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Heckler and Koch USP
Model: Heckler and Koch USP (Universal Self-loading Pistol) The USP was developed as a replacement for H&K's older P7 series. A USP prototype was one of the competitors in the United States Special Operations Command's trials for an Offensive Handgun Weapon System, and it eventually became the Mk 23 Mod 0. Based on the input from the trials, the prototype was refined into the USP.
There's a large number of variants in a number of different calibers. The USP40 is the base version, chambered for .40 S&W. The USP9 is chambered for 9mm Parabellum, and the USP45 is chambered for .45 ACP. The USP Compact is available in .40 S&W, 9mm Parabellum, .45 ACP, and .357 SIG.
The USP Tactical includes a fully adjustable rear sight, threaded barrel and O-ring, a higher-profile front sight, match trigger, and an adjustable trigger stop.
The USP Expert has all the features of the Tactical, without the threaded barrel, along with the trigger of a USP Match and an extended steel slide that reduces recoil and muzzle flip. The Expert can take an extended magazine well or a Jet Funnel for extended magazines. While Jet Funnel magazines can be used in the standard USP, only Jet Funnel magazines can be used when a Jet Funnel is installed.
The USP Match is designed to appeal to target shooters. It has all the features of the Expert, but replaces the elongated slide with a heavy barrel that decreases recoil.
The USP Elite features a hand-fitted 6.02 inch (153mm) barrel and 9.45 inch (240mm) slide, along with the O-ring.
The USP also features an accessory rail below the barrel for aftermarket equipment, such as flashlights and lasers, however it's of a proprietary design (rather than a picatinny rail), so options are more limited. Several companies, such as Surefire, have produced adapters to allow for accessories that only accept picatinny rails to work on a USP.
Where to find:
For Germans, the gun is quite easy to find, as the USP is in use with the German military as the P8, as well as German law enforcement as the P10. Both guns are 9mm Parabellum. The P8 has translucent magazines, a reversed safety/decocker (Down is safe, up is fire; the opposite is true on a normal USP), and a lands-and-grooves barrel, whereas the USP has a polygonal barrel. The P10 is a standard USP Compact in 9mm with a spurred hammer.
In the United States, the USP is a fairly common pistol for police officers and civilians, though guns like the P2000 and P30 are fast replacing it in many uses. Its high price (often over $1000) makes it far less common than cheaper handguns - as such, parts will be much less common after the collapse of society. It is recommended that any users buy replacement parts and keep a good stock handy.
Complexity:
Being based on a design for SOCOM, the gun is intended to function well in a variety of environments. The mechanism is the tried-and-true Browning tilting barrel, locking into the ejection port much like the Sig pistols. It has passed a number of milspec environmental tests, including submerging in mud and water and even having a bullet lodged in the barrel, which was cleared by firing the gun. Though some independent tests have shown the USP can struggle with fine grit.
True to it's name, the USP can be bought in nearly any configuration, from a sleek double-action only pistol lacking any safeties, to a double or single action pistol with both a decocker and safety. Simplicity is a matter of buyer preference.
Size and weight:
Weight
- 748 g (1.65 lb) (USP 9 mm/.40)
- 789 g (1.74 lb) (USP .45)
- 667 g (1.47 lb) (Compact 9 mm)
- 694 g (1.53 lb) (Compact .40)
- 726 g (1.60 lb) (Compact .45)
- 771 g (1.70 lb) (Tactical 9 mm)
- 861 g (1.90 lb) (Tactical .40/.45)
- 875 g (1.93 lb) (Expert .40)
- 848 g (1.87 lb) (Expert .45)
- 194 mm (7.64 in) (USP 9 mm/.40)
- 200 mm (7.87 in) (USP .45)
- 173 mm (6.81 in) (Compact 9 mm/.40)
- 219 mm (8.64 in) (Tactical .40/.45)
- 224 mm (8.81 in) (Expert .40)
- 240 mm (9.45 in) (Match)
- 108 mm (4.25 in) (USP 9 mm/.40)
- 112 mm (4.41 in) (USP .45)
- 91 mm (3.58 in) (Compact 9 mm/.40)
- 97 mm (3.80 in) (Compact .45)
- 121 mm (4.78 in) (Tactical 9 mm/.40)
- 132 mm (5.19 in) (Expert .40/.45)
- 153 mm (6.02 in) (Match)
Action:
Short recoil semi-automatic, Browning-style cam-locked action
Caliber(s):
9x19mm Parabellum
.357 SIG (Compact only)
.40 S&W
.45 ACP
Magazine: A stamped metal box magazine, double stack, drops free when magazine is released.
USP:
-15 rounds (9 mm Para)
-13 rounds (.40 S&W)
-12 rounds (.45 ACP)
Match, Expert
-18 rounds (9 mm Para)
-16 rounds (.40 S&W)
-12 rounds (.45 ACP)
Compact
-13 rounds (9 mm Para)
-12 rounds (.357 Sig, .40 S&W)
-8 rounds (.45 ACP)
Trigger:
-Variants 1 and 2 (double action/single action, decocking and safety lever)
-Variants 3 and 4 (double action/single action, decocking lever, but no safety)
-Variants 5 and 6 (double action only, with safety lever)
-Variants 7 and 8 (double action only, no control lever)
-Variants 9 and 10 (double action/single action, safety lever, but no decocking)
-LEM (Law Enforcement Modification) Trigger: Developed especially for the U.S. government, the Law Enforcement Modification, is a USP DAO (Double-Action Only) model with a unique trigger mechanism. This mechanism improves the double action trigger performance and reduces the weight of the DAO trigger pull to 7.5-8.5 pounds, utilizes a stronger hammer spring, and shortens the trigger reset. Aside from the LEM mechanism, it is identical to the USP Variant 7 (DAO) model.
Controls: Safety / decocker on the rearmost frame. Push up for safe, down for fire, and further for decock. As noted above, German army pistols have this setup reversed.
Slide release above trigger, like most semi-automatics. It is extended and relatively easy to reach. Like a 1911, it is used to field strip the pistol.
The magazine release is paddle-style at the bottom-rear of the trigger guard, activated by pushing down. The magazine release is ambidextrous, although most find it diffuclt to activate with the thumb. Many prefer the index or middle finger.
Loading:
Condition One, or "Locked and Cocked." Chamber loaded, magazine full, hammer cocked and safety applied.
-Point in a safe direction. Critical step in case the gun accidentally discharges!
-Insert the magazine into the the magazine well in the bottom of the frame, ensuring you can hear and feel the click of the magazine release.
-Grasp the slide firmly and pull it completely to the rear, then release it. Be sure to allow it to slam shut by spring force. Riding it forward with your hand can cause a malfunction!
-At this point, activate the thumb safety by pushing upwards.
-The pistol can be fired after clicking the safety downwards.
Condition Two. Chamber loaded, magazine full, hammer down, safety off.
-Point in a safe direction. Critical step in case the gun accidentally discharges!
-Insert the magazine into the the magazine well in the bottom of the frame, ensuring you can hear and feel the click of the magazine release.
-Grasp the slide firmly and pull it completely to the rear, then release it. Be sure to allow it to slam shut by spring force. Riding it forward with your hand can cause a malfunction!
-Push the safety / decocker downward until the hammer springs forward. The pistol may be fired immediately by pulling the trigger.
Condition Three. Chamber empty, magazine full, hammer down, safety off.
-Point in a safe direction. Critical step in case the gun accidentally discharges!
-Insert the magazine into the the magazine well in the bottom of the frame, ensuring you can hear and feel the click of the magazine release.
-The pistol can be fired by racking the slide, chambering the first round and cocking the hammer.
Unloading:
-Point in a safe direction. Critical step in case the gun accidentally discharges!
-Deactivate the thumb safety.
-Depress the magazine release, removing the loaded magazine. Be sure to do this first, or else a round may accidentally be loaded in a later step.
-Rack the slide firmly and lock it open with the slide release.
-Through the ejection port, visually confirm that the chamber is empty, as well as the magazine well. Use your finger to feel for any rounds.
-Release the slide and push down on the decocker.
Field Stripping:
Clear the weapon as usual. The procedure is identical to that of a 1911 pistol. Rack the slide partially, so the slide release lever is aligned with the disassembly notch on the slide. Then, push the slide release from the right side, and pull it out through the left. Ease the slide forward off the frame. Remove the recoil spring assembly, then the barrel. Reasssembly is this process in reverse.
Design Quirks:
The H&K USP is one of the more mainstream handguns and a standard-bearer for a modern combat pistol. By this point, it's fairly dated, however and the design has a couple of quirks. The double-action trigger is significantly heavier than designs like Sig and Beretta, sometimes being noted as "gritty." The grip is large, despite being a lightweight polymer design. The controls especially are somewhat controversial among shooters due to their difficulty to use with the strong thumb like a traditional magazine release. A large slide with a lot of mass behind it gives the pistol a distinctly "soft" recoil sensation, though muzzle flip can be quite pronounced due to the high bore axis. The brass ejection is also somewhat inconsistent compared to most models.
The pistol is also quite large; even the USP Compact is larger than a Glock 19, Colt Commander model or snub-nose revolver. These complaints have driven H&K to release their HK45 and P2000, a slimmer handled .45 ACP derivative and slimmed-down 9mm and .40 S&W derivative, respectively.
They are notably accurate and a number of variants are made for target shooting and tactical use. Like the Glock, they use a non-conventional barrel (polygonal, in this case) which allegedly contributes to accuracy and function but cannot handle leadcast rounds as well as a rifled bore.
John_234 |
Latest page update: made by John_234
, Feb 23 2012, 5:55 PM EST
(about this update
About This Update
Edited by John_234
73 words added 31 words deleted view changes - complete history) |
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| Started By | Thread Subject | Replies | Last Post | ||
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| samuelsamington | someone please rewrite the last part (page: 1 2) | 22 | Feb 23 2012, 5:50 PM EST by John_234 | ||
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Thread started: Apr 22 2011, 2:45 PM EDT
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The last 2 sentences are COMPLETELY wrong. the trigger pull is very light if the gun is being used in single action, which it usually is, the full sized gun is not good for concealed carry, but that's true of almost any gun, and that's why they make the USP compact, the gun also comes in a match variant which is even better suited to target shooting than the regular, I would be very happy to see this page fixed.
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| samuelsamington | spare parts | 17 | Apr 22 2011, 11:09 PM EDT by John_234 | ||
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Thread started: Apr 20 2011, 10:48 PM EDT
Watch
The USP really doesn't need spare parts unless it is blatantly destroyed, I own one and have put several thousand rounds through it without wear marks, breaks, or even a single jam. there's a reason it costs around 1000 dollars. The only problem with the gun itself is that it spews casings in every direction when you fire more than 1 round in a second and they burn when they go down your shirt.
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