Got a .45

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n3tjm

Papa Elf
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Location
Penns Creek, PA
Last night I went to Rileys Sport Shop to pick up my special order :). I have been to that shop several time during the past few years, but I never did buy anything serious. I love that store... you can spend hours looking around. Every time I am there, the store is packed. Entire families are shopping. And its not only the men looking either. (Women shooters are a good thing imho). Even though they are way out of the way for me, they were my first choice to go to order my .45.

I chose the Springfield Armory GI-45. I have always been fascintated in the .45 1911 style pistol. For years I had a CO2 powered .177 pellet gun modeled after that. Then one time about three years ago, I was complaining to a college friend about it... I said the first 20 or so shots are good... but after that you can literraly watch its pellets drop. So he said, well, I think its time for you to try a real .45 :D. So we went to the range, and he handed me his Colt... and it was just as fun as I'd imagine it to be :).

Since then I got a chance to fire many .45's. Keeping my eye out for one. Looking at adds and firing them at the range. Then a few weeks ago, the gentleman in the stall next to me brought a brand new Springy GI-45... We chat for a while, and I asked how much he paid. It was under $450! I said really? Mind if I try it. He said sure. It shot well... I looked at reviews on forums, and the pistol got good praise. So I made up my mind. This is the one I want.

I also purchased a second 7rd Kimbler magazine for it, and a belt holster. The pistol came with a special catalog for accessories at discount. I am going to order a couple 10 Rd Magazines.
 
Monday I plan to go to the range after work to try it out (Of course I will go home first... I am not going risk someone stealing my car with a gun locked in it).
I have 130 rounds at my disposal. 50 230 grain Federal Hi-SHOK JHP's, 50 230 Grain Remington UMC Metal Case (ball nose) ammo, and 30 rounds of 230 grain Winchester BEB (semi wadcutter). Probabily not going to fire them all.. but who knows... :).
 
Congratulations, Doug.

I don't know if all Wal-Marts carry the same stock, but in case they do - you might want to check at your local Wal-Mart for ammo. Our Wally World here has Winchester 230 gr FMJ for about $15 or $16 for a box of 100 cartridges. That's a pretty good price for factory 45 ammo. I stumbled onto them when I was picking up shotgun ammo to go trap shooting. I had never seen Winchester in boxes of 100 before.

Most 45 factory ammo is $11 a box of 50 or higher - at least around here, anyway.

Of course, my preference is to reload my own ammo, but.... like everything else, I never have enough TIME.
 
Thanks Ken :). I appreciate your reply :D.

My local Wal-Mart wants $20 for the 100 pack. Still not a bad price. The Remington UMC was a few cents shy of $10 for 50. They also had Blazer ammo for the same price, but steal case. I decided for the same price, go with Brass. Use something that can be reloaded.
 
Doug
Within 40-50 miles of here there are several cottage industries that remanufacture ammunition. They are mom and pop shops, but fully insured and very professional. Their ammo ends up on the shelves of local dealers, but at a markup. If you deal directly with them, and trade your cases for loads, you can save big bucks.

I have an RCBS progressive press, but haven't had time in what seems like years for reloading. Maybe when I retire.
 
Originally posted by rbeckey
If you deal directly with them, and trade your cases for loads, you can save big bucks.

Sounds good :). Do they have a website, or a way to contact them?
 
Good call on the high quality magazines. The cheap ones are crap and will cause your gun to jam. Only time my Kimber has ever jammed is when i used a $8 magazine.

The 230 gr fmj is probably the best bet for a 1911. That was the ammo it was designed to shoot. Other stuff is hit or miss. If your gonna shoot something else all the time it might be worth the investment to get the throat profiled and polished for that load.

Regardless you'll have a lot of fun with it. The possibilities are endless.

here's a pic of mine
kimber
 
Cool move,n3!That's exactly the same one I've been drooling over for several years now.Springfield is the best.Also got my eye on a Garand and an M1-A.I don't think I have to tell you how deep a hole that would burn in my pocket.:eek:
 
Doug,
I meant that there might be something similar in your area. Check the ammo on the shelves of independant shops. Look for bagged ammo and check the manufacturer name. Here is a link to a Pennsylvania ammo remanufacturer I know and trust. They can also make custom ammo from all new components to just about any specification. They cast all their own lead bullets from a very hard alloy with an automatic casting machine right in the shop. It is very cool to watch the process.

PS: They price per 50 is usually adjusted for quantity. It costs less to buy 500 rnds than 50 rnds 10 times.
 
Doug got another gun???:eek:

AAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!;) :D
 
Saturday night, my twin brother and I met at manchester firing line. I stopped at Walmart and bought a 100 pack of Winchester .45 ammo (FMJ 230 grain) priced at $20. I also had a pack of Winchester 230 grain BEB rounds, also baught at Walmart three years ago...

That Winchester ammo burned like a roman candle... producing lots of sprites (firely comets). Some shells continued burning like a roman candle after they were ejected. One of them flew a little close to my face still burning off sparks. (Thats why safety glasses is a must). They also produced oily smoke.

https://n3tjm.crosswinds.net/Projects/Guns/112704/Doug_45_Rapid_Fire.mpg

I observed this behaivor in both the Winchester FMJ and BEB rounds. The ammo I bought at Rileys shot just fine. Overall, I shot 102 rounds in the 45, 100 rounds in my brothers 9mm Taurus, and about 100 rounds of .22 in my rifle,

When I was done shooting, they asked how it go. I said the Ammo was junk. I told them what I observed. They asked, did you get the ammo at Walmart? And I said yes. They said Figures. He says that the Winchester Ammo baught at Walmart is not as good as the Winchester ammo bought at a Gun store. He also warned that he seen that ammo get stuck in a barrel of a Glock. The shooter did not realize it, and it blew up a Glock with the next shot...

Either cheaper powder was used with the ammo Winchester made for Walmart (Walmart is real bossy with manufactures... "You will sell us this for this amount."), or Walmart did not store their ammo properlly, and moisture got into it :(
 
Wanted to mention how my 45 shooting was doing. I noticed a problem my pistol had. The grips always came loose. I gave Springfield armory a call, and they told me that they were sending me some new bushings. The problem is, some of the bushings are a tad to long, so the screws don't press down on the grips much. They suggested I remove some of the metal, only replace the bushing if necessary. So I got my dremel tool out. I must say that quick fix solved that problem. My next visit to the range (which I am now a member of), I was happy to see that it improved my accuracy :).

During the visit to the range, I also fired off my second pistol. I bought a black Wather P22. Cheap, accurate, fun :-D. I also got to shoot a M14 and a Uzi. That Uzi emptied that 30 round magazine in less than 3 seconds!
 
Wouldn't it be cheaper and less noisy to use a long stick to get your rockets out of the tree?
 
they have an M14? a mini-14? or an actual M14?!? was it an M14-A1? that must have cost some $$$ their frangeable .308 rounds are not cheap...and thats basically the only rifle caliber you can shoot there. that, 30-30, and .22. did YOU rent or someone else?
 
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