Para Ordnance Pistols
- Thread starter jakester
- Start date
I have a steel P14-45 which has never malfunctioned in 2500 rounds through 5 hi-cap magazines. Mostly 230gr Golden Saber. Very accurate. I put Hogue rubber grips on mine and it feels great. They are production guns, so you will hear complaints...as with any production gun model. But fortunately mine has been absolutely perfect. adk
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I have a 16-40 LDA and a P14-45. Both are tight, smooth running pistols. Both can do better than I can do. My friend Mike just added a P14-45 to his collection after finding his Glock lacked perfection. (It was a good pistol, he just couldn't shoot it as well as my 14-45) Ambi safety, extended slide release, night sights and 2 10rd mags for $525. Para's are good deals for the money, new or used.
Sight Replacement
I contacted ParaOrdnance about the difference in sights between the base and Limited models. He said the location is diferent by only .010". Did the Novaks work in the stock dovetails? I agree, the stock rear sight has a bit too much forward slope. I have been looking at a Springfield Armory Trophy Match in comparison to the Para P16-40. I like the Novaks!
I contacted ParaOrdnance about the difference in sights between the base and Limited models. He said the location is diferent by only .010". Did the Novaks work in the stock dovetails? I agree, the stock rear sight has a bit too much forward slope. I have been looking at a Springfield Armory Trophy Match in comparison to the Para P16-40. I like the Novaks!
Paras
I have a PO P-14 .45 and a P-16 .40. Both have had several mods to upgrade them. Both are very accurate, completely reliable and I am well pleased with them. I have not tried any of the PO LDA guns. I like the little P-10 .45 as for looks and it looks like it would be a great carry gun. However, handling them proves that they are just too small for my hands. Can't get a good grip on the little fat, short handle. Oh, well. I tried.
I have a PO P-14 .45 and a P-16 .40. Both have had several mods to upgrade them. Both are very accurate, completely reliable and I am well pleased with them. I have not tried any of the PO LDA guns. I like the little P-10 .45 as for looks and it looks like it would be a great carry gun. However, handling them proves that they are just too small for my hands. Can't get a good grip on the little fat, short handle. Oh, well. I tried.
I have a P-13 and absolutly love it. Its a straight forward gun not what you looking for but as far as my opinion of their guns they make a good pistol. I am suprised they are not more popular.How seriously are you planning on competing? If you're going to shoot 1000-2000 rounds a year, a Para will probably be okay. If you're going to shoot any more than 7000-8000 rounds a year, you will become your gunsmith's best buddy.
Simply, Para's do not hold up under high volume shooting and by the time you get to 20,000 rounds you'll have spend as much in gun repairs and upgrades that you could have bought an STI or SV and gotten it over with. Been there, done that. Six or eight guys at my club also been there, done that.
If you want to compete a lot and have the money, buy an STI or SV or even a gun from EGW or other custom shop, otherwise I recommend getting a good single stack and shooting Limited 10. Same hardware rules except you don't have to deal with the expense of high cap mags and you compete against other 10 round capacity limited guns.
Simply, Para's do not hold up under high volume shooting and by the time you get to 20,000 rounds you'll have spend as much in gun repairs and upgrades that you could have bought an STI or SV and gotten it over with. Been there, done that. Six or eight guys at my club also been there, done that.
If you want to compete a lot and have the money, buy an STI or SV or even a gun from EGW or other custom shop, otherwise I recommend getting a good single stack and shooting Limited 10. Same hardware rules except you don't have to deal with the expense of high cap mags and you compete against other 10 round capacity limited guns.
CastleBravo
New member
Be advised that Para-Ordinance also produces some incredible LEMONS... warping frames, guns that won't feed 230gr FMJ, etc. I had one that I had to give up on and sell for scrap.
I got a P-1640 LDA LTD about 9 months ago and I love to shoot it. The LDA trigger is very easy to shoot straight and very forgiving. The gun is extremely accurate. I have about 1500 rounds through it and I shoot it every week.
That said, I have read a lot of horror stories about parts breaking. My only complaint on mine was I had to do some serious polishing on the feed ramp and barrel to fix the FTF jams. Also, finish quality is not good for such a high-end gun. Lot's of scratches and dings, sharp edges all over the slide.
That said, I have read a lot of horror stories about parts breaking. My only complaint on mine was I had to do some serious polishing on the feed ramp and barrel to fix the FTF jams. Also, finish quality is not good for such a high-end gun. Lot's of scratches and dings, sharp edges all over the slide.
