• Mossberg Owners is in the process of upgrading the software. Please bear with us while we transition to the new look and new upgraded software.

Helpful Tips for Pistol Caliber Ammo?

Itsricmo

.30-06
I know a decent amount about Rifle and Shotgun ammo but VERY LITTLE about pistol ammo. As I am starting too look into purchasing my first pistol I am asking for some wisdom from my fellow shooters here on recommended ammunition and bullet types to consider.

Model will definitely be a 5" 1911, caliber may be 9mm or 45acp.

Primary use will be Open Carry/Conceal Carry and HD.
Secondary is Obviously just some paper punching.

Anyone Bias too a certain Brand, Bullet Type or Weight?

Thanks in Advance,
Rick
 
My opinion is simple. They all need to be put in the right spot, that being said what kind of pistol experience do you have ?
 
About 250 too 350 rounds through my Fathers Taurus 24/7 Millennium PRO .45acp. Nothing REALLY strong. I didn't do too shabby for a noobie but nothing I would trust when under stress.

I will be doing A LOT of paper punching practice before I even think about carrying it out into public. Would be foolish of me and dangerous too others. I have been looking at TULA for potential paper punching.
 
Itsricmo,

Good choice on the 1911. I personally would only go with the big boy, .45ACP. As far as ammo is concerned in a 1911, it basically comes down to what slide spring you have. If you have a heavy spring for shooting heavy grain bullets/high power loads, you may have an issue with lighter grain bullets/lighter loads cycling the gun. On the other side, if you have a light spring, you can potentially cause damage using a heavy grain/high load bullets.

I believe the stock spring is around 16 pounds and usually handles anything, but with the after market stuff I have seen as light as 7 pounds, and as heavy as 28 pounds.

I have a 18 pound spring in my 1911, and it pretty much shoots anything I put into it. I am not partial to any particular brand when it comes to .45 ACP. I just get what ever is on sale and have fun shooting. Usually it is full metal jacket ball nose rounds.

I do have some high dollar personal protection hollow point rounds. Light grain weight, high velocity, that I bought for Home Defence (Have the Mossy now). Havent shot them due to price, hope they do what they say.

Hope some of this helps.

Frank
 
If you get .45 acp I hope to be reloading that in the near future. As soon as I get my own house when I graduate I'm going to get my own reloading stuff instead of using other people's stuff. Since we live close I'd be able to hook you up!
 
I shoot whatever's cheap, mostly Winchester, Remy UMC, or Blazer.

Dirty stuff, but it's easy to find (usually) and relatively cheap. I stick with brass and aluminum cases only, no steel. Always load Hornady Critical Defense in all my carry guns. It's the only stuff I've found that feeds reliably every time even in some of my handguns that choke on traditional hollow points...
 
Frank, Thank you for the input about the spring. That isn't something I had really considered. Do you by chance know what spring is most commonly put into a stock 1911?

As far as .45 and 9mm go, I honestly think it is going to lean towards the 9mm. It is something the Mrs. could certainly shoot and without problem out of a full size 1911. It is something I have to consider.

Ryan, That would be sweet man! I got a family friend who is willing too reload some for me but he is off and on as he runs a car repair garage and is busy doing that most of the time. I would love to get into reloading but between slow work right now and the cost of start up, I will stick with getting the gun and ammo first and save brass for later :p


LES, have you tried any Hornady Steel Match stuff? It is dirt cheap when you can find it lol I have heard that Steel stuff isn't good in some chambers though too. I bought my father some of the XTP TAP HAP or whatever combo of the three is the +p stuff. He carries that with him everyday. He uses the Blazer Brass for paper and likes it so that is always an option over the Tula.

Can you comment on how reloadable (yes new word :p) the Blazer Brass is?
 
I just think you should try a couple calibers out. See what you like, price some ammo. Look at availability and weigh that into things too. Whatever you decide, become a student of pistol shooting and trigger control, become reliably accurate and you could virtually use any caliber for self defense…….now if your hunting T-Rex or something you better pick up a 10mm, they come in 1911…lol sorry had to !
 
Itsricmo said:
LES, have you tried any Hornady Steel Match stuff? It is dirt cheap when you can find it lol I have heard that Steel stuff isn't good in some chambers though too. I bought my father some of the XTP TAP HAP or whatever combo of the three is the +p stuff. He carries that with him everyday. He uses the Blazer Brass for paper and likes it so that is always an option over the Tula.

I don't shoot steel cased at all.

Too hard on components over time, especially extractors. I'll have to defer the reloading questions to others, 'cause I don't have a clue...
 
hahaha I would have to get some of those Oli Exclusive 10mm rounds!

I have shot, 9mm Luger, 9mm Makarov and 45acp. I have not shot the 40s&w though. I am comfortable with both 9mm and 45acp if I could get more shooting in. Preferably the 9mm because, as I said, I want my Better Half to be able to shoot it too without concern. 9mm prices are also cheaper than the other calibers and sometimes more available but on par with 45acp. The 40s&w however is EVERYWHERE near me as if no one shoots it!

Thank you for the input LES, I wasn't sure if maybe you tried it out :)

Oli, are their brands of ammunition that typically can be reloaded more than others or is that a mute point?
 
Itsricmo said:
hahaha I would have to get some of those Oli Exclusive 10mm rounds!
Yeah dude! I hereby promote you to official 10mm load tester.

Itsricmo said:
Oli, are their brands of ammunition that typically can be reloaded more than others or is that a mute point?


Not in my opinion. I load them all and when they fail I throw them away. I am sure they are not all created equal but I am only a casual reloader
 
Itsricmo said:
Frank, Thank you for the input about the spring. That isn't something I had really considered. Do you by chance know what spring is most commonly put into a stock 1911?

As far as .45 and 9mm go, I honestly think it is going to lean towards the 9mm. It is something the Mrs. could certainly shoot and without problem out of a full size 1911. It is something I have to consider.

Itsricmo,

For the 1911 .45 ACP it is usually 16 pounds stock. I can not help you with the stats on the 9mm.

I am not sure what the after market is on the 1911 9mm, but the .45 ACP is endless.

1911 .45 ACP is very tunable and upgradeable. I have my .45 ACP recoil down between a 9mm & a .40. The way I did this is with a two piece spring powered full length guide rod (recoil reducing guide rod), and heavier slide spring. I dont remember the brand of the rod, but it works great. My Mrs. can fire the weapon no problem, and it is what she keeps on her side of the bed.

You will have a lot more options with the .45 ACP. I recommend getting a mil spec model. It is to pistols what the AR 15 is to rifles as far as customization. For a gun that was designed in 1908 by Mr. Browning, it is still loved, coveted, and obvously still in use (mostly unchanged) today. There has been a lot of advancements in metalurgy and minor design changes in the last 10-20 years for this model.

Let me know if you have any other questions I can help with.

Frank
 
oli700 said:
Itsricmo said:
hahaha I would have to get some of those Oli Exclusive 10mm rounds!
Yeah dude! I hereby promote you to official 10mm load tester.

Itsricmo said:
Oli, are their brands of ammunition that typically can be reloaded more than others or is that a mute point?


Not in my opinion. I load them all and when they fail I throw them away. I am sure they are not all created equal but I am only a casual reloader


Haha well we shall wait and see if I get my fingers on a 10mm haha highly doubt it :(
I wouldn't be a super pro reloader either but I wasn't sure if there was like a Standard for Lapua Brass vs Federal or Winchester vs Remmy... Know what I mean?



Frank,

My understanding was that so long the model was a 1911 that the majority of parts would fit aside from internal parts like the ejector and barrel.. I could be very wrong though! Wouldn't surprise me lol I believe the 2 models I am looking at are Full Length guide rod and are "Mil-spec" too. I would be very interested in the recoil reducing guide rod if you can dig up the Manufacturer! I could add it too my list of items to buy.

If you don't mind, you could even PM me, what combo of springs and such that you have in yours. Because I would love to have something like what you got!
 
Itsricmo said:
oli700 said:
Itsricmo said:
hahaha I would have to get some of those Oli Exclusive 10mm rounds!
Yeah dude! I hereby promote you to official 10mm load tester.


Haha well we shall wait and see if I get my fingers on a 10mm haha highly doubt it :(

Yeah, because if you’re my ammo tester, rule number one would be bring your own gun :D
 
Itsricmo said:
Frank,

My understanding was that so long the model was a 1911 that the majority of parts would fit aside from internal parts like the ejector and barrel. I could be very wrong though! Wouldn't surprise me lol I believe the 2 models I am looking at are Full Length guide rod and are "Mil-spec" too. I would be very interested in the recoil reducing guide rod if you can dig up the Manufacturer! I could add it to my list of items to buy.

If you don't mind, you could even PM me, what combo of springs and such that you have in yours. Because I would love to have something like what you got!

Itsricmo,
For the most part, most parts are interchangeable on 1911's (Beaver Tails, Main Spring Housings, etc.). Where you run into issues are companies "Personal" 1911's. They like to modify Ejectors, Firing Pins, Springs, Barrels, Ramps, Safeties, Guide Rods, etc. so you are locked into their brand (kind of like Apple Products). That is why I recommended Mil Spec Models. Every Company out there that produces 1911's makes a Mil Spec Model and Mil Spec Parts for that model, plus there are numerous "Shops" that make custom parts. Then like the Mossy it comes down to aesthetics, performance (this is more to tolerances for accuracy vs. reliability) and personal preferences that you are looking for.

My other recommendation is, if you are going to modify, start with a lower price base model. The most important part is the grip frame. Everything else can be mail ordered.

The Guide rod is made by EFK Fire Dragon. http://www.efkfiredragon.com It is called a "Dual Action Recoil Spring". The Main Spring I use comes with the kit. It is a very ingenious design. The main spring lets the slide move back till the spent case ejects, then the secondary spring activates from the slide and reduces the recoil as the slide continues back to cock the gun.


This is my 1911 named Frankie (Short for Frankenstein). It was my first firearms build. I started with a stripped frame. This one is a limited edition Caspian Arms frame, manufactured in the early 80's. It took me 2 years to build ( I was young, and money was tight back then). A lot of research went in to each individual part. There is at least 10 diffrent manufacturer parts in this guy. Goal, just like my mossy I am building, is to be all purpose. Tight enough to be acurate, loose enough to be reliable.

Frank
 

Attachments

  • Frankie.jpg
    Frankie.jpg
    76.6 KB · Views: 334
Itsricmo said:
HAHA Well now that is no fun! Do you load 45 for Trex? :D


nope, but hot 45's would be cool trex ammo. I have never shot a hot reloaded 45 but I bet there are some good loads out there for the ACP round.
 
Itsricmo said:
About 250 too 350 rounds through my Fathers Taurus 24/7 Millennium PRO .45acp. Nothing REALLY strong. I didn't do too shabby for a noobie but nothing I would trust when under stress.

I will be doing A LOT of paper punching practice before I even think about carrying it out into public. Would be foolish of me and dangerous too others. I have been looking at TULA for potential paper punching.

Get more trigger time. :grin: Each class I've taken ran through around 600+ rounds

Hitting the mark is more critical than the ammo or the caliber IMHO. Any sd hp should serve you well. I prefer Federal hydrashocks myself. They are not +p rounds but have a proven history

Sent from my Mossberg 930 using Tapatalk2
 
oli700 said:
Itsricmo said:
HAHA Well now that is no fun! Do you load 45 for Trex? :D


nope, but hot 45's would be cool trex ammo. I have never shot a hot reloaded 45 but I bet there are some good loads out there for the ACP round.

Now, when you say "hot" you are speaking of +p correct? Hornady is coming out with a new Critical Duty +p ammo for 2013.

MikeD, I will certainly be shooting a lot more! If I don't feel confident I can hit a target within a certain distance, I will not be carrying it out into public. Maybe in my Vehicle but not into Walmart or a Mall.. I won't put someone else in danger due to my lack of experience!

Above Mention "Recoil Reducing Guide Rod".. All that I have found are Full length.. Can anyone dispute the argument over Full Length or Half Length Guide Rods? Which is better or worse? (Is it caliber specific?
 
Back
Top