I have several P30 pistols and a USP compact all in 9mm. I recently have wanted to buy an HK either the 45 or the USP45. I recently shot a HK45C and was not really happy with it, as I decocked it every 6 round or so. Never had this problem with my Compact 9 so I'm stumped. What is everyone's opinion, HK45 or USP45?

After owning both, I ended up with 2 USP45's.  Personal preference. Fits my hands better than the other one.  I also prefer the 12rd mags.  You really can't go wrong with either choice.  HK makes superb pistols.

I got both full sized HKs...





Want to add a USP45 CT and maybe an HK45 CT.

Have a HK45 compact tactical and a USP 45 Tactical I shoot occasionally. Both awesome but that full size USP tactical is the most accurate pistol I have ever shot. Super smooth recoil, oring barrel, factory match trigger is the best of my HK's maybe even rivaling my P7.  The  HK45CT is dads but I love it for what it is but both of us agree the USP even my standard 9mm has better triggers in  DA and especially in single action.

Get the USP and make sure it's the expert or tactical model so you get the o-ringed barrel and match trigger.

The HK USP Tactical 45 is the best .45 HK makes this side of the Mark 23, which is stupid big and stupid expensive.

USP45 all day.

I prefer the HK45

I owned a C and if I had purchased the full size I wouldn't have sold it. It's an amazing pistol.

Another +1 for the USP45.

HK45 is very clearly the better option. It is in fact an evolution of the USP. Quite honestly I think the people who purchase brand new USPs at the 800-900 dollars they retail for are crazy. It's a big bulky out of date gun that you can pick up all day in the $500-600 dollar range used if you care for that nostalgic look.

As for the decocking issue, V1 is a silly long term option anyhow. V1 is great for HK to focus on producing a main style of the gun, the user can see what works for them, and then the user can convert it (45s anyhow) to what they want. I assume you ride your thumb on the safety 1911 style. All you need is to put in a V9 detent plate (no decocker).

Something to keep in mind is the VP45 may be around the corner but then again sounds like you are a hammer dude so probably not relevant.

My choice for 15 years and at least that many thousand rounds.

Only one choice.

I don't understand the love for the USP over the 45. The grip is a block and the rail needs a hang on adapter.  The only adavatge to the USP is if you get the tactical, it has the match trigger and adjustable suppressor sights.

People like different things , to me the standard 1911 grip is too small and turns in my hand when firing and of the three I've owned,none were as reliable or as accurate as my USP. Luckily there are enough choices available that we can all be happy

I like my USP 45 tactical. But I like my MK23 better.

cant speak to the USP as I've not fired or handled one.  I do really like my HK45 and fairly good shooting it from a lot of practice.  Mine is the LEM flavor.  Either should serve well

Choice is not that hard actually (from my point of view).
If your hands are big enough and the ergonomy doesn't matter that much for you - USP45 - two rounds more in the mag and slightly better trigger.
If your hands are smaller than average - HK45 will fit you better.
If I was you - I'd spend couple of hundred bucks more and get USP45Tactical - mainly because of excellent trigger!

That looks awesome!

I wish I could add firsthand experience into this conversation, but I can't.  I don't think you can go wrong with either one, I'd look at holster availability, both with and without lights, and magazines.  The HK45 could have the edge with the holster due to the pic rail instead of the HK rail if you didn't want to purchase an adapter or have custom kydex made for your USP set-up.  For the magazines, I'd look at availability and cost.

If it's "so clear", then why do so many of us prefer the feel, balance & capacity of the USP models over them?  

Same reason why people carry a 1911 today over say a Glock, personal connection. All favoritisms aside, it's very clear the Glock 19 is a much better CCW than a 1911.

Likewise, in the case of the USP45 vs HK45:
-Just the mere existence of the HK45 demonstrates that HK felt they could improve the USP
-Better ergonomics for most users
-Bigger magazine release
-Slimmer slide
-Standard picatinny rail
-Ambidextrous slide release
-Common magazine pattern between HK45 and HK45C
-Common sight's between the 9mm and .45 versions (P30 and HK45 are for the most part counterparts)
-Forward slide serrations
-Muzzle machining to assist for reholstering
-More optimal sight radius

The only advantage the USP has is round count and if you are concerned about a couple more rounds, honestly there are better hammer fired options on the market that hold even more rounds than the USP. Nothing against to USP, it's a great gun, but to act like HK and other companies haven't learned from the design over the last ~two decades is naïve. For most people, the HK45 suits them better than the USP.

For the record I own & sometimes carry one of my two Glock 10mm's. I've also owned in the past a Glock 30 & 32. This is simply to show I'm neither a Glock hater nor a Kool-Aid drinker.

The statements I sometimes read in here that posters offer as absolute gospel is both astounding & amusing.  

The only thing "astounding" is your little cute jab and run with no technical info.

I don't care to drink any koolaid. I like HKs, I like 1911s, I like Glocks.

But to sit here and pretend on your high horse that a 24oz Glock 19 is not better than a 38oz 1911 for CCW is just ridiculous. I'm quite aware many people carry 1911s, hell I'm sure someone out there carries a Mark23 and refuses to carry something else, but generally speak a Glock 19 is a better gun to carry than a 1911
-It's smaller
-It's lighter
-If you move to the Glock 30s, you get more rounds in the same caliber but still smaller
-Snag free
-Inherently more reliable
-Cheaper
-More durable finish
-No thumb safety and grip safety
-Field strips in less parts

It's an opinion, I get it. So is "HD TV is better than Black and White Motion Picture". But it's a majority opinion and its popularity is backed up by scientific reasoning.

Make sure you reply with a laugh to get that post count up.

I love my 2 G19's and I love my 1911, but I don't see the G19's as being any better than the 1911 to carry. A lot of people prefer the 1911. Carrying a cocked and locked 1911 is excellent as it gives you a crisp single action trigger with the flick of a safety. A lot of people prefer to shoot a 1911 over a Glock purely for the trigger. Many also prefer the slim profile of the 1911 over a Glock or similar polymer pistol. Also, you are comparing a compact Glock to a full size 1911. A better comparison would be a G19 and a commander sized 1911. The commander is not at all difficult to conceal. Saying a 1911 is less reliable than a G19 is also a blanket statement. There are a lot of Glocks that won't run well from the factory. Same with the 1911. That is why people should thoroughly test anything they decide to carry. I would not carry a new Glock or a new 1911. If you are one of those guys who say the 1911 design isn't reliable, you are just plain wrong. 1911's have been working for the past 100 years in every battlefield condition imaginable from the cold winters of Germany, in the hot jungle of southeast Asia, to the deserts of Iraq.

Now I believe that the USP vs HK45 debate is the same thing. Just as you say the fact that the HK45 was made is a testament that HK saw an improvement needed, I will counter that thinking that not everything new is inherently better. There is obviously a reason that the USP is still being produced by HK. They still see it as being profitable to produce the USP, because there is a market. Like the 1911 vs Glock debate, many just shoot the USP better than the HK45. Some may hate the grip on the HK45. Do you think the M16A2 is better than the M16A1? I am one that does not. The M16A1 is fully automatic, has a better stock and sights for a combat rifle, and is lighter. How can that be if the A2 is newer? Well sometimes older designs are better than the new and improved. Another example is the Glock Gen 2 vs Gen 3. Many, many Glock shooters prefer the Gen 2 Glock over the Gen 3. The reason why? The finger grooves of the Gen 3 do not fit many peoples' hands.

Sorry about the long paragraphs, but it does annoy me when people state their opinions and act like it is fact. The truth is that everyone is different and what works for you may not work for me. Thankfully HK still makes the USP workhorse. It is what I see as the M16A1 of the HK pistol world. Sometimes simpler is better. You may completely disagree and like the bells and whistles of the HK45 and that is perfectly fine.

I'm going to leave it here on my end to keep this thread on topic.

I'm well aware the Glock 19 is a compact compared to a fullsize 1911, that was my intention. I'm also well aware of 1911s that run better than a particular Glock. I stated "inherently more reliable" which is the truth. Coming from a seller's perspective, in my experience the Glock 19 is vastly preferred as a CCW than a 1911. Just as the HK45 is preferred over the USP45 - in my experience - and for those reasons above. I have no reservations against the USP, 1911, Glock, HK45 - whatever, I could use any of them and be happy. Just as I'm sure the DEVGRU on the Bin Laden raid could have used M16A1s - but they didn't, they used the modern HK416s tricked out with optics and IR.

