.45 ACP a bad choice for first handgun

[kyo]

before I got my 45 my dad said get a 9 or 40. He then said "a 45 has too much recoil" And I am stubborn and got one anyway. After shooting it Vs a 40, he said mine had less recoil, go figure.
I will say it again, a 45 is a great start out weapon.

 

[ArmedBear]

jeez some people make it out to seem like shooting a .45 is akin to firing 12g 000 magnum buckshot rounds out of a hand cannon

If you like a gun better, and it comes in 9mm instead, buy it.

Do know that 230 grain bullets of a given design are going to stop an aggressor more effectively than similar 115 grain bullets, and there's just no way around that reality. Of course, the gun you can hit something with, a few times in a row, quickly, is going to be a lot better than one that you miss with, regardless of caliber.

 

[David E]

Winchester White Box with 100 rds of 9mm is $19.97 here........significantly less than $32 per 100 of .45 acp.

If the person is serious about a gun for defense, then, no, the ammo cost shouldn't stop him......unless the ammo cost prevents him from building a minimum level of skill.

.

 

[ArmedBear]

$20 for a few minutes' plinking is cheap?

 

[ljnowell]

If your first handgun is a .45 acp semi-auto and you're new to handguns, you will find that the kick is getting in the way of learning the basics of sight alignment, sight picture and trigger squeeze.

I disagree. My first handgun was a .45acp. i think it all depends on the individual shooter.

 

[drtee]

One should shoot the gun they will practice with the most. Not everyone enjoys shooting even a .22.

Wearing the best ear protection possible will help with a flinch. Many people flinch from the noise and not the recoil.

Just wearing excellent ear protection goes along way to prevent a flinch.

Bigger bullet at reasonable velocity goes along way with one hit. Maybe not so much with a smaller bullet at higher velocity. Anyway that how it seems to me. I'll take the .45 any time I have a choice.

 

[David E]

I didn't say that $20 for a "few minutes of practice" was cheap.........I only said it was cheap-ER than .45 acp.

Around here, (OKC area) I've not seen any WWB .45 for quite some time. Seems like it was $33 or $37 last time I thought to look at it.

Walmart did have some Blazer Brass .45 once, for around $16 per box of 50.

 

[David E]

Davie E said: If your first handgun is a .45 acp semi-auto and you're new to handguns, you will find that the kick is getting in the way of learning the basics of sight alignment, sight picture and trigger squeeze.

ljnowell said: I disagree. My first handgun was a .45acp. i think it all depends on the individual shooter.

How can you disagree ?

To any uninitiated shooter, the KICK is going to surprise them and distract them from the basics of sights/trigger squeeze, etc.

Sure, it can be overcome, but at what cost? (both in time and money)

And when it is overcome, how much further along would they have been if they'd chosen a better gun/caliber to learn handgun shooting with? That would vary, of course, but the fact remains, they would be further along with a better gun/caliber choice than with the .45 acp.

If you mastered the .45 acp with your initial box of ammo, then you'd be the first.
.

 

[faustopph]

just my .02

What is wrong with the 45 as a first handgun?Sure it can give a good kick.It also can be loaded down to be a pip- sqeak, kind of. Bigger is not always badder.Load a 150 gr cast at 1125 or so and anyone can shoot all day and not have a problem.Fast & Fun.Or,Put a 250/260 down range much slower and still have fun with a whole new meaning to kick.
I prefer the bigger to teach someone with because it gives more options.You can always work up to full loads with a big caliber. Small will always be small.


Small just means you will have more guns to buy.

Ruger Single Six 32H&R MAG
Armi San Palo 44 percussion /
45 Long Colt
American Classic II 45ACP
OH YEA Pietta 31 percussion

 

[ljnowell]

How can you disagree ?

It was easy. I just posted my thoughts. I dont recall saying anything about mastering a gun in one box of ammo. Could you please post a link, or were you just trying to place words where they arent?

Just because you couldnt take the recoil of a .45 doesnt mean someone else cant.

 

[drtee]

Recoil is a highly subjective issue. Some are affected more by recoil than others, as is common knowledge. BTW physical size/gender is not an indicator of recoil sensitivity.

 

[Packina45]

I am SO glad to see this many .45 lovers. The guys I work with are weenies!! They shoot 9s and 40s and think the whole time I'm getting beat down by the recoil. Well, I messed up and let one of them shoot my scratch built commander because he saw the ragged 8 shot hole in my target. "WOW!" he says, "This thing hardly kicks at all."

His primary pistol was a Llama .380. Now he has a Kimber being delivered wednesday. That says it all for me. I only wish my first pistol would have been a .45 too. Would have saved a LOT of time searching for "the ONE".

 

[420Stainless]

My first gun (which also is the first one I ever shot) of any sort was a .45 ACP. Colt Gold Cup. I'm glad no one ever talked me out of it.

 

[1911 guy]

The .45ACP was a lot of gun back when the average man was five foot four and weighed less than 150 pounds. Couple that with absolutely zero technique to control what recoil there was and it developed a reputation as a real beast.

Fast foreward ninety-plus years and most teenagers are larger than the grown men that fought WWI. Add a solid Weaver or Isocolese technique and I've had Kindergarteners (Yes, I do mean five and six year old kids) shoot two or three consecutive rounds from my handguns. No blasting backward, no muzzle skyward recoil, just big grins and holes downrange, although not always too near the target.

