phantomak47
Member
what does everyone think about the new Glock 45 round? I havent read many great things about it. What do yall think about it?
The New Glock 45 round....
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It gives 10+ rounds of .45 ACP performance at .45 ACP+P pressures out of 9mm size (or slightly larger) platforms.
There's not much to debate about.
If you like .45ACP then you can't say much bad about this round--the same bullet at the same velocity means it's the same--and the numbers have been amply documented.
You can argue about the utility of the slightly shorter round, but it's pretty easy to see that you can make a slightly smaller gun when you have a slightly smaller round to work with.
There's not much to debate about.
If you like .45ACP then you can't say much bad about this round--the same bullet at the same velocity means it's the same--and the numbers have been amply documented.
You can argue about the utility of the slightly shorter round, but it's pretty easy to see that you can make a slightly smaller gun when you have a slightly smaller round to work with.
cratz2
Member
Well, I don't hate it though I'm not likely to buy a service-sized pistol in 45GAP. I think something like a CZ PCR or P-01 in 45GAP would make a nice package. Or a Kahr TP9-sized gun in 45GAP would be a nice, thin carry piece.
Mulliga
Member
Ballistics are virtually identical to the .45 ACP with bullets under 200 grains. .45 ACP is still better for the bigger stuff, but I'd say there's no practical difference, especially when self-defense loads are concerned. 185gr. Gold Dots are plenty effective. 
Size is astonishing - it's like a really fat 9mm. It fits inside regular medium-size frames just like a .40 S&W. Recoil is nice and healthy - pretty much identical to the .45 ACP, from what I've heard (after all, it propels the exact same bullet at the same velocity, so unless the laws of physics have been suspended...).
Basically, it's like a .40 S&W, except one better. Big, bad bullet at .45 ACP velocities in a regular size handgun.
I don't think the market can handle so many cartridges. I don't think American shooters want to give up on the .45 ACP, either. Either .45 GAP will go the way of .357 SIG and 10mm (most likely), or it will replace .40 S&W (much less likely).
Of course, 9mm is still better than all of them.
Size is astonishing - it's like a really fat 9mm. It fits inside regular medium-size frames just like a .40 S&W. Recoil is nice and healthy - pretty much identical to the .45 ACP, from what I've heard (after all, it propels the exact same bullet at the same velocity, so unless the laws of physics have been suspended...).
Basically, it's like a .40 S&W, except one better. Big, bad bullet at .45 ACP velocities in a regular size handgun.
I don't think the market can handle so many cartridges. I don't think American shooters want to give up on the .45 ACP, either. Either .45 GAP will go the way of .357 SIG and 10mm (most likely), or it will replace .40 S&W (much less likely).
Of course, 9mm is still better than all of them.
There is now a 230gr loading for the .45GAP that duplicates .45 ACP performance.
Other than the size and the pressure difference the .45GAP is completely equivalent to the .45ACP.
I guess that's not entirely true as most of the chrono data I've seen puts the GAP out front a bit in velocity--but the differences are negligible.
Other than the size and the pressure difference the .45GAP is completely equivalent to the .45ACP.
I guess that's not entirely true as most of the chrono data I've seen puts the GAP out front a bit in velocity--but the differences are negligible.
Big Bad Wolf
Member
The round itself is great. It matches the .45acp in performance and can be chambered in 9mm/.40 size guns which opens up all kinds of possibilities. It is simply a more efficient cartridge.
What is holding the round back is the crappy platform it was released on. The G37 was a terrible idea, to marry a 9mm/.40 frame with a big fat 12 pound Godzilla slide was just stupid. As such it is not taking off as hoped. Being that initial offering is not doing well other makers are hesitant to release a .45gap of their own. Currently their is the G37 and the XD-45 which is still currently a custom shop piece and not being produced in any large amounts of quantities. Also CZ was supposed to be releasing a RAMI gap but from what I hear that project keeps getting pushed back for other offerings they are working on.
So in essence the round it great it is the lack of platforms that is hurting it.
What is holding the round back is the crappy platform it was released on. The G37 was a terrible idea, to marry a 9mm/.40 frame with a big fat 12 pound Godzilla slide was just stupid. As such it is not taking off as hoped. Being that initial offering is not doing well other makers are hesitant to release a .45gap of their own. Currently their is the G37 and the XD-45 which is still currently a custom shop piece and not being produced in any large amounts of quantities. Also CZ was supposed to be releasing a RAMI gap but from what I hear that project keeps getting pushed back for other offerings they are working on.
So in essence the round it great it is the lack of platforms that is hurting it.
Ala Dan
Member in memoriam
.45 ACP brass is MORE plentiful, so me being a handloader
I'm not switching to the .45 GAP; and thats my story, and I'm
sticking too it! 
Best Wishes,
Ala Dan, N.R.A. Life Member
I'm not switching to the .45 GAP; and thats my story, and I'm
sticking too it!
Best Wishes,
Ala Dan, N.R.A. Life Member
WhoKnowsWho
Member
Me too, but, if someone gave me a 45 GAP XD and a bucket of GAP brass...
The 45 GAP runs at around 23k PSI.
If you load the 45 ACP to 23k PSI, you will outperform the GAP by a considerable margin. Don't believe me? Look at Midways handloading book for the 45 ACP.
And as far as a thinner frame... Yeah, that can be solved by placing thinner grips on a .45. But that'd be too EASY. May as well design a new round and gun to do that.
cratz2
Member
Honestly, for an initial offering, the G37 was probably the right move. There are probably more than a few jurisdictions that want a 45 caliber choice but the G21 has too large of a grip for some officers, esp women. Heck, I don't have particularly small hands and the G21 is uncomfortably large for my hands. I can shoot the G22/G23 just fine though. For an open carry gun, I'd rather have a G37 than a G22.
I definately agree that for the civilian market to embrace the 45GAP, I think there are going to need to be many smaller gun options available or it will go not the way of the 357 SIG or the 10mm, but the way of the 41AE.
I definately agree that for the civilian market to embrace the 45GAP, I think there are going to need to be many smaller gun options available or it will go not the way of the 357 SIG or the 10mm, but the way of the 41AE.
Black Snowman
Member
I'm blessed with large hands so I don't have a real use for .45 GAP. However, for someone who loves the .45 and want's the smallest, lightest possible pistol, or for someone who loves .45 but has small hands, it's nice to have the option.
The prototype G37's had a narrower slide that didn't give a topheavy look and feel to the G37. The lighter, thinner slide just didn't work out in field testing, so they went to the fatter, heavier slide. Probably just a vanity round that Gaston wanted his name on. Can't see it replacing .40's in law enforcement, due to mag capacity.
Mulliga
Member
Lemme clarify. .357 Sig, 10mm, et al are great calibers, but let's face it - there just aren't as many guns chambered for them. I can definitely see .45 GAP filling a niche, but it's a small niche, and "the big three" will still be the most popular service rounds.
wally
Member
Until 45 GAP appears in guns significantly smaller & lighter than my Para P10 or Kimber Ultra Carry, YAWN!
--wally.
--wally.
I don't have a problem with the specs of the round itself, but until I can walk into the smallest gunshop in central Oregon and be assured of finding it in several different loads, I'll pass. All my autos are .45ACP or 9mm for just that reason: universally available, inexpensive ammo.
The .45GAP was designed to duplicate .45ACP performance in a smaller package. It does that in all bullet weights. Can the .45ACP be loaded hotter than the GAP--sure it can--that's what having a bigger case does for you. Using that rationale the .40S&W has no purpose since the 10mm can be loaded to outperform the .40S&W.
However you look at it, with a smaller round you can make a smaller gun. So you make thinner grips for a .45--take those thin grips and put them on a GAP and you have an even SMALLER gun.
You .45 guys are going through the same kind of anxiety that the 10mm folks went through when the .40 came out. RELAX. I don't see the GAP getting anywhere near as popular as the .40.
Marshall
Member
.45 GAP?
If it brings cooler .45 caliber guns to the market, I vote for it.
If it brings cooler .45 caliber guns to the market, I vote for it.
No, but you can also get a Robar reduction and have a .45 bore Glock that's smaller than a .45 ACP Glock with the same reduction. If you start from a smaller platform, you will always have a smaller platform with identical modifications. And that's the point, isn't it? The .45 GAP gives ballistic performance equivalent to standard .45 ACP in a smaller standard package. That's all it's designed to do. It's not designed to kill the .45 ACP, just provide an option for those who can't (or prefer not to) use the larger platform.
As for .07, I don't the exact measurements but I do know a Glock 37 fits my hand better than a 21. That being said, I don't own a .45 GAP because I don't see a need for one in my arsenal. If my girlfriend ever wanted a .45 Glock, she'd probably have to go for a 37 due to her hand size.
By a whopping .07.
Pull a ruler out and explain how 7 hundreths of an inch makes a difference. If it does, my guess is .45+P recoil will be too brutal anyway.
If Kahr makes a PM in .45 GAP (or ACP for that matter), I'll buy one.
To claim a double stack gun with 7/100 difference in the grip is a big deal is just a cheap marketing ploy.
Pull a ruler out and explain how 7 hundreths of an inch makes a difference. If it does, my guess is .45+P recoil will be too brutal anyway.
If Kahr makes a PM in .45 GAP (or ACP for that matter), I'll buy one.
To claim a double stack gun with 7/100 difference in the grip is a big deal is just a cheap marketing ploy.
cratz2
Member
Regardless of actual case dimension, have you ever compared a Glock 21 or 20 to a Glock 17/22/37? There is a noticable difference in grip size and feel. I mean, the 17/19/22/23 is surely at the very top of most issued/adopted guns in law enforcement while more than one agency has passed on the G21 because of it's large grip. If no one had ever complained about the size of the G21 grip, Glock would have been radically less likely to have come to market with the 45GAP in the first place.
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