Category Archives: Shooting

Holsters That Work for Concealed Carry

Crossbreed SuperTuck Holster

I read a lot about “drawers full of holsters” accumulated while a shooter tries to find the holster that works for them. I stumbled on a holster and belt combination that worked for me early in my concealed carry experience. The Crossbreed SuperTuck combined with a Crossbreed leather gun belt. I carry inside the waistband (IWB) at the three o’clock position (my right side). I don’t always carry the same gun, so I have a couple of Crossbreed’s, one that fits my 1911’s and another that fits my Sig P226, Beretta PX-4, S&W M&P, FNX-40, Glock 22 – yep, one holster fits them all. Here’s a picture of my 1911 Crossbreed. It shows some wear and tear because I’ve worn it a lot.

The guns I carry weigh anywhere from 32 to 40 ounces and this holster distributes the weight very well. Combined with the excellent gun belt I obtained from Crossbreed it carries the gun very securely, with no movement. You can only buy these through their website http://www.crossbreedholsters.com.

I’ve tried other holsters and until lately, I’ve always come back to the Crossbreed. Recently, however, other companies have started making Crossbreed knockoffs and I decided to try some of them to see how they compare. I’ve been favorably impressed, especially since some of them are priced at about half what a Crossbreed costs.

A local company in Arlington, Texas – makes a good Crossbreed knockoff. Their website is http://www.whitehatholsters.com. I find very little difference between the Crossbreed and the White Hat except that White Hat will customize the kydex part of the holster for you. I think they’ll also personalize the leather backing. Personally, I find very little advantage in that because if you’re carrying concealed nobody sees the holster. At least they’re not supposed to.

Alien Gear Holster

Recently I read some ads by Alien Gear (http://aliengearholsters.com/) and ordered one of their holsters to try. I wore it for several days last week with one of my 1911 Commanders and was impressed. Not only does it cost about half what a Crossbreed or White Hat costs, but for the lifetime of the holster, if you change guns, they’ll provide the kydex for the new gun at no cost. It’s easy to replace as it’s held on by four screws. I’m not sure I’ll ever take them up on that, because for convenience sake I’d want a holster for my old gun and one for my new gun as well. I rarely part with a gun I like.

The Alien Gear has a couple of features that impressed me. Instead of brads, all the kydex to leather fasteners are allen-head screws with rubber bushings between the kydex and the leather. The instructions say you can tighten or loosen the fasteners on the kydex to adjust the tension on the gun. Mine seems perfect as it is, but I like the fact the gun can “breathe” inside the kydex and for some reason this seems to make the overall holster a little thinner than the Crossbreed or White Hat. As far as wearing the holster goes, it’s just as comfortable as the others. Time will tell whether or not it holds up as well, but I see no reason why it won’t

MTR Custom Leather Holster

I saw some ads in several of the gun magazines for MTR Custom Leather holsters. I’d tried an all leather holster before – a Wilson Combat Summer Companion. It was very similar to the Milt Sparks Summer Special that a lot of the gun writers like. It’s a very well made holster, but it doesn’t work for me. The gun sits up too high and since the holster uses leather for the belt loops instead of adjustable clips like my other IWB holsters, I can’t find a way to get it far enough down inside my pants to be comfortable and not have the gun grip “kick out” from my body.

The MTR Custom Leather Holster does not have this problem. This holster has the adjustable belt clips I like, but the rest of it is pure leather – very good quality leather. The leather even curves around my body, fitting me perfectly. The holster was cured for a 1911 Commander and has slight indents for the grip, safety and slide. It is extremely comfortable! I believe this holster is going to become my new favorite. I’ve only worn it for a little while, but during that short time it’s easy to forget it’s on.

I got an IWB magazine holder for two 1911 magazines to go with it. The belt clips aren’t adjustable up and down like the holster, but they seem to be set right where they need to be. The back of the mag holder is smooth leather. I’ve been carrying a single 8-round magazine for my 1911s in a SnagMag, designed to be carried in your pocket, secured with a metal clip like a knife. I’m not particularly enamored with this method of carry. It works, but I find the clip slips a lot and the carrier is down in my pocket and not very comfortable in many seating positions. So I’m hoping this MTR magazine carrier will work for me.

Crossbreed Gun Belts

All of the holster mentioned above only work with a good gun belt. Let me repeat that all of these holsters, in fact any decent concealed carry holster worn on the belt will only work with a good, sturdy gun belt. People don’t listen to me when I tell them this and they have problems with their holsters, or say they can’t carry a gun. Why this reluctance to buy a good belt, I don’t know, but for some reason people just don’t seem to get this.

You need a big gun. Bad guys carry big guns. The odds are against you being able to defend yourself with a little gun. A good holster and a good gun belt will enable you to carry a gun that will do the job. They’ll allow you to carry a gun you can hold onto when you shoot. One you can point or even aim at the threat. One that sends enough lead at enough speed to make a bad person stop doing what they’re doing. Get a good holster and a good gun belt and don’t complain about the price. This is your life we’re talking about, or perhaps the life of one of your loved ones.