Sometimes it's tempting to be reluctant to give up "old faithful" in favor of the latest and greatest - and there is something to that, time proven is priceless. However the HK45 is well proven, not that new, and in fact inside is more or less a USP. Bottom line I doubt OP will be disappointed with either one, he just might want to consider the advantages of the HK45 I posted above. Who knows maybe the USP just fits him ever so perfectly as some people in this forum will tell you.

Thanks

News flash for ya, sir. Not all 1911's weigh 38oz. Some are even (gasp!) weighing in at roughly the same as a Glock.




*I* could care less about post counts. In fact, I wish they'd do away with them altogether. But whatever it takes to make you feel better.  

I've only shot the USPs and they work fine for me. I have the tactical 45 with a octaine suppressor and it's supper quiet and accurate. The other is an expert 9. It's the only 45 I've shot that I can ring a 10" 50 yd plate with pretty consistently with.  If a newer model is more accurate, I think it would take a ransom rest for it to show.  If I do my part mine will group a mag full the size of a 50 cent piece at 15 yds and I don't consider myself a good pistol shooter.

But the USP will always be more comfortable and can consistently out shoot the cinder block G21. I'd rather keep my "brick" over the cinder block any day, all day.

 

Yes really, the P30 is an awesome platform and I own two S models. To all the guys on Arfcom who helped me decide,thank you for your help. I picked up an HK45. Pictures will be up when I can. I would have done the USP 45 but I wanted a tactical and didn't feel like waiting on a deal to get some in.

Great I hope it's awesome for you . Even though I'm a huge USP fan I still want to add the HK45 to the HK family I have been building up.
But make sure you do yourself a favor and eventually pick up the USP Tactical 45 as it truly is a tack driving s.o.b. with bank vault lock up and softest shooting pistol I have used. It's equal to shooting my g19 in recoil but just stupid accurate easy to shoot with those blacked out sights and match trigger.
One thing I'm sure you agree on is since your a p30 nut your accustomed to that trigger feel and the HK45 is basically the same exact feel.

Next on your list needs to be a nice clean or hard chromed P7, PSP only so it's nice and thin traditional heel magazine release

I will probably pick up a USP tac at some point.  

These debates are always highly subjective , what seems " just right" to one person may be totally unacceptable to another
Go with what seems right to YOU. there is no right or wrong answer,and no " perfect"weapon , if there was we would all know it and the discussions would end.

I like the USP .45 , fits my hand well , extremely durable,reliable, and accurate
These are the qualities that matter most to me but it is not perfect. Expensive mags ( I have 28 btw )& rail are negatives but not enough so to make me choose anything else as my primary sidearm . YMMV & JMHO

Kinda like this one:

That's why I ended up with the HK45, as it felt natural because of the P30. I have every intention of getting a USP 45 Tactical after the first of the year, but for now I'm gonna shoot the dog out of this pistol and carry it as well. A P7 of some type is on my rader, just have to get the funds. Once you get your first HK they multiply, and I've lost track now....

I have a HK45 and a USP .45 Tactical. You can't go wrong with either. The HK45 has ergo in spades. The USP packs 2 more rounds than the HK45.
If I had to grab only one, and bug out, it'd be the HK45. Only because it has Mepro night sights on it. If my USP had combat night sights, instead of target sights, I'd probably
grab it, for the extra rounds.

Both are dream guns for me, and I can't see me ever parting with either.

Obviously either the gun was malfunctioning or it was user error as random de-cocking isn't a feature.  If you like the way the 45C feels get a new one or one that works or figure out what you're doing wrong.

If I'm not mistaken the USP holds more rounds so if that's a consideration then there's that.

Personally I don't like the feel of the HK45's safety/decocking lever, for me it's all about how it feels in my hands.

On another note, I have a USP CT .45 that I really like, you could check out those if you want to consider adding another compact.

It seems strange that you're somewhat comparing compact pistols to full size ones, but unto each his own.