Thinking of starting IDPA- what pistols work best?

defjon · January 24, 2011, 01:36 AM

My local range is doing this for the next fifteen weeks or so. Heard about it at the local gun store.

I am interested in going, I would need more mags though.

I currently have a Springfield xd-9, not a super great shot with it. I find I can't shoot polymer guns (glock/springfield) as well as metal framed guns like Berettas, Sigs, 1911s, etc.

What do most people use in IDPA?

Should I trade in the gun for something else? I do like it...

Willie Lowman · January 24, 2011, 01:50 AM

Why don't you try it with the gun you have and you can make a better educated decision from your experience.

FWIW I started shooting a Beretta 92. I went to a Glock 22. Then a HK USPc .40. Now back to the Glock. Thinking about giving my Sig P226 a try.

Mustangpalmer91 · January 24, 2011, 02:16 AM

Start with what you have see if you like it, then if you still feel the need to get something else. I started with a 92fs, 96D, M&P 40, 1911, and S&W 915 all guns I all ready had. Now I use a 1911 or my M&P just personal preferace.
At my club you see just about any pistol you can think of.

booker_t · January 24, 2011, 08:03 AM

Agree with above, I've seen guys shoot with anything and everything you can imagine. Run what you brung, and adjust from there. Don't try to go out and win it all the first time.

Get your hands on a copy of Brian Enos' book, Practical Shooting. You'll thank me later.

WC145 · January 24, 2011, 09:05 AM

Most anything that fits in the box will work. Go with whatever you're most comfortable with, not just shooting but mag changes, drawing from the holster, etc.
I use 1911s because I carry a 1911 every day.

gregjc9 · January 24, 2011, 09:16 AM

Another vote for using what you've got first. You may find after a match or two that you really dont like the sport. If that happens, you dont want to have sunk a lot of $$ into it unless you really dig it, which I bet you will.

The XD gear (holster and mag pouch) will suffice to get you started. You'll need at least 3 mags, regardless of which pistol you use. I started out using a Sig, then went to an XDm for a little over a year. Now I'm using a CZ 75 SA Target, and find it fits me nicely, and is more accurate than I am.

Archer 9505 · January 24, 2011, 09:56 AM

IDPA IMO is a great sport and easily accessible. As stated earlier in this thread, shoot what you have. IDPA is a come as you are party. Shoot what you have; see what the other guys and gals are shooting. Hone your skills. Later if you want to upgrade, go for it.

Glenn E. Meyer · January 24, 2011, 10:21 AM

I've seen folks shoot polymer guns just fine. It's not the gun, IMHO.

RickB · January 24, 2011, 12:44 PM

XDs are fairly popular in IDPA competition, but not as much perhaps as Glocks, M&Ps, and some other plastic-framed guns, as the XD has been determined to be a single action design, while virtually every other striker-fired gun on the market is considered "double action", and so legal for Stock Service Pistol division. The XD must be shot in Enhanced Service Pistol, where most guns are more highly tuned and modified. The XD is perfectly adequate, but there's not as much tuning and modifying to be done to it as to some other models. If you don't shoot it well - as well as other guns you've shot - then your confidence level is going to be low, and that's not a good way to get started in competition.

Jim Watson · January 24, 2011, 02:13 PM

Shoot what you have got to start with.
If you like IDPA but feel you can do better with a different gun, then trade.
If you don't like IDPA, you will be saved the trouble and cost of a gun deal. Swap the XD for a skeet gun or something.

booker_t · January 24, 2011, 02:17 PM

Remember that IDPA is not IPSC. IDPA is about practicality in defensive shooting. Most people will shoot what they carry, if I understand it right.

Jim Watson · January 24, 2011, 02:39 PM

Sorry, booker t, there are a lot of IDPA shooters with match guns that are as large, elaborate, and expensive as for IPSC, they just have to fit The Box and meet the other rules. I compete with a Colt 1991A1 with several modifications, and carry a SA Ultra Compact.

booker_t · January 24, 2011, 02:44 PM

ah, well nevermind then.

WESHOOT2 · January 25, 2011, 06:47 AM

I shot my first IDPA event using a Witness chambered in 41 AE.

