[TAPS CCW]

45 for experts

Well I guess a man(woman) has got to know his (her) limitations. It seems that we've been hearing how archaic the 1911 is, and how it is so hard to shoot well. Yet everytime someone needs a good raliable pistol there is a 1911 at hand. I think alot of this comes from the military and 15 hours of familiarization. Clint Smith advised once that berfore we had high capacity guns, our hit ratio was 95% afterwards it was 35%. Maybe people that are going carry a firearm need to learn to use it. That is not said to put anyone down that carries a high capacity firearm. There are a lot people who carry glocks, sigs, berettas, etc. that do extremely well. Maybe if I give you my thoughts on training it will make sense. Even in my CCW class I tell my students that the Concealed Weapons class is their first step, and that if it were up to me the CCW class would be a 40 hour class. People who claim that the 1911 is an expert's gun should learn more about them like any other firearm they are carrying. :1syellow1

 

[Bumper]

Well, I think that continuously knock the 1911 are those that have either never used one for any length of time or they sell some other brand of gun. I have loved 1911's for over 30 years.

People that think they are an "experts" gun is blowing smoke or showing their ignorance. I took my 20 year old son and 21 year old daughter (along with her fiance) and all three of them preferred the 1911 to a Sig P226, a Glock 30 and a S&W 5904. After I traded the Glock for A Springfield XD-40 and we went again, they still preferred the 1911. And, between the 4" and 5" 1911, they all preferred the 5".

 

[nighthawk]

I've found it hard to find a well made 1911 because of the short round, but once found I've found no other caliber to give such puch and accuracy. I think those that are persuading towards other guns just haven't had a good 1911.

 

[KC135]

Baloney!!

Sold many 1911s to first or second time gun buyers. Never had problems. Lots of good guns out there in Colt, SA, and others. All worked right out ot the box.

Found the ladies had an easier time with the 1911s than with K frome S&Ws. for the gals, thin grips, and perhaps a reduced grip. Short trigger. Recoil did not seem to bother the gals at all.

 

[Gringo]

Having recently purchased my first .45- a Glock G36, I must say I don't find this caliber to be any more difficult to handle than any of the 9mm's, etc. that I've shot in the past....I'm very comfortable with it.

 

[mikaldulee]

If it was only for experts the military wouldn't have had them for very long. "Joe" is hard on equipment. They are a good design, easy to maintain and reliable in the field.

I loved my 1911 when I was in the service. It was old, it was worn, nothing matched, but it worked.

 

[rocky]

My GF bought a 1911 para. Everyone at the gun shop was telling her how much recoil it was gonna have. Yea right. I think lots of hollyweird hype get people believing lots of foolsih stuff. As for the expert only status, i can see compared to a wheel gun a .45 would seem more difficult to master as far as operation.

 

[acparmed]

I think this "Expert" tag comes from the idea of carrying a condition one (cocked and locked) 1911. In the hands of an inexperienced shooter it could cause him problems with a potential for negligent discharge.

As far as recoil I also believe that comes from old Army grunts who couldn't hit the side of a barn with it, mostly due to a lack of training, worn out guns, and very inadequate sights.

I find the 45 to be extremely controlable in recoil as do most people who truly understand the weapon.

 

[Anubis]

Having previously fired only 9mm, I felt no greater recoil in .45 ACP in both a 1911A1 and a Glock 21. I don't consider myself an expert shooter, but I am as accurate with a .45 as with a 9mm.

 

[APachon]

My wife fires a 1911 Para SSP and would not shoot anything else. She absolutely loves it. We only shoot 1911's and I think they are the easiest pistol to shoot accurately as well as quickly so I am quite biased towards them. When I look to make future purchases, I only look to 1911 based platform pistols. Are they for Expert shooters, I do not think so. I think they are what fits me best. My natural point of aim is best with a 1911. When I do the closed eyes trick with a glock; the front sight is pointing way up in the air.

~A

 

[APachon]

The way I see it, I think (and this is my opinion only) that the 9mm and .40 kick more sharply than the .45 due to the higher chamber pressures and the low pressure of the 45 is more of a thud recoil versus the crack recoil of the 9mm and .40. Although there are great pistols out there chambered in both of these rounds I prefer the 1911 chambered in .45

~Andy

 

[Bud White]

The way I see it, I think (and this is my opinion only) that the 9mm and .40 kick more sharply than the .45 due to the higher chamber pressures and the low pressure of the 45 is more of a thud recoil versus the crack recoil of the 9mm and .40. Although there are great pistols out there chambered in both of these rounds I prefer the 1911 chambered in .45

~Andy

I agree the 9mm and 40 have a crack whip of recoil compared to a 45 i can shoot a glock 17 very well in 9mm but not as well as my 45's and anyother fullsize 9mm i suck will 40's i suck with to 45 right on.. Must be why i have so many of them in 1911 or and platform of 45

 

[APachon]

It is funny I have given this advice to people and they have looked at me like I have 2 heads (above the waist line)

~A

 

[Betty]

You know what opinions are like, and everybody's got one.