Just help him find the .45 that fits him best. Handgun fit has far more to do with comfort and control than caliber ever has or will.

 

[HarryB]

Our school goes camping twice a year and with parent's permission I usually take some of my students shooting, usually for the first time. I have a small assortment of .22's for them to use. One year for grins I left the 45 slide on the 1911. One of the young ladies (8th grade) wanted to try it out. The recoil and noise were not an issue. She shot several mags without any flinch issues and obliterated several pieces of fruit. My sister who is also small in stature loves to shoot the 1911 when we shoot together. Then again she also likes my 642--which I find unpleasant to shoot after a few cylinders full.

 

[drtee]

"And that's the rest of the story." Thank you.

 

[NG VI]

My first handgun was a USP .40, still have it, love it, don't shoot it very often though. Ammo is expensive enough that I like to shoot .22 and my carry pistols (Glock 23 lately) most. I need to make more money I guess. Let him get a .45, he'll like it.

 

[NG VI]

My first handgun was a USP .40, still have it, love it, don't shoot it very often though. Ammo is expensive enough that I like to shoot .22 and my carry pistols (Glock 23 lately) most. I need to make more money I guess. Let him get a .45, he'll like it.

 

[hometheaterman]

Winchester White Box with 100 rds of 9mm is $19.97 here........significantly less than $32 per 100 of .45 acp.

If the person is serious about a gun for defense, then, no, the ammo cost shouldn't stop him......unless the ammo cost prevents him from building a minimum level of skill.

Yep the 9mm at all of the Wal-Marts I've ever been to and looked has been that same price for 100 rounds of the WWB. It's a lot cheaper than $32 for 100 rounds.

However, that being said I still like the .45 and for a pistol to carry if I wasn't bothered by the size it would most likely be my choice.

I like the 9mm for target shooting and it can serve as a decent carry choice too.

If all I wanted to do was carry it I'd go with the .45. If all I wanted to do was target shoot it. I'd look for a .22. If I wanted to do both a fair bit of target shooting and have something I could carry the 9mm would be my choice followed by the .40 S&W. The 9mm first though as it's the cheapest.

That's just how I feel about it.

 

[polekitty]

Why a 45? Why not?

I have a Garfield poster on the side of my refrigerator. Garfield says "It's amazing what one can accomplish if one doesn't know what one cannot do."

My first gun was a Ruger Blackhawk 44 mag. Yeaaa...I didn't know what I was doing and nobody warned me. So, I asked the guy to load me up some "midrange" loads. I shot through about 100 of that stuff. I went back and asked him to load me up something somewhere between that and a "full" load. Went back to the range. Liked it. Went back and said, "Hey...I'm ready for the full power stuff now." He laughed and told me that "light" stuff I had been shooting was already a bit hotter than "factory!"

Sooo? I have a Taurus 24/7PRO 9mm. Bought it to be easy on my old joints when I wanted to shoot a whole bunch of ammo. Didn't work out. That 9mm bangs my joints harder than my hi-cap 45 1911! My P-14 is a real pussy cat to shoot. And right now 9mm ammo is no easier to find than 45, especially if you're looking for jhp "self defense" stuff. If possible let him shoot some of both, and then get whatever he likes best.

 

[sandy4570]

Well folks , it have been informative, inspiring and interesting discussions but my friend end up getting $750 Beretta 96 .40 S&W when he went to gun store with his uncle .His uncle simply told him to pick whichever pistol he like and he would pay for it. Now we only have to find more time and more ammo to practice with because he still have long way to go with trigger control .

 

[punkndisorderly]

I'm curious as to why he picked that gun in particular (Beretta 96). I own one (a 92/96 combo actually), but it has a lot of drawbacks. Especially for a new shooter. Overly large grip, high bore axis (more felt recoil) and an inconistant trigger pull between 1st and 2nd shots. It's also on the portly side for carry use. The only two things firmly in the plus column for me are its reputation for reliability (early problems with frame cracking aside) and familiarity for those issued them during military service.

 

[jkulysses]

My first handgun was a .45 Ruger P90 that I bought when I turned 21. My ex wife loved that gun and shot a lot of rounds through it and it's still one of my favorites to this day and I've sold a few of my other "carry" guns and I'm in the process of finding a good holster to make the P90 my carry piece except for during the summer months cause it's basically like carrying a 1911 only a little lighter lol.

 

[loneviking]

Well, flame me if you want, but I wouldn't start someone out with a .45. The ammo is expensive; except for the 1911's the frames are bigger than the 9's and 40's and harder to conceal; the double stack auto grips are often very fat with aggressive stipling that isn't comfortable.

I'm used to shooting .357's with both a full size Colt and a 4 inch Mod. 19,so I can handle recoil. But,the Springfield XD with the fat grip and the aggressive stipling would start to wear blisters on my hand after about three mags. The XD would walk around in my hand because the grip was too fat.

I've also shot the full size Glock, which was more comfortable than the XD, but the angle of the grip combined with the recoil wound up making my wrist ache after about fifty rounds.

I haven't shot a 1911, and with the slender grips that might work better. But, to start a newbie out on something like the double stack auto's is not something I would recommend.

 

[GojuBrian]

Nothing wrong with the .45, but folks should start out with .22's imo. After shooting .22's some then shoot some .45's.