"Itis" issues...

Back in the day does anyone remember the ole' "Cockballer" for 1911's?. Extended muzzlebrake, when installed you could just jam the muzzle against any surface ( Including the side of your leg!) to chamber a round, one handed. They sell a variant today BUT, its about 3/8" to short to chamber a round. Probably so nobody could use the side of their leg. Yeah I'm 76 and had all the carpal jazz. Just cock your piece first.

I just bring one of my assistants.



They handle all the hard stuf......... I mean they take care of all the difficult chores.

kje54 said:

I just bring one of my assistants.

View attachment 1140492

They handle all the hard stuf......... I mean they take care of all the difficult chores.

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Poor girl needs to give her eyelashes a haircut.

I have both the 9mm and 380acp S&W EZ pistols. Some people don't like the grip safety design on them. It hasn't been a problem for me. They may not be the most accurate guns but they will get the job done for self defense. With the rebate program running now makes it a good time to pick one up if you decide it's the gun for you. Of the two I like the 380acp better. It is slightly smaller and fits better in my hand.

I bought my wife a S&W EZ .380ACP and found it was one of the few pistols she could rack the slide without problems. The other was the GLOCK 42. The EX was a better choice as a house and car gun. I liked it enough that I got another one fo me, but gave it to her as well as a BERETTA 92X Compact. She can just manage to rack the BERETTA and can shoot accurately with the FEDERAL 124 grain HST jhp load. This is my favorite 9m.m. defense load, so I felt it was a good round for her, but still, racking the slide can be a problem. I taught the one-handed racking method we use at work. but overall, the EX is a much easier gun for her to use.

OH, to the person with the BERETTA 86, take it out and shoot it. My broke twice and I gave up on it. I was able to shoot it a total of 41 rounds and with 2 trips to the gunsmith, I just wrote it off.

Previously, my wife had been using a BERETTA Tomcat model 3032 since it can be loaded with the tip-up barrel, but people kept telling her it would just get people mad. So I got her the GLOCK 42 and the EZ.
As for the BERETTA Tomcat, I still carry it off duty. I don't care if the bad guys get mad!.

I sold off my .45ACP pistols. I found the COLT Lightweight Commander, STOEGER 8045, SIG 220 and PARA-ORDANCE Compact to be just too punishing when at the range. I can still shoot a full size, steel frame gun, but I much prefer a 2 pound gun like the BERETTA 92 or SIG 229.
Funny, I have a SIG 229 in .357 SIG and it is easier to shoot than the .45ACP SIG 220.

I have a SIG 365, however, while it is compact enough to carry, the recoil is excessive for me. I use it with the HORNADY 100 grain FTX LITE load in 9m.m. I will trade it in for a .380 version eventually. As I get older, the recoil vs power trade off is working against it.

Jim

CoalCrackerAl said:

They have a assist to help.Im getting there too.. I do find cocking the hammer helps.
Pachmayr Slide Rack Assist black (amazon.com)

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I can tell you from experience that these gizmo's work. There is one in my range bag now. I got it when I had a S&W Shield, but it's pretty much universal. I've never tried it on a 1911, but see no reason why it wouldn't work. Of course cocking the hammer first helps a LOT.

And I hate to admit this, I've always said I thought that front cocking seriations were an ugly abomination, until I actually tried using them to rack the slide. Wellwhatdayouknow. They actually work. Pretty darn well too, allowing me to use my entire hand on the slide, and not just a couple of fingers (Keep your hands, fingers and other important body parts, out from in front of the muzzle boys and girls). I still think they're ugly, but can overlook, and use, them now.

My problem with racking slides is I cut a nerve in my left thumb and can't feel what I am doing and for some reason it has little strength along with the numbness. It's slow but I just switch to gripping the gun with my left hand and the slide with my right when racking a slide. I have been cocking the hammer on 1911s first long before the nerve damage though.

The slide rack assist gadget is entirely new to me. I think I need one of thse.

I have same issues, including periferal neuropathy. I just exercise my hand with tennis ball. I also wear gloves when I shoot, it improves my grip, makes it easier and less painful to rack the slide, and protects my hand from a bit of recoil

May I suggest seeing a good arthritis doc, there are a number of meds that can change your life for the better. Over the counter Valtoren gel, topical DMSO and tart cherry fruit, juice or extract (studies in Europe support this) may do as much as prescriptions.

I also have a halo ring attached to the back of my Buckmark’s slide, as it is as hard to rack on a down internal hammer as any center fire pistol. I don’t know if they make them for any other pistol.

