Women and .45 ACP

[MagnumDweeb]

I started teaching my girlfriend how to shoot. At first she like the feel of my Glock 23 till she got to shooting my Ruger P345. Her first time out was impressive to the range master. I remember that day guys in the other lanes exclaiming something like "I can't shoot that .45 it's too much." I laugh a little inside at that. Yesterday my girlfriend finally got to shoot a 1911 we rented at the range and she liked it better than my Ruger P345, a S&W E series 1911. My girlfriend enjoys shooting .45 ACP, in part because she believes its best of the auto rounds(I think I'm the blame for that), and there are guys who seem to get daunted by the idea of shooting the simple, easy, and old caliber. We've been at the range and offered guys watching her(in shock at her abilities) a chance to shoot my P345 and they declined.

She did pretty well with it for the fifty rounds she got to shoot, when she went back to shooting my Ruger P345 she got aggravated with the Wolf ammo jamming the three or four times it did (I hadn't cleaned the gun since a couple of range visits ago). She seems to handle .45 ACP without too much trouble. She's not shooting great, she's shooting slow, but I think she's developing the fundamentals well. For only having shot .45 ACP 4 times I think she's doing a great job. I had her shoot eight rounds out of my P345 once on a target to start after she got done with the 1911, the other pics are her shooting the 1911.

Funny enough her best friend actually shot better with my Ruger GP100 6" half lug with .357 magnum, American Eagle 158 grain JSP, than with my S&W Model 15 with .38 special 158 grain FMJ. The pics are of targets shot at only twenty feet, mind you this is only her third time ever really shooting .45 ACP, the first time was just to get her over the anxiety of smacking her face with the Glock 23 and .40(see the bigger gun won't hurt you, so the smaller won't as well). On a by and by the S&W 1911 E series was a sweet shooter at twenty yards, I kept a five inch grouping with little trouble and five rounds at a target shooter's pace first time out.

So whose wives, girlfriends, fiancees, or women themselves, enjoy the mild thump and ease of shooting the .45 ACP.

 

[MachIVshooter]

in my experience, females rarely have trouble with the .45 ACP until you get into one-handed firing of subcompacts; Limp-wristing becomes an issue at that point. But larger guns like the 1911?? No problem. My lady's piece is a Kahr K9, but last week at the range, she picked up my G20 10mm and shot it like a pro. It wasn't stoked with hot loads, but still more recoil than a .45.

Only when you get into the really heavy recoiling stuff does their smaller size and reduced upper body mass/strength come into play. I won't let any female shoot my 7 pound .375 ultra looking through the scope, as it's bitten smaller and/or less experienced guys. But heck, there have been a few ladies who even enjoyed my SRH .454 with full house loads. My wife doesn't like wheelguns, though, so doubt she'll warm up to it.

 

[Sam1911]

The 1911 was the second gun my daughter shot.

She begged for the chance. Sat her in my lap, held the gun with her hands under mine, and she ripped off a full mag! Grinned BIG and asked for another!

She was three.

 

[Nushif]

My wife had a Milennium Pro once she was stupidly good with. Her first pistol, I think.

 

[Fishslayer]

I started my wife off with a revolver & light .38 target loads. It wasn't long before she wanted to try out my RIA 1911, also with light target loads.

She has since sampled my Big Dog .357 Magnums and .44 Magnums.

Now she's after my RIA in big way. Of course, that might open the door to an upgrade in the future.

FWIW she's only good for a couple magazines with the 1911 before she gets tired. I got her a SIG SP2022 in 9mm her primary pistol.

How did she shoot the .45? Not bad.

 

[gearchecker]

My wife really likes shooting "Our" Full size Xd-45. But she's not too crazy about the Colt 1911. The XD absorbs quite a bit of recoil, so it's just easier for her to shoot it during longer range sessions. Her favorite handguns are my S&W Model 66 with full house magnum ammo, or her SIG P-238. It doesn't seem to matter what she's shooting. She can hold 3-4" groups at 15 yds with all of them. At 25 yds she's holding 5-6" groups pretty consistantly.

 

[3KillerBs]

I've only had the opportunity to shoot a .45 twice.

In the big, heavy, Colt 1911 the recoil didn't feel appreciably different than a 9mm. It pushed the gun off target and I followed through and put it back on target.

In the compact Kimber it wasn't any worse than anything else I've fired in a weapon that was small and light for the power of the round. Certainly nothing like the smack of the .38sp +p in the airweight snubby. However that gun fit me so badly that the recoil was delivered right into my thumb joint rather than in the web of the hand so that joint hurt for several days. That had nothing to do with the caliber (6 shots from a .44magnum revolver almost too big for me to hold on to didn't leave my hand sore), but was solely a gun-fit problem.

If I had the opportunity to get a .45 I wouldn't hesitate. But I wouldn't choose a 1911 so large that I couldn't operate the controls or compact with a trigger reach so long that I had to slide my hand around to reach the trigger.

No reason a healthy woman with no arthritis or other medical issues shouldn't shoot .45 out of a gun that fits her properly.

 

[Dave T]

My wife's first guns was a Combat Commander. She went through Gunsite under Jeff Cooper and earned an "Expert" ticket with a modified Gold Cup (BoMar sight on the rear). She still prefers a 1911 45 ACP to any other handgun. My sister, who will turn 71 in a couple months, just switched from a Glock 19 as her carry gun to a Glock 36. I tried to talk her into the G30 instead but she prefers the slimness of the G36 and the light weight to carry.

Dave

 

[azgun]

I was shooting my desert eagle 50 ar the range. And this one lady kept looking over at me. I was hesitant at first for her to shoot.it. but finally she did. And i was impressed.

45 isnt to bad for women. Most can handle it

 

[hso]

It is all about picking the gun to fit the shooter instead of trying to make the shooter fit the gun.

My wife shoots a .45 CZ type handgun, but hates my 1911s. The CZ fits her and she has no problem with the recoil. She's quick and accurate with it.

A friend of our's shoots a Para P13 in .45, but can't stand the CZ or Glock or ... in other calibers. The widebody 1911 fits her and she's accurate with it.

 

[Dave P.]

I have 6 handguns, my wife goes to the range with me maybe 8-10
times a year. The gun she likes the most is my Glock 36, shoots it
pretty well, slow fire 10 yard groups usually in the 2-3 in range.
The one she likes the least is the Ruger LCP, she'll fire maybe 20-25
rounds through it and that's it....give me back the Glock.
Dave

 

[Larry Ashcraft]

My wife and I competed in IHMSA handgun silhouette back in the 1980s.

One summer, she hadn't shot standing all year, and she decided she would like to compete in standing at the state tournament. That required that she shoot through the course with our Super Blackhawk three times (120 rounds). 120 full power 44 magnum rounds, one after the other, no breaks in between.

She did it, although her hands were numb on the last round. And she's not a large woman.

Why would a 45 ACP bother her?

 

[chris in va]

My GF competed with my G21SF, but neither of us could hit anything worth a darn. I suggested she switch to my 75BD while I try out the new 97b. I have a feeling it will be an "our" gun before long.

 

[usmccpl]

She aint shot a 45 acp but my wife did shoot 12 rounds of 454 then turns to me and says well I found my carry gun. This is the same woman who whined for a month after one round out of a 380 acp.

 

[FoMoGo]

My wife carries a 1911 Officers compact as her EDC... I dont think .45 is a problem for her.


Jim

 

[CajunBass]

Back in day when I was shooting with a local IPSC club, my wife attended a match with me one Sunday afternoon. As she sat in the truck reading a book, a couple of the women in the club approached her and asked if she'd like to shoot. They had two women but needed a third to have enough to give a sepearate trophy for the womens class.

My wife said sure, why not. She'd never fired a 45 before, but took mine, a full sized Colt GM, and without a shot of practice, finished second out of three. No trophy for her, but she said she had a good time.

As far as I know, she's never fired a handgun since (she's my ex now.)

 

[bikerdoc]

It is all about picking the gun to fit the shooter

True words.
No 45 for mine.
Mine wont give up her old Charter arms 38 daily carry that was her dads duty gun. (refurbed by a local genius of a gunsmith) Weekly she will be polite and try my CZ, Ruger, Taurus, Smith, auto or revolver de jour and go right back to the wheelgun. And yes she is good with it.

She also likes 20 ga, pistol cal carbines, and SAA 22's

Woman tend to find their comfort level real quick.

 

[AirForceShooter]

Both my wife and my daughter shoot the 1911, .45.
It's my daughter's EDC.
They say it's a "soft shooter.
Both shoot a lot of calibers.
My daughter won't touch a .380. Says it feels like it's going to break her wrist.

When she goes to her range all she shoots is the 1911.
It gets a a lot of comments from guys.
The usual "that's a big gun for a little girl (she's 5"1").
Her response is: I bet you don't think my boobs are too big.

I'm so proud.

AFS

 

[MagnumDweeb]

I'm loving this thread, we've dispelled some possible misconeptions and are showing that women can shoot with the boys. Gotta love it.

 

[1KPerDay]

My wife's favorite pistol (the only one she likes to shoot, actually) is her Stainless Combat Commander in .45 ACP.

 

[HDCamel]

My high school GF could one-hand her dad's 1911 like she was born with it. Granted, she practically had been (she's been shooting it since she was 5).

 

[Ridgerunner665]

My wife carries a Springfield XD45c 24/7/365...she picked it herself, and she can shoot it like a pro (double taps, 2 in the chest 1 in the head, tap rack, bang...the whole 9 yards)

Lately she's been eyeballing my G36 a lot, I think she's beginning to want something thinner to carry...even if it does take a little practice to shoot straight.