My beloved 1911 is getting to be too much...

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Arkady Kobach

Moderator
..for my very arthritic hands so I bought a Walther PPK/S in .22LR which I keep loaded with hollow points.

Easily concealable in a coat of pants pocket and a .22 LR will inflict a surprising amount of damage!
 
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105kw

New member
Nobody wants to get shot, even by a .22.
Saying that, practice for accuracy and speed.
And as an old timer told me eons ago "Having a gun beats throwing rocks."
 
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gwpercle

New member
Carry what you can shoot ...nothing wrong with that !
You got to Keep On Keeping On !

I can tell you first hand ... getting shot with a 22 LR-HP messes up your day big time .
I keep a J-Frame Air-Lite Kit Gun loaded with CCI Stingers and when in my pocket ...
...I don't feel unarmed .
Gary
 
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Aguila Blanca

Staff
This is why I keep wishing for a 1911 chambered in (GASP!) .380 ACP.

IMHO, a lightweight Commander in .380 would allow arthritic and other recoil-sensitive people to shoot/continue shooting 1911s without having to be concerned about recoil, because any recoil would be negligible.
 
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Aguila Blanca

Staff
Screwball said:
Like these?

https://www.browning.com/products/fi.../1911-380.html
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No -- I have one of those. It's about a 75% or 80% scale replica, not a full-size 1911 (or even a full-sized Commander).

Jim Watson said:
IMBEL makes full size .380 GMs for the domestic market. Too bad they don't sell them here.
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Not full-size Government Models. The Imbel 380s (they come in both single-stack and double stack versions) are "CCO" size -- a 4-1/4" slide and barrel on an Officers ACP-size frame.

It was finding out about the Imbel .380s that got me interested in a .380 1911. At one time I had a contract with Imbel to purchase three of them. However, because Springfield Armory (who at that time used Imbel to manufacture their 1911s) didn't have an import license for the .380 versions, I had to apply to the BATFE for an import license. There was a technical glitch in my application, which should have been an easy fix. However, the reviewer at the BATFE sat on it for the full 90 days allowed for their review before she rejected it, and then her rejection didn't explain the reason for the rejection. By the time I got through to her and understood what had to be addressed, my contact at Imbel informed me that they didn't want to wait through another application ... so the deal collapsed.

I have a slide and frame from Caspian set aside specifically for this project. So far, I haven't been able to find a barrel maker who will make a one-off Commander barrel in .380 ACP. I may yet buy a standard 9mm barrel and have a local machine shop bore it out and make a .380 chamber insert sleeve.
 
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Jim Watson

New member
Ectually, old chap, they make the full line, CCO, Commander, and full size. Commander and full size are double stack, CCO is single stack.

To wit:
https://www.imbel.gov.br/index.php/pistolas/84#topo

Google Translate says:

SPECIFICATIONS
Caliber: .380 ACP
Finish: Painted, black color
Length: 219mm = 8.6"
Weapon weight without magazine: 1,180 g = 41.6 oz
Operation: semi-automatic in single action
Carbon steel frame
carbon steel ferrule
Heavy-duty, ramped barrel with cold-forged rifling
Barrel length: 128 mm (5”)
Radiation: 6 lanes clockwise (6 H) with a pitch of 406 mm (16”)
Bifilar metallic box type charger
Magazine Capacity: 17 rounds or 19 rounds using an extender (bumper)
Number of magazines per weapon: 3
Options: with or without dog arming and disarming system (ADC)
Frame with standard Picatinny rail for attaching accessories
 
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Adventurer 2

New member
Get a lighter recoil spring and find someone to load 185 grain semi-wadcutter target loads for you - knocks off 200 fps and respective recoil.
 
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PolarFBear

New member
I am now "officially" elderly (71). Time HAS taken its toll. Looked back in history with an eye on a 1908 Colt. Finally found a nice specimen in .32 acp. Easy to carry, a breeze to conceal and a delight to shoot. I hear they are making these again though at a very high tariff; even higher than the Browning 1911 .380. Colt had it right a 100+ years ago. I do not have a Walther PPK in .32 so I cannot compare. But the Colt is easier to shoot than my 1962 model PPK in .380 and carries more punch than my PPK .22.
 
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CajunBass

New member
Arkady Kobach said:
..for my very arthritic hands so I bought a Walther PPK/S in .22LR which I keep loaded with hollow points.

Easily concealable in a coat of pants pocket and a .22 LR will inflict a surprising amount of damage!
Click to expand...
I've got one myself, and while I don't carry it (yet) I can see the day coming when I might. I do have an IWB Bianchi holster for mine, and a couple of spare mags, just in case. With CCI Stingers, or Mini-Mags, it runs 100%.
 
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Super Sneaky Steve

New member
I own a 380EZ and it really has 22lr like recoil.

It's hammer fired with a big ol' thumb safety and a grip safety. It may not look like a 1911 but the controls are very similar.
 
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Siggy-06

New member
I’m have carpal tunnel in both wrists, but I mostly shoot aluminum and steel framed 9mm pistols(along with 22lr). I think I got a while longer before I need to go to .32acp or something similar. I’ve also broken my trigger finger twice and my middle once, getting old and worn isn’t too fun.
 
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RickB

New member
I read an article, many years ago now, about the fabled "one shot stop", the author dug into seeming anomalies in the data, such as .380 hardball having a higher rating than .45 hardball, and what he found, was there really wasn't much difference in performance among handgun calibers, as there is a large proportion of stops of the, "God, I've been shot!" variety; doesn't matter what round they've been shot with, or where, a lot of people give up when shot.
Not until you start looking into "two shot stops", threats disinclined to give up, do the ballistic haves and have-nots start to separate in performance.
 
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smee78

New member
This is the exact reason I bought the Beretta 84 (380acp) & Beretta 81 (32acp) pistols when they were flooded on the market. As a mechanic I know I will have hand and wrist problems later in life so I plan now to be ready later.

Would a 1911 chambered in 9mm be too much for you? I know the Springfield EMP is a slightly smaller 9mm.

Congrats on the new Walther PPK/S in .22LR, I believe having any gun is better than no gun and if you can shoot it accurately and are confident with the gun then that's all that matters.
 
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JimCunn

New member
I've got a Compact 85% Browning 1911-380/22 Convertible that has mild recoil when shooting .380 and negligible recoil when shooting .22
 
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jetinteriorguy

New member
Arkady Kobach said:
..for my very arthritic hands so I bought a Walther PPK/S in .22LR which I keep loaded with hollow points.

Easily concealable in a coat of pants pocket and a .22 LR will inflict a surprising amount of damage!
Click to expand...
If the recoil of a .45ACP is the problem with your hands, I’d suggest trying a 1911 in 9mm. I have an RIA all steel full size 1911 in 9mm and it’s a *****cat recoil wise. But if the weight is the problem, then it doesn’t matter.
 
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CajunBass

New member
smee78 said:
This is the exact reason I bought the Beretta 84 (380acp) & Beretta 81 (32acp) pistols when they were flooded on the market. As a mechanic I know I will have hand and wrist problems later in life so I plan now to be ready later.

Would a 1911 chambered in 9mm be too much for you? I know the Springfield EMP is a slightly smaller 9mm.

Congrats on the new Walther PPK/S in .22LR, I believe having any gun is better than no gun and if you can shoot it accurately and are confident with the gun then that's all that matters.
Click to expand...
My Beretta 84F may have ended my search for a carry gun. A double stack 380, with a 13+1 capacity, and a 4" barrel, it's not a small gun by any means. The wide, OK, fat grip helps spread the recoil out. I've heard it said they have a snappy recoil, but I'll be darned if I can tell it. Recoil feels much lighter to me than any polymer 9mm I've tried at least. Tisas makes a clone of the 84BB that is very nice, but lacks the decocker/safety 84F/FS has. I had a Tisas until a few weeks ago, when lowering the hammer manually, I felt it slip from my arthritic fingers. No discharge, but I didn't trust myself anymore, so the Tisas went down the road, and the Beretta came out of the Bullpen.

Also, I recently picked up a Tisas Tanker in 9mm. It is of course, an all steel gun and has a recoil that's more of a soft push than a kick. Very mild mannered. So far I haven't tried carrying it, it is sort of heavy, but I had a holster for a Commander sized 1911 around the place, so I did carry it around the house one morning...unloaded. Not bad at all. Add 10 rounds of 9mm, it might be different. I might have to give it a try...just for research purposes you understand.
 
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