N8 Squared Tactical Holster

I need to mention a couple of holsters I’ve tried that don’t work for me, but work well for others. One is the N8 Squared Tactical holster (https://www.n82tactical.com). It’s comfortable, but a single point holster and for me, the holster pivoted on the single point clip, not once but twice and dumped the gun down my pants when I was in the bathroom. This never happens with the SuperTuck, White Hat, Alien Gear or MTR Custom Leather holsters. They all have two points of contact with the belt, making them very secure as well as distributing the weight across more than one contact point. But the N8 Squared holster is made well and it is comfortable and a lot of people like it

Hybrid N8 with Leather Back and Metal Clips

I liked the padding on the N8 Squared and had a piece of leather from another project so I created a sort of a hybrid. I mounted the N8 to the leather with some brads and wore it for a few days. It worked pretty well and now I can’t find it. I must have showed it to one of my sons or shooting buddies and he wanted to try it and liked it well enough I didn’t get it back. When I ask, nobody seems to know where it is.

I hope I’ve provided enough information here to help you pick a holster that will work for you. All of the ones I’ve discussed are inside the waistband options (IWB) because that’s what works best for me. They’re all tuckable, meaning you can tuck your shirt in around them if need be. I get to wear my shirt tails out most of the time, so rarely need that option.

Oh, and these holsters work for revolvers, too. I bought a White at Holster designed for my Smith & Wesson 686 and guess what. I can carry a Colt 45 Single Action Army in it, too. I have a nice birds head model from Uberti that conceals great in my WhiteHat IWB revolver holster.

If you need a good Outside the Waistband holster, I recommend the Gould and Goodrich Model 830, available for most popular handguns.

UPDATE MAY 2016

A couple of years ago my instructors began talking with me about supporting local companies and they brought to my attention one company I’ve already mentioned, www.whitehatholsters.com, plus one I haven’t mentioned, D.M. Bullard Leather Company in Azle, TX.

A couple of my Crossbreeds were showing wear, so to replace them I got a D.M. Bullard leather holster for my 1911s and another one for the Sig P226, P229, which also works with the M&Ps. I’ve been wearing a D.M. Bullard leather holster daily for probably two years now and can vouch for the comfort and durability of these holsters. We’re now stocking both White Hat and D.M. Bullard holsters in our shop and have arrangements with the companies to get custom ordered holsters at a discount. I have no qualms about recommended either brand, not just because I sell them, but because they work!

Does the Weight of the Gun Really Matter for Concealed Carry?

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This is a follow up to my previous post about the 1911 Commanders. Every gun writer who gives the weight of a gun does it unloaded, as do the manufacturers. I wonder why, since none of us carry an unloaded gun for personal protection. Anyway, I decided to do my own measurements in regard to my carry guns and I weighed them on a digital scale fully loaded. Here’s what I found:

Weight (oz.)        Gun
41.75                    Ruger 1911 Commander
44                         Remington R1 Carry Commander
34                         S&W 1911 SCE Commander
43.85                    Remington R1 Carry (full size)
44                         Springfield Loaded 1911
36                         S&W M&P 45
39.35                    Springfield XDm 45
34.6                      S&W M&P 9mm
40                         Colt SAA 45
34.55                    Glock 22

Based on the weights I recorded there really is a decided advantage in the Scandium/Aluminum frame of the S&W 1911 SCE Commander as compared to the Ruger or Remington Commanders, but I’ll tell you honestly that with my Crossbreed SuperTuck IWB holster, I don’t really feel it. Maybe my back does with an all day carry, but I’m not consciously aware of the weight when I put on the gun or go through the day. Bottom line for me is 1) a good holster and 2) a good, heavy duty gun belt. People don’t really pay attention to me when I stress the importance of a good gun belt, but if they carry for any length of time, they’ll figure it out.

I Love Those 1911 Commanders

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If you’ve been reading my blog posts lately you know I’ve gravitated toward Commander-sized 1911s for my Concealed Carry handguns. I now have 3 and will use this space to refresh you on the previous two and introduce you to the third.

My first Commander-sized 1911 was the Ruger. It’s the gun that converted me into a 1911 fan. It’s one beautiful, fine-shooting firearm that is the best value I know in a 1911. Street prices are seldom above $750 and if you shop carefully and are patient, you might get one for just a little under $700. I know you can buy cheaper 1911s, but I personally don’t know where you can get this made-in-America quality for less. This gun has highly visible sights, though they’re not night sights and I find it to be very accurate. I’ve never had any type of failure to feed, failure to eject or any type of malfunction whatsoever.

