Well just what I said in the title. These are among the best handguns in their class ever made. As most gun enthusiasts would know, they rank at the top or very close to it as the best pistol and best revolver ever made, but you do have to pick one and shoot it to fully appreciate it.
I’ve shot and owned some fine guns in my day, some of the nicest Colt and Smiths, but man these guys are something else.
I thought I just post my first impressions shooting them for the first time.


First the HK P7MO8. This would be the granddaddy of the no-nonsense tactical pistol. Its heavy, its low capacity, expensive as hell to manufacture and has fine Swiss clockwork behind the grip panel. If the Glock is the AK47 of the pistol world, the HK P7M08 is the exact opposite, at least from a mechanical point of view. Yet still you have to appreciate its no nonsense tactical approach. Few guns have less levers, bells and whistles than the Glock, yet the P7M08 is such gun. Instead of a trigger safety, you have a grip safety which cocks the gun as you grip it. There’s no slide release here either, the same squeeze mechanism releases the slide when pressed, effectively making it the largest, most over sized slide release in any gun. You literally cant miss it.
So I load up a mag, chamber a round and brig up the gun. The first thing you notice is how great the original sights are. They are minimalistic in their own way, just using enough metal to show three large, very visible dots. I put the frond dot on the target 15 yards away, with the other two on the side as and after thought and pull the trigger. That the second you go “Oh, now I get it. Now I understand what all the fuzz was about”. In spite of the somewhat clunky cocking mechanism, the trigger is as sweet as you’ll find in any fighting gun and then some. Its easy to understand this guns reputation for accuracy. The rest of the rounds just flow into the target, the great trigger making an easy job of keeping all rounds on target.
This is my first mag, shot at 15 yards just testing the gun without even thinking about grouping.

Its not rocket science: Good sights plus a great trigger means accuracy isnt a problem for this pistol.
A couple more mags and it’s the same thing. You can tell a lot of thought went into making this gun instinctive to use.

My first experience with the Manurhin MR-73 is a bit less exciting. Boom! Boom! Click! Boom! Click! Click! “Dear God I got screwed. It’s a MR-73 lemon. Damn all revolvers, damn them all to hell”. Then I calm down and remember who I bought it from: A target shooting grandpa that bragged about only using the mildest 38 wadcutter loads through it… through arguably the strongest revolver ever made. I check the rounds, see the light strike on the primers. Remove the gorgeous grips and give the tension screw one full turn. Grips back on and I’m back on business. All bangs. Boring accuracy is what you get from the MR73, but its pure joy to go GIGN (Groupe d'intervention de la Gendarmerie nationale) on this thing and blast rounds out in double action.
Anyway, that was me today. Great guns, happy as a shooter can be and glad I bought these.
FerFAL

Thank you for recognizing the anti-Glock nature of the P7. Yes, it's all that and a bag of chips.

I've been looking for the P7M13 for some time at a decent price. I've passed up a few P7M8s with the butt mag release.
I may end up with one like yours. I have no doubt they are fantastic EDCs.

Just to rustle some jimmies....



Did you drop the MR73?

Check the pics. The P7M8 has the slide release on the frame, not the butt. The P7 is the one with the European style butt release.
Dear God no. sure it can take it but its in very nice condition and would be a shame to drop it.

I want a P7 so bad, I kick myself every time one of these threads comes up for not buying one back in 2010 when the PSP was 700 bucks locally. I would trade both my Glocks for one

I'm an admitted Glock guy myself, and that only makes you appreciate the P7 even more, especially that cocking feautre and crisp SA trigger.
But the MR73 has to be shot to be appreciated. That roller bearing shot double action trigger is by far the sweetest I've ever used.
Both guns live up to the hype. That's what this point is about. If you read and saw videos about these guns and spend the money on them, I'm pretty sure you won't be disappointed.
But if I could only keep one, I'd chose the MR73 in a heartbeat. And I'm not much of a revolver guy.

