Handgunning

[Dick284]

Over the years I’ve bought and sold(some very foolishly) hand guns.

My first was a Smith and Wesson 586, with a 6” bbl. she was a damn fine rig, shot hard cast 158’s with a moderate to light charge of Unique outta .38 spl cases to insane accuracy. One of the ones I regret selling.

Second one was a TA90(CZ 85 knock off) in 9mm and .41 Action Express.
The darn thing was a bit of a functional nightmare, the 9’s ran pretty decent, but the factory .41AE, 200 gr Samson ammo was so hot loaded there were all sorts of slide speed issues, and it ran pretty inconsistently. And reloading the .41 with bullets designed for a revolver didn’t help with functionality one bit. I was happy to have it hit the road.

There’s a serious time lapse till I get to the current handguns I own.

I fell into a super condition Ruger Mk 1 Target in .22LR for a steal from a guy getting out of the game.


Pretty easy to guess the date of manufacture on this one.


Then I stumbled onto the ugly duckling. You know it’s so beat to rat crap, but somehow it seems to tug at your heart strings.
It started life as a S&W Second Model Hand Ejector in .455, made in 1918.
Someone hogged the cylinder out to .45 Long Colt, and knocked the barrel back to 5”, added a set of adjustable combat sights, as well as a set of aftermarket grips. Softer 200 gr cast shoot ok, but if loaded with .454” cast bullets and a light load of American Select, 25 yd accuracy is outstanding. .454” 250’s and a moderately stiff load of Unique are good shooting and certainly an eye opener for recoil.


Lastly is my Browning Hi Power in 9mm.


She’s had an aftermarket trigger installed, and the magazine disconnect is gone as well, aftermarket grips, and here she sits.
124gr cast pills with WW231 and a Dillon 550 press, and there we are.


So what’s your fav’s?

[catnthehat]

About the only one I truly regret selling was my IPSC revolver , a S&W 625-8 in 45 ACP.
I kinda liked that gun- oh and the Colt SSA in 45 long- dang and the Colt New Army , liked that one too.
Don’t get me going on my C&P single shots........
Cat

[bat119]

Had many over the years
regret selling
S&W Highway patrolman 357
S&W 686 won 3 shoots with that one
T/C Contender 357 max. and 30-30 win knocked the ram over at 200 yards
Beretta Model 1934 in 380 I would have a 12: 6 license

Don't regret selling
Ruger blackhawk .44 mag nasty recoil just to put a hole in a target
Heckler & Koch P30 ugly trigger, ejected brass back into my face my first and last poly pistol.

[fordtruckin]

I’ve owned several over the years and don’t really regret selling any except perhaps my Ruger LCR in 357 mag. Had a Glock 19 and didn’t care for it. Traded that in for a bow. Sold a walther PPK/s in 380. First handgun I ever bought when I turned 21. Have a P220 Extreme in 45 I’m planning on selling as I haven’t shot it in 6 years. Just sold a Glock 43 last night. Have a Ruger SR22 pistol with a suppressor that is loads of fun! Can’t see I’ll get rid of that since it’s more the wife’s gun than mine! I just bought a Sig P320x compact for a edc. So far after 100 rounds through it yesterday I have to say I can’t see myself getting any others. I love that thing!! I wish work would get rid of our p226/229 and go to the p320s.

[Attilathecanuk]

Had a great condition S&W 1917 in .45acp. My first .45 and I sure liked that cool revolver, had to sell to make rent. Would really like to get that one back.

[357Maximum]

Two I regret selling are
Early Model 66 S&W 6" , CN Police marked S&W Model 10, 4" would have given prohib status.

Last 2 I'll sell is a Early S&W K17 and a Brass Framed Ruger Single Action in 45 Colt


357

[tri777]

Originally Posted by Dick284

"... and the magazine disconnect is gone as well, aftermarket grips, here she sits..."

Please save me a google visit, what is a magazine disconnect all about ?

[fordtruckin]

Originally Posted by tri777

Please save me a google visit, what is a magazine disconnect all about ?

Keeps the pistol from firing unless there is a magazine seated in the pistol. The disconnect will allow the pistol to fire without a mag.

Personally I try not to own a pistol with either a physical safety you have to take off or a magazine disconnect.

[tri777]

Originally Posted by fordtruckin

Keeps the pistol from firing unless there is a magazine seated in the pistol. The disconnect will allow the pistol to fire without a mag.

Personally I try not to own a pistol with either a physical safety you have to take off or a magazine disconnect.

Thx for the explanation.
I remain ignorant though. What purpose of use is being able to fire with no mag?..perhaps single shot shooting with no clip?

[qwert]

Originally Posted by tri777

Thx for the explanation.
I remain ignorant though. What purpose of use is being able to fire with no mag?..perhaps single shot shooting with no clip?

A removed magazine safety was a requirement of the French army spec for the original GP35.
The Browning Hi-Power (or Fabrique Nationale FN GP35 - "GP" for "Grande Puissance" 1935) was the first 'high capacity' pistol, and is why it is called the 'high power'. In the civilized world, HPs carry standard 13 rd mags.

Ejecting the mag prevents firing, and (in the opinion of the French and other army & police forces) is an aid to safety, or at least an auxiliary automatic safety.
It does prevent the pistol from firing during a probably highly stressed change of a partial magazine for a full one in a pause of a firefight, or in preparation of further action which may require a full magazine.

Many untrained people incorrectly think that removing a magazine removes all ammunition from the firearm and makes it safe.

Many mag safety linkages are removed to improve trigger feel and pull force.

Good Luck, YMMV.

[tri777]

Originally Posted by qwert

A removed magazine safety was a requirement of the French army spec for the original GP35.
The Browning Hi-Power (or Fabrique Nationale FN GP35 - "GP" for "Grande Puissance" 1935) was the first 'high capacity' pistol, and is why it is called the 'high power'. In the civilized world, HPs carry standard 13 rd mags.

Ejecting the mag prevents firing, and (in the opinion of the French and other army & police forces) is an aid to safety, or at least an auxiliary automatic safety.
It does prevent the pistol from firing during a probably highly stressed change of a partial magazine for a full one in a pause of a firefight, or in preparation of further action which may require a full magazine.

Many untrained people incorrectly think that removing a magazine removes all ammunition from the firearm and makes it safe.

Many mag safety linkages are removed to improve trigger feel and pull force.

Good Luck, YMMV.

Ok Thx!!
That makes it crystal clear for me now.
That would never be an issue for me to have such a safety feature. Kind of a uncommon sense feature i wouldnt ever need, like a lawnmower seat safety switch. lol.

[fordtruckin]

Originally Posted by tri777

Thx for the explanation.
I remain ignorant though. What purpose of use is being able to fire with no mag?..perhaps single shot shooting with no clip?

Think LE or military doing a tactical reload, drop the mag and half way through reloading you have to fire. With no mag seated your screwed but without the magazine disconnect you can get at least one shot off to buy sometime as you finish seating the next mag.

[Dick284]

Browning Hi Powers have a rather poor trigger pull out of the box. Modified and improved triggers usually involve the magazine disconnect being removed/disabled, as it essentially removes an extra piece of linkage in the trigger group.
It means the pistol now has a really smooth, crisp, and lighter trigger, than out of the box.

I thank Qwert for giving a great dissertation on what and why the Hi Power has a magazine disconnect.

[tri777]

Originally Posted by fordtruckin

Think LE or military doing a tactical reload, drop the mag and half way through reloading you have to fire. With no mag seated your screwed but without the magazine disconnect you can get at least one shot off to buy sometime as you finish seating the next mag.

I would certainly be going for the magazine disconnect upgrade!