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Because the original genesis of the Model 59 was a request by the SEALs to make a Model 39 take Hi-Power magazines, there's a lot of the feel of the Hi-Power to it.
S&W, of course, went proprietary for the magazine. Can't have customers paying the competition for things we can sell ourselves!
Again and again I am struck with the question, "There's nothing wrong with this gun, why did they stop making them?"
Which is odd, because I know perfectly well why they did.
Cost.
They simply cost too much to make.
S&W surely tried. The Model 910 is a cheap as you're going to get this design and it failed against the juggernaut of Gaston.
Plastic injection molding cost much less than machining, and the frame of a pistol is a very complex part. The plans and tooling drawings for the M1911A1 are out there on the intertubes and you can see how many operations are needed to make that frame from a hunk of steel.
Do all that, or just pull it from the mold 96% ready to go?
But, back to the original point.
I can say, with authority, that carrying a Model 59 is not significantly different from carrying a Hi-Power or M&P 9. As long as you shoot them all about the same, and I do.
It's making me doubt some of the other conventional wisdoms of gun magazine writers with regards to what I should be toting on a daily basis.
It's almost as if their recommendations are driven more by advertising dollars than actual needs. That's not true, a periodical NEEDS advertising dollars a surely as plants need sunshine.
I know my decision to carry in a shoulder holster is met with much scorn by the gun writers and instructorati, but it's a comfortable way to carry. A sure way to get someone to stop doing something is to make it unpleasant.
How many means of packing are unpleasant?
How many are fine if you are fit and trim and live 36° or more from the equator?
You've got to figure out what works for YOU and don't worry about what works for THEM.
Their job, and they've forgotten it, was to make you aware of your options so you could make an informed decision. They, like so many other places, have become advocates of The Way and like all acolytes they will not suffer dissent from their Holy teaching.
But I say, dissent! Be different if it works better for you!
You think you're bad? I rock a Springfield XD40 compact. Which every gun writer turns their nose up both in the mundanity of it being a Springfiedl XD, and in the hated .40 caliber. Meh. It shoots, it scores, don't care if it's not the latest and greatest.
ReplyDeleteI have it for all the wrong reasons, like I was given a stash of .40 cal ammo ("GunProle, you must spend obscene and filthy amounts of money on the latest and greatest bullets. And you need to buy new ones when we say you need to!") And I bought the gun from a friend rather than going to a specialty boutique and be served by gun-sommeliers.
Again, meh. Gun shoots, gun scores.
Still waiting on Constitutional Carry...
I was given a couple of boxes of 10mm Auto along with a pile of 7.62x51mmR and am now obsessed with getting a 10mm Auto pistol.
DeleteS&W's recent addition of a 10mm to the M&P just means a chance at one at less than a kilobuck since the Glock 20 fits me like my Glock 21 that I've grown to dislike.
I've been tempted to build a P80 Pf45 or two... if I do two, one would be in .45 ACP, the other in 10mm... I should order a couple of frame kits to have on hand in case Biden's 80% ban goes into affect soon. I could wait to buy the rest later as the other parts will probably be available for a while at least.
DeleteJust curious what your feelings on something like an ankle holster would be? New job in a new State so a) carry is an option where I work (once properly licensed) and b) I am behind a desk a lot more... I tend to be more "business casual" and so do not often suit up else the shoulder holster would be the way I'd go... Though as the weather gets a bit colder here in North Texas, perhaps...
ReplyDeleteIf your leg is shaped so the gun will not constantly hit the floor, I says go for it!
DeleteMy two attempts at ankle carry didn't leave the house because I have never tried a holster that would stay up.
It does seem ideal for office carry where a polo shirt and dockers is the uniform.
Ankle holsters are great for small backup guns. They suck for primary guns.
DeletePrimary needs to be where one can easily reach during normal movement. Having to do things that make the Kama Sutra seem tame in order to get your hand on your gat is a no-go. Unless you sit in Lotus all the time. Even then...
Sit in a desk chair and see where your hands easily go. And that's where you put your holster. Though your office might frown on an Alaska rig. :)
Ankle carry is a place where a compact or subcompact, and the reduced weight of something in polymer may have more of an advantage over something like the S&W Model 59. On the problem of keeping them in place, the less mass it would seem the less problem there.
DeleteIf it can't hold up a .25 Auto, it's not going to hold up a real gun.
DeleteAngus,
Deletethe problem may have been that most holster makers view a .25 (or similar caliber) to not be worth doing a good job on design. It's been my observation that REAL holsters start in .380 caliber, mostly. One can find decent ankle holsters for the Glock 26/27 size guns from any competent holster maker. As is normal for all holster searches, you may have to try a few to settle on one that fits you best. Lots of variables for that application: leg size, pants size, shoe/boot/socks sizes, and the combination of them. What activities you would expect to be involved in can also impact your choice. Even which leg you want to carry on can be a factor.
I much prefer shoulder over ankle. And that is admitting I have six different draw methods depending on which should holster/gun selected. There may be others that I don't own...