Just got my P7s last week, still haven't made a range trip.

Squeeeeze that cock.  

Love the idea of the squeeze cockers as a carry gun, they get too hot after a few mags at the range though.

Quoted for posterity.

Nice guns, enjoy.

In on this P7 thread!

The P7 was about the most unimpressive gun Ive ever fired, factor in the inflated price and its a dud.  Gets hot real quick too.

I've had two p7's at the same time, love those guns, and kick myself for letting them go.  The manurin 73 is something i've wondered about for a while, but just can't bring myself to pay that for a used pistol.... but I do have a birthday coming up....

Free advice- take it or leave it from a guy who has had a hangfire in a revolver before:   If it goes "click" give it plenty of time and do not rotate the cylinder to the next round.

Keep it pointed down range for 30 secs or so and then investigate.

Are you 12?

You're right, that's good advice right there.

I got my M13 years ago when I really couldn't afford it, but with prices going up up up I really couldn't afford one now.

The Germans make good shit. 



Place holder for the comment I know is coming. 

I feel sorry for those that don't have a P7M8 or M13.  I have one of the last Chantilly marked/no warning on the slide made M8's and 18 factory mags.  

I never understood the "it gets too hot to shoot!" BS.  I've put 6 mags through it on a warm summer day and was fine.  It is a pistol, not a base of fire.  

I'd love to see a P7K3 in .22 LR with an extended slide and factory threaded barrel.

20+ years of disagreement with you right here.

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I dont know. Mine has the heat shiled but I went through a box of ammo pretty fast and cant say I even notices any head.
Maybe its a thing when you dump 10 mags as fast as you can shoot, but that's just being retarded and not understandinh what his gun is about.
(for those that ask what that would be)
Its about a gun that can be carried very safely without being bothered with a safety (sure, like a Glock) but unlike a Glock once gripped you get a swee SA trigger which makes it very accurate. Also unlike a Glock, is the fact that the gun isnt cocked or mounted in any way unless the grip safety is pressed.

Squeeeeeeze cocker!

Mine got hot fast, that's why I sold it. Not B.S. at all, what would I gain from lying. Maybe there was was something wrong with mine.

I only had 2 mags. It was one mag after the other and it got hot to the touch.

 That's a pretty ignorant opinion. It's probably one of the better CCW guns ever made. Accurate, reliable, concealable, and easier to not get shot with your own gun if things go south hands on.

P7 is cool but they are custom 2011 price range at this point.  I should have snagged on 10 years ago.

Rock on Ferfal! I'm happy for you and jealous of you in equal parts.

Nice guys.

Gets hot too quickly..


Barely survived a pistol class with it.

I used to be on a shooting team sponsored by HK, and we were issued various firearms.  I chose the P& M-13, and was damned impressed with it.  In retrospect, I wish I had purchased the pistol I was issued when the team disolved...I had the chance to buy it at a used gun, fair dealer's price.  Boy do I feel stupid now.

P7s get spicy if you shoot um very much

I shot IPSC a couple times with mine , needed these

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Jesus! A P7 and a Manhurin? I'm officially jelly.

Lulz!  Maybe it is the fact that I've heated my home with wood for many years and my hands are used to heat from chucking wood in the fireplace!  "What's that smell?  Oh, nothing, just the 8th mag in the P7, and my index finger....."


ETA:  if only the Argentinians had had P7's at Goose Green.....

I believe you mean the MAG release, not the SLIDE release. The slide release is done by squeezing the grip.

Do you guys draw straws to see who gets to post this first in every P7 thread?  

I carry mine quite easily.  

Yes my bad, mag release.

I dont understand the heat concern, certainly not after a couple mags. If anyrhing it was the revolver that was getting too hot at one point.
After a couple magazines rhe P7 wasnt even warm, let alone hot.

Whrn I had my P7s affording enough magazines to get through some of the larger IPSC stages was more painful than the heat that radiated to the trigger guard after said large stages