Anyone still using .45 GAP?
- Thread starter Yo Mama
- Start date
- Status
Glock came out with .45 ACP pistols long before .45 GAP. I think a few people still have it, but overall its gone by the wayside. When I was looking at it, I saw the capacity between .45 ACP and .45 GAP and thought "why on Earth would I go for that?"
Walt Sherrill
Member
I have had several .45s (a.c.p.) and still have a SIG P-220 Super Match. Great gun.
I also have a Glock 38, which is very accurate and the softest-hooting .45 I've ever shot.
The .45 GAP ammo, if bought in bulk, is not always more expensive than .45 acp, and you can still find some, nowadays, when everything else is sold out. (That has proved to be an unexpected positive, for me.)
I also have a Glock 38, which is very accurate and the softest-hooting .45 I've ever shot.
The .45 GAP ammo, if bought in bulk, is not always more expensive than .45 acp, and you can still find some, nowadays, when everything else is sold out. (That has proved to be an unexpected positive, for me.)
postalnut25
Member
I still keep a Springfield XD in 45GAP stashed around the house. It is so similar in performance to 45ACP that most people couldn't tell the difference without you pointing it out.
What I like about it is the size. Both my wife and I have small hands, so the smaller grip size is appreciated when compared to a similar firearm in 45ACP.
What I like about it is the size. Both my wife and I have small hands, so the smaller grip size is appreciated when compared to a similar firearm in 45ACP.
SharpsDressedMan
member
I kinda wish I had bought a Glock 39 to stick in my sock............
meanmrmustard
Member
357 sig makes Some sense. Fast, less recoil, adversity. Bridges a gap.
GAP doesn't add the cauldron an ingredient we need.
GAP doesn't add the cauldron an ingredient we need.
Glock managed to convince several state police agencies to give the GAP a chance. I know Georgia State Patrol carries them. I haven't heard anything one way or another about how well they are liked or about performance.
I could be wrong, but believe they will probably go to something else when it is time to replace their current guns though.
I could be wrong, but believe they will probably go to something else when it is time to replace their current guns though.
Walt Sherrill
Member
If you're focusing on cartridge performance, you're right, but...
If you're stuck with small hands, having 10-rounds of .45 GAP in a smaller grip frame (i.e., Glock 17) makes more sense than 7-8 rounds in a 1911, or 13-rounds in a grip (as in the Glock 21) that is simply too large (and feels, to some, like you're holding a 2x4).
My hand isn't small, but I could never get comfortable with the double-stack .45 Glocks, and that is NOT a problem with the Glock .45 GAP versions. I have a Glock 38 and love it. (I've had numerous 1911s, and still have a P-220 Super Match.)
The new SIG P-227 may make the .45 GAP Glocks less functionally unique.
meanmrmustard
Member
My hands aren't large. That's why the SF guns make sense, and I do well with them.
Ballistically, its a bastard round. Logistically, its also needless. I can manage a 21SF with medium hands, same with the 20.
Answer to a question I can't fathom who would ask.
ugaarguy
Member
- Joined
- Mar 19, 2006
- Messages
- 13,828
Except that a 1911 Commander essentially the same height and width as a Glock 38 and holds 8 rounds of .45 ACP to the G38's 8 rounds of 45 GAP. However, the commander is thinner, has a smaller grip, and has a rounded slide making concealed carry easier. The only penalty to a 1911 LW Commander is that it's slightly heavier.
Also, If you engineer your pistol to use a metal magazine rather than a metal lined plastic magazine you eliminate the thick grip problem of a staggered column magazine .45 ACP - see below.
Really? The S&W M&P 45 with the same capacity as the P227 and the Springfield Armory XD45 with higher capacity didn't already do this years ago? With their striker fire and polymer frames the S&W M&P 45 and SA XD 45 are also functionally much closer to Glocks than a metal framed, DA/SA, hammer fired SIG.
deadduck357
Member
The .45 GAP is a very good cartridge. Too bad it hasn't gained a hole lotta ground outside LE. It has the same performance as a .45 ACP +P in a 9x19mm length cartridge.
