1911 magazines wearing out too fast?

I’ve owned more than a few 45acp guns, basically for tests and evaluations, but I still love my 1911 handguns.  I have to admit that it still shocks me to see the number of gun malfuntions on firing ranges due to bad magazines or shooters not disengaging the thumb safeties during competitions.  In my humble opinion this should be a big warning to anyone that is carrying a 1911 style handgun, that they really need to do some research into the right type of 1911 magzines they should be using.   Although I would never feel out gunned  with a 1911, I stopped carrying them due to too many times I have missed the thumb safety during practice that I felt it wasn’t worth the time to keep practicing it when I could easily just switch to another type of gun.   I’m still not on the Springfield XD bandwagon, but many of my friends have jumped on that.  I do not think it’s a wise thing to carry a 1911 around without the safety engaged, but I would say that although the 1911 is a great competition and military gun, it has it’s place in the handgun community as much as a j-frame 38 special does.

There are many gun forums and places you can research 1911 gun magazines, the 1911 forum was where I first learned about swapping out various parts on my Colt 1991A1, and I have improved my shooting and reliability dramatically.   Wilson Combat magazines are my favorite, but Chip McCormick magazines seem to look more traditional and also have a very good reputation.   I have not had good experiences with GI magazines holding up for very long, and I also highly recommend paying attention to round counts in your magazines and recoil springs. Out of all of the guns I have owned, the Colts and Springfields I own do start to choke up after about 6000rds and become less tolerant of even just plain FMJ rounds.   If I had a round count like that using defensive HP ammo, I would expect problems much sooner.

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Happy feet even if you aren’t dancing

I remember all of the times I heard my Grandparents or Uncles make comments about getting old and I thought it was somewhat funny, but as I got into my early 40s and listen to my friends, it’s a constant medical report when we get into the “How’s everything going”.   One issue many of my law enforcement SWAT teams have issues with are there feet.   Most of these guys are pretty well in shape, but feet are something that can’t take the constant abuse or neglect without future repurcussions.    In my line of work, I’m lucky if a pair sneakers will hold up for more than 3 months because of the amount of weight and lifting I do.   I tried out the traditonal Dr. Scholls inserts and they worked well for about a month, but then they are shot.   Last summer at a Police and Security Expo we tried some foot inserts that came with a 2yr Warranty and they didn’t last 2 months.   It was somewhat of a shocking failure of a product.

Since we have moved on to carrying the Original Swat boots, if there is the slightest hint that the insoles are wearing out, original swat makes there own gel inserts that work very well.   The Style 1232 Air 9″ give you extra support for hopping around on concrete and hard surfaces.  I have not had to swap out or put any gel inserts in this style of boot and we’re going on over 4 months of 6 day a week use.   I started wearing these at the end of the summer months so it’s hard to say if they are going to be really comfortable to wear in hot environments, but I’m still impressed with how lightweight they fell on my feet.

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The Mini 14’s real purpose and being realistic

I have been and always will be a Mini 14 enthusiast, I guess I won too many merit badges in gun forum arguments with the AR15 blowhards, and I’ve done plenty of 500yd shooting with my guns to know that they are still viable defensive and target shooting  guns even though there is an obvious limit to how many rounds can be accurately fired.   The M4 is an excellent firearm, but eleminating a few pounds of weight during a trek is going to matter.  I was never a fan of making an AR15 or M4 Carbine too light because in my opinion, the gun needs to handle a firefight and not melt on me and I don’t think this will happen with a Coyote sighting.   Still though, I’ve seen what a Mini 14 with 20rd and 30rd magazines is capable of doing and although it’s not a combat gun but it’s a very good SHTF weapon.

I see all kind of tactical stocks showing  up from Tapco and other companies and I’m not on that level of converting a Mini 14 into, but I still prefer the folding stock standard carbine for self defensive and the Mini 14 Ranch rifle with a 3-9×40 scope.  I’ve had Sightron and Leupolds on mine and have thousands of rounds through them and still get MOA with three shot bursts.  Another issue that I find common amongst many of the tactical shooters is sighting in and shooting off of tables, it’s not that much of a headache if you have a good rest, but it becomes easier if you have gun magazines that is 5rd or 10rds.   The standard Mini 14 magazines are extremely reliable and if you are using it as a traditional ranch gun, this is one of the most balanced semi-autos in existance.

