Any 45ACP 1911 owners?

[boingk]

Hey gents,

I'm looking at getting into metallic silouette at the local club and getting my high-cal signed off (NSW).

I've always liked the look and history of the 1911 series and 45ACP in general.

Are there any recommendations? I've seen the Springfield Armoury 1911 and like the look of their base model in the parkerised finish.

Any info much appreciated, cheers.

[Bugman]

Used to shoot 45ACP in met sil but close in ok but at 75 and 100 yards not to accurate. Loads can be finicky. I went over to a 44 mag revolver for this match. Gave me better results. A few guys shoot 45ACP in our club and with mixed results. Depends on the firearm, the ammo and the user. Hope you get what you want.

[Chinballs]

I bought a cheap, barebones, Norinco M1911 and it was a great gun right out of the box. The only mod you really need is putting better sights on it. The factory originals are tiny,

As far as metaalic silhouette with a 1911 goes, yeah, not great lol. If you are just shooting the match to keep your .45ACP its ok but if you want to actually compete there are much better options.

[johnboy357]

You did not mention which club you intend to shoot at but I assume it only has a 100m range as no sane person would contemplate a 45ACP for the 200m matches. The 45ACP is marginal even for the 100m matches because of it's rainbow trajectory past 50m or so. A good 357 revolver [S&W 686] would be a much better option or a S & W 629 classic with a 6 1/2 inch barrel if you want a hi cal gun. The Ruger Redhawk and the super Blackhawk [both with 7 1/2 inch barrels] are also good 44's for 100m Metallic Silhouette.The slightly shorter barrels balance better when used in the standing position, as used for the 100m matches. Super Redhawks are just too too fugly for anything. Maybe a Thompson Center "Contender" then you can choose any number of calibers.
And forget anything that has a ported barrel or muzzle break as the rules for field pistol do not allow such devices.

If you are intending to shoot the 200m matches then a 10 inch barrel gun might be better as it would allow you to shoot from the creedmoor position rather than standing.
If you must have a 1911 then the only one I have seen used in 100m Met Silhouette with any success was a Kimber Target 11 but the owner also knew how to shoot it very well. Practice may not make you perfect [as the saying goes] but it it goes a long way towards it so be prepared to shoot a lot.
Whatever gun you choose adjustable sights are a MUST HAVE.

[No1Mk3]

G'day boingk,
For most people, as has been mentioned, the 1911 is not the most competitive choice however it is a great deal of fun (I use a few of them now and then, and compete well with the 45ACP cartridge in a revolver). If you want a 1911 for it's history and feel then a stock military type is a good choice and the Norinco is the strongest frame at a very good price (4 to 600). The later "custom" types such as the Springfield and Kimber are better choices but dearer and the latest Series Government falls between in accuracy and price but can later be tuned to equal the Kimbers etc. Despite comments made you can compete at top level in Field Pistol Metallic with a 1911 as our current club champion uses a mildly modified Government 1911, but he shoots nothing else but that pistol and has many years experience shooting and loading for it. If you want a 45ACP auto out of the box accurate and have a spare few dollars, the US Marine CQB is a good choice, Cheers

[Blr243]

Many yrs ago When I bought my first norinco in nine mm it came brand new with two 15 round mags and was only 250 Bucks....bargain city it went flat strap never missed a beat ...I did own a para ordinance 45 acp but it was garbage. I would never contemplate an auto for silo Ute I used a 44 Taurus Revolver with a long barrell

[vmaxaust]

I've always liked the look and history of the 1911 series and 45ACP in general.

Unless you are a serious metallic shooter buy yourself a 1911 in 45ACP. The distance you shoot at is relevant. Anything much over 50 meters and there are probably slightly more accurate guns and calibers. The 1911 is deadly accurate up to at least 50 meters even with light to medium loads and is loads of fun to shoot.

I have two Colt 1911's in 45ACP (Gold Cup National Match and Gold Cup Trophy) and they are accurate right out of the box with my 200gr round nose bullets loaded with 4.0gr APS450 giving around 850 fps. I get excellent results at 25 meters with this load and up it to 4.2gr for 50 meters (900 fps).

I'm sure there would be other competitions you would very much enjoy with a 1911.

[boingk]

Thanks for the advice everyone.

No, I am not looking to go out and set a record. I'm just looking to have a good social experience with mates who also shoot.

The local club has everything from 25 to 200, I believe they mostly use the shorter ranges for their comps and leave the longer range to the members with rifles.

Thanks again - boingk

[yoshie]

You'll be disappointed with the accuracy of a 1911 past 50m. You might be surprised at the accuracy of a revolver a past 100m.

[SlimPigguns]

A 1911 is not ideal, but it's a lot of fun. Pete

[johnboy357]

"vmaxaust " I'm sure there would be other competitions you would very much enjoy with a 1911."

boinhk is in NSW - As far as I know the ONLY match they can shoot with a 1911 45 ACP is Metallic Silhouette. They are not as lucky as those in Victoria.