ThusEver2Tyrants
Member
- Joined
- Jan 29, 2013
- Messages
- 23
I dont have one nor want one but where I am from (greenville nc)( home of the ECU pirates)
Both campus police as well as gvpd carry the 37. They moved from a 9 after apparently having to put over 8-9 rounds in a knife wielding meth head...
Both campus police as well as gvpd carry the 37. They moved from a 9 after apparently having to put over 8-9 rounds in a knife wielding meth head...
SharpsDressedMan
member
Sometimes I daydream, and when looking at the little Glock 39, and all the technology that went into it, I can't help but think the O.S.S. would have done a lot better to have dropped the Glock 39 into partisan hands in Europe and SE Asia during WWII than the the "Liberator" pistol.
Walt Sherrill
Member
There's a sci-fi series of books that projects what might have happened had the Confederacy in the U.S. been equipped with AK-47s by racist time-travelers from the 1990s... That's the sort of idea you've put forward.
Gaston Glock, however, was only about 13 when they made the Liberator (1942), which was designed by the U.S. Army and built by G.M (who made over a million of them). Gaston Glock didn't make his first Glock pistol until he was in his 50's.
The O.S.S. was looking for a CHEAP weapon that could be used to kill a German soldier and then steal his weapon. A polymer-framed G-39 would not have been cheap, as polymer was still a very exotic and expensive material, back then. But, had we had TIME TRAVEL, and the ability to "ship in" a few thousands, such a weapon would certainly have made "underground" forces more effective.
On the other hand, I haven't read much that indicates the .45 Liberators were used a lot -- strange when you consider how many were made! -- but had more-modern (Glock 39-like) weapons been available, it's hard to imagine what ELSE might have been available, too. That is scary.
I've had a Glock 38 since about 2007
It is soft shooting (compared to a glock 23 in 40 S&W) even with 230 gr. ammo
I like my 23, but have been carrying the 38, little less snap along with a little bigger bullet.
I have a Glock 30 SF in 45 acp, but I like the feel of the 38 better.
The 30 SF with 10 round magazine and its oversize base pinches my pinky, using a Pearce base doesn't help.
I will only use 9 round flush fitting magazines in the 30 SF which leave my pinky without support, or pinch.
Although I've had those magazines loaded for months, they will still only accept 8 rounds, not nine.
The 30 SF due to its slightly shorter length and noticeably shorter height is best suited for (in my use) appendix or Smartcarry.
The 38 is a strong side IWB type pistol, in my use.
The above difference details exactly why the Glock 38 (45 GAP) is useful for some people (me); I can't stand the "it's the answer to a question nobody asked
" comments made by people that have never fired a round of GAP.
The 38 allows me to decide if I want a 45 or a 40 on the exact same size frame; the slide is slightly thicker than the 9mm or 40 pistols, but I think that little extra helps absorb recoil.
Choices:
Glock 38: 8 + 1 of 45
Glock 23: 13 + 1 of 40
Glock 19: 15 + 1 of 9mm
I'm a "bigger bullet" kind of guy.
On election day, I bought a older model 38 (LE?xxx) that was still NIB.
Yes, I bought a 2nd Glock 38.
Given the issues with recent 3rd & 4th generation Glocks, I figured an older Glock was logical.
I put XS Big Dots on the 2nd model 38, the first one has Meprolights; I prefer the XS Big Dots for 6-7 yard shooting / quick sight acquisition.
Brass to face with recent Glocks?
Not this one! Brass ejected just like it did with my 2007 pistol, consistently about four o'clock and a foot away- not strong, but consistent.
Winchester Ranger 230 gr. ammo averaged 803 fps out of the 38.
It is soft shooting (compared to a glock 23 in 40 S&W) even with 230 gr. ammo
I like my 23, but have been carrying the 38, little less snap along with a little bigger bullet.
I have a Glock 30 SF in 45 acp, but I like the feel of the 38 better.
The 30 SF with 10 round magazine and its oversize base pinches my pinky, using a Pearce base doesn't help.
I will only use 9 round flush fitting magazines in the 30 SF which leave my pinky without support, or pinch.