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Woolrich concealed carry shirts

When we go out to our favorite clothing stores to shop for CCW friendly clothing one of the most important things we will most likely be choosing is a good gun belt.  Gun belts are often over looked because people think that all they need to do is clip it on and it that works, everything is fine.   If you are not carrying that often, that may cut it for you, but I have ruined plenty of belts before I picked up a Wilderness instructor belt.   The first time I used this belt I was carrying a 1911 and was amazed at how well the belt supported the firearm.  After close to 3 yrs the only that has really started to wear out was the velcro, and I have gone through 2 kydex holsters that broke in the same time period.

Woolrich has made a lot of fine clothing for hunting and civillian purposes,  but only recently have they really come up with something different for real concealed carry.   We’re still waiting for some of the big tactical clothing companies to catch up on the CCW shirt market because all we seem to really see are tactical pants and tactical shirts.   What we really want to see is regual clothing that is cut to the right lengths and fits us as comfortable as if we weren’t carrying a firearm.   Carrying a gun always some level of adaptation, but a good gun belt and Woolrich Elite concealed carry shirts should give you a lot of flexibility

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Concealed carry holter or tactical?

I have to admit that I do read a lot of gun magazines, I guess it’s primarily to educate myself on what is out there as far as firearms and gear and see if there is anything ground breaking.   I remember when I could name about 5 or 6 good gun manufacturers, but now there are so many people making AR15 guns that I don’t think I could really say that I have a very good point of reference if I was going to give my critisism because not all of the direct impingement guns are the same.   There have been some productions with Springfield Armory XD guns when they first came out as well as a few others, but eventually the gun company gets it right.  I have never seen so many holster modifications done in the last 2yrs as I have before.   If you had a Sig 229 6yrs ago and get one now, and put a light on it, time for another gun holsters.

I guess the real question that we need to ask ourselves is do we want a tactical gun or a concealed carry gun?   Even that can become complicated if we start putting lasers on them which many are doing for small frame revolvers and semi-autos.   I took a training course using lasers and gun holsters and learned in the first 5 minutes that a laser has an extreme advantage over non laser guns with shooting around corners.   Anyone that has taken a defensive firearms course has learned to use cover, and limit the exposure when shooting around a corner, keep your feet behind cover and try to only move the barrel and your eyes around the corner.  With a laser, you can learn to keep your gun at one firing point and your head at another which gives your threat 2 things to think about if they want to return fire.

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Think about the magazine holders before you buy

I was at a Zombie competition over the weekend and I have to say that this was by far the most professionally run competitions and some of the best tactical gear and firearms I have ever seen on a firing range.   There were several shotgun courses which meant there were plenty of people showing up with shotguns and gear, part of the fun of the competition is that every that competed in this everyone that was there had to lug the gear that used with them at all times.  Even though you still have to see a lot of Made in China on the gear, the designs of holsters and magazine holders has improved.

There were a few tactical vests that I got to see that were specifically designed for shotguns.   I’m doing a little research on what kind of vests these were, but it was impressive.   Uncle Mikes and Fobus make kydex magazine holders which work very well for IDPA or competitive shooting, but they are not the most vesatile for real hard use.   Eventually these holders will get a little loose with hard usesage and you will hear a rattle when moving fast.    Carrying magazines that have straps on them are not the best for competition or CCW because I personally think it’s one more thing to have to flip out of the way.  For combat these work fine and for some competitions they work, but I strongly recommend the use of the Blackhawk single and double stack holders.

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From Summer to Fall and quickly to winter

Up here in the Northeast we never know what kind of morning we are going to wake up to.   This is usually the time of year that I see so many friends and family membes get sick because they leave the house in the morning and jump in their car and hope the cars warms up fast enough to make up for the fact that they were too lazy to put on a coat.   By the time the afternoon rolls around it’s 75F and the jacket or sweatshirt is too hot to wear.   If you are concealing a firearm, you have to think about the possibility of having to take a layer of clothing off during the day without having to take your gun off.   This is one reason I really don’t think about carrying a firearm in a coat, because rarely does one wear a coat all day long.

