Pistols!

M

Mosin-Marauder

New member
Hello Everyone. Before I get into anything. Just want to say I only own one handgun, a Rohm .22 Short Caliber Revolver, I don't really enjoy it and as I've said, I want to get into Pistols. I don't know much about handguns. I know how to clean and dissemble my Revolver, but I never shoot it due to Failure to fires. Christmas is coming up (as well as my birthday) and I've been combing through what I want, and since I have the only two rifles I need now, I've decided I've wanted a Handgun. Now, I know I can't "technically" own one, but my dad can purchase it/ transfer it to me when I reach the appropriate age. So, lets get into what would be a good choice.

I'd like to have a GI Model 1911. I'm a Jr. C&R Nut, and they've always appealed to me. Probably going to catch a lot of flak for saying I want a 1911, but whatever. How much do these run now days? I imagine they'd be pretty expensive, so if that isn't an option, I guess I'd get a new-production 1911. .45 ACP of course. Don't want a rimfire. :P

So, question time!

Is this a good choice? What is a good New-Production 1911 if the GI model doesn't work out?
Is there anything I should know about owning a 1911? Disassembly, Cleaning, Safety, etc.
What range/ how would I practice? I figured paper targets but is 25 yards a good range to practice?
Anything I should know about owning a handgun in general?
Anything else you fine folks think I should know?

Thanks, sorry for asking so many questions. Just interested.
 
An authentic gi 1911 will be pretty costly. You can do well with many new production replicas. Rock island armory, para ordnance and Springfield are all affordable and very fine firearms. They are in order from least to most expensive.

The 1911 is a great starter. You can load some very soft shooting target loads to cut your teeth on. You will want to start close 7-10 yards and work out to 25 yards. Plenty of videos on how to disassemble, once you've done it a couple of times it's very easier, as is usually the case for any military firearms.

With respect to safety, the usual rules apply. It's no more or less dangerous then anything else. It has a grip safety and a thumb safety. The grip safety is depressed when the gun is held. Thumb safety is usually flicked off by the thumb when preparing to fire.

Can be a very accurate firearm. A good choice IMO.
 
An Auto-Ordinance or any of the many names it's sold under is probably the least expensive good 1911 out there. I would skip the 1911, or buy along with it, a good name brand .22. Go check out some at the store and get back to us on some of your likes.
 
There's a Rock Island 1911 at my LGS. They're pretty good? The store owner (or somebody) told me some bad things about them. They looked like very nice guns.
 
new manufactured M1911A1

I would definitely buy one of the new made M1911A1's

the old ones are more for collecting, get a new one if you plan on using it regularly, the modern steels are more durable than the originals
 
Mosin, the RIA 1911s are about as good as it will get for an inexpensive 1911. That was my first pistol and I never had a failure with it. I shot the heck out of it too. It was back when .45acp WWB was 20 bucks for 100 rounds. 9mm back then was 12 bucks for 100. I miss those days.

At any rate, the RIA is good to go. They've gone up in price over the years. I got mine for 300 bucks at the LGS, now I see they're 400+ on Gunbroker (meaning they'll be near 500 at the LGS).

On a side note, since you mentioned being a fan of JMB (I am myself... no one else has a gun design, read M2 machinegun, that is still in use by the military after 100 years). Maybe a Turkish high power clone if money is an issue? I've seen them for right at 300. I wouldn't be afraid of a high power clone from Turkey. First off, the HP has been around a while and it's pretty much settled science so it's not hard to make a copy of one. Second off, the Turks make pretty decent copies. They aren't the prettiest, but they are reliable and accurate enough that you won't notice a difference.
 
I thought 1911's were about as American as you could get?
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Ok,let's have a simple analogy,the Singer sewing machine company,they by the way built a few of those.When you go to your department store and buy a Singer sewing machine,do you think you're buying American?
 
Ok,let's have a simple analogy,the Singer sewing machine company,they by the way built a few of those.When you go to your department store and buy a Singer sewing machine,do you think you're buying American?
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I've never bought a sewing machine.
 
hello mosin, glad to see you are interested in handguns. good choice offering the understanding of law right upfront, a lot of threads started by younger members here degenerate when they bring up string purchases or under aged possession. glad to see we can pick right up from the start instead of arguing over who can and cannot and what is legal and what is not.

ok first off, sorry but US issued 1911s are very hard to find and when you do they cost several hundred, well beyond most shooter's price range. there are dozens of current production 1911s, rock island armory(RIA) and citadel are two budget brands(built by armscor corp) usually found in the $450 range for their basic 45 caliber models are pretty close to the bottom of the barrel for quality, but still workable. STI is another company that does a lot of budget stuff, but are not held in high regard over at 1911addicts.com. a couple of midrange $650-800 models can be had from companies like Ruger and remington(I've been secretly lusting over a Ruger SR1911 for years). Springfield and colt are very well respected for their 1911s. Kimber used to be impeccable but their quality has really slipped in recent years.

Rock River Armory has been teasing the release of a plastic framed 1911 for almost 2 years now but so far as I know they are still "coming soon".

personally, I think you may need something smaller than 45 right now. A 9mm would be a good starter caliber, little recoil and and still a good step up from 22lr. you can get 1911s in 9mm. RIA has a 1911 which comes with both a 9mm and 22TCM(essentially a 9mm necked down to 22 caliber) barrel so it's like having 2 guns in one.

EDIT: a lot of companies outsource parts or complete production.
some of the 1911s or parts made by springfield come from Brazil.
Armscors 1911 production comes from the Philippines.
some of STIs 1911s are also from Philippines.
just gotta do some research to know what is what.
personally, my absolute favorite pistol model ever, the springfield XDM is made by HS Product in Croatia, just because it's not US made does not mean it's not good. or not benefiting US workers or employees, springfield still makes a profit and pays their employees with that profit even though Croatian workers built the gun.
 
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Going by what you write you never bought an M1911 either.
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Im, sorry, Wasn't trying to sound like a know-it-all. I haven't bought any gun, technically. Just provided the funds.

hello mosin, glad to see you are interested in handguns. good choice offering the understanding of law right upfront, a lot of threads started by younger members here degenerate when they bring up string purchases or under aged possession. glad to see we can pick right up from the start instead of arguing over who can and cannot and what is legal and what is not.

ok first off, sorry but US issued 1911s are very hard to find and when you do they cost several hundred, well beyond most shooter's price range. there are dozens of current production 1911s, rock island armory(RIA) and citadel are two budget brands(built by armscor corp) usually found in the $450 range for their basic 45 caliber models are pretty close to the bottom of the barrel for quality, but still workable. STI is another company that does a lot of budget stuff, but are not held in high regard over at 1911addicts.com. a couple of midrange $650-800 models can be had from companies like Ruger and remington(I've been secretly lusting over a Ruger SR1911 for years). Springfield and colt are very well respected for their 1911s. Kimber used to be impeccable but their quality has really slipped in recent years.

Rock River Armory has been teasing the release of a plastic framed 1911 for almost 2 years now but so far as I know they are still "coming soon".

personally, I think you may need something smaller than 45 right now. A 9mm would be a good starter caliber, little recoil and and still a good step up from 22lr. you can get 1911s in 9mm. RIA has a 1911 which comes with both a 9mm and 22TCM(essentially a 9mm necked down to 22 caliber) barrel so it's like having 2 guns in one.

EDIT: a lot of companies outsource parts or complete production.
some of the 1911s or parts made by springfield come from Brazil.
Armscors 1911 production comes from the Philippines.
some of STIs 1911s are also from Philippines.
just gotta do some research to know what is what.
personally, my absolute favorite pistol model ever, the springfield XDM is made by HS Product in Croatia, just because it's not US made does not mean it's not good. or not benefiting US workers or employees, springfield still makes a profit and pays their employees with that profit even though Croatian workers built the gun.
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Hello, tahunua. Thanks for your help and advice. Say if I didn't get a 1911 right now, would this be an adequate (and affordable) gun to start off with?
http://www.aimsurplus.com/product.aspx?groupid=899&name=Hungarian+FEG+AP-MBP+.32+Auto+Pistol
I like the fact that they're in a light caliber and that they seem pretty well built. For $200 as long as they work, doesn't seem like a bad choice. I could reload for it too. Which would be nice. That'd actually be cheap enough I could buy it(my dad buy it) with the money i have saved up from work. Anyway, thanks again.
 
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Excellent advice... buy nothing but American. You should definitely get a Lorcin, hi-point, jennings, or Kel-Tec over a CZ, Sig, H&K, Beretta, Walther, Jericho, virtually any hi-power ever made, or any number of other evil foreign firearms. Oh yeah, we're talking about 1911's. You should definitely go for the American-made Kimber. No problems at all there.