Although I've had those magazines loaded for months, they will still only accept 8 rounds, not nine.
The 30 SF due to its slightly shorter length and noticeably shorter height is best suited for (in my use) appendix or Smartcarry.
The 38 is a strong side IWB type pistol, in my use.
The above difference details exactly why the Glock 38 (45 GAP) is useful for some people (me); I can't stand the "it's the answer to a question nobody asked
" comments made by people that have never fired a round of GAP.The 38 allows me to decide if I want a 45 or a 40 on the exact same size frame; the slide is slightly thicker than the 9mm or 40 pistols, but I think that little extra helps absorb recoil.
Choices:
Glock 38: 8 + 1 of 45
Glock 23: 13 + 1 of 40
Glock 19: 15 + 1 of 9mm
I'm a "bigger bullet" kind of guy.
On election day, I bought a older model 38 (LE?xxx) that was still NIB.
Yes, I bought a 2nd Glock 38.
Given the issues with recent 3rd & 4th generation Glocks, I figured an older Glock was logical.
I put XS Big Dots on the 2nd model 38, the first one has Meprolights; I prefer the XS Big Dots for 6-7 yard shooting / quick sight acquisition.
Brass to face with recent Glocks?
Not this one! Brass ejected just like it did with my 2007 pistol, consistently about four o'clock and a foot away- not strong, but consistent.
Winchester Ranger 230 gr. ammo averaged 803 fps out of the 38.
I've never understood the confusion over the GAP or the phrase "It's an answer to a question nobody asked." so often used in relation to it.
Even the SF framed Glock 45's are siginicantly larger than 9/40/357 sig framed Glock pistols. It was put of for PD's and people who did in fact "Ask" for a "45" in the same frame as the Glock 9mm/40. Not fixated on the 45 caliber?, don't have small hands or arming a group of people that might include those with smaller than average hands? move along. If you are under BOTH those requirments, well there it is, it's a buying option.
Many of the PD's and State Police who went with it were transitioning from 9mm or 40 Glocks, so no major need for new training on the change was also taken into account. It's not my cup of tea, but if I lived in a "ten round" state, I certainly might give the 37 a look.
Even the SF framed Glock 45's are siginicantly larger than 9/40/357 sig framed Glock pistols. It was put of for PD's and people who did in fact "Ask" for a "45" in the same frame as the Glock 9mm/40. Not fixated on the 45 caliber?, don't have small hands or arming a group of people that might include those with smaller than average hands? move along. If you are under BOTH those requirments, well there it is, it's a buying option.
Many of the PD's and State Police who went with it were transitioning from 9mm or 40 Glocks, so no major need for new training on the change was also taken into account. It's not my cup of tea, but if I lived in a "ten round" state, I certainly might give the 37 a look.
I'm intrigued. How did racists from the 1990's...
1) Obtain either a DeLorean or a blue police call box
2) Obtain enough arms and ammunition to do this without raising a few eyebrows
3) Give the South the manufacturing capability to produce and maintain enough of the guns and ammunition it would have needed?
I read the book too (Guns of the South), it was really odd. Was the South African government I believe who funded the whole deal. Author was willing to take that one really wild silly time travel leap (no pun intended), but everything else appeared meticulously researched, and supported down to very minor characters names and ranks in Civil war battles.
You don't even want to know how this affected WW II in the sequel
You don't even want to know how this affected WW II in the sequel
Walt Sherrill
Member
You have to read the book. In the book, they didn't need any of that. They brought it ALL with them!! Along with armorers, spare equipment, and their equivalent of Special Forces to train the Southern soldiers.
Plenty of AKs and ammo was available on the world market after the Vietnam war so the time travelers could have gotten hold if it pretty easily. In the book, it was all "imported" by the time travelers. The time-travelers may have been from earlier than the 90s -- maybe late 70's or early 80's -- I read it a long time ago. (The 90's makes sense, since that was when the Whites in South Africa finally gave up their fight to maintain control there.)
Had the weapons been "imported" early enough in the U.S. Civil War, Southern forces could have ended things far long before the North found some competent leaders, fired up their industrial power, and used a War of Attrition to grind the South down to near nothing.
