A nice trigger and big sights for middle aged eyes (well, the zombie eye is younger).

 

[jwh20]

Yes, I have one that's NOT accurate at all. Davis Industries 380. When it does fire, which is not by any means a certainty, I'm hard pressed to keep a 18" group at 20'. That just plain sucks, I'd think it's unrifled if it weren't for the fact that you can see rifling in the barrel. It could be me but I have a Diamondback DB380 that is even smaller and it shoots very well and quite accurately.

I keep it because it's cool. A "disposable" gun that is the definition of "Saturday Night Special."

 

[chipbennett]

[video=youtube;pjvQFtlNQ-M]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pjvQFtlNQ-M[/video]

 

[chipbennett]

Accuracy of a handgun depends on the target, the skill of the shooter, and the precision of the handgun. Accuracy is a measure of how close something is to its expected value (e.g. is a single shot in the bull, or the 9 ring). Precision is the measure of how closely multiple instances of something are relative to one another (e.g. a 1/2-inch grouping).

So, claiming that a handgun is "accurate" doesn't really say anything. The handgun itself is only capable of a certain degree of precision. I would hazard a guess that the precision of any given, modern handgun is well within the margin of error of the skill of almost any person holding the handgun.

 

[kawtech87]

I have shot guns that I, myself, could not hit the broad side of a barn if I was standing in it, but someone else could pick up and shoot the 10 ring out of a target with it. And vice versa. If I say a handgun is "accurate" what I mean is that I, personally, can shoot it well.

And also yes I have shot a handgun that is just plain inaccurate. In fact it belongs to my dad and we call it Flakey. It is an old revolver of some sort, I can't remember the name of the maker but it is not a big name nor is it an obscure enough one for the gun to be valuable. It at one time was nickel or chrome plated and the finish is flaking off. Hence the name Flakey, and the rifling is messed up so it is damn near impossible to hit anything. But it locks up tight and has very little cylinder play and it goes bang every time the trigger is pulled. So we make a game to see who can get the best Flakey target.

 

[red_zr24x4]

A friend of one of my kids bought a S&W Sigma in .40. About 5 of us were shooting it, no one could hit anything. It shot 2 ' high at about 10 feet.
Once we figured that out and started using Kentucky windage it was tolerable, but I wouldn't buy one

 

[Leadeye]

Accuracy is a relative term, some hand guns I can hit things with at a distance would not be ones I would use for EDC. Each has it's good and bad points.

 

[ru44mag]

I can't remember ever shooting a handgun that I thought was inaccurate. Accurate is probably relative to the shooter. If I can put 80% of the rounds in a 3" circle at 7 yards, I think that is fair. I had a single shot H&R Handi-rifle in .223 with a scope that I was lucky to shoot 10" groups at 100 yards. To me, that really sucked. I traded it off.

 

[ru44mag]

Accuracy is a relative term, some hand guns I can hit things with at a distance would not be ones I would use for EDC. Each has it's good and bad points.

LOL. If I hadn't jumped up to check on something before hitting the post button, my relative would have beaten your relative.

 

[Indycar:v1.1]

Glock 17......shot so bad I could out shoot it with a rattle trap GI .45. No one else could get it to shoot accurately either. Traded for a Sig and haven't looked back

 

[Bennettjh]

I had a Ruger SP101 that I couldn't even touch the paper with. I don't know what the problem was. All the other Ruger guns I've shot have been awesome. Traded it and some cash for a Rock River.

 

[88E30M50]

I own guns that I believe to be accurate, but I'm not a good enough shot to find out for sure. I've only recently begun shooting paper targets again after spending years being happy to ring steel. It's amazing how a good string against steel turns into total crap on paper. I recently bought OnTarget software and am beginning to record shots on paper to get a feel for what gun works with which ammo. Maybe by this time next year, I'll have some level of proof as to which of my guns are accurate and which are not.

 

[dieselrealtor]

Seems that all the handguns I own are more accurate than I am with one exception, the hi-point c9 I bought new. Then again, it could be me because I shoot it with my eyes closed so I don't have to look at it.