Like the title says I a looking for a good 45 ACP forum or web site that covers all makes of 1911s, reloading, where to order parts (I need some better grips), interchangeability between brands, modifications, reviews and other info.
I recently added, as a present to myself for not smoking for 30 days, a RIA 1911 A1 (for regular hardball and fun) but may be looking at a Kimber or another Gold Cup in the future. I am also thinking or replacing Lynn's 38 with a compact 45 ACP so I would really be interested in reviews and impressions from female shooters.
A general search revealed a couple of forums but it is hard for me to tell which one is considered great vice good. Plus I did not want to register on 5 different sites just to use the search function and not find anything useful. I am hoping there are some 1911 nuts around the badweb that can steer me in the right direction.
My mother-n-law is sticking with her .38. She doesn't like those dirty casings being thrown around. I have 3 in .45 ACP, but, for home defense I use a wheel gun. You could pick up a wheel gun in .45 ACP that uses moon clips. My wheel gun is chambered for .45 LC and .454 Casull
Compact? Colt Officer's lightweight or real compact? AMT .45 ACP.
The best advise....join a gun club and shoot in informal club competitions. You get face to face information.Forum posters will get called out on BS,but face to face,they are not likely to want to suffer the embarrassment.Shooters are braggers on the Internet,but you won't see them at a club because they know they can't hold up against the the guys "that know". I was a member of 5 different gun clubs at one time. Match director at one and president of two. Best info I have ever received. I visit a few forums and get sick and leave.
Look up Big Hairy Ralph on bad web he works for the Cylinder and Slide Shop. Havent seen him post in a while. But shop he worked at was one of the best. They teach a pistol smithing course.
Frank, Try the 1911forum.com discussions about almost every type of 1911 you could dream about. pretty informative site,covering full range of topics with lots of opinions.
Oh yeah,loading manuals have lots of good gun stuff in them besides just load data.Jackpot shoots are fun. Usually a buck to enter and winner takes some or all of it. The local club got too big/greedy and use the word indemnification in a form you had to sign.........if somebody got hurt ALL members were liable. $125.00 a year...not worth it to be held liable too.
Frank, I agree with Hotrats on one of his posted sites, The Firing Line.com., one of the best forums on the net that I have come to trust. It still has many different posters but you can soon weed out who is knowledgable and not. Just go to their pistols or handguns threads for some really good info and post away.
I do love the 1911's but for my carry piece I absolutely love my Glock 30, a compact in .45 ACP. I really disliked "plastic" pistols in the past but I have come to love this for concealed carry. Light, compact and with 13 rounds (extended mag.) of real punch. For the summer/skinny dress I carry an AMT .45 Backup. I do like big bores. Bob
For those of you that have an AMT in .45, I have a question.
Back in the mid 80's I had an AMT in .380. It was the worse gun on the face of the planet. Pull the trigger and maybe it would go off, maybe not. Or for even more fun sometimes it would wait 2 or 3 seconds before the round would go off. It was so bad that the gun shop I bought it from exchanged it for a different gun of the same model. That one was just as bad. I sold it and have never considered an AMT product again.
So here's my question: Have they gotten any better? I seldom carry anymore but when I do I carry an alloy Colt Officers ACP in .45. I'm a small guy and don't conceal that weapon very well. The AMT is a much smaller frame and would conceal much better. But if it’s of the same quality as the .380 I want no part of it.
I’m a big believer in .45 so what other very small packages shoot the .45 round. Small and easy to carry is more important that high capacity. An easy to carry gun will get carried while a big hi cap gun will get left at home more often. What .45 do you guys carry and recommend?
Zane, aside from a very heavy trigger pull my 1990's era AMT.45 backup never failed to go bang or to feed or eject. Many different kinds of rounds through it, from ball, handloads, to all kinds of HP ammo and never a misfire, never. It still is my deep cover count on 100% pistol.
With that said I remember all the bad press AMT was getting back then but got one anyways and now I'm glad I did. I will keep it a long, long time. An AMT .45 Government model was a good piece also. Not the case with my AMT .22 Automag. I never could get it to fire more then 5 or 6 rounds without a misfeed. fun but way too much trouble. AMT has had troubled quality control problems.
I used to shoot IDPA regularly. It was a LOT of fun and and if you talk to he fast/good guys in the CDP Class you should be able to gather some valuable info.
I had an AMT .380 in the 80s. I fed a lot of hydrashock ammo through it. Never had the first problem with mine. I would feed hundreds of rounds through a pistol prior to carrying it. With the price of ammo for my hand cannon, I just ordered one of these;
With 7 1/2" barrel, it's not a compact. The solid (no fluting) should let you push the LC. The Casull hurts my knuckle when shooting one handed.
The standard 1911 can be concealed with a little work. Take a look at how thin it gets without the grips. Think outside the box. You don't need a holster if you use a clip on the side. Remember a knife is faster than a well hid rig. The real key to success is not being first to shoot, it is being first to hit the mark. If you are on target during the presentation, you get to choose how soon you fire. Practice drawing so that the weapon is on target from holster to full extension of you arms. This film will demonstrate: