It’s time once again to rewind the clock more than 30 years. Starting in 1989, well before what we’ve come to see as modern tactical pistols existed, there had been a notable trend-setter which years later continues to be offered virtually unchanged. Often overlooked despite a varied service history and holding a reputation as being the best built and most tested handgun ever created, we’re going to put one of these pistols in the spotlight to get the new year started. Let’s talk about the HK USP.
The USP’s first introduction was as a purpose built .40 caliber pistol, a brand new tough as nails platform which could handle the far more abusive operation compared to a 9mm. Developed alongside the HK Mark 23 which is a Desert Eagle sized behemoth of a combat .45, the USP borrows a fair bit from its bigger sibling while being trimmed down and more approachable, not to mention with somewhat less strict design requirements which had been demanded of the far more expensive Mark 23. In 1993 the USP40 was released with a 9mm version quickly following. In 1995 we got the .45 version which is an interesting mix of both the USP series and the Mark 23, effectively bridging the gap between the two series.
Other than having to make the grip larger to accommodate the larger bullets and inflating the barrel and slide, the USP .45 switched from the 9 and .40’s polymer magazines and went with slightly modified metal bodied mags from the Mark 23. The recoil system, revolutionary at the time, was beefed up similar to the Mark 23 as well with a dual spring system rather than making use of the bushing found in the 9 and .40 versions. Combined with HK’s cannon steel grade barrels which are both polygonally rifled and cold hammer forged and the lower operating pressures of a .45 ACP, what they ended up making is an apocalypse-proof sidearm. Even a quick look online shows stories and claims of ridiculous round counts in these guns without a single broken or replaced part. When it comes to the .45 version of the USP it seems like the best of both worlds.
It isn’t just the barrel and recoil assembly which made them stand out. There is the polymer frame of course, which yes Glock did beat out the USP but HK beat out Glock with the VP70 series. The USP had a more modular fire control system where parts could be swapped out at an armorer level to add or remove decockers, manual safeties for left, right or ambi, change to double action only, whatever you might want or need which at the time was also unheard of. The USP and Mark 23 also started the trend with super aggressive grip texturing all around. They were also the first handguns to feature an accessory rail, both being proprietary (and both being different from each other which is a little odd.) Some trends didn’t carry over exactly the same, we’re all better off with a standard Picatinny rail. HK got the ball rolling first though. Glock only started adding frame rails with the Gen 3 in 1998, though while they’re still chasing what “Perfection” means the USP has remained the same all this time.
While compact models exist of the USP series there’s really nothing compact about any of the .45’s. Compared to the Mark 23 the grip shape and texturing feels identical but with the barrel and slide trimmed down to a somewhat more civilized 4.4 inches. There’s some definite heft to them but thanks to a lot of polymer construction they’re a comfortable weight in the hand and balance fairly well unloaded. All in the USP .45 offers a solid and substantial feeling presence in hand.
The first quirk has to be the name for this line of pistols, the “USP.” The U stands for Universal which is kind of broad and vague but okay, it works. The P is for Pistol, that’s an easy one. But the S… You’d be forgiven for thinking it stands for Service, but it doesn’t. The S stands for Self-Loading, which may raise some new questions such as “wouldn’t it be called the USLP then?” and “aren’t all semi-automatic pistols ‘self-loading?'” It’s such a bland and generic title for what had been a fancy new tactical pistol that HK may as well have named it the NTP which, knowing them, would actually stand for New Tactically-Operated Pistol, or whatever. Gotta have that three letter acronym one way or another.
So yes, these pistols are the Universal Self-Loading Pistols. No other pistols ever made can be referred to as self-loading. Self-chambering may be a valid legal workaround. Those silly Germans.
The controls…aren’t great, though the USP is a combat gun more than it is a target shooter. HK does still offer a match trigger kit if you want to go more high speed, however. Out of the box this “entry level” USP .45 has an acceptable single action trigger with a fairly long reset with the double action pull suffering from being quite heavy and plastic-feeling. At least it’s fairly smooth, but you’ve got to pull it like you mean it. The trigger face is lightly textured like a fine grit sandpaper which I didn’t find to be irritating and it provides a lot of surface area which I found to be quite pleasant. Having gotten started on classic Sig hammer-fired pistols I found the USP’s trigger shape to be quite comfortable, just harder to pull compared to Sig’s updated SRT trigger.
This example is known as a “Type 1” which denotes its fire control arrangement, having a single left side safety/decocker lever which is quite accessible and easy to operate save for putting the safety back on. It’s very similar to a hammer fired Sig’s decocker, just again more plasticy. The mag release is the European ambidextrous paddle style and, just like with the Mark 23, the paddles are quite small. Paired with a chonky grip and you might have to get creative for your reloads. I’ve come up with a pinch method where I can catch one side with the tip of my thumb and the other side with the tip of my index finger but it requires breaking my grip to reach this tiny and awkward control. At least it won’t be unintentionally released, right?
And, that’s it. No frills, no optics cut, no flat trigger from the factory, no full ambi controls… Honestly, it’s my kind of gun. Rather than run through a checklist of features which seem to be mandatory on any new firearm the USP knows what it is and stays true to itself, and what it is is dead fricking nuts reliable. These guns do not hold your hand. Metaphorically, that is. The grip texture actually sticks quite well to the palms. HK in their usual ways don’t even have third party markets producing magazines for their guns, lest they hinder their reliability. The only exception I’ve seen is ProMag which seems to make magazines for everything, though don’t take that as a sign of their own reliability.
