ok guys last time we talked about nazis
but they lost so fuck that
were goin all american today
one of the most famous american handguns ever
the 1911
so until the 1911 the most famous american handgun was probably the colt single action army
old cowboy gun in .45 long colt
a very powerful pistol at the time
used by the army to fight injuns in the wild west
thats why its called army
as for single action
this means that the trigger has one job and one job only
and thats release the hammer
if the hammer is forward
you can pull the trigger all day and nothing will happen
and people usually carried on an empty chamber
so if you drop the gun on a rock it wont slam the hammer into a loaded round
which is good because look how long this friggin firing pin is
that sticks way into the chamber and would be happily bouncing next to that primer all day long
definitely a good idea to have that chamber be empty
then when you want to fire you can just cock the hammer with your thumb
that will make the cylinder rotate to the next chamber
and youre ready to fire with one motion
pull the trigger and it goes bang
this ends up being a pretty simple and easy system
and also really safe
the downsides are you can only hold like five rounds
and you have to manually cock that hammer every time
so its kinda slow to fire
and you can only put in one round at a time
and after shooting you have to remove one round at a time
so its kinda slow to load too
then in 1892 the army adopted a new revolver they called the m1892 for some reason
it had two big improvements
the first thing colt did was invent a cylinder that swung out to unload and reload
you can just dump everything out in one move
way faster to load
this is now a universal feature of modern revolvers
the second improvement was that it was double action
guys this is twice as good as the single action
so double action means the trigger can cock the hammer and then release it
two things
this is great because you load that bad boy up and you just keep pressing the trigger and hearing bang bang bang bang bang bang
way faster to fire
its pretty awesome
so the army used those for another couple decades
but the m1892 used the .38 long colt cartridge
and honestly it kinda sucks
its .07 smaller than the big .45 long colt the army had been using
and holds way less powder
plus after the spanish american war
where we beat up spain and took their lunch money
and their cuba
and their puerto rico
and oh yeah their the phillipines
we ended up having some trouble with the .38 long colt because the phillipines was full of moro rebels
and the moro rebels were full of god and drugs
so when you tried filling them with lead
they insisted on chopping you to pieces before finally dying
so the army is like damn dude this caliber sucks softballs
and they did an emergency reissue of the single action army with its big .45 round
but at the end of the day any revolver has limitations you just cant get past
the empty cartridges have to be manually ejected
and the new rounds are kinda slow to load
so for the long term the army put out a request for a new pistol in .45 caliber
and lets make it one of these new fangled semi automatics thats getting popular
heres a comparison
so semi automatic means that if the hammer is cocked
and you pull the trigger
the cartridge goes bang
the slide goes back
ejects the spent case
cocks the hammer
loads up a new round
and youre ready to fire again
all automatically
the only thing it doesnt do is fire another round
thats why its semi automatic instead of fully automatic
obviously this is way faster and a lot easier than cocking the hammer yourself every round
or having to push the rounds out yourself individually
plus they use magazines so you can reload it super quick
and the magazine can just be made as long as you want so it can hold like 8 or 10 or friggin 13 rounds
its pretty sweet and generally better in every way
lol at whoever just jumped down to argue with me in the comments
so to safely carry a semiauto we got a couple options
like the cowboy revolvers we can leave the chamber empty
but since we dont have a cylinder we will need to rack the slide before being able to shoot
just cocking the hammer wont work anymore because the slide is what puts a new round into the empty chamber
and racking the slide is harder to do than just using your thumb on a hammer
you pretty much need both hands
so semiauto guns came with a safety
which is a little mechanical widget that you manipulate with your hand that blocks the gun from working in some way
that way you can chamber a round to have a cocked hammer with the safety on
and like the single action army you still make it ready to fire with a quick thumb movement
not bad
so the army put out their request and six companies submitted designs
but the clear winner was from colt
designed by john moses browning
patron saint of all gun owners
it was so badass they shot it nonstop for like 6000 rounds
dunked it in water to cool it off
zero malfunctions
badass
so it was adopted as the m1911
its a single action semi automatic magazine fed pistol
it holds 8 rounds of .45 acp
and uses the browning tilting barrel short recoil system
it served in world war i and people liked it
after the war a number of small changes were made and the new version was called the m1911a1
then in wwii they made a bunch more
like millions
it served everywhere anyone threw a rock at an american into the 90s
and some military units have some even today
the 1911
a century of service
so i talked about semiautos in general
lets talk about more of its specific features
first off the 1911 has not one but two safeties
it has the manual thumb safety on the side
but it also has an automatic grip safety
the whole upper half of the back of the grip pushes in when you grab it
so if you drop it on something the gun shouldnt fire even if the thumb safety is off
pretty slick
