I have seen a lot of gripe over the balance of the weapon types, and YES the Hand Cannon ad Pulse Rifle are the weaker of the 4 Primaries.
That said, many people are convinced that if they just add more DAMAGE that it will fix the problem... and it will only make the matter worse.
What needs to be done is a rework of the weapon's mechanics; not how much damage they can deal in a single shot, but how much damage is being placed upon the target. See the difference?
The Auto and Scout rifles at the moment can place consistent damage on a target. While the Hand Cannon can ALSO do this, as soon as you run out of those 6 shots, you are -blam!-ed. The Pulse rifle is the worst of the bunch because it has very inconsistent damage outside of close range where you would prolly be better off using an Auto Rifle or a Shotgun.
So... Damage need not be fixed, simply the weapons ability to deliver that damage.