Does the ammo I feed my 1911 matter for practice?

[Prairie Seal]

I own a STI Trojan 5" 45ACP, and want to practice till I get good at the 1911. I'm on a budget and can't afford a ton of ammo, but I want to buy the right stuff if it is going to make a difference. I am going to be sticking to bought ammo for now, as I don't have any reloading equipment or even know how to do that anyway.

Any input could really help my out, thanks guys.

 

[lil_juiced_coupe]

as long as it goes bang, its good to go in my books. Paper doesnt care if you hit it with a 2 cent round or a 2 dollar round

 

[ambishooter]

OK if you are shooting paper targets. But if you are planning to go IPSC/IDPA, consistency matters. Power Factor must be considered. You cannot simply switch bullet and powder weight for the recoil will be different. Try several bullet weight and stick to whatever satisfies your requirement. A lighter bullet might not be enough to bring down steel plates.

 

[tjhaile]

As far as factory .45 ammo goes, it's mostly pretty much the same. Few people can shoot well enough to know the difference. Get whatever you can find in quantity for the best price and save the brass for either reloading or to sell to someone who does. If you can find a supply of re-manufactured ammo, so much the better to save costs.

 

[joebanana]

Do a lot of dry fire practice.

 

[rdgietz]

Another hint.. Keep ALL your brass!!!!
Then when you can afford it you can use it to reload...
or sell it for about $100 per 1000...
or you can just send it to me so i can reload it for my STI Trojan...

RDG

 

[nada]

buy a 9 , when you start to reload , bring the 45 backout

 

[StoneHorse]

I own a STI Trojan 5" 45ACP, and want to practice till I get good at the 1911. I'm on a budget and can't afford a ton of ammo.

Any input could really help my out, thanks guys.

Two words: Dry firing.
Sight picture, breathing, trigger take-up, trigger release, hammer falls, trigger reset. Dry firing will make you a better shot and its free. I don't do it enough at home and I should.

 

[BCRider]

Given the cost of buying .45acp I'd suggest you now buy a GSG .22 and learn the basics on that. Along the way shoot your Trojan a little here and there. As you find you're getting good with the .45 you can shift away from the .22. Or if you find that you are fine with enjoying shooting lots of .22 then rejoice as it will certainly save you a bundle over time.

For what it will cost for the roughly 2000 rounds of .45acp to "get good" with your Trojan you can buy the GSG AND 2000 rounds of .22 and still come out with a break even cost.

 

[Tyler582]

^

Accept that it's considerably harder to shoot a .45 than a .22? I dunno, my groups are day and night w/the 1911 vs my Ruger 22/45. Don't get me wrong I use my .22 a lot for practice too...

Anyways, I bought some of the Norinco stuff from Canadaammo.com: 1000 for $377 shipped to my door. Seems to work great for the first 200rnds.

 

[Ganderite]

In the Toronto area there are two sources of commercially reloaded ammo that sells for around $12 a box. Check out that possibility. I shoot 200gr lead SWC in my 45s. but 230 LRN also works well.

 

[enefgee]

If you don't reload in 45, factory reloads are the best way to go.

 

[Prairie Seal]

thanks for all the input guys, I got a better idea now. Im not new to pistols, just want to become proficient with this pistol and not damage it, as I thought cheap ammo might do. I'll just get more range time in.