One interesting note regarding the slide and frame fitment is how the two meet. Many shooters are familiar with the Glock style where the frame has four small raised rails which makes it like the slide is floating directly over the frame. With the USP these rails are set within taller polymer walls which probably does wonders to help keep foreign material out of the action. The slide fits around the frame here rather than resting directly above it. Offhand the only other pistol I’m aware of which does this is the Palmetto State Armory 5.7mm Rock, though to a much lesser extent. Whether it has any real benefit or not it’s always nice not being able to see daylight straight through the middle of one’s firearm.
As a classic design you know there’s going to be some downsides with what you’re getting and the USP series does have some of its own. For me the worst was the front and back checkering which had been described by “Hipster Tactical” on Youtube as being “literally like a meat tenderizer,” and he’s on point. The diamond shaped stippling is quite aggressive! Given the USP and Mark 23 were likely intended for use with gloves it makes more sense but for most of us a grip sleeve or Talon Grips might be required. The front and back grip texture seems to be the single most voiced complaint about the USP series and I have to agree. As soon as I put a grip sleeve onto this one my confidence with it grew quite a bit.
Speaking of the grip size, this was later addressed in the “HK45” which is kind of like a Gen 2 USP, except not. The HK45 uses slimmer 10 round magazines but lacks all of the insane durability testing which the USP series received. The HK45 may be a more approachable handgun but if you’re a purist then the USP is your cup of tea.
Internally there have been some changes over the years, though nothing too crazy. The veeery earliest examples had land and groove rifling but this didn’t last long. There have been some changes to things like hammers and struts, firing pins and blocks, springs, control latches, mostly boring stuff. From what I have been reading it seems these changes happened around 2005 to 2007 for the full sized USP models. Upgrading to the newest components is simple enough so long as you know which ones you’d need, they work as a set rather than individually but can be swapped right in. Though really, unless you want something like a GrayGuns short reset or an HK Match Trigger kit then there’s no reason to swap parts around.
With regards to shooting the USP .45, I have to start by saying I couldn’t give it a fair shake. Getting old sucks and my right arm was completely out of the firing process so I had to one-hand this monster with my non-dominant side. Having one-handed a Desert Eagle it felt quite similar, though the Eagle had a Hogue grip with finger grooves and it helped tremendously. The factory USP grip without any gloves is punishing and I found myself anticipating the recoil quite a lot. The gun is accurate, of this I have zero doubts. Hindered as I was, my grouping was embarrassingly bad. No issues as far as limp-wristing goes though, she ran just fine despite the handicap.
Being polymer framed with a higher bore axis and firing a larger heavier bullet there’s no way around the matter that the .45 USP is a jumpy rascal, though I’ve fired far worse. Frankly, I’d put it in a similar group as a .45 1911 or a .44 Desert Eagle. It’ll move you but it’s nothing which cannot be managed. The basic all steel three dot white sights were quick to pick up and familiar, riding quite low on the slide and very close to the bore. I was definitely glad to have that truncated second recoil spring, with a gun like this I’ll take whatever advantage I can get.
On its own I’d have to say there weren’t any surprises. I expected the trigger to be average, given its vintage and that it’s meant as a fighting trigger and not a target trigger. I expected it to jump. I expected the grip to be unfriendly. It’s more of a hardcore gun and that’s what I got out of it.
Don’t take this as me being disappointed, though. I’ll enjoy it a lot more when my other arm can get in on the fun, though with this USP there are certain plans in motion which will write a completely different story for a future review. It’ll get more interesting the next time around.
These days, why would anyone still go for a USP .45 when there are other .45 double stack handguns? Ones with better ergonomics and possibly lower price tags? Outside of the Mark 23 which is easily more than twice the price of a USP, name one gun which has such a proven track record as the USP. These guns have such legendary build quality and reliability that they are to my knowledge the only .45 which you can take right out of the box and run .45 Super through without concern of damaging the gun. What is .45 Super? Imagine a .45 caliber bullet with hot 10mm velocity. The .45 USP is still a popular gun for those who live in bear country because of this option of combining the terminal performance of a 10 with the larger diameter of a .45.
There’s also the fact that the USP series is just plain cool. They haven’t been dumbed down or gaudied up, they simply are. You’ll always know what you’re getting with a USP. As an interesting sidenote, these guns used to be quite expensive but compared to current market trends the pricing has become far more reasonable if you don’t mind going a little more old school on features over reliability.
As much as I would love to say the USP line is still in production, right now I’m not so sure. A recent TFB TV video had James Reeves interviewing the CEO of HK USA Michael Holley and the question came up if the USP would ever come back. Wait, “come back?” From where? I hadn’t realized it went anywhere! Much to my dismay Michael said “probably not,” which seems uncomfortably definitive. The USP line seems to be on its way out, which is highly unfortunate. As far as I know the USP’s successors including the HK45, P2000, and P30 series are still in production, but it sounds like this may well be the last call for the legend that is the USP.