[vmaxaust]

boinhk is in NSW - As far as I know the ONLY match they can shoot with a 1911 45 ACP is Metallic Silhouette. They are not as lucky as those in Victoria.[/quote]

Moot point, we have had ranges closed since July thanks to the Dandemic.

[Bello]

I've always liked the look and history of the 1911 series and 45ACP in general.

Unless you are a serious metallic shooter buy yourself a 1911 in 45ACP. The distance you shoot at is relevant. Anything much over 50 meters and there are probably slightly more accurate guns and calibers. The 1911 is deadly accurate up to at least 50 meters even with light to medium loads and is loads of fun to shoot.

I have two Colt 1911's in 45ACP (Gold Cup National Match and Gold Cup Trophy) and they are accurate right out of the box with my 200gr round nose bullets loaded with 4.0gr APS450 giving around 850 fps. I get excellent results at 25 meters with this load and up it to 4.2gr for 50 meters (900 fps).

I'm sure there would be other competitions you would very much enjoy with a 1911.

Hello VMAXAUST
I am about to load for my 45ACP..I have some Hornady 230gr XTP...very expensive.
what projectiles do you use...Those 200g round nose are they from black widow projectile?

[vmaxaust]

Hello VMAXAUST
I am about to load for my 45ACP..I have some Hornady 230gr XTP...very expensive.
what projectiles do you use...Those 200g round nose are they from black widow projectile?[/quote]


I cast my own bullets. I have several 200gr designs for the 45ACP. A Magma (production mould like most commercial casters) design. Magma is the company that makes the production machines and they also supply moulds. This one is the photo with 2 bullets that have a lube groove. They work very well sized at .452" in most 45ACP barrels.
The other one is custom made mould also 200gr but without any lube grooves. The 3rd is a 200gr semi wad cutter, also a Magma design mould. All of these work equally well for target shooting and I Hi Tek coat them just like most of the local commercial casters.
There are a few other designs I'm getting which are similar to the above but I've found the commercial moulds available from a fixed boring cutter as the Magma ones means I cannot extend possibilities. There is a great deal to learn about bullet design and dimensions particularly when it comes to cast bullets versus jacketed or copper coated bullets.
The cast bullets do not need to be replicas of jacketed bullets as most cast bullet makers supply. Through testing on my Ransom Rest I've found that it's quite easy to match or exceed accuracy of expensive jacketed bullets with cast bullets that are not direct copies of jacketed bullet designs. The Magma bullet in the photo is a good example. But I have others being done now of my own design in a round nose flat point type. They key really is as round and concentric a mould as possible, accurate sizing and properly applied coating. The coating doesn't need to look cosmetically perfect to be correct, as many people believe.
I sell my bullets to local shooters at the two ranges I'm a member of here in Melbourne. It's not a big business venture for me as I simply don't have the time to make huge volumes of bullets. I mainly cast 9mm, 45ACP and 38 Special/357 for handguns.
If you want to try a few of my 45 bullets give me your details and I'll send you some to load and try. I use AS50N or APS450 powder for the 45's and I can give you the ideal overall length to set them up at along with powder volume to start off with. I can assure you, you will not be more accurate with your expensive XTP's.

[wanneroo]

45 ACP is fun to shoot, IMO and I really enjoy shooting it more in matches than 9mm. It's about the easiest cartridge to load for with big fat cases and plenty of data and reloading options for it.

Seems everyone and their brother is making 1911 clones these days so there is tons of choice on the market. One 1911 clone I shot in recent years that sucked was the Remington 1911. That grouped like a shotgun. Never seen a pistol so off in accuracy.

[boingk]

Cheers all, I ended up going with a used Norinco 1911, cased with two mags. Its sitting at my local while my licence is getting processed. Tick tock

[quote=Bello]I am about to load for my 45ACP..I have some Hornady 230gr XTP...very expensive.
what projectiles do you use...Those 200g round nose are they from black widow projectile?[/quote]

Yeah the XTP's are nice looking but very pricey. They do work well on game but are wasted on targets. I have had success in many calibres with the Black Widow units and have a few to try in my 1911 once I get the paperwork sorted out.

I'd use some of Mr VMAX's projectiles, that's a good offer to try some.

- boingk

[Ziege]

If you are intending to shoot the 200m matches then a 10 inch barrel gun might be better as it would allow you to shoot from the creedmoor position rather than standing.

[johnboy357]

Creedmoor position with a revolver - picture top right in the following article

https://ssaa.org.au/stories/handguns-ri ... uette.html

Note the blast shield / leg guard


Another article with photos https://petra-rouhova.webnode.cz/en/sil ... -shooting/