What's the best self defense .45 out there? I carry a 1911

8245 Views 27 Replies 21 Participants Last post by mrose703, Apr 11, 2010

owenb01

Discussion Starter · Nov 2, 2009

I'd like to get another .45 or ballistically similar caliber gun that has the benefits of the 1911 (the trigger, the reliability, the "pointability", the relative ease of concealability/slimness) but with a higher capacity and possibly lighter weight frame. Does such a gun even exist?

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1911pimp

· #2 · Nov 2, 2009

1911

In My opinion you can't beat the 1911......my second choice would be a Browning Hi Power in 40 cal but only a older F/N Make.. plus it will fit in your 1911 holsters. I love anything from THE GREAT JOHN BROWNING.

a80ndrn8

· #3 · Nov 3, 2009

Get a high capacity 1911.

owenb01

Discussion Starter · #4 · Nov 3, 2009

a80ndrn8 said:
Get a high capacity 1911.

Yeah, but then you lose the slimness and easy of concealability that's so great with the single stack 1911's...

ullie

· #5 · Nov 3, 2009

...if you want the best combat handgun in 45 ACP ever produced IMO...i would recomend a West German Sig 220...slim...light...well balanced and absolutely reliable !

...if you feel you need a few extra rounds a CZ 97 BD is hard to beat...

... http://cz-usa.com/products/view/cz-97-bd/

...if you want something light and compact in 40 Smith & Wesson...a CZ P06 is hard to beat ! ...BTW...i do own a Sig 229 in 40 Smith & Wesson...

... http://cz-usa.com/products/view/cz-p06/

...check out the CZ line...

... http://cz-usa.com/products/by-category/handguns/

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K9GERRY

· #6 · Nov 3, 2009

I've always been a Colt fan but lately I've been carrying the Kimber Pro Carry II. It's has an aluminum frame and night sights. As for accuracy, it's dead on

I did have a few problems at first but it now runs like a champ and I carry it every day.

And as usual Ullie is right the Sig 220 is a darn good .45. Also if your looking for a 40 Smith & Wesson the Sig 2022 is a real sleeper. For around $500.00 you get a very good carry gun

in a poly frame, rails and night sights too 8) For the $$$ you really can't beat it :wink: But you better hurry, I think they are going to phase it out after completing a current large order of the 9mm model for a large South American country who's main export goes up your nose :roll:

ShootingSight

· #7 · Nov 3, 2009

If you insist on a .45, I like the 220, however I don't like the .45 in the first place.

I've done some high speed photography on a 1911 cycling, and the reality is that the case is so squat and short that it has difficulty ejecting. When you hold it by the rim, and pop it with an ejector, it tends to want to spin in place, rather than being projected to the side. In the 1911, the case will actually spin a little over 90 degrees in. the chamber, then bounce off the leading edge of the ejection port before clearing the gun. One wrong bounce, and you stovepipe.

I have not done similar photography on a 220, but assume that SIG added some improvements to a 100+ year old design.

If you do want the highest relaibility, I'd recommend a hammerless revolver. Revolvers don't typically jam, and you want the hammerless so it does not snag on your clothes.

In a defensive scenario, I don't believe you need a big ammunition supply. A 6-shooter will convince a guy he really did not want your wallet baly enough to let you take 5 more shots at him.

Art

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restoring

· #8 · Nov 3, 2009

I carry my XD 45 everywhere, I'm a pretty skinny guy, and nobody can tell I have it. 13 in the mag, 1 in the pipe.

It's a great pistol.

Flea

· #9 · Nov 3, 2009

It's just hard to beat a 1911. If you need more than 7 or 8 rounds of .45, you either better run fast 'cause what you're shootin' isn't human, or you need more practice to get better shot placement.

flascot007

· #10 · Nov 3, 2009

I really like the Colt 45, I have owned and competed with many custom and even just the standard mil spec models. I will not take that away from them. They have been around for a very long time and the caliber is one of the most efficient and reliable for knock down power without a doubt. Now that being said, If my life depended on it, which it does, and I wanted a tough as nails self defense and survival pistol, it would have to be a Glock 21 or 30. I have several of both and would grab either one way before I picked up any other. We ran (our department) so many test through the years on many models and types and the only other one I would consider is a Sig 220. But for cost, reliability and ease of repair/service. Glock is hands down the best. This is the pistol that won through the trials and is carried today by the SO.
I was so much against the idea of a plastic gun when they came out, but now, I have traded every pistol I ever owned many years ago on Glocks and have yet to find any better, even in the companies who try to mimic the idea that Glock brought to the table. The design is solid, this is why they have been trying to copy the design for many years. Ask S&W how that went.
My 2 pennies worth....