Ok, to be fair there are plenty of quality American-made guns. I did pick and choose a little, but I think the point remains. American made doesn't automatically equal quality, while foreign doesn't automatically equal junk. The RIA 1911 is plenty serviceable and every bit the functional equal of a Springfield GI. Might not be quite as well finished, but that's what the price is for. If you feel like you can ask your folks for a 600-700 dollar pistol then go ahead. If you think a 400 dollar pistol may happen while a 600 dollar one won't, then the RIA will serve you well.

As for needing something smaller than the .45... a .45 out of a full-sized 1911 makes virtually no more recoil than a 9mm out of a Glock 19. .45 is more expensive, but if I recall from other posts the OP reloads.
 
I have no experience with FEGs, but 32 auto is fairly hard to find and not very cheap as far as handgun ammo goes. with guns like the K31 the relatively high cost of ammo is offset by a slow rate of fire. a person could get a good day of shooting in for about $20, but in semi auto handguns, it is really easy to go through 50 rounds in a few minutes. as 32ACP isn't a very popular cartridge it can be hard to find enough to keep it fed and the price difference between it and something like 9mm, though may seem slight(about 10 cents a round on average) can really add up. personally, if I was going to go for a cheap, budget starter gun, I might try something like a Ruger SR9 E(economy)
3340.jpg

the 9E could be found for around $300 if you shop around. I own the SR9 compact for concealed carry and love it, I was shooting small blocks of firewood with it at 75 yards last weekend, was hitting with about 40% reliability.
 
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I haven't bought any gun, technically.
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It's ok man,hang in there you'll be fine.
And when your time comes and you can buy your own pistol give a little thought to the guys who built it and if you think that Turkish 1911's are what you want
then by all means this here is a free country.
 
Decisions, Decisions! :D

I Do like Ruger. That is a good gun to consider.
However, with the FEG. My llocal gun store has .32 ACP most b of the time ( I think) and if not, I can start reloading get for it or order it online (AIM has b it pretty cheap). If I do decide to get that gun.
Walmart seems to always have an excess of 9mm, .45 Auto, .40 S&W, .38 Special, and others, so I'll have to do a bit ( a lot) of thinking.
 
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Mosin, I would maybe think about a Tokarev as opposed to that FEG. Still a cheap gun, still a piece of history, far better caliber (.32acp isn't known for being a show-stopper), plus you can still find surplus for 30 cents a round or so. It used to be dirt cheap, like 15 cents a round, but those days are gone.

Here's a link to one that looks to be in decent shape.

http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.aspx?Item=435942101

Of course there are many other options out there. What's the price range? Also, +1 to the Ruger SR9. Ruger still proves that you can provide an inexpensive, quality (most of the time), American made gun to the public. I like Rugers... especially their revolvers.
 
If I* were buying it (keyword I) it would be a maximum of about 200 dollars. Now if it were a Christmas Present, I'd say about $6-700 (maybe more, maybe less) and a couple boxes of ammo would be about it.

Edit, WOW. That Tokarev looks beautiful. I probably couldn't get that one, but I bet I could find one locally or have one ordered. SO. MANY. OPTIONS. :D

Edit Edited, on the 9E, that may be a very viable choice. Commonly available round and it's very inexpensive. The "only one mag" thing isn't really a bad thing going for me, I'm not going to be needing another mag I don't think, maybe that can be another gift, a spare mag. For $500 I could get the 9E, a spare mag, some ammo, reloading equipment, and bullets all in one go. Thanks for telling me about this gun, tahunua. I really like the idea of owning one of these.
 
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I wish I got $600 dollar christmas presents:D my family is cheap.

personally, if your budget is that high I would recommend a Springfield XDM but I would still stick with something low budget for a first gun, just so that you can learn the ropes. FEGs, Tokarevs... they were built for function, they go bang and hold bullets, ergonomics and nice triggers were not really considerations taken when designing them, much like the mosin nagant.

something modern would likely be a good starting point but really, Sigs, Springfields, they are all great guns, but unless a person has been shooting long enough to know what they like and don't like, a high end gun may not be necessary. for now I will give you the best advice you can give a new handgun shooter.

go to a store that will let you pick up guns and try them out, if you're near an indoor shooting range, renting is a HUGE advantage in picking a first handgun. handle a number of different guns, pay attention to how the triggers feel, how the grips feel in your hand, how they are balanced, even how the sights look to you. the gun that feels like an extension of your arm is the gun you need.

EDIT: don't mention it, I have a knack for giving people bad ideas!:D
 
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