For me, the .45 has a softer felt recoil than an equivalent size/weight handgun in .40 or .357.

 

[Euclidean]

I'd call it an expert gun of sorts.

I've actually considered the .45 ACP caliber on multiple occassions, but the truth is I have no use for a 1911 style pistol beyond using it as a training aid. I would like to have one some day for the same reason I'd like to have a single action revolver some day: to be able to learn the format.

I've even debated if I should "switch" to the 1911, and I have decided it just would not be a good idea. If I'm going to own an automatic pistol that will be used for a serious purpose, it won't have an external safety. I've figured that out.

Plus I see no difference between calling a cocked and locked pistol safe, and me taking my revolver, cocking it, and putting a pin between the hammer and the frame and calling that safe. The idea of a cocked hammer resting on a loaded chamber is just completely foreign to me.

But to be honest, the 1911 format is just the complete opposite of how I think a handgun should work. Between the fact that its design purposefully separates the ammunition from the launching platform, it has an external safety, and it rests a cocked hammer on a loaded chamber, it's not something I want to explore as a carry gun without a lot more experience first.

From that perspective I consider it an "expert" gun because it takes expertise to use it.

I've also often thought that if I ever actually acquired a 1911 and started playing with it, I might discover I actually like it... but money is tight, and I'll go with what I know.

 

[FortyFive]

Euclideam-the appearance of cocked and locked will sometime make people uneasy about carrying it in that fashion. In reality there must be 7 internal conditions met for a 1911 style gun to fire. Yes, I wish I could name them and find the reference for that statement but it is indeed true. So cocked and locked is safe and secure providing a garage style gunsmith has not operated on the firearm. Like many things appearance is everything and people get nervious about that in a 1911 carried properly.

 

[SSKC]

Expert's gun

Well...ahem...I am an EXPERT. Why? Because I own a .45! So there!

Seriously, I think the .45 being an "expert only" gun is the equivalent of an urban legend. Having heard it myself numerous times, I finally screwed up my courage and rented one at the range. After the man briefed me on how the safeties worked, etc., I went to my assigned lane and somewhat nervously prepared to shoot. I put the sights on the target, slowly squeezed the trigger, and waited for the explosion which would surely knock me on my rear if it didn't break every bone in my body.

Bang. Not "BANG!," just an ordinary "bang." Pretty tame recoil, too, as I was still standing and still healthy. "That's not so bad," I thought. I looked at the target five yards away. One hole, centered on the X. "Ha! Beginner's luck!" Back on target, another easy squeeze, another normal bang. Still just one hole in the target, slightly larger. "Hmmm..." Once again, same result. Needless to say, by the time I was through my 50 rounds of ammo I was sold. I only had two questions: which one do I buy, and how did John Browning design a gun specifically for my hand over fifty years before I was born?

By the way, I also have heard the "expert's gun" thing about a certain 9mm, the H&K P7M8. Know what? That's not true either. What IS true is that neither the P7M8 nor the 1911 are "point and shoot" guns, you need to know how to work them (it's not that tough) and practice until you can operate them without conscious effort. But that's no different from any other defensive weapon, right?

Now, just between us girls, let's keep this "Expert's gun" thing going, so that every one who see's us with a .45 will know that we are "experts," okay?

SSKC

 

[Euclidean]

I suppose it's like anything else. I've known many who are extremely nervous about keeping the chamber in the cylinder upon which the hammer rests loaded. I've had some very good and experienced shooters tell me I shouldn't carry a revolver with one in the cylinder chamber the hammer rests on.

I personally can't remember a time when it ever made me nervous to have a round in the chamber the hammer was resting on because I've learned to trust my format. Tell the truth I'm not even really nervous about an uncocked revolver firing if it's dropped and lands on its hammer.

Then again I've been firing them for longer than anything else.

I've noticed most of the people who are nervous about having an uncocked revolver hammer rest on a loaded chamber favored some kind of semi-automatic.

I'm also noting the irony that I am nervous about a cocked hammer on a 1911 resting on a loaded chamber.

However, an uncocked hammer is one thing and a cocked hammer is something else, and a mechanical safety is never a substitute for using your own brains. I still can't get over it.

Could there be some quasi-Zen like state of "Being one with the gun"?

Now could I pick up a 1911 and fire 1000 practice rounds and start to get some decent groups with it? Of course. I'm making progress with a J Frame snubby and lots of people tell me that's an "Experts Only" gun.

At any rate I won't be happy until I actually have a 1911 so I can figure it all out for myself.

 

[Prospector]

"You know what opinions are like, and everybody's got one."

Well here's mine! I hate the word expert...it is sorta like "maximum" both are unquantifiable. Can somebody tell me how many times you have to shoot, take apart, put back together (blindfolded and not blindfolded), sleep with, eat with, #@$%# with..... a .45 1911 before you can labeled an "expert"? No you can't because it can't be defined. Most everybody has hit on the different elements needed for anyone to be "safe" with any firearm, including the .45......Dommy Dommy, Gobby Gobby.....I heretofore declare all of you "Experts"