Response to Bountyh
Bounty,
Many of my fellow competitor in the local IPSC club shoot 40S&W and claim that handloading the 40S&W "long" in a 1911 style pistol improves feed reliability. One shooter stated that his bullets are almost 10mm in OAL to feed well. From my understanding, the 1911 was designed around the 45acp and 38 super cartridges that are longer than the 40S&W. Hence, why the 10mm feeds well in 1911's. S&W developed their 40cal round to fit into thier 9mm based pistols. If you handload, a little shallower bullet seat. How much?????? Consult some of your local experters who reload 40S&W. I have heard some horror stories about the 40S&W round exploding, and have stuck with 45acp to date (low pressure round).
Bounty,
Many of my fellow competitor in the local IPSC club shoot 40S&W and claim that handloading the 40S&W "long" in a 1911 style pistol improves feed reliability. One shooter stated that his bullets are almost 10mm in OAL to feed well. From my understanding, the 1911 was designed around the 45acp and 38 super cartridges that are longer than the 40S&W. Hence, why the 10mm feeds well in 1911's. S&W developed their 40cal round to fit into thier 9mm based pistols. If you handload, a little shallower bullet seat. How much?????? Consult some of your local experters who reload 40S&W. I have heard some horror stories about the 40S&W round exploding, and have stuck with 45acp to date (low pressure round).
What I find interesting, is that everytime someone posts about Para's, the same 3 or 4 "experts" pipe in about how bad they are. So...lemme see, 30 good reports over time, and the same 3 guys bad reports 30 times. Still adds up to 30 against 3 in my books.
Buy what you want and don't let the armchair experts sway your decisions.
Thats my 2 cents for a change.
Buy what you want and don't let the armchair experts sway your decisions.
Thats my 2 cents for a change.
killer45auto
New member
Ive owned 3 different Para`s over the years ,still have the P-13 after 20,000 plus rounds the only parts breakage on this gun has been a barrel bushing and a ejector,both pieces are cheap and easy to have replaced by a local gunsmith.The gun is just as accurate as the day i bought it and just keeps on ticking.I can say i have only had a jam with this gun when i first bought it , I had to tweak the mag lips slightly .The 2 parts that did break on this 1 gun are both pieces that would normally fail after that many rounds anyway.I happen to put a lot of rounds through my guns and expect breakage sooner or later,I replaced both parts with ones from wilson`s and have not looked back!
I love my Para p14 limited only 2 complaints. Poor trigger pull for an enhanced gun (breaks at 6 pounds) and the stainless sucks it rusted in my gunsafe. I heard of some other para's doing this. I almost thought they sold me a blue one that forgot to blue. It rust if you even mention water around it.
PAT
PAT
Jakester: all I have shot in my 1640 is some 180 grain FMJ (flat point) reloads from Home Ammo Direct and brand new factory 180 grain FMJ FP (sellier and bellott). Both shoot exactly the same. I had a lot of FTF's where the bullet was almost in, hung on the ramp top with the slug against the roof of the throat.
I'm not knowledgeable on lenths and loading guidelines, but I did see fine rotary cut lines in the throat from milling. When I smoothed those out and rounded over the top of the ramp a bit, problem went away. Shoots pretty reliably now.
BTW: the grooves in my barrel look like they were cut with a chain saw. I think Para needs to spend more time smoothing and less time dropping parts on the floor.
I'm not knowledgeable on lenths and loading guidelines, but I did see fine rotary cut lines in the throat from milling. When I smoothed those out and rounded over the top of the ramp a bit, problem went away. Shoots pretty reliably now.
BTW: the grooves in my barrel look like they were cut with a chain saw. I think Para needs to spend more time smoothing and less time dropping parts on the floor.
Jakester: you brought up the issue of .40SW rounds exploding: truth, but rare and usually there is a "stupid" factor involved. The reloader I buy from used to run a warning on his web site about putting .40SW reloads in unsupported barrels (you take your chances). Glocks were the main culprit, but I believ that has been fixed now (?) Anyway, yes you can still get .40's to blow... like when the reload guy tried to make major PF with some brass fired a couple of times before. One came apart in his gun and wiped it out. I think sensible guidelines should apply: if you are loading up for major PF, use new brass or not fired more than once worst case. Standard load levels with supported barrels should be no problem at all.