The Eotac Style 501 half zip sweatshirt is something to consider for cold mornings, but it will make you hot if the weather warms up, from my experience a vest is more appropriate at this time of year because it gives you some level of warmth, but also can be opened up or unzipped.   The Eotac Style 103 concealed carry vests are very comfortable for OWB or paddle holster.   The long length will keep your firearm concealed even while moving.   The front pockets can easily hold and support your spare mags without feeling like you have lead weights pulling on you.  I can tolerate a Sig 229 in 40 S&W and comfortable carry 3 12rd magazines in the forward front pockets.

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Concealed carry advice, how many magazines?

What caliber are you comfortable with?  What kind of gun do you want to carry,  a Smith & Wesson 38 Special airweight or do you want to carry a full size Beretta 92 Brigadier.   I always tell my students that when they are choosing a firearm, they really should be realistic about what kind of threats they anticipate.   If you are carrying for your business and carrying gold or lots of cash, you may want to wear a bullet proof vest and carry a full size auto.  If you are a civillian that is just wanting to have the ability to carry and defend yourself, a 5 shot revolver may be more confortable to carry.

When I get my students to the range, I always start off with 38 Special revolvers.  I show the difference in recoil between airweight revolvers and something like a Smith & Wesson Model 19.    Just because the gun is smaller doesn’t mean that it’s easier to control, as we work our way up the chain of firearms, the next we use is a Kahr PM9.   I think it’s extremely reasonable to carry atleast 1 handgun magazine and Kahr magazines are meant for Kahr firearms.   If you are driving in a vehicle, I also suggest you keep atleast one loaded magazine in the vehicle.

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Pocket guns with firepower

Kahr firearms has made some real grounds in the CCW world.  Whenever I talk to some of my shooting buddies about what type of gun I should consider carrying it always ends up being J-Frames, Kahr and then something else.   I never really jumped on the pocket semi-auto bandwagon, but I would have to say that many of my friends have had very good experieneces with Kahr firearms.   My only real interest in buying there products would be one of the M1 Carbines from Auto-Ordnance but I’m not sure if that really counts.    The Sig 239 has turned out to be my primary small semi-auto but I have to admit that even though it fits in a pocket, it is still too heavy to carry there.

Kahr firearms come in the popular .380 caliber, 9mm, 40 S&W and the potent 45acp.  I think the idea of a pocket 45acp is a good idea, but I highly suggest you do some reasearch into how often you will need to replace recoil springs.  Many small semi-autos need more lubrication and spring maintenance and this will play a major factory in gun magazine and recoil spring reliability.  The smaller the gun, the more you will have to be concerned about limp wristing, also.   Kahr magazines are in the $30 price range, but I would seriously consider keeping atleast 3 of them for each gun you own.

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Rotate your ammo and rotate your mags

There are various stages of CCW experience, those that have made the mistakes, those that have witnessed the mistakes and those that are doomed to see both.  Although a gun owner may be observing all of the firearm safetey rules there are still many things to keep in consideration when CCW a firearm.   Even though a gun hasn’t been fired, if it is being carried it will fill up lint or the gun can become dry.  I have carried guns through out the summer months and found out that I’ve rusted out screws or pitted firearms.  Clean your CCW guns for reliability sake, but also for protection.

It is extremely important for you to rotate your carry ammo.  Many reloaders know the importance of having the proper bullet crimp to prevent bullet setback, but this is something that is inevitable going to occur if you keep closing the slide on the same bullet.  Even if you are not shooting up your ammo, rotate the ammo in your gun magazines to make sure you are not slamming the same first round.  Defensive ammo can be expensive and I realize that you aren’t going to want to shoot it all up after a couple times of cleaning  your ammo.  If you rotate just an 8rd magazine full of defensive ammo, you should be able to dissassemble and clean the gun safetly about 24 times with the same magazine.

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