I was in the market for a 9mm pistol with an external safety. Although I love my Glock19, when carrying without a belt, I had to either forgo carrying altogether, or carry the G19 in my pocket. I did not like how if anything tripped the trigger in my pocket--the G19 would go off. In addition, if my shirt got caught in the holster while I reholstered my G19, I was at risk for an ND [and a hole in my butt!].
I took a long hard look at the M&P9FS ambi safety, and although the M&P is a great pistol I did not like the undetectable reset. While shooting the M&P9FS, I had many times where I had a false reset (Bang, ride the reset, pull trigger again--only to find that the sear isn't engaged--then ride trigger out to get reset....you get my point). The M&P9 most definitely needs an APEX kit, and even then, I hear APEX kits interact differently between every pistol. The length of the M&P grip was the final nail in the coffin--the M&P9FS just seemed a little too big IMHO to conceal carry. (I'm sure someone's going to disagree and point out that the M&P9's 5.5" tall while the P30 is 5.4")
I ended up deciding to pick up the P30S I had been lusting after for over a year. I shot a friend's P30 9mm in December 2009 and came away utterly amazed. Hence, when HK offered a promotion for a P30S with TRU-DOT night sights and a Benchmade knife, I went for it.
I bought the gun from nelsontactical--very professional. Good seller.
Package arrived brand new with the HK bathed in oil.
TRU-DOT night sights
After a short experience with Heinie straight 8's (I believe mine were exceptionally high and meant for use as suppressor sights), I find I prefer the 3 dot system.
Low Light Sight Picture
Here is the P30S compared to my trusty G19
They're extremely similar in size.
The HK's
looks about a quarter (0.25") inch taller, otherwise, dimensionally, they're about the same. The HK's safety lever may make the P30 wider than the G19.
G19 also has slightly longer sight radius. G19 has 4" barrel compared to the HK's 3.86" barrel.
G19 Specs: LxWxH 6.85"x1.18"x5.00"
P30S Specs: LxWxH 7.1"x1.5"x5.4"
Here, while the technical data reveals that the G19 is smaller in all dimensions, the two guns *look* similar sized.
RANGE REPORT
G19 at 30' slow fire. 10 shots.
P30S at 30' slow fire 5 shots.
For shits and giggles: M&P9FS at 30'
P30S slow aimed fire 30' I was testing the various JHP ammo I had. Notice the big ragged hole where 5 shots went through--the P30 is *VERY* consistent. Especially in SA mode.
P30S Fast Aimed Fire at 30'--10 rounds: Bang-Rest-Sight picture-Bang [Repeat]. The P30S is *VERY* easy to shoot fast and accurately.
P30S @ 25 yards. I only got 3 hours of sleep the night before and was all jacked up on coffee--so my hands were shaking and I patterned all over the place. Pretty sure on a good day I could make this gun sing at 25 yards.
Gratuitous HK Photo
General Impressions:
This. Gun. Points.
The gun comes with a medium backstrap and medium side panels already installed. I pulled the backstrap and panels off to try out some different configurations, but went back to the Medium. I did an experiment where I looked at random objects in the room(like a lightbulb, or orange) and then pointed at the object without focusing on presentation, and found that the sights were naturally aligned on the object. If I swapped out the back panels, attempting to 'point shoot' would result in misaligned sights. In short, with the proper backstrap/panels, this gun, like the 1911, points very well.
Trigger
I don't think many guns can top Glock's reset. It is an absolute joy to shoot and ride the reset on my G19. The P30S's reset is slightly longer than that of a P30, and there is more pre-travel to the trigger. There is almost no over-travel, however.
The DA pull is nice and smooth, and feels *very* good. In comparison, my USP45's DA pull is gritty and really shitty.
Texture
The grip is rough, coarse, and very grippy--and can also rub your waist raw if you IWB the gun. This will be something to be cognizant of. So, while from the factory, the grip is grippier than say, a Glock's factory grip, the texture can rub your skin raw.
Mag Release
I really like the P30/HK45 series mag releases. It's a big paddle that you can hit without needing to "roll" the gun to punch the mag release. However, in the P30, the trigger guard has a notch cut in to it that can rub up against your finger while you shoot. Some P30 shooters reported that it would make their fingers feel 'raw' and after 130 rounds today, my trigger finger did feel raw, too.
P30S's Safety
I had to recondition myself to get used to drawing my P30S from IWB and turning off the safety before presenting the gun. The safety gives a tactile 'click' just like a 1911 safety. In addition, unlike my USP45 V1, there is no chance that my thumb will push the safety in to 'decock' and prevent me from discharging the weapon. It is truely like a 1911 safety.
Furthermore, the gun is fully ambidextrous--the safety and mag releases are accessible from either side.
-Side note: My Comptac Minotaur came too tight--even after backing the screws out all the way, the tension from my belt and the Kydex retention nub would make the P30 impossible to draw. I had to file down the Kydex retention nub in order to avoid running in to 'holster-lock.' I also found that pushing down on the gun before drawing helped.
Reliability
Some users have been reporting issues with their P30 pistols failing to cycle 9mm ammunition. Luckily, all my HKs have been utterly reliable, and my P30 today fired 115gr Federal 9mm, 124gr +P Speer Gold Dots (only a couple of rounds though), 115gr Corbon DPX (ditto), 147gr Hydrashoks (just a few rounds), Winchester White Box and 115gr Blazer Brass without nary a hiccup.
In conclusion, I must say I am *VERY* happy with the 9mm P30S. I might pick up another one just to have a backup.
