1911 in 9mm question

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growr

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There seems to be a fairly large movement to use a 1911 in 9mm.....what is driving that anyway? This is showing up in concealed carry and especially in IDPA.
Seems like if I needed something in that configuration I would just dig out any of my 39 series guns.
What am I missing or not understanding here?

Randy
 
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I shoot a 9mm in USPSA Single Stack division. I have to shoot minor power factor but I enjoy the extra magazine capacity and softer recoil. 9mm in a good 1911 is awesome. Several years ago my competitors thought I was crazy not shooting a 40 S&W or 45?ACP.


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Isn't Single stack limited to 8 rnds plus one chambered?
 
No not if it’s minor PF. That’s kind of the trade off of being penalized for not shoot major power factor. STI Trojan 9mm with Armor Black cerakote

04bf9ec99cf4b5f79a5eaf454647d1ec.jpg


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I can think of a few reasons:

- 1911 triggers are generally very good and are easy to make great.

- The 1911 has a short reset and in my experience, while some pistols come close, nothing double taps better than a 1911.

- The 1911 is also comparatively thin and a Commander frame sized 1911 makes a good concealed carry handgun.

- I get 10 plus 1 rounds in my 9mm Luger 1911, compared to 8 +1 in my .45 ACP 1911. Given the improvement in 9mm Hollow point performance, I'm just as comfortable with 11 rounds of 9mm as I am with 9 rounds of .45 ACP.

- In the same amount of time it takes me score two A zone hits with .45 ACP I can score three A zone hits with 9mm Luger.

- Personally I was a die hard .45 ACP fan, until 9mm hollow point performance improved, and until I realized (or maybe just admitted t myself) that I shot 9mm Luger significantly faster at a given level of accuracy than with .45 ACP.
 
growr said:
There seems to be a fairly large movement to use a 1911 in 9mm.....what is driving that anyway? This is showing up in concealed carry and especially in IDPA.
Seems like if I needed something in that configuration I would just dig out any of my 39 series guns.
What am I missing or not understanding here?

Randy
Click to expand...

I own one because I had a huge pile of random 9mm to use up, they are cheap to shoot even if you have to buy ammo, everybody else at "shoots" are using 9mm and it makes retrieving brass a LOT less stressful.

I never planned to carry it for SD but I have a few times. I don't recommend it.
 
BB57 said:
Personally I was a die hard .45 ACP fan, until 9mm hollow point performance improved, and until I realized (or maybe just admitted t myself) that I shot 9mm Luger significantly faster at a given level of accuracy than with .45 ACP.
Click to expand...

This is the primary thing. Improvements in ammo have dramatically closed the gap between 9mm and .45. A 1911 in 9mm has good to excellent capacity, and "big gun/little cartridge" shootability.
 
Doesn't seem right to me, can't really explain it, I just like the full size, full weight, old, GI style 1911 in .45 acp. I have a 9m/m Hi Power and CZ 75 that I love and they just seem more suited to the smaller round, but nothing beats a 1911 trigger. A scaled down, extra thin, 1911 in 9m/m might be appealing to me.
 
growr said:
There seems to be a fairly large movement to use a 1911 in 9mm.....what is driving that anyway? This is showing up in concealed carry and especially in IDPA.
Seems like if I needed something in that configuration I would just dig out any of my 39 series guns.
What am I missing or not understanding here?

Randy
Click to expand...

I like the 1911 platform. After some getting used to it fits my hand much better than my Italian CZ 75 clone or my duty Glock 17.

I prefer the .45 for shooting in IPSC Classic (single stack) Division but I give up 2 rounds capacity to the 9mm shooters. That is usually not a handicap as I am willling to drop ammo if needed for a reload on the move.

My 9mm 1911 is not as accurate as my .45, but I am slowly working on improvements (the latest being an EGW angled barrel bushing to go some way to replicating the bull barrel setup on my old .45). But when I shoot steel matches it is the 9mm that sits in my holster due to reduced recoil.

And I have just fitted a peep sight rear sight blade to an old sight element to my 9mm to see how that goes (so far, a single sighting in session, the results are encouraging.

If I was carrying though it would be the 9mm not the .45.
 
Nine millimeter ballistic performance has increased drastically lately, it is cheaper than 45 ACP. less recoil for arthritic hands, and you can hold more rounds. 22 lr 1911's are also getting more popular for some of the same reasons. Texas changed its law to allow CHL qualification with 22 lr.
 
My, my. How times have changed.

Or actually, it is the ammunition, the engineering, and the attitude that have changed.

Forty-five, fifty years ago, getting 9mm to function in Ol' Slabsides was a journey of trial and error with much agony and frustration. Now there are so many good, well-made and reliable 9mm/1911's available that it makes that time seem like another century.

Wait - it was.
 
I picked up a Colt stainless Comp in 9mm also had the same gun in my hand in 45 , I took the 9 ,also picked up some Wilson and Chip McCormick mags . I have not had a problem with the gun its a tac driver , I shoot any 9 ammo I have through it . I like it and my 45 guns get a break .
 
I don't compete but have added a SW1911 pro, SigTacOps and Springfield Range officer ( all 5", all in 9mm) to my safe in recent years. I've always been a 1911 fanboy and in 9mm, they just shoot so fast and smoooooth. It's hard not to like them once you've tried one.

ps. I've even added a Sig 1911 in 40 S&W to help me burn up my reloads .
 
Have shot a SA 1911-A1 in 9mm for a number of years. Fine pistol. Faultless function. Excellent accuracy. Only reason I decided to let it go was that I wanted a Sig 226 Legion. Either pistol is excellent, faultless function, accurate, etc. Must say, 226 has advantage due to capacity, grip, trigger. JMHO. Sincerely. bruce.
 
I think it all started when the Army & USMC teams started shooting the M9 . Once they got it down & people saw the accuracy potential of 9mm , 1911's were next . Personally for Bullseye the 9mm isn't the ticket . We don't have to worry about PF , just group size especially @ 50yds . Slower twist barrels , 115gr bullets & new brass & 1100fps + loads are required to wring the best from this caliber . Recoil is the same as 45acp , but snappier . If I had to carry a 1911 I'd stick with 45acp as I shoot them very well even with full pressure loads . For 9mm a lighter gun with higher ammo capacity & quite good triggers on the Canik TP9 , Walther PPQ or HK VP9 that's what I carry . In our game it's much easier to build a 1911 in 45acp or 38 Super that'll have less recoil with the same accuracy . Added plus is they'll get target accuracy with lead bullets , not something the 9mm excels at . You can shoot lead in a 9mm , but I have yet to see anyone clean a 50yd target doing so .
 
Development needed

I think the 9mm on a Model 1911 frame is still evolving. The turn-off for me is that the existing dimensions of the .45 ACP are usually maintained when the entire gun can be scaled back a bit for the smaller 9mm round. Notice that the slide width on a Browning HP is thinner than on a Model 1911. So, a Model 1911 in 9mm can be made slimmer overall.
 
My wife loves the 1911 configuration, but does have issues with 45 ACP recoil.

A while back, I picked up a custom Caspian-based 1911 in 9mm. It's my wife's favorite gun to shoot, and that's a good enough reason for me.

I recently also purchased an RIA 1911 in 9mm, and it is a flat-out Hoot to Shoot. The RIA 9 has proven to be accurate and reliable.

I have a whole range of 1911's in different calibers - 22, 9mm, 38 Super, and obviously 45. I even have a Colt NM 'MR' series in 38 Special Mid-Range. The 9mm Caspian and RIA are hands-down the most fun and enjoyable to shoot.

Tom
 
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