Geez, we got a lot of old guys on this forum. In ten years, we'll all be posting about "what walkers are best for the range?" or talking about the young cute nurse that came in to give us our bed bath.

No, I got nothing else. Carry on.

Heck, I feel young at 62 in this thread!

I have all the itis"s myself being a butcher for 39 years now has wrecked my hands. I watch Kentucky Ballistics on YouTube a lot. Scott had a BUL 1911 on one of his videos and just kept on talking about how easy the slide was to rack. He finally did it with thumb and pinky finger to show how easy it was. Looked like a possible solution for those of us with this type of condition. That is if you have the extra cabbage to plunk down on or....right now I don't.

I'm working on a thread related to this subject on another board and just finished doing some slide pull effort tests using my Lyman Digital Scale.

As a base I chose the S&W Shield 2.0 9mm since shields seem to be a popular concealed carry choice. As an example the Shield 2.0 9mm slide averaged 11 pounds 2 ounces while the S&W M&P 380EZ averaged 4 pounds 13 ounces.

I gave up on 45 ACP two decades ago and we to 9mm. Arthritis finally prevailed and I went to 380, the Ruger Security 380 to be exact. I load Underwood Extreme Defender for EDC. I feel secure with the combo.

dweis said:

I gave up on 45 ACP two decades ago and we to 9mm. Arthritis finally prevailed and I went to 380, the Ruger Security 380 to be exact. I load Underwood Extreme Defender for EDC. I feel secure with the combo.

View attachment 1140850

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Add me to the list of fans of the Security 380. Here's the slide pull and trigger pull data from mine.

Slide effort: five pounds ten ounces (5 pull average)
Trigger: three pounds fifteen ounces (5 pull average)

KevininPa said:

Heck, I feel young at 62 in this thread!

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At 85 I have one foot in the grave and one on a banana peel. Just stopped riding my Shovelhead Harleys (2) 6 months ago due to my judgement and reflexes slowing down. Gonna get the cataracts done soon so i can see the sights again.

Keep at it Deadeye.......hope I'm half that tough if I even make it close to your age. Respect

Okay, some of you guys are making me feel young at 68. Or as I like to say I'm 29 with 39 years experience..........

Armored farmer said:

My pistol instructor doesn't like the "slingshot" method of manipulating the slide. He says to "stack your thumbs" and push inward with both arms and use your pectoral muscles.
Y'all probably already know this.

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It is a great method, but you have to be extra diligent with muzzle discipline when using this method to chamber the initial round -- must turn side ways so muzzle points down range at all times instead of sweeping the firing line.

deadeye dick said:

Gonna get the cataracts done soon so i can see the sights again.

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When my dad got the cataract surgery done in his late 80s, he found he didn't need to wear glasses to read... which he'd had to do for most of his life. Yeah, you should be able to see the sights again.

And ridin' Harleys up to age 85? Respect, sir!

Old Dog said:

Geez, we got a lot of old guys on this forum. In ten years, we'll all be posting about "what walkers are best for the range?" or talking about the young cute nurse that came in to give us our bed bath.

No, I got nothing else. Carry on.

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Heck. I use a walker at the range. Not really to help with walking, but it makes a great range cart, and provides a comfortable seat for loading magazines and such or just resting my aching back when needed.

It will also get pretty young women to rush to hold the door for me once in a while.

CajunBass said:

I can tell you from experience that these gizmo's work. There is one in my range bag now. I got it when I had a S&W Shield, but it's pretty much universal. I've never tried it on a 1911, but see no reason why it wouldn't work. Of course cocking the hammer first helps a LOT.

And I hate to admit this, I've always said I thought that front cocking seriations were an ugly abomination, until I actually tried using them to rack the slide. Wellwhatdayouknow. They actually work. Pretty darn well too, allowing me to use my entire hand on the slide, and not just a couple of fingers (Keep your hands, fingers and other important body parts, out from in front of the muzzle boys and girls). I still think they're ugly, but can overlook, and use, them now.

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I like front serrations.
I use them when emptying the chamber into the palm of my hand.

Col. Harrumph said:

Dave DeL is a better man than I am I guess, I'm finding it a lot more difficult that it used to be, to rack an Astra 400's slide. I just sent an email to Lyman asking if their Pachmayr slide assist would work with one. If they respond, I'll update.

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Well Lyman never did respond, but I can now affirm this thing can handle an Astra 400, no problem.