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Thinking real hard about a Browning


gnatshooter

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Friends,

 

I'm thinking real hard about investing in a Browning 1911-22 for concealed carry. I used to have a Ruger P95-DC, a decock-only, which I liked quite a bit.

 

One thing I like about the Browning is that the safety won't engage unless the hammer is back, so basically, I can forget about the lever safety. I always pulled the hammer first with the P95, so no biggie. The double-action feature was long, slow, hard, and with my long fingers, a real pain to shoot that way.

 

My concern is the grip safety. Is that thing gonna jam me up if I don't grip it right? Will it snag if I'm wearing a glove? Can I pull the hammer without my hand on the grip safety?

 

This would be my carry pistol and the less I have to think about when I don't want to think too hard, the better it will be.

 

Do you guys have any thoughts on this? I'm saving my pennies for a carry piece.

 

You can find more info on Browning's 1911-22 at:

http://bit.ly/OfLl2p

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For the .22LR, I'm not sure on operations, since it's the 22 - some 22 replicas are weird, with functioning differences that their bigger brothers don't have. 

 

On the 1911, you don't have to have your grip safety engaged to pull the hammer back, and I haven't had any issues with grip safety pressure and engagement, when you grip it.  Nor grip safety snagging.

 

Not sure on the 22 version, man.  <dontknow>

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I have carried a 1911 on and off duty for the last decade and I rarely even consider or notice the grip safety.   There are rare instances when doing transition drills with thicker gloves (cold weather and Fast Rope) that you may have to repositition  your grip slightly to properly engage slightly, but again, it is rare. 

Edited by StainTrain
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Yeah, I swear by them.  If you don't have a positive grip on the pistol, it's not going to fire a round.  There's no way it'll go off accidentally unless you grip it like you should be when shooting.  Throw it on the ground, whatever.  It won't AD on it's own, with a grip safety. 

 

I love 1911s so much that I looked for 1911-like features when Jon (that A$shole) talking me into a plastic pistol.  I went with a Springfield XD LE model because the damn thing was almost a 1911.  Grip safety plus thumb safety (thumb safety only comes on the LE model in the XD line). 

 

Once you use a grip safety, you'll love a grip safety.  <thumbsup>

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I'v got the Browning 1911-22.   I'v had it several years ,now.   I USED to carry it as a back-up to my Kimber ultra carry.

   Had to put a sheep down, one cold winter night,  Gun went "bloop"  The only way I knew the slug had exited the bbl was to blow through the bbl.   To dark to see.

   Thats the LAST time I carried it.

  A gun only gets ONE chance to let me down!

 

 

    Respectfully

   Terry

Edited by Tripledeuce
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Gave our daughter a Browning 1911-22, not long after they first came out.

 

The inner function is identical except for the magazine disconnect safety (a protrusion off the magazine release blocking the trigger without the mag) and the barrel is blowback…even though field stripping is identical to the full-size 1911.

 

For half that price you could get a Llama in .32 or .380 and have a little more oomph.  Better yet, you could have one of many newer and reliable 9mm pocket pistols on the market, made in the good ol' USA.

 

Carrying any 1911 design in Condition 2 (round chambered, safety off) is a recipe for disaster IMO.  They were made to be carried Cocked & Locked.  Carried my Springer like that for nearly a decade.

 

I've been carrying striker-fired pistols for the past 8 years, no active safeties.  Point-N-BAM interface…much nicer.

 

Looked at dude's Kahr CW40 today.  About the same size as the 1911-22, twice the weight, ten times the punch.  They make a 9mm version also.  Still a couple of hundred less than the 1911-22.

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Friends,

 

I

My concern is the grip safety. Is that thing gonna jam me up if I don't grip it right? Will it snag if I'm wearing a glove? Can I pull the hammer without my hand on the grip safety?

 

This would be my carry pistol and the less I have to think about when I don't want to think too hard, the better it will be.

 

Do you guys have any thoughts on this? I'm saving my pennies for a carry piece.

 

I run .22s just for range-work warmups, before moving on to the expensive ammo pistols. I'd maybe carry a .22 WMR for CC with the Kel-Tec PMR 30, but those are hard to find in a reliable condition so far... 

 

Save up a few more pennies and grab a Glock: G36 is their single stack .45, the G30 is a double-stack .45 which also utilizes the larger cap. G21 mags, or the best of both worlds in the G30s-as slim as the 36. Generally you can find them used on Armslist in the 450-525 range.

 

If the grip safety is a hang up for ya, they can be disconnected, to be a non-factor... 

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And in another breath Ayoob has said "It doesn't matter what modifications have been made to the firearm.  If a person is justified to use lethal force they are justified to use lethal force."

 

More than one person that has worked with him has said he is just a writer trying to make deadline.

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I gotta say, I agree with him on both points. I'm not going to lay down and die if the only thing available for my defense is a speargun. On the other hand, I understand that a prosecutor will do everything in his power to put me under the federal penitentiary, and having your carry piece on display complete with tactical light, laser, scary muzzle brake, bayonet, and big f'in 30rd mag inserted, might not quite win hearts & minds in the jury. In their proper context, both statements make perfect sense.

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My concern is the grip safety. Is that thing gonna jam me up if I don't grip it right? Will it snag if I'm wearing a glove? Can I pull the hammer without my hand on the grip safety?

 

This would be my carry pistol and the less I have to think about when I don't want to think too hard, the better it will be.

 

 

You should borrow a 1911-style from a friend or acquaintance and test those factors yourself. I like the way you think in terms of simplicity of operation, it's why I elected the 1911 type as my own carry piece. In the heat of the moment, I only need to conduct 1 action to take my weapon from full safe to ready for firing. It means less time spent on conscious thought in the preparation to fire, and more time to spend focusing on how best to employ your weapon. Just my $.02 brother.  <thumbsup>

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Okay so I thought real hard and considered the comments here, and got a Browning 1911-22.

 

The seller told me the only safe way to carry it was 'cocked and locked', i.e., the hammer back and the safety on. According to him, when the hammer is down, it rests directly on the pin, and if the pistol is dropped and it lands on the hammer, the pistol will fire.

 

According to the owner's manual, the only safe way to carry the pistol is with the hammer down. It explains that the hammer will be resting against the pin, but that the pin will not be touching the rim of the cartridge (this is a rimfire pistol).

 

Now I'll be carrying this either one way, or the other way. Just one way, so that I can develop a habit of use I can fall back on when needed, without having to diddle and fiddle.

 

So which way really is the way to carry? Cocked and locked, or hammer down?

 

In either case, there will be a round up the spout ready to go.

 

Thanks!

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