jordan@greipa.UUCP (Jordan K. Hubbard) (08/12/85)
Article 8:2
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Carl writes:
* From: ihnp4!tektronix!carlc
* Date: Monday, 8 Jul 85 11:10:57 PDT
* Subject: request for .45 discussion
*
* I'd like to see a discussion of .45 semi-automatic pistols. I recall
* hearing that there are several varieties as well as several kinds
* of ammunition. I'd always thought that the main choice one had in
* a .45 was blue steel vs. nickel-plated; apparently I was wrong.
*
* -- Carl
You really opened the barn door with this one! Whether your
intent was merely to instigate discussion or an actual request for
information, here goes.
After digging up slightly out-of-date information (1980), I
managed to compile the following list, which should still be fairly
accurate. Notice that no prices are quoted, as these can vary
regionally (also, I don't have a current price list).
Also, our moderator asks about AMT:
* Date: Thu Jul 11 18:13:49 PDT 1985
* From: Jordan Hubbard <The Moderator>
* Subject: AM(P? T?) Hardballer .45 . . . advice?
*
* I've recently acquired a yen for a .45 that shoots with a little more
* accuracy than my Combat Commander and was looking fondly at the Colt
* Gold Cup as my next purchase. However, a friend a gun store suggested
* a stainless steel auto called 'the hardballer' (suggestive, isn't it?)
* or the hardballer longslide for even tighter groups. This weapon is made by
* a company he refered to as 'AMP' though I'm pretty sure he meant 'AMT'.
* The price is certainly right, and AMT (if they are indeed the manufacturer)
* has put out some fairly decent backup autos if they're to be of any gauge.
A(rcadia) M(achine &) T(ool):
----------------------------
These are the folks who manufactured the revered 'Auto Mag,'
which has a strong cult following. One of the main problems with
this piece, I'm told, is that with the exception of a small run of
ammunition by a Mexican firm, the only way to obtain brass is to
cut & form .308 rifle cases. The stats on this gun run as follows.
Cartridge: 44 Auto Mag
Magazine capacity: 7 rounds
Length: 11 1/2 inches
Barrel Length: 6 1/2 inches
Weight: 56 1/2 inches
AMT makes, as far as I know, two (stainless steel) .45
autos.
Hardballer
Hardballer (Long Slide)
---------- ------------
Cartridge: 45 ACP 45 ACP
Magazine capacity: 7 rounds 7 rounds
Length: 8 1/2 inches 10 1/2 inches
Barrel Length: 5 inches 7 inches
Weight: 39 oz. 43 1/2 oz.
Following are as many other manufacturers of .45's as I can find.
Colt: Colt Industries
---- Hartford, Connecticut
Government Model Combat Commander
---------------- ----------------
Cartridge: 45 ACP 45 ACP
Magazine capacity: 7 rounds 7 rounds
Length: 8 3/8 inches 8 inches
Barrel Length: 5 inches 4 1/4 inches
Weight: 40 oz. 36 oz.
H&K P9S: Heckler & Koch GMBH
------- Oberndorf/Neckar, West Germany
Cartridge: 45 ACP
Magazine capacity: 7 rounds
Length: 7 9/16 inches
Barrel Length: 4 1/16 inches
Weight: 32 1/2 inches
Sig-Sauer P220: J. P. Sauer & Son
-------------- Eckenforde, West Germany
Cartridge: 45 ACP
Magazine capacity: 7 rounds
Length: 7 13/16 inches
Barrel Length: 4 3/8 inches
Weight: 29 oz.
S&W 645: Smith & Wesson
------- 2100 Roosevelt Avenue
Springfield, Massachusetts
01101
Cartridge: 45 ACP
Magazine capacity: 8 rounds
Length: 9 5/8 inches
Barrel Length: 5 inches
Weight: 37.6 oz.
Star PD: Bonifacio Echeverria, S.A.
------- Eibar, Spain
Cartridge: 45 ACP
Magazine capacity: 6 rounds
Length: 7 inches
Barrel Length: 5 inches
Weight: 25 oz.
In addition, Vega makes a Colt .45 semi-auto look-alike that
I think is made out of stainless steel, and Semmerling makes the LM-4,
a manually operated magazine-fed repeater weighing only 24 oz. With a
3 1/2 inch barrel, I imagine recoil is quite brisk(!). Safari Arms
makes a production-priced pistol with such stock features as a beaver-
tail safety, grooved frontstrap, Commander hammer, etc. Detonics makes
a sub-size .45 semi-auto with a magazine capacity of 6 rounds. Mossberg
also makes a sub-size .45 semi-auto that looks like nothing but business.
Finally, Crown City Arms makes several different models of a .45 semi-
auto (maybe as many as 9), and Llama has at least one model on the
market.
I hope this brief introduction helps: if you're thinking
of purchasing, the best way to make up your mind is to shoot as
many different types of .45's as possible. Visit a range with a
friend who owns a .45, or visit a range which has 'renters' you
can shoot. Also, visit gun shops to find which feel 'comfortable'
in your hand. Finally, pick up a gun magazine or two, both to
read and to find out which companies mail free brochures/catalogs.
You may discover that your taste is more toward a 9 mm.
I would also like to hear more on this subject, as my experience
with semi-autos is limited.
cordially,
Jim (soon-to-be-unleashed) Tyler
University of Oklahoma (changing feed, hence no mailpath)
*** generic disclaimer absolving everyone of responsibility ***
'A day without sunshine is, well, probably just a cloudy day.'
--
Jordan K. Hubbard
{pesnta, decwrl, dual, pyramid}!greipa!jordan
"Here we have two bull limpits, locked in a life-or-death
"struggle."