Just bring a reliable gun.

NRAhab · January 27, 2011, 04:33 PM

The XD9 is more than enough gun for IDPA. Get a good kydex holster like a Comp-Tac or a Blade Tech, a couple of mag pouches, and go shoot. You will be shooting in Enhanced Service Pistol division, which isn't a really big deal, because initially you're not going to be competing to win matches anyway. Just go shoot your XD, shoot a couple thousand rounds through it, and then decide if you want to upgrade to a different gun. But don't just buy a gun "for IDPA" - consider if you want to shoot other games and such with it.

Jay1958 · January 29, 2011, 11:27 AM

I use and highly recommend CZs! I use a CZ75BD because I like to compete with what I carry, but there are several good CZ options: CZ Phantom, CZ75B, CZ75 SA if you prefer single action...

sirsloop · January 29, 2011, 01:56 PM

IDPA, at least for beginners, is more about YOUR skills, not the capabilities of what you have.

January 24, 2011, 01:36 AM	#1
defjon Senior Member Join Date: January 14, 2005 Posts: 785	Thinking of starting IDPA- what pistols work best? My local range is doing this for the next fifteen weeks or so. Heard about it at the local gun store. I am interested in going, I would need more mags though. I currently have a Springfield xd-9, not a super great shot with it. I find I can't shoot polymer guns (glock/springfield) as well as metal framed guns like Berettas, Sigs, 1911s, etc. What do most people use in IDPA? Should I trade in the gun for something else? I do like it...

January 24, 2011, 01:50 AM	#2
Willie Lowman Senior Member Join Date: March 5, 2009 Location: Uh-Hi-O Posts: 3,006	Why don't you try it with the gun you have and you can make a better educated decision from your experience. FWIW I started shooting a Beretta 92. I went to a Glock 22. Then a HK USPc .40. Now back to the Glock. Thinking about giving my Sig P226 a try. __________________ "9mm has a very long history of being a pointy little bullet moving quickly" --Sevens

January 24, 2011, 09:05 AM	#5
WC145 Senior Member Join Date: October 18, 2008 Location: Downeast Maine Posts: 1,836	Most anything that fits in the box will work. Go with whatever you're most comfortable with, not just shooting but mag changes, drawing from the holster, etc. I use 1911s because I carry a 1911 every day. __________________ "If violent crime is to be curbed, it is only the intended victim who can do it. The felon does not fear the police, and he fears neither judge or jury. Therefore what he must be taught to fear is his victim." - LtCol Jeff Cooper

January 24, 2011, 09:16 AM	#6
gregjc9 Senior Member Join Date: June 30, 2008 Location: Northern Va Posts: 501	Another vote for using what you've got first. You may find after a match or two that you really dont like the sport. If that happens, you dont want to have sunk a lot of $$ into it unless you really dig it, which I bet you will. The XD gear (holster and mag pouch) will suffice to get you started. You'll need at least 3 mags, regardless of which pistol you use. I started out using a Sig, then went to an XDm for a little over a year. Now I'm using a CZ 75 SA Target, and find it fits me nicely, and is more accurate than I am. __________________ ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒΕ Greg

January 24, 2011, 09:56 AM	#7
Archer 9505 Senior Member Join Date: October 10, 2010 Location: Maine Posts: 213	Come As You Are IDPA IMO is a great sport and easily accessible. As stated earlier in this thread, shoot what you have. IDPA is a come as you are party. Shoot what you have; see what the other guys and gals are shooting. Hone your skills. Later if you want to upgrade, go for it. __________________ NRA Life Member "An Ye Harm None, Do What Ye Will" It's a free country; in a free country, freedom is for more than just those that conform to the accepted.

January 24, 2011, 02:16 AM	#3
Mustangpalmer91 Junior member Join Date: December 19, 2010 Location: Scranton, PA Posts: 69	Start with what you have see if you like it, then if you still feel the need to get something else. I started with a 92fs, 96D, M&P 40, 1911, and S&W 915 all guns I all ready had. Now I use a 1911 or my M&P just personal preferace. At my club you see just about any pistol you can think of.

January 24, 2011, 08:03 AM	#4
booker_t Senior Member Join Date: July 21, 2009 Posts: 797	Agree with above, I've seen guys shoot with anything and everything you can imagine. Run what you brung, and adjust from there. Don't try to go out and win it all the first time. Get your hands on a copy of Brian Enos' book, Practical Shooting. You'll thank me later.

January 24, 2011, 10:21 AM	#8
Glenn E. Meyer Senior Member Join Date: November 17, 2000 Posts: 20,064	I've seen folks shoot polymer guns just fine. It's not the gun, IMHO. __________________ NRA, TSRA, IDPA, NTI, Polite Soc. - Aux Armes, Citoyens

January 24, 2011, 12:44 PM	#9
RickB Senior Member Join Date: March 1, 2000 Location: Boise, ID Posts: 8,517	XDs are fairly popular in IDPA competition, but not as much perhaps as Glocks, M&Ps, and some other plastic-framed guns, as the XD has been determined to be a single action design, while virtually every other striker-fired gun on the market is considered "double action", and so legal for Stock Service Pistol division. The XD must be shot in Enhanced Service Pistol, where most guns are more highly tuned and modified. The XD is perfectly adequate, but there's not as much tuning and modifying to be done to it as to some other models. If you don't shoot it well - as well as other guns you've shot - then your confidence level is going to be low, and that's not a good way to get started in competition.

January 24, 2011, 02:13 PM	#10
Jim Watson Senior Member Join Date: October 25, 2001 Location: Alabama Posts: 18,532	Shoot what you have got to start with. If you like IDPA but feel you can do better with a different gun, then trade. If you don't like IDPA, you will be saved the trouble and cost of a gun deal. Swap the XD for a skeet gun or something.

January 24, 2011, 02:17 PM	#11
booker_t Senior Member Join Date: July 21, 2009 Posts: 797	Remember that IDPA is not IPSC. IDPA is about practicality in defensive shooting. Most people will shoot what they carry, if I understand it right.

January 24, 2011, 02:39 PM	#12
Jim Watson Senior Member Join Date: October 25, 2001 Location: Alabama Posts: 18,532	Sorry, booker t, there are a lot of IDPA shooters with match guns that are as large, elaborate, and expensive as for IPSC, they just have to fit The Box and meet the other rules. I compete with a Colt 1991A1 with several modifications, and carry a SA Ultra Compact.

January 24, 2011, 02:44 PM	#13
booker_t Senior Member Join Date: July 21, 2009 Posts: 797	ah, well nevermind then.

January 25, 2011, 06:47 AM	#14
WESHOOT2 Senior Member Join Date: February 20, 1999 Location: home on the range; Vermont (Caspian country) Posts: 14,324	I shot my first IDPA event using a Witness chambered in 41 AE. Just bring a reliable gun. __________________ . "all my ammo is mostly retired factory ammo"

January 27, 2011, 04:33 PM	#15
NRAhab Senior Member Join Date: August 20, 2005 Location: Bellevue, WA Posts: 683	The XD9 is more than enough gun for IDPA. Get a good kydex holster like a Comp-Tac or a Blade Tech, a couple of mag pouches, and go shoot. You will be shooting in Enhanced Service Pistol division, which isn't a really big deal, because initially you're not going to be competing to win matches anyway. Just go shoot your XD, shoot a couple thousand rounds through it, and then decide if you want to upgrade to a different gun. But don't just buy a gun "for IDPA" - consider if you want to shoot other games and such with it. __________________ Join the community at GunUp!

January 29, 2011, 11:27 AM	#16
Jay1958 Senior Member Join Date: November 26, 2007 Location: North Carolina Posts: 274	I use and highly recommend CZs! I use a CZ75BD because I like to compete with what I carry, but there are several good CZ options: CZ Phantom, CZ75B, CZ75 SA if you prefer single action...

January 29, 2011, 01:56 PM	#17
sirsloop Junior member Join Date: January 13, 2011 Posts: 376	IDPA, at least for beginners, is more about YOUR skills, not the capabilities of what you have.

Thread Tools	Search this Thread
Show Printable Version Email this Page	Search this Thread: Advanced Search