Colt M1911

[TattooedGun]

I think next time i go to the states I'm gonna head to a state with awesomesauce gun laws and shoot everything possible, I don't think even trying to own something like that in this country is viable anymore :(

I really wish it was though.

*mumbles* stupid government leaving handguns in the hands of criminals and taking them away from law abiding citizens... grrr *mumble*

[ovenpaa]

You can apply for and own a section 7.3 firearm on your FAC, the only thing is you cannot take it home so it would be delivered to Bisley and be kept by them. Your FEO should be more than happy with the arrangements as it means you can never take it off range.

[TattooedGun]

yeah, but Bisley is over 300 mile round trip each time I want to fire my pistol :(

expensive sport... why not just save up and go to germany for a weekend and shoot someone elses pistol a couple times per year? - wouldnt need the initial outlay £1000+ min for the pistol then either...

[Christel]

Good point, that is what we do in DK.

[Porcupine]

TatooedGun,

Get yourself a hunting license from any state - you'll pay a small fee to Fish & Game or similar department and attend a hunter's ed class with a test at the end that you usually can't fail, they just tell you any answers you got wrong. Also make sure to keep all your admission documentation (importantly your admission number). You can then legally purchase firearms in the US (you'll need to take ID, admission number, and hunting license with you when you buy a gun). You can probably arrange a buy-back with the dealer so you can drop big bucks on a nice 1911 from Ed Brown, Wilson Combat, STI etc, and then sell it back to him at the end of your trip for a little less than you bought it. If you want to keep it cheap there is always Norinco (China) or Rock River (Phillipines). You should be able to pick one of those up used for under $300.

And if you happen to go on a work or student visa allowing you to stay more than 90 days, get yourself a carry permit once you've got 3 months utility bills to prove state residency :mrgreen: (or just visit New Hampshire, Alaska or Arizona where you don't need a permit to carry)

Be sure to check state law though. Some states may have laws against non-resident aliens possessing firearms - usually there is the same exemption for those with hunting licenses that exists at the federal level but do check.

[Sim G]

Time to court contraversy!!

There is absolutely no doubt that John M Browning was a genius! And, it's correct to say that every new design he came up with was an improvement on his last. He never went backwards. Some of his designs have never been surpassed however, and some are still in regular use today. Notably the M2 .50 cal, Superimposed O/U shotgun and the 1911. But, the 1911 in use today, is really not as it was designed. Regardless of "custom" improvements, Browning himself improved upon the original 1911 platform.....

The Browning Hi-Power or GP35, if you like. Browning took the shortfalls of his 1911A1, which in itself were improvements of the 1905, 1908, 1910, then the 1911. Zealots of the "1911" or "Govt" plaform don't like to hear this, but it is true! Browning didn't make his next design worse than the last, he made it better.....!!!! :goodjob: :55:

[Robin128]

God bless the Government...read it either way.

:)

[Watcher]

I had a Hi-Power as well and I suppose it is hard to say which I preferred. As I have small hands both seemed to 'fit' very well. Perhaps the Browning was better because, no matter what people say, .45 ACP is a hard round to get comfortable with. Not the worse of course as I found when I bought a Browning 1910 in 9 mm Short!

[Porcupine]

Actually Browning had to design a new gun because he had been commissioned to design a sidearm for the French military but had already sold the 1911 design to Colt. He died before the Highpower design was completed.

The external extractor does seem to be an obvious improvement on the Highpower, but this feature was not added to the Highpowers until the 1960s - decades after both JMB's death and the release of the Highpower. You can also get 1911s with external extractors nowadays. Otherwise, I think it's pretty ambiguous which is the 'better' design. The Highpower holds 5 or 6 more rounds but in a smaller caliber, and the double stack magazine makes the gun substantially thicker and therefore more awkward to carry. The Highpower is a little under 4 oz lighter than a steel, full-sized 1911, but while the 1911 is now widely available with alloy frames the Highpower is not - and when you consider the weight of the additional ammunition the difference is reversed even in steel framed guns. While the grip safety is done away with, the Highpower adds a magazine safety - this can help prevent negligent discharges but it can also prevent the gun from firing when needed e.g. if the magazine release is inadvertently pushed, and for this reason is widely unpopular. Then again, it is possible to defeat this feature which a lot of users do. Equally, the grip safety on a 1911 can be defeated, and while some say it is redundant it doesn't seem to be unpopular at all. The magazine safety also has the effect of making the trigger pull on the Highpower quite a bit heavier than that of the 1911.

If you want a double stack 9mm, there's a huge range of options out there. But if you want a single stack .45 ACP there's not much to choose from except a 1911: The Sig P245, Glock 36, Smith & Wesson 645 (745 etc), Star M-45, AMT Backup, and the Walther/Smith SW99 are the only ones that come to mind (with only the first three ever being very popular, and the AMT and Glock are subcompact only).

[Sim G]

Didn't say JMB didn't have to design a new weapon, just that he improved on what he had already created....

Improved on the Govt by getting rid of the grip safety, which in it's original form causes it to point the pistol down and have an unacceptably high bore line. Got rid of the separate barrel bushing and recoil spring plunger. Got rid of the safety and slide stop plunger. Got rid of the relatively weak swinging link. And gave the Hi-Power better sights than the 1911. (Even though both pistols have pretty poor sights in the original form)

The Hi-Power indeed has a double stack mag, but it's still an awful lot more comfortable than a stock 1911. What it makes up for in width with the double stack, it loses in length as its a medium frame size compared to the large fame size of the Govt model. And steel is what the frame should be! Never liked alloy since the frame on my Beretta failed after around 6000 rounds and the recoil impulse on an alloy frame is a lot more snappy, caliber for caliber.

The magazine safety is a pain in the 'arris. Main reason is it acts as a brake on the mag and does not let it fall freely. Yep, it can be disabled easily enough, but it is no real bar to a decent trigger pull. My personal Hi-Power, granted worked on, had the mag release removed and the trigger broke at 4 pounds, ultra cleanly. My military issued Hi-Power had the mag safety and the trigger brke at around 7 pounds, but clean! .40 cal Browning mags have a small spring on the outside of them which litterally ejects the mags from the wells!

Yep, plenty firms make the 1911. I had a quick count up and came to 12. This includes such competitors as SIG, Taurus and even S&W make a 1911! But all of these still have further improvements on the 1911. Lowered and flared ejection ports, solid barrel bushings, solid recoil spring guides and open plungers. Pinned plunger tubes, better safety catches, high ride beavertail grip safety to lower bore line, memory bump grip safety to ensure operation, better sights, skelotonised hammers, four leaf sear springs, longer mag release, beefed up link pins and links, beefed up stide stops, bevelled mag wells......... and that is stuff that is expected on a 1911 these days! There's even more custom options!

Duidonne Saieve did finish Brownings design. But when prototypes are compared, the mechanical operation remains the same. Saieve did stream line the pistol and improve the grip frame. But, since it's inception, what has it had added? Better sights, better safety catches, a couple of hammer options, external extractor as you mentioned and a beefing up for hot SMG ammo and .40 cal.......... :goodjob:

Browning designed the Hi-Power to be a better weapon and it is. Yanks don't like to hear that as to not have a 1911 or not support it is un-patriotic! Go on, admit it, then we can get onto polymer vs metal and revolver vs semi auto! :lol: :lol: