New Guns

Old CW4

Old CW4

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Sep 8, 2006
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Got four new firearms this past six weeks or so and I'm quite pleased with all of them. They are:
1. HK standard 45, now the love of my life, and it's moved my PT 1911 and Colt National Match to second and third place as my preferred pistols. IMO the Germans took a near perfect pistol, the 1911, and vastly improved on it. Also, the HK has rechargeable night sights which are a really nice feature and they work like a charm. One minute of bright light equals two to three hours of glowing night sights. I also like the 10 round mags. Slick.
2. Taurus 1-45, a little seven round capacity 45 pistol that's easy to conceal, a great shooter, and lots of firepower in a small package.
3. S&W Model 610 revolver. This is a big frame honker with a 6.5 inch barrel. Shoots 40 or 10mm using full moon clips and I got a bunch of those extra when I bought the gun. Can't wait to experiment with 'warm' loads for both cartridges. The S&W is beefy enough to take cannon rounds.
4. Marlin 1895 CB model in 45-70 with the 26 inch barrel. Man! Marlin still provides a fine rifle with real walnut stock and forend. I had this same rifle with the 22 inch barrel a few years back and, like a damned fool, sold it. This one I'll keep. I shot a customers CB a while back using my standard 45-70 loads of a 405 grain half jacket bullet and 51 grains of IMR 4320. I was surprised by the increased recoil, and corresponding increased velocity, provided by the additional four inches. I haven't shot this one yet but will as soon as our current cold spell breaks.

BTW, I use the same 45-70 loads in a pair of BFR five shot revolvers I've had for years. They chrono 1500 plus from the revolvers so should do near 1800-1900 from the rifle. We shall see. God! I love guns!

Happy New Year to All !!!
 
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I'm sorry, did you say .45-70 REVOLVER????? :eek::eek:

Nice crop of boomsticks you have there, where are the pics? I'll have to look into that HK, but I loves me some classic 1911 and can't imagine it being upstaged by any newfangled shennanigans.
 
I'm assuming by "HK standard 45" you mean the USP.

Eitherway, congrats! I like the .45-70 Marlins, also. A confidence round in a good rifle for when things have to be stopped, I feel.
 
orthogonal1 said:
I'm assuming by "HK standard 45" you mean the USP.
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I wonder if he's talking about the new HK-45 built with input from Larry Vicker's for the on again, of again, military trials to augment the Beretta M-9.

I went with the FN FNP-45 pistol ( http://www.fnhusa.com/le/products/firearms/model.asp?fid=FNF020&gid=FNG001&mid=FNM0123 ) because I wanted "cocked and locked" and the FN was several hundered dollars cheaper. The HK-45 is a great pistol too (along with the 9mm HK P-30L in 9mm) for this Glock'aholic.
 
No, not the USP. This one is termed the 'standard 45' and uses 10 round mags. I've shot 45s in competition for 50 plus years, worked on thousands as a gunsmith, and have packed one for the last 15 years as a LEO. This HK 45, far and away, is the best ever! Cost over $900 dealer but worth every penny.
 
Re 45-70 revolvers. Yes, I have a consecutively numbers pair of 10 inch barrel, 5 shot, 45-70 BFR SA revolvers. They say it means "Biggest, Finest Revolver" but we know better, don't we? These are real 'hoglegs' in every sense of the word and you need a fairly large hand to fire them. After years of stupidity I finally learned to listen when that little voice in my head says, 'hey, fool, it's time to stop this for a while.' That's the situation with the BFRs. I'm a big guy and quite strong but after about 15 rounds from one of the BFRs, that voice speaks so I lay it or them down and shoot something pussycat like a 44 mag. Kid you not, a 44 mag feels like a 38 spcl after the BFRs with full up 45-70 loads. The energy math for the BFRs computes out to about 3.7 times a 44 mag. Nevertheless, I can shoot them accurately. I've been on local tv a time or two demostrating what they'll do to water filled plastic buckets at a measured 500 yards. It is a sight to behold when the buckets explode. On a good day, I can usually pop three out of five and that's standing, two handed grip, and standard sights. BTW, the recoil moves me back a foot or two.
 
I didn't understand the question re 'gritty pull.' Did you mean the HK? If so, it is smooth as silk, 10 lb on the nose for DA and 3.5 for SA. A couple of smart things the Germans did is one, rather than a fitted barrel-bushing, the HK has a rubber O ring a quarter inch or so behind the muzzle which 'homes' the barrel. Second is a high impact non metal bushing over the guide rod and spring so it takes the impact on recoil rather than metal to metal. What really surprised me was the accuracty. From a rest, you can literally shoot your bullet holes or draw pictures on the target if you want to. The pistol is rated for standard, plus P, and plus P plus. They do tell you to check the barrel O ring after 5000 rounds or so of heavy loads. Their were extra O rings included in the box and more cost 20 cents each. The recoil bushing are 75 cents. Gee. The first time I shot the thing, I put about 300 rounds of assorted ammo through it, commercial and handloads, 180 to 230 grain, HP, roundnose, and semi wads, also light to damned stout. It ate everything put to it with no stovepipes, failures to feed, or anything else. I feel real comfy carrying it now on duty. The only tiny bitch I have is the effort required to load a full mag, it do take a push to seat. Oh, BTW, the mag releases are two hinged sections at the very rear of the trigger guard. You can drop the mag with your thumb or trigger finger. Handy.
 
