First gun a 9mm S&W, looking to upgrade. Suggestions?

5111 · Post by **5111** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 5:46 pm

My advice is to NOT get a 1911. I have shot and owned several non-1911 pistols and have been very happy without a 1911. Then one day I bought one (a Colt Officers) from AEA and it has been downhill ever since. 1911's are so much fun to look at, own, shoot, etc. I actually just bought another one today!

Take my advice, don't start the addiction!

biblefreak · Post by **biblefreak** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 6:08 pm

atxgun wrote:The first time I was shooting, about a year or so ago, my ex-gf's father had a 9mm and a 45 revolver (not sure of make/model). So I am familiar with the kick of larger calibers. (I wish he would have suggested some ear protection before handing me the .45 though!)

Also I want to get used to the discharge. If it's been a while since i've been to the range I'll still initially jump a bit if there's someone firing a big gun.

This man did you an incredible disservice. Most likely the only way you are really going to be able to get over that flinch that this genius inflicted on you by having you fire a pistol with no hearing protection is LOTS of trigger time. If I may I have three suggestions for you:

1. Until you get over your flinch wear double hearing protection at the range, a set of foam earplugs and then a set of ear muffs on top. A lot of the flinch comes from the sensation of the report and the vibrations that causes on your ear drums, take away as much of this sensation as possible and you effectively train your flinch reflex away.

2. Dry fire, dry fire and then dry fire. Training your brain to pull the trigger without a BOOM will help to relieve your flinch. I have heard of people putting a quarter at then end of the slide, aim at your (INSERT SAFE GUN HANDLING HERE) target and squeeze. This will help you to shoot better as well as it will help to teach you to keep your sights on the target though the trigger pull/shot.

3. Make your next gun a .22 of good report. Ruger, Browning and many others make inexpensive, reliable .22 pistols. Not only are these fun, they are cheap to shoot and will help with the much needed trigger time. The report is significantly less and virtually no recoil so you can practice with live fire what you are doing dry firing.

I promise if you follow this advice it will help your shooting immensely with your 9mm and any future calibers you decide to shoot.

Justin

atxgun · Post by **atxgun** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 6:20 pm

Thx for the advice bible freak. I'm going shooting later tonight and plan on renting a gun or two to help myself get a better idea of what I actually want.

I have been hearing about 1911s so now I'm really curious about those too!

biblefreak · Post by **biblefreak** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 6:28 pm

You can't go wrong with a good 1911. For some real beauties that are made right here in TX check out http://www.stiguns.com for 1911's in most any configuration you could imagine. Big little, pricey, bargain, 9mm 38 Super .40 and .45; its a little slice of heaven! I have a Trojan in .45 and really enjoy it. In the next year or so I am getting my wife the Trojan 9mm.

Have fun at the range!

atxgun · Post by **atxgun** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 10:16 pm

So I went to the range and rented a .40 Glock. I didn't know much about the other rental models they had available so I figured I'd give this a try just so I could see why it's so famous. It handled well and I did enjoy it.

As for the caliber I have to disagree with PhilR that this wasn't an upgrade. Perhaps for him it isn't but at my experience level it was certainly a little more punch.

Went through 50 rounds with that and a couple hundred w/ my trusty 9. (wanted to shoot the glock more but ammo is so expensive there and they won't let you use your own w/ rentals).

After I was done I was checking out some of the other models they have for sale. I did check out a 1911 and was pleased with the look and feel of it. Then I last asked if they had any Springfield XD's. Sure enough they had the .40 5" tactical -- the exact one I was eying online. The trigger pull wasn't as bad as I expected. On that .45 revolver I shot a while back I was told that had a 2# pull and found that pretty tight so figured 5 would be crazy. I dunno maybe I'm just more accustom to shooting now.

I didn't go to the range w/ any intention to buy but this was the exact model I was thinking of and it was only $475 -- every where else I looked was like 550+!

I have started a new thread with a question I have regarding one of the accessories I got. Can anyone help me out w/ that?
http://www.texasshooting.com/TexasCHL_F ... p?p=127352
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PhilR. · Post by **PhilR.** » Thu Oct 25, 2007 11:42 pm

atxgun wrote: Perhaps for him it isn't but at my experience level it was certainly a little more punch.

"a little more punch" isn't an upgrade. An upgrade is the ability to do more that what you could previously do. Going from nine to forty isn't going to allow you to do something that you couldn't already do with what you already have, with the exception of lightening the wallet at a quicker pace.

If you just want a different caliber as an excuse to buy a new gun, then just say that. After all, we've all done the same kind of thing as well, and I've used flimsier excuses than that. But if you are serious about "upgrading" as you previously mentioned, then get something that will expand your capabilities, and not something that will just push a bit harder in your hand.....

PhilR.

atxgun · Post by **atxgun** » Fri Oct 26, 2007 12:19 am

I did largely want a new gun and something different, never meant to have any other pretense. I can do something now I couldn't before, shoot an XD :)

What capabilities are you talking about that I would gain w/ a .45 over a .40? "more stopping power"? More power, sure, but I'm pretty sure if in means of self defense I inflicted a non fatal shot w/ even a 9mm that would be sufficient to diffuse the situation and protect my saftey. I'm getting the feeling you would disagree w/ that statement so I'd love to hear why.

biblefreak · Post by **biblefreak** » Fri Oct 26, 2007 8:30 am

atxgun wrote:I did largely want a new gun and something different, never meant to have any other pretense. I can do something now I couldn't before, shoot an XD :)

What capabilities are you talking about that I would gain w/ a .45 over a .40? "more stopping power"? More power, sure, but I'm pretty sure if in means of self defense I inflicted a non fatal shot w/ even a 9mm that would be sufficient to diffuse the situation and protect my saftey. I'm getting the feeling you would disagree w/ that statement so I'd love to hear why.

Try not to get too caught up in the caliber wars. I think you have expanded your collection with a very fine pistol that will serve you well. The XD has comparable ergonomics to the 1911 platform and with the finish now being equal to Glock, I would say you chose well.
The more punch you are feeling is not necessarily more power as much as it is physics. The pressures produced by a .40 are significantly higher than a 9mm or a .45 would produce. I am a big .45 fan and like the ballistics of the round and find them to be superior to the .40 in most aspects. The .45 round is larger and heavier than the .40 but produces less felt recoil due to the lower operating pressures. I think this is why PhilR. stated that it was not an upgrade.
BTW, my next carry gun will most likely be a 9mm or a .40 and my wife will only shoot 9mm as she doesn't care for the recoil of the other two. A 9mm with proper show placement will always perform better than the .45 that you miss your target with!!

DoubleJ · Post by **DoubleJ** » Fri Oct 26, 2007 9:07 am

PhilR. wrote:
atxgun wrote: Perhaps for him it isn't but at my experience level it was certainly a little more punch.
"a little more punch" isn't an upgrade. An upgrade is the ability to do more that what you could previously do. Going from nine to forty isn't going to allow you to do something that you couldn't already do with what you already have, with the exception of lightening the wallet at a quicker pace.

I dunno, .40 ammo costs less than .380 ammo, so I would consider that a considerable upgrade!

grim-bob · Post by **grim-bob** » Fri Oct 26, 2007 4:54 pm

If you are lucky enough to have a Walmart with the cheap Blazer Brass nearby then target ammo for the .40 is actually cheaper then 9mm.

although that won't be the case for other ammo.

atxgun · Post by **atxgun** » Fri Oct 26, 2007 6:30 pm

Try not to get too caught up in the caliber wars.

What's a good internet forum w/o some flame wars

dukalmighty · Post by **dukalmighty** » Sat Oct 27, 2007 1:01 am

Keep in mind one thing about the 1911 pistols,most ppl that carry concealed carry them in a stage 1 condition which is round in chamber hammer cocked and thumb safety engaged,if you are going to carry a 1911 i suggest you practice drawing and thumbing the safety off with an unloaded weapon until it becomes second nature.I personally have a sigpro 2022 in .40,glock 17 9mm,sa 1911 5" 45acp,RIA 1911 compact 45acp,sa xd 9mm,Grizzly mark 4 44 magnum,one downside to carrying so many different firearms is the 1911's are the only ones with a manual safety that has to be disengaged to fire the weapon,in a a problem arises situation ya don't wanta be pulling the trigger with no bang and suddenly remember ya gotta disengage a safety.that's why sa xd's and glocks and others are issued by different agencies they are easier to train people to use,and remember this a hit with a 9 is better than a miss with a .40.oh yeah and i got a s&w 22A .22 LR handgun i shoot a lot,ammos cheap and you can practice basic marksmanship skills that when translated to larger calibres will put more rounds where ya want them.just my 2 cents