Reliable full-auto weappms would have given any Confederate force a formidable force multiplier in any confrontation or battle, and the South's Cavalry, a real pain in the North's side (or elsewhere) early in the war, would have had even more devastating effect.
Walt Sherrill
Member
I think the P-227 has optional mags that will hold 13-14 rounds, and that's pretty impressive. especially for those of us who like the P-220, but hate the 7-8 round mags.
While you clearly can't fathom why anyone would ask, your INABILITY isn't shared by others. A number of folks here HAVE asked, and like the answer.
A lot of this is like the debates you see when talking about Fords and Chevys...
meanmrmustard
Member
Inability? To do what? See that Glock, IIRC, is now the only one carrying gun for it?
Walt Sherrill
Member
Had you QUOTED the pertinent part of my response (Post #21), IN CONTEXT, it might have made more sense to you. You didn't show that part.
That was quoted directly from your post (#9).
I was referring to YOUR inability to understand why anyone would want a .45 GAP Those were YOUR words, not mine. I appreciate that you don't want a .45 GAP weapon. I understand. I can fathom that. But you're not me.
There are guns I don't want, myself: I don't want a .357 SIG weapon, or a 10mm handgun, or a .44 magnum or S&W 500 Magnum revolvers, either -- but I CAN fathom why a few folks might want one or more of those guns.
To each his own.
meanmrmustard said:
That was quoted directly from your post (#9).
I was referring to YOUR inability to understand why anyone would want a .45 GAP Those were YOUR words, not mine. I appreciate that you don't want a .45 GAP weapon. I understand. I can fathom that. But you're not me.
There are guns I don't want, myself: I don't want a .357 SIG weapon, or a 10mm handgun, or a .44 magnum or S&W 500 Magnum revolvers, either -- but I CAN fathom why a few folks might want one or more of those guns.
To each his own.
Last edited:
meanmrmustard
Member
Ok, I was genuinely confused.
I guess I come off as abrasive. It's not that the round isn't good, I've just no need to add it. For me its harder to find than .357 sig, which I enjoy for longer range shooting and being a barrel swap away from .40 S&W.
I don't do .44 mags either. I'm always on the lookout for a Model 22 Smith.
Walt Sherrill
Member
I see we aren't that far apart. Let us go in peace. <Grin>
I might be convinced to try .357 SIG again (I have a Glock 23 with a .357 conversion barrel), but I find the ammo price off-putting -- especially , when I can use a 9mm conversion barrel for punching paper (which is about all I'll use that gun for.)
My son, a NC State Trooper, feels differently about .357 SIG. He has a S&W M&P issued in that caliber -- and he can get ammo a lot easier than I can. (He's thinking about getting a 23 in the future, and when he does, I'll probably give him my .357 SIG barrel.)
IF you can find me a .45 with the same size grip and capacity as a .45 GAP gun, I'll probably give up my Glock 38, or hope they make a conversion barrel for it. (Nothing along that line out there that I can see...) Recently, .45 GAP has been the ONLY ammo I can find, and earlier, when I was buying it from Georgia Arms (when they had ammo in stock), it was the same price as .45 ACP -- which isn't bad.
I might be convinced to try .357 SIG again (I have a Glock 23 with a .357 conversion barrel), but I find the ammo price off-putting -- especially , when I can use a 9mm conversion barrel for punching paper (which is about all I'll use that gun for.)
My son, a NC State Trooper, feels differently about .357 SIG. He has a S&W M&P issued in that caliber -- and he can get ammo a lot easier than I can. (He's thinking about getting a 23 in the future, and when he does, I'll probably give him my .357 SIG barrel.)
IF you can find me a .45 with the same size grip and capacity as a .45 GAP gun, I'll probably give up my Glock 38, or hope they make a conversion barrel for it. (Nothing along that line out there that I can see...) Recently, .45 GAP has been the ONLY ammo I can find, and earlier, when I was buying it from Georgia Arms (when they had ammo in stock), it was the same price as .45 ACP -- which isn't bad.
Last edited:
- Status
