Molon
11 July 2015, 10:47
A Few Observations on the Heckler & Koch VP9
Here’s a brief look at the heart of the new Heckler & Koch VP9, its barrel. It is known by many that the barrel of the VP9 is cold hammer forged. The barrel has a 1:9.8” twist and a fully-supporting chamber.
According to my digital calipers, the length of the VP9’s barrel is 4.093”. For comparison, the VP9’s barrel is nearly identical in length to that of a factory barrel for a Glock 19 with the Glock barrel measuring 4.019”.
https://app.box.com/shared/static/zjpqr6rj6bba64m6yls5ehq0dn205s0n.jpg
https://app.box.com/shared/static/kwkl1p6tk1guck9kx064t6e0sqf6neqp.jpg
https://app.box.com/shared/static/kjjompd0lfafowj6jx99ad1zt4r7e8yx.jpg
https://app.box.com/shared/static/fp0flkdlqk6d92yp462wzjnx8a9mj577.jpg
https://app.box.com/shared/static/y6o9651973osiotpqe50e0k4l785prfl.jpg
https://app.box.com/shared/static/t3oxxllyr52rhu9tl4whs7stfxa961zm.jpg
https://app.box.com/shared/static/baojvq531fzl8pvprz5fex239fop19r3.jpg
The "stepped" chamber of the VP9 barrel . . .
https://app.box.com/shared/static/rrt8u05qexf225fnhs9mzhvgakqgqn37.jpg
The two cases on each end were fired from the VP9 . . .
https://app.box.com/shared/static/succtlxbsjoflfnf9pju32qt94f63zhr.jpg
I fired some of the more common bullet weights for the 9x19mm over my Oehler 35-P chronograph from both the VP9 and my Glock 19. The results are shown in the table below. All velocities listed are muzzle velocities as calculated from the instrumental velocities using Oehler’s Ballistic Explorer software.
https://app.box.com/shared/static/k9ujspyehpk00ba0yrcqowp4emugeivl.jpg
The VP9 at 25 Yards.
Using match-grade hand-loads topped with the Hornady 125 grain HAP bullet and shooting off the bench, my VP9 turned in a 10-shot group that had an extreme spread of 1.6”.
https://app.box.com/shared/static/nz2rrdxc33iy2muthu45kn7hdd3cxeyk.jpg
The VP9 at 50 yards.
Just for kicks and giggles I fired some statistically insignificant 6-shot groups from my VP at a distance of 50 yards. Using one of my best 9x19mm hand-loads topped with the Hornady 125 grain HAP bullet, I fired seven, 6-shot groups in a row from the bench. The average extreme spread for the seven groups was 2.40”.
The cherry-picked group of the bunch is pictured below. The group has an extreme spread of 1.52”.
https://app.box.com/shared/static/l3uu6u3urwzlhsmx8t0pkdtw1cndkj7t.jpg
https://app.box.com/shared/static/q7bo5zcceiqddxrmcpm3ne8ie940o56n.jpg
….
Here’s a brief look at the heart of the new Heckler & Koch VP9, its barrel. It is known by many that the barrel of the VP9 is cold hammer forged. The barrel has a 1:9.8” twist and a fully-supporting chamber.
According to my digital calipers, the length of the VP9’s barrel is 4.093”. For comparison, the VP9’s barrel is nearly identical in length to that of a factory barrel for a Glock 19 with the Glock barrel measuring 4.019”.
https://app.box.com/shared/static/zjpqr6rj6bba64m6yls5ehq0dn205s0n.jpg
https://app.box.com/shared/static/kwkl1p6tk1guck9kx064t6e0sqf6neqp.jpg
https://app.box.com/shared/static/kjjompd0lfafowj6jx99ad1zt4r7e8yx.jpg
https://app.box.com/shared/static/fp0flkdlqk6d92yp462wzjnx8a9mj577.jpg
https://app.box.com/shared/static/y6o9651973osiotpqe50e0k4l785prfl.jpg
https://app.box.com/shared/static/t3oxxllyr52rhu9tl4whs7stfxa961zm.jpg
https://app.box.com/shared/static/baojvq531fzl8pvprz5fex239fop19r3.jpg
The "stepped" chamber of the VP9 barrel . . .
https://app.box.com/shared/static/rrt8u05qexf225fnhs9mzhvgakqgqn37.jpg
The two cases on each end were fired from the VP9 . . .
https://app.box.com/shared/static/succtlxbsjoflfnf9pju32qt94f63zhr.jpg
I fired some of the more common bullet weights for the 9x19mm over my Oehler 35-P chronograph from both the VP9 and my Glock 19. The results are shown in the table below. All velocities listed are muzzle velocities as calculated from the instrumental velocities using Oehler’s Ballistic Explorer software.
https://app.box.com/shared/static/k9ujspyehpk00ba0yrcqowp4emugeivl.jpg
The VP9 at 25 Yards.
Using match-grade hand-loads topped with the Hornady 125 grain HAP bullet and shooting off the bench, my VP9 turned in a 10-shot group that had an extreme spread of 1.6”.
https://app.box.com/shared/static/nz2rrdxc33iy2muthu45kn7hdd3cxeyk.jpg
The VP9 at 50 yards.
Just for kicks and giggles I fired some statistically insignificant 6-shot groups from my VP at a distance of 50 yards. Using one of my best 9x19mm hand-loads topped with the Hornady 125 grain HAP bullet, I fired seven, 6-shot groups in a row from the bench. The average extreme spread for the seven groups was 2.40”.
The cherry-picked group of the bunch is pictured below. The group has an extreme spread of 1.52”.
https://app.box.com/shared/static/l3uu6u3urwzlhsmx8t0pkdtw1cndkj7t.jpg
https://app.box.com/shared/static/q7bo5zcceiqddxrmcpm3ne8ie940o56n.jpg
….