1911 .45 for a first pistol

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Matt K.

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I am new to pistols. I'm shooting a .22 cal at the local club and am looking to buy my own pistol to shoot besides the clubs .22 cals. I liked the 9mm Glock another member let me shoot. How would a .45 1911 compare?

Should I stick with the .22 until I am shooting single handed with either hand? Any tips would be insightful.
 
There's an opinion for each member here I'm sure. I think .22 is a great way to learn to shoot well. Leave the big bores for later. I say don't buy anything until you've tried them out. If your clubs anything like most, guys'll gladly let you try their pistols. Bring some spare ammo and share that. Most modern pistols are well built and it really comes down to comfort and personal preference. Educate yourself. Talk with the guys, and do yourself a favor and don't listen to anyone who poopoo's one gun over another without reason.
 
I think it may be a better idea to go with a 9mm for your first pistol. 9mm is a lot cheaper to shoot so you can shoot about twice as much for the same price you would spend on .45 ammo. That way you can work on the fundamentals, trigger control, sight picture, follow through and all that other fun stuff.
 
Nothing wrong with .45 as a first gun. infact 1911 is a quite a good choice, many might not agree but if you do a search in youtube, you will find to complete disasamble a 1911 is a piece of cake. I have owned several other 9mm gun like CZ and Beretta M9, none of them I dare to do a detail disasamble even my Glock I haven't try yet. But I just look at youtube and did once to my 9mm Norinco Np-29. To reload .45 is not that expensive as people said. range brass is free. Bullet wise is about 30% more than 9mm.

Trigun
 
I think you should get a 9mm 1911 instead.
It's cheaper to shoot and kicks less.
Mind you my only 1911 is a commander .45. (and I love her but she does kick)
 
The 1911 is a great design, one I shoot very well. I don't shoot all pistols well though. For example, the Ruger MK I/II/III series I do not shoot well at all.

That being said, I assume someone at your club shoots a 1911. Tell them you are thinking about buying a 1911 and would like to fire one before you spend the money.

Try it out and see if you shoot it well. If you do, go for it. If not get a Glock.
 
Pick the gun that you like and buy it. Nobody can tell what the right model or caliber is but you. My first was a .45 acp, second a .22, third 45 Colt, ..........
 
shooting the .45 is very manageable especially in a single stack 1911, a young girl could shoot it comfortably. Go with the .45, if you don't you will want one 6 months down the road, its the iconic handgun and this way you can do a you tube/Google search and learn exactly word for word what Jeff Cooper taught the world about using that exact pistol. Go with the .45 full size 1911 and learn it right the first time from Col. Cooper and company, the mans word is practically gospel for any pistol shooters/critical thinkers who know whats what
 
Matt K. said:
I am new to pistols. I'm shooting a .22 cal at the local club and am looking to buy my own pistol to shoot besides the clubs .22 cals. I liked the 9mm Glock another member let me shoot. How would a .45 1911 compare?

Should I stick with the .22 until I am shooting single handed with either hand? Any tips would be insightful.
Click to expand...

Hi Matt,

I would agree, there's nothing wrong with a well-made 1911 in .45 ACP calibre to start out with. That's exactly what I did when I got into pistol shooting several years ago. The only popular calibre of pistol I don't have is 10mm.

My first pistol was a Para 1911 Limited Edition .45 ACP and it's one of my favourites. The .45 ACP round is expensive to shoot, unless you're reloading, but it's more enjoyable to shoot because it has lower muzzle or recoil energy than a .40 S&W or 9mm round.

Pistol calibres and makes are a matter of choice, just like life, right?

C:)
 
I would agree with most of the posters here! Buy the gun you want and then learn to shoot it and enjoy it... I got talked into purchasing a 22 first and it did nothing to help me with the type of shooting i wanted to do, which was and still is action shooting.

Dont get me wrong .. i loved both of the 22s i purchased but ended up selling them to other people because they both ended up being safe queens. Why keep a gun if you don't shoot it..

My advice.. get the gun you want.. and enjoy it..

RDG
 
If money is an issue Marstar has the Nrinco M93 (colt woodsman copy) at a very reasonable price $149. Get the extra mag and it will still be cheaper than I paid for mine a couple of years ago. Cheep ammo is the bonus here , and they shoot quite well. The Ruger Mark III or 22/45 are much nicer but more money for initial investment.
If you really want a 1911/45, ARMco has the New Norinco Commanders at $489. The're a little more cash than the Marstar units but well worth it. Gunnar tunes them up real nice. I still can't believe what he can do with a stock Norico trigger. Mine is beautiful.
Having said that I also own several Glocks. Can be found new under $700. Cash supply should dictate calibre. I like .40 over 9mm but thats just me.
9mm is cosiderably cheaper to buy. There are lots of tune up parts readily available for Glock as well.
My opinion only

Hope this helps.:cheers:
 
1911 all the way..great gun..i had a norinco and it grouped extremely well..i loved that gun..i will be purchasing another this time i want the Springfield i doubt you will regret it. and if you do it is a quick sell anyway..
 
1911 are nice, but revolver's are more fun. Try a S&W 357mag or a Colt single action replica 1873. Those old Grand Pa guns are quit a blast to shoot. You will be glad you tried one before buying a 1911 because if it don't put the 1911 second on your list it will be your next buy.
In the end you will own them all
Enjoy
 
Ha, I started with the 9mm and have no regrets at all. In fact, I bought 2, a Beretta and a Glock. Now, however, I am looking for a .45 pistol and am having a hard time deciding if I should trade one of my 9mm pistols towards a .45 or not. I think, like a few of the other folks have said, you might end up owning all calibers so enjoy whatever one you decide on and grow from there!! :D
 
As long as you have the club's .22's as a good training gun to come back to then sure, why not a .45. But before you jump in check the relative costs of ammo for 9mm, .40 S&W and .45ACP. Then factor that into how much you shoot and if the half again cost for .45ACP will limit how much you shoot.

Also shooting at paper gets old pretty fast for many of us. If you see yourself getting into some of the competition scene at some point in the next year then factor that into your choice as well. Read the rule books so you know where whatever gun you are considering fits in. For example, as much as I love my own single stack 1911 in .45acp having only 8 rounds at a time would definetly put me at a disadvantage in most competition scenes. Meanwhile up at the local club where we shoot Speed Steel 8 rounds is not a disadvantage as long as I don't get more than 3 misses per pass at the 5 targets.

If you are looking at getting into reloading pretty quickly then the cost of the ammo won't be so much of a put off. But then you need to stop and consider the cost of setting up for reloading. Over time it pays for itself but the initial layout for a brass cleaning setup and a progressive reloading system isn't cheap. And if you're shooting handgun you WANT a progresive setup.

Of course there's always the best of both worlds. STI Spartans are now available in 9mm. A great gun that shoots cheaper ammo.
 
Up until now I only had 9mm but 2 months ago I got my first .45 1911, a pimped out Norinco with a smooth trigger. I started reloading at the same time and with a load which is not so hot, the .45 is a breeze to shoot and not expensive at all if you reload lead bullets.
 
My first handgun was a Glock 21SF, I loved it except for the fact that the ammo cost was quite steep compared to 9mm. If you've got the money to spend on ammo by all means go for the .45
 
Thanks everyone for all your advise and time to help me. This community and forum is really great.

I have some things to look into (costs of ammo and competition rules etc.) and options to consider but at least I am that much more educated.

Thanks again,
Matt
 
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