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owenb01

Discussion Starter · #11 · Nov 4, 2009

What's the trigger like on the West German 220 and the XD? I don't like Glock triggers...all "squishy" feeling----I carried a G20 for years, but never really liked it. Plus, they're so wide at the grip, the butt was always profiling like a mofo on me, it seemed.

a80ndrn8

· #12 · Nov 5, 2009

restoring said:
I carry my XD 45 everywhere, I'm a pretty skinny guy, and nobody can tell I have it. 13 in the mag, 1 in the pipe.

It's a great pistol.

Curious... how do you conceal it?

ullie

· #13 · Nov 6, 2009

owenb01 said:
What's the trigger like on the West German 220 and the XD?

...on the "West German" Sig 220...the double action pull is where it should be with a carry pistol...smooth at about 12 pounds...the single action pull is crisp and light at about 4.5 pounds...but not so light that you'll fire the gun unintentially under stress...a very important consideration...i've carried a 220 for years before i switched over to a 228...i still carry a 220 while walking in the woods...IMO...you can't beat a West German Sig 220 for a carry pistol in 45 ACP...it's light about 28 ounces "with" an empty magazine...relatively slim...very accurate...naturally pointable and utterly reliable...

lenardlex

· #14 · Nov 8, 2009

To preface I love my 2 sig 229's.

But I keep a high cap 15/16 round FNP 45 bedside. You could never conceal carry it and you need a big hand, but its a great home defender imho.

restoring

· #15 · Nov 30, 2009

a80ndrn8 said:
restoring said:

I carry my XD 45 everywhere, I'm a pretty skinny guy, and nobody can tell I have it. 13 in the mag, 1 in the pipe.

It's a great pistol.

Click to expand...

Curious... how do you conceal it?

Using an Uncle Mike's belt slide holster

jalso

· #16 · Nov 30, 2009

I have a p220 Dark Elite. She's extremely accurate. I really only have 2 complaints - I had to locktight the elevation adjustment of the rear sight to keep it from moving when firing, and every Sig 10 round mag I've got tends to come apart when dropped on a hard surface. Kind of annoying, but both were easy to correct. She's outfitted with a Houge grip and a TLR-2 laser/light, and sleeps in a Safariland 6287 holster.

Here's my last trip to the range (11/28/09). Fired 50 rounds at 50 yards using irons with Magtech 230gr target ammo:

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Clyde

· #17 · Dec 7, 2009

P220 1st choice, XD 45 2nd choice

My first choice is the SIG P220 (I own a Platimum Elite with SIG tritium gas night sights and short reset trigger). It fits me like it was made for me, and the aluminum grips are really excellent. You can get 10 round mags for it, although they do stick out past the mag well if you do....

For high capacity, I'd pick an XD45 Tactical (long slide) with night sights. I own one of those, and it is a great self-defense gun and range weapon.

I am anxiously awaiting the new XDM-45 - that, with a long slide...drool....

hattaresguy

· #18 · Dec 10, 2009

I'm thinking about getting this Kimber for my first pistol. I like the 1911 and I havn't heard anything bad about Kimber.

http://www.kimberamerica.com/products/p ... _Entry_II/

K9GERRY

· #19 · Dec 10, 2009

hatteresguy, that is a nice pistol but a lot of weight for a concealed carry gun. As for Kimber, I had to send my Carry Pro II back twice to Kimber to work out few failure to go in to battery. Turned out the slide was not to spec. Now it's a nice shooting little piece

So I still recommend them.

Ullie is right though, ( what a shock :wink: ) the older P220 are great find and good carry. Something changed when Sig switched to the external ejector, because the trigger and balance of the older Sig just seems right. Not knocking thier current pistols but I like the feel of the older Sigs

I just picked up a P228 and what a tac driver and lighter than the P229( and yes I know I am comparing 9mm to 45 acp)

Good Luck

and

Keep us posted on your puchase

one50npump

· #20 · Dec 19, 2009

I carry my P245.. Its actually more accurate than my P220.

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