Orthogonal1: Yes! And, hands down, the best pistol I have acquired in 60 plus years of shooting handguns--in the military, as a LEO, and for competition, hunting, and just plain fun. As a long time gunsmith, I gnash my teeth that I didn't think of something as simple and effective as an O ring for barrel 'homing.' However, I didn't invent the wheel either. I take my hat off to the Germans on this one. Some of their devices are over engineered but this HK isn't, it's just simple, smart, and functional. You know, I may just try the O ring trick on the next lower priced 1911 clone I get my hands on that is really loose in the bushing area. So far, I can't find or think of a thing on the HK I'd try to 'improve on.'
 
Holygoat, I do not have a U tube link. My stunts were on Channel 7, Albuquerque, several years back. I am now, as far as I know, the oldest LEO in the state and I serve for free with my local sheriff's dept as a detective and also ride patrol on occasion. One of my sidelines with the dept is teaching long range shooting with handguns. I'm talking out to 200-300 yards with the usual LEO sidearm. Reason? Being able to hit or at least keep a nut's head down at range can save your rump when you've parked at a rural house gate and are walking 100 yards or more to the house door, a barn, or whatever. It's a bad situation if you're sniped at by someone with a rifle or whatever. Being able to return accurate fire gives you the chance of making it to cover or back to your vehicle for your own long gun. I always have a tight pucker factor in this situation. You never know what's in a more remote rural property, drug lab, illegal smuggling, or whatever, and some of those folks would as soon shoot you as look at you.
 
Just ordered a FN-H FNP45USG in dark earth. Also, last week I purchased a Mossberg 590A1 SP 12 Gauge and about a month ago purchased a rUGER gp-100 .357. In the last 4 months, add a DPMS LR-308B and a Remington 700 Tactical .308.
 
Old CW4 said:
IMO the Germans took a near perfect pistol, the 1911, and vastly improved on it.
Click to expand...

I don't own any firearms, and all I know about them is what I've read and heard from friends who do. I'm curious about what HK did to improve on the .45 ACP? (Other than the sights, and the increased mag capacity.)
 
m_calingo said:
I don't own any firearms, and all I know about them is what I've read and heard from friends who do. I'm curious about what HK did to improve on the .45 ACP? (Other than the sights, and the increased mag capacity.)
Click to expand...

The ergonomic grips get the most attention but, they also got rid of the hard blocki'ness of the USP. There are a lot of technical refinements on the inside that aren't directly visible. Trigger pulls are pretty nice for a stock pistol too.

I opted for an FN USG 45ACP for magazine capacity and the grip which felt very natural to me. These pistols also have a great trigger.
 
Sid Post, Please read my previous comments in this thread. A big improvement was the use of a rubber O ring rather than a tedious and expensively fitted bushing over the barrel. Another is the built in recoil buffer, an aftermarket add on for 1911s. Let's see, yeah, the clever/easy mag release and the rechargeable night sights are a couple more.
 
Congrats on the new guns.

Once I recover from the financial side of Christmas, I am looking to get a S&W 610. Let us all know how you like it once you get to shoot it. I bet it's fun with full power 10mm and a pussycat with typical .40 loads.

I have a Marlin Guide Gun in 45-70 and I LOVE it. Hot loads will get your attention. Last time we were shooting hot loads (Buffalo Bore), the other shooters near us at the range all stopped and watched. A female friend that will shoot anything (and shoot it well) was shooting it and I think everyone was amazed seeing all 100lbs of her shoot that with a big grin on her face. She also loves to shoot my Alaskan in .454. The Alaskan has the same effect on people at the pistol range. We are both recoil junkies but the 45-70 revolvers? I would love to try it but I'm not sure I would empty a cylinder of five rounds.:eek:
 
Old CW4 said:
Sid Post, Please read my previous comments in this thread. A big improvement was the use of a rubber O ring rather than a tedious and expensively fitted bushing over the barrel. Another is the built in recoil buffer, an aftermarket add on for 1911s. Let's see, yeah, the clever/easy mag release and the rechargeable night sights are a couple more.
Click to expand...

For a non-gun owner, the differences in the 1911 vs. HK 45 were summarized. Does he/she really care about a fitted barrel bushing vs. O-ring and the other stuff? Gross visual appearance and feel in the hand are what will be noticed, not magazine release changes for example.
 
How's the gap between mag and lower portion of the grip? Does it pinch on recoil?
Curious, cause that's why I got rid of the Glock compact in .45 - it had a pinching effect on my finger, which I didn't notice on the rental that led me to buying it in the first place...
Thanks!
 
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