continued
On the accuracy I will clarify that the gun is capable of sending five shots to a small grouping. I had problems at first with all shots hitting low. I think I was mishandling the trigger. I can do well with the gun with some concentration, but not as easily as many other guns. Mind you it is my only 4 inch barreled gun. Some others seem to feel much more positive about the accuracy than I do. Perception of accuracy depends on a lot of factors. It isn't as simple as putting two guns in a vise and pulling the trigger ten times to see which one makes a better group from 25 yards. Some shooters like one gun some like another and it is a combination of the gun, the shooters idiosyncrasies and the shooters technical skill that will produce the given results.
I like the concept of the rotating barrel myself. It is really a good thing, but if you are concerned about how tight the various parts fit and any play I would take a second look at the PX4. Wiggle the front of the slide laterally. You will probably find that there is some significant play in the slide to frame fit. If you take the slide off and look at the frame thinking about what is actually keeping the slide mounted to the frame it isn't hard to see why.
I have been curious to get my hands on a Cougar of the type Shipwreck mentioned above. I am curious about that new SD model PX4 that Ship put a link to the other day, but that is about a $grand. Beretta hasn't had much experience in the polymer frame market and the metal version might be pretty sweet. I like and trust in my PX4 in a lot of respects and from close range I could put three holes in a bad guy faster than he could say "I surrender". :smt1099
If you want an accurate defensive semi-auto gun that is compact (I'm assuming that's the reason for the 4" barrel) the top choices available today in no particular order are:
Glock
Compact 1911 (Kimber, Colt, Para or Springer) Take your pic.
Spingfield XD
Sig
HK USP
Walther P99AS
(Excluding high dollar guns which often have as much to do with pride as function)
You knock Glock accuracy and I personally dislike glocks for sites, aesthetics and snappy recoil, but thanks to their popularity and the abundance of aftermarket parts they can be competion accurate. Most are pretty good out of the box, particularly the G34. "Just for info" as you said you want an external safety and the Glocks lack that.
I would consider the XD. I haven't shot Sig or HK, but it seems universally agreed that they are good. Hmm, maybe I'll rent one tonight. :mrgreen:
I mention considering the XD because though it lacks a manual safety it does add a grip safety which combined with the trigger safety provides in my mind a reasonable assurance that no accidental discharge would occur. It's also the gun I plan to buy on Saturday since I've tried both XD45 and XD9 and absolutely loved them both, very tight gun especially for a polymer gun.
Sorry for the long response.