Matchguns MG vs Pardini

First topic message reminder :

I see a lot of posts about the Pardini rimfire pistol but not much forum traffic about the Matchguns pistols for BE shooting. I have also seen several Pardini pistols at the local indoor league but never seen an MG. Are MG pistols out of favor for BE shooting for some reason?

They seem like they offer almost the same features as the Pardini and at a comparable cost.

Hello,

All the above posts describe these two pistols very well. I have shot GSP, Pardinni SP (New), and MG2 extensively, and I like them for different reasons. Below are my experiences on these pistols. It is a lengthy post and may be boring.

If you have short attention span, read these bullet points regarding MG2.

• It has very good balance and not nose heavy. May be this is why it is also forgiving. 
  
• Its grip is thinner and a little longer than Pardini SP grip. So it is more suitable for my small but very long hand. My hand's length is almost the length of a large hand.
  
• Its trigger guard provides plenty of space for trigger finger to extend forward.
  
• It has a more complex mechanism than SP. So it takes some effort to get acquainted with its operation.
  

If you like to know more details, then read the following.

• GSP - When my college shooting coach let me shot his new GSP in the 90s, the new gun "wow" effect made me buy one from him immediately. No transition time in switching from SW Model 41 to GSP. I still like this pistol. It shots all kind of ammo.
  
• The new gun "wow" effect - When you first try a new gun, you most likely will shoot much better scores in the first few strings than using your pistol. This effect gradually fades away because you become less conscious on breathing, grip, trigger control, sight alignment, etc. I learned this from Erich Buljung.
  

Years later, I had a bone marrow transplant for treating leukemia. The treatment made me lost some muscle mass that I can't recovered back. So GSP started to feel nose heavy after about 30 slow fire shots. Then I had to switch to cross eye shooting because of cataract in the right eye due to a scleral buckle procedure. I noticed the pistol sight alignment recovery time is a tiny bit longer when shooting cross eye due to several factors (too long to discuss here). So I wondered if changing to Pardini SP (with steel dampers) will help with the nose heavy and the sight recovery time. So I bought a Pardini SP to try.

• Pardini SP - Easy transition from GSP. Grip angle is not an issue since I also shoot 10 meter air pistol. There was still quite a good amount of "wow" effect. Its rear sight is more rigidly mounted on to the slide than my GSP. I modified its grip to account for cross eye shooting. But over time, I didn't notice I am shooting better comparing to using the GSP. I don't notice any improvement in sight recovery time either. I like the feel of its trigger as I squeeze it, but the trigger guard is too close to the trigger for me because I have long hands. SP is a beautiful pistol, and also very reliable.
  
• MG2 - Thanks to some of this forum members, we were able to made a group purchase on MG2 by sharing the overhead cost. No "wow" effect at all. I was actually a little disappointed and wondered if it was a mistake to buy it. Its grip was not comfortable and its recoil characteristic was strange. After shooting for two or three weeks, at about 3x per week, I started to get use to its grip and recoil. It is very well balance and is not nose heavy. Most importantly, it is very forgiving. Since then it has been my main pistol. I love using it for dry fire because it has a dry fire mode. Its sight recovery time is so good that I can keep all 5 shots in the black (on NRA Standard Pistol 50 ft target) in 4 seconds. I know someone can keep all 5 shots within the 9 ring in 4 second string.
  
• MG2 vs MG2 EVO - EVO is just a differentiator for pistols made after 2018. The only differences are how the barrel and slide cover attach to the frame. Basically they are the same so the factory still refers the EVO as MG2.
  
• MG2 Rapid Fire comes with a compensator with 6 removable tungsten dampers. The compensator housing is made of aluminum. The compensator can be purchased separately. Both Jon and I prefer the basic MG2, which comes with steel counter weight.
  
• MG2E has electronic trigger. It makes dry fire much easier because the slide doesn't need to be racked. At the end of the 1st stage, the engaging length (travel between end of 1st stage till the release of the hammer) is about 14 microns. This length is about 70 micron for mechanical trigger, and may vary a little between pistols. The secondary release level in the mechanical trigger needs to change after about 100,000 shots due to frictional wear. Electronic trigger doesn't have this issue. I prefer mechanical trigger, no electronics and battery to worry about. 
  

The above is just my personal experience in shooting MG2 and Pardini SP. Hopefully it helps provide a better understanding on MG2. 

Cheers,
Kang

Wow Kang, thanks for the fantastic response.

-TH