Oh happy day

[MachIVshooter]

So as I usually do on my off days, I went down to help out at my buddy's gunshop fro the afternoon. And of course, I usually find something has come in used/on trade that I'm interested in. Usually I can talk myself out of it, but not when it's something in pristine condition that I've had an eye out for. Yesterday he took in this like-new S&W CS45, and for $270, I just had to add it to my S&W collection



Plus, I now have a S&W 3rd gen .45 in each size



I have been trying to decide on a .45 that I can carry in T-shirt weather, because I'd just rather have more power than my PF9. I had been thinking long and hard about a Kahr P45/PM45, but keep hearing too much about failures to feed and failures to eject. I was also watching to see if any of the rumored new AMT Back-up .45's would become available. Nada. The CS-45 is a little bigger than either (Almost identicle to a G36 H/W/L), but still small enough to conceal under my untucked shirt (I wear clothes that fit). And my other 11 S&W handguns have always performed flawlessly, so no need for lots of review reading and extensive litmus tests. It will still see a couple hundred rounds of carry ammo before being trusted, but I am 100% confident that it will have zero failures.

I'm a happy camper.

 

[slik_rik30]

Sweet set of .45's!

Now you need to pick up an IWB for it!

 

[Walkalong]

Very, very nice. Well done.

 

[Eightball]

Nice collection and acquisition.

 

[DougDubya]

I will miss the Smith 4506 family. The CS45 looks the sweetest of the bunch.

 

[Buckshot Bill]

Mach IV, that looks like quite a find - especially for $270! Should be a great CC pistol. I'm curious about what it's like to shoot a .45ACP that is that small. How about a range report and shooting impressions after you shoot it? Thanks, Buckshot Bill

 

[toocool]

How come stuff like that never happens to me???

 

[MachIVshooter]

I'm curious about what it's like to shoot a .45ACP that is that small. How about a range report and shooting impressions after you shoot it?

It's actually really pleasant to fire. Impressively accurate, too. I had a Taurus PT145 a couple years back, which is almost identical dimensionally to the CS45. The PT had a 4 round advantage over the CS, but the polymer frame flexion made recoil more punishing. I generally liked the little PT and it ran well for me, but Taurus has had too many issues with quality for me to trust in it 100%. There were more than a few instances of cracked frames on the PT145/745. I'll give up those four rounds for the durabilty and reliability I have come to know and love my S&W pistols for. The CS also balances a whole lot better than the PT did. And the CS45 doesn't have an ILS or LCI, two things I absolutely detest.

I should point out that I have large palms with long, slender fingers. This makes gripping the CS very comfortable for me. I can actually get all of my digits on the gun. But for someone with smallish hands or thick fingers, it may not be the most comfortable gun.