the other big thing to mention is the barrel locking method
so in a revolver its easy
the hammer hits the primer and the bullet flies out the front
and everything that needs to move is done afterwards by you
in a semi auto you need to move it all with the energy of the round itself
so you want the barrel to be locked in place to let the bullet out
then start moving to get the empty case out and cock the hammer and load a new round
but if you do it too early all that hot expanding gas goes right into your face
this guy maxim had a cool system to deal with that
but he was distracted making cool machineguns
so when browning took the idea and decided to apply it to a pistol
he put lugs in the top of the barrel
which lock into the slide
and the whole thing gets pushed back locked together
this delays unlocking long enough for the pressure to escape out the front
then it swings the barrel down out of the way so the slide can keep on going
this method of recoiling part of the way then stopping is called short recoil
kinda like the short stroke gas systems i talked about before
almost every semi auto pistol to this day uses some kind of short recoil operation
browning and the 1911 were so good they had a permanent impact on firearms design
as for accessories and variants
the 1911 has more options than any other firearm in existence
super short
breally big
space age
even double barrel
no matter what you want you can find it
it has served so long and has so much you can to because it just works
this is the gun your grandfather carried to defend america
and you can carry it now to defend your loved ones
but the 1911 is even more than just an important gun
its a huge part of americana
pewpew
#click here for previous articles
KVD ago
This makes want to watch MAS*H with laugh track turned off. It's the only way to watch it, BTW.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
mash is great
KVD ago
That's a nice consice history. Bot, i I love my single actions. Esp as ammo gets ridoick $.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
answer to everything is load your own
always
KVD ago
You're a reloader? I was planning to buy all the shit, but life and other stuff. Also I just love the process of unloading and reloading a SA. It's therapeutic. And I shoot them well. Ever spent time with a SA gun? Iron sights are nice.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
this
bolt action yes
single action no
everything i have is iron sights
look at this
thebearfromstartrack ago
I inherited a bunch of guns. Like a 1942 Springfield 30.06. Savage 16 guage double barrel. SKS...Never shoot them. Just have them.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
hellllll yeah
check out my sks post
my dad has an american enfield in 06
great cartridge
thebearfromstartrack ago
Oh...also a 30-30 (wild west lever action rifle) Winchester. I once shot the lightning rod on top of a weather vane, on top of a barn at about 100 yards, while standing, no scope, with first shot, with another guy's 30-30 on a bet. He got so pissed off, he shot a cat in a tree. He's since quit drinking.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
dooo eeet
thebearfromstartrack ago
There does not appear to be a SINGLE mark on it (manufacturer). It LOOKS a lot like the 30.06.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
sounds beautiful dude
thebearfromstartrack ago
Has a built in sliding site too. I thinik I want to shoot it now.
Rotteuxx ago
Awesome write up Clammy, I gotta pay more attention to your non-shitposts.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
check them all out
im still in clamvoice
its at least a little bit shitpost
lol
Rotteuxx ago
I'll check that out tomorrow, time for my beauty sleep.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
read one a day for the rest of the week
night dude
6double5321 ago
Fuck you and the horse you rode in on. You twixt my nether bits, mentioning the 1911
clamhurt_legbeard ago
lol
its really important tho
Battlefat ago
I’ve got one, full size government model that’s tight and slick and skeletonized and beaver tailed and chrome barreled, but with all that customization, the manufacturer couldn’t be bothered to cut a rail in her. Parkerized with standard rosewood grips. Imagine she’s got tight jeans on and pearls. Nothing fancy, but to the right kind of guy a goddamned ‘11. I carry that bitch full cocked and locked in a leather US MP holster that hangs off my fucking hip like a saddle bag. It’s “concealed” in so much as the extended 10 round McCormick Mag makes it look like a babies arm is bunching up my shirt tail. She shoots straight and makes one big fucking hole where I point. It’s so much heavy steel it’s ludicrous and I love it
clamhurt_legbeard ago
dude good shit
thats what i need
simple chunk of metal
i think i need blued and walnut
clamhurt_legbeard ago
u/ExpertShitposter
u/Battlefat
i did a thing
ExpertShitposter ago
so much single action army, you had me fooled for a moment
clamhurt_legbeard ago
truth
but you need to know the heritage
honestly this entire post is just so i can talk about the next gun and have you understand lol
Battlefat ago
Oh I seen’t it and am grateful for the read. For all my heavy stuff today clammy, this was right on time
clamhurt_legbeard ago
good stuff dude
i need to make a list to ping everybody and make sure
Epictetus_Hierapolis ago
Mmm yeah. I'm all about the 1911. https://imgoat.com/uploads/5d8ce590ad/196248.jpg
clamhurt_legbeard ago
dude niiiiice
beautiful example of a modern one
no frills but it has improvements
are those night sights
theyre much improved over the original even in daytime
Epictetus_Hierapolis ago
Night sights, but very limited. I am not a fan of lit sights because of them fucking with my contacts, so they are chalked over. I've used the weapon enough that I can blind fire and hit close enough to center mass to kill.
I wanted a sidearm that could take a hard beating. When I do live fire, I beat the shit out of my body and my weapons. If I'm throwing myself into the prone from a dead sprint, I wanted something that I knew could take the abuse and not go off on me. 1911 fit the bill.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
6000 rounds straight
stopping only long enough to dunk it in water
hard to beat that
Rellik88 ago
Have a Sig 1911 and love ever bit of it!
clamhurt_legbeard ago
i have a p226 but not their 1911
how much have you shot it
Rellik88 ago
100 rounds or so. I dont shoot it much, stays put up because its so nice.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
dude i know
wood and steel
u/ExpertShitposter were taking wood and steel
its great stuff
look at the cz75 too
beautiful guns
expie and i both have one lol
my 226 is west german
highly recommend the older ones
new sigs are of spottier quality control
it was my first gun with a hammer
ExpertShitposter ago
motha. foken. WOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOOD. and. STEEEEEEEL.
Epictetus_Hierapolis ago
Cleanest, most well balanced 1911 I've ever fired. TacOps version?
Rellik88 ago
Same as Tacops but no rail.
Nadeshda ago
Bless your heart and thank you for this! I was held up with some serious irl stuff, forgive me for being late. I feel exhausted but very blessed you are here sharing this awesome info with us. Have a good night clammy!
clamhurt_legbeard ago
dude took me an hour after posting to even start replying cuz then i had to drive home during rush hour and make dinner lol
Nadeshda ago
You’re a trooper dude! Just got back to normality briefly before I now collapse. Thanks again!
clamhurt_legbeard ago
ya
im collapsing now
good night
freedumbz ago
Hell fucking yes keep this up clammy this is great!
clamhurt_legbeard ago
inorite
im the fucking best
have you ever shot a 1911
freedumbz ago
I have one that I shoot.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
good stuff dude
i havent actually shot a 1911 much at all
but its so damn important
in a way half of the pistols i have shot were all 1911 derived
dat short recoil
CultureOfCritique ago
Another well-written and very informative post. Keep it up clammy!!
clamhurt_legbeard ago
thank you kind goat
what are your feelings on
the 1911
CultureOfCritique ago
It was way ahead of its time... the tilting and locking barrel really transformed firearms design and the grip safety was pretty innovative too. Classic Americana-- I need to buy one at some point. Preferably a milsurp one but they're so expensive :(
clamhurt_legbeard ago
true shit dude
like huge impact
but its john moses browning
obviously it was gonna be great lol
CultureOfCritique ago
For sure, he was a genius.
Do you ever watch Forgotten Weapons, hosted by Ian, aka Gun Jesus? You'd like his channel.
clamhurt_legbeard ago
lol
only every single one
im sure hes a big influence
along with tales of the gun
and the weekly guitar thread on v/guitar
derram ago
https://invidio.us/watch?v=XCOQf12y3kw :
This has been an automated message.
Dean_Wilhelm_Hawkins ago
Stand by for butt hurt Glock boys.......
clamhurt_legbeard ago
lol nice
caliber starting in 4
glock will have its tirn
i bought a glock but havent bought a 1911 yet
ExpertShitposter ago
didnt a nigga steal ur glock?
clamhurt_legbeard ago
yes
mightve been a burrito nigger
clamhurt_legbeard ago
guys i forgot my ipad at work and hadnt transferred the article to my secret online staging area
thats why its 9 min late
had to drive back lol
thedirtypuma ago
I'm even more impressed now that I know you do these on an ipad. All that copy and pasting on a touch screen. Ugh....
Great article as always. Good choice on first pistol. Do you have any recommendations for someone wanting to but a 1911?
clamhurt_legbeard ago
i dunno my personal inclination is one of the companies that originally made ot like springfield or colt
personally id want a historically representative one like originally served
i think that plays a big part in it
kimber can be fancy but also very finicky for example
theres so much you can do with a 1911 that different companies specialize in different variants
really depends on what you want it for
Legalize-Murder ago
If you're poor, rock island armory.