My second Commander-sized 1911 was a Remington R1 Carry. Though it came with very attractive wood grips, I swapped them out for some desert tan CV custom grips. Although it’s not Stainless Steel like the Ruger, it has a very attractive and durable black satin finish. Its edges are all rounded to help with concealment. There are three things this gun has the Ruger doesn’t: ambidextrous safety, checkered front strap, and a front night sight. Each of these adds a little value to the gun from my perspective. I like the ambidextrous safety for one reason only. It makes it easier to check to insure my safety is on when I’m wearing the gun. The checkered front strap helps a little with the grip since I changed out the factory grips for a thinner pair with a little less traction and the front night sight does help a little with aiming when it’s dark.

Number three is a Smith & Wesson 1911 SCE. The “S” stands for Scandium, the “C” for Commander and the “E” for enhanced. This gun is 10 ounces lighter than the other two because the frame is made of scandium reinforced aluminum. It has a bob tail, which really does help with concealed carry, and it has Trijicon night sights front and rear. It also has fish scale slide serrations front and rear. The 10 ounces and bob-tail make a difference, really.

I’d trust my life to any one of these guns. I’ve shot them each enough to have absolute confidence in their reliability and they are all capable of making one ragged hole at 10-15 feet. Lately, I’ve been carrying the S&W every day. Maybe because it’s new, maybe because it’s lighter. I’ll probably set them up on some sort of rotation because they’re all three too good to spend much time in the safe.

Air Gun Fun!

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When I was four we moved into a house in Leesburg, Florida that had an orange tree in the front yard. I climbed the orange tree while my parents were settling in and found a weathered Red Ryder BB gun in it’s branches. It was cocked and I somehow managed to pull the trigger and drop the gun, which attracted my dad’s attention. Since I was only four, he rightfully decided I was too young for such a toy, took it and hid it.

I was introduced to real guns only three years later, and since I had plenty of opportunities to shoot .22s and .410s as a youngster and later pretty much anything I could get my hands on, I never really developed much of an interest in airguns. My dad was always very watchful of neighborhood kids shooting them at songbirds and he let it be known that was something I would never do or I’d regret it.

I’m now approaching Medicare age and have rediscovered how much fun air guns can be, partially because of my grandchildren and partly because I live in the city limits where firing my real guns in my own backyard is frowned upon.

We’ve used soft air guns in some of our training classes for a couple of years and they’re a lot of fun. But copper and steel BBs bounce around too much and pellets tend to put holes in things you don’t want holes in. However, recently I’ve discovered some really cool air guns and have figured out ways to shoot them safely at home and even inside.

The first affordable air gun that really sparked my interest was this PX-4 Storm marketed under the Beretta name. It operates on CO2 and has real blow-back operation reminiscent of my 9mm PX-4. I’ve taken this gun to work and shot it in the parking lot with coworkers. We dug some soft drink cans out of the garbage and had a blast. Some of these folks were non-shooters who had so much fun the next stop is the real gun range.

Because of how realistic the Beretta’s operation is we sometimes use it in our Concealed Handgun License classes to help new shooters master the basics of stance, grip, aiming, breathing, trigger control and follow through and to emphasize the importance of not crossing your thumbs on a semi-automatic pistol. When the CO2 cartridge is fresh, this pistol is very accurate and it will send drink cans flying across the ground or room. It uses magazines that allow you to load 8 pellets on one end and 8 on the other. You shoot the first 8 then turn the magazine around for 8 more. I have several magazines so you can load up and have a blast for a while.

Close behind the Beretta for fun is this Crossman replica of a 357 magnum revolver. This air gun feels very similar to a real 357 magnum, without the kick of course. It uses a circular 10-round magazine that is inserted right ahead of the cylinder. You can shoot it in single-action or double-action mode.

I found a 22 caliber bullet trap at Walmart with a target hanger that allows you to shoot either of these handguns inside.

With Hunter’s Education coming up, I wanted to find a more realistic way to do the indoor shooting exercise than the Air Soft AR-15s we’ve been using. They’re a pain to get to work right. Bass Pro has a number of air rifles in .17 and .22 caliber, some with “silencers”. There are all degrees of sophistication, but wanting something simple I got a single-shot Ruger that you have to cock to build air pressure. It shoots pellets at 1,000 feet per second and is very accurate. The bullet trap does a great job of capturing those pellets and preventing them from bouncing back and hitting someone in the eye.

Here’s what the air rifle looks like:

It came with a scope, but I’ve been lazy and haven’t yet mounted it. At the ranges we’re shooting inside our classroom, the iron sights work fine.

One of my grandsons brought a Daisy Red Ryder over one weekend and we set up some drink cans and proceeded to splatter them all over the yard. Oh my gosh, I’d forgotten how much fun plinkin’ in your backyard can be. The next time I was in Academy Sports they had Red Ryder Daisies on sale for $22. I bought one. You can load about 100 BBs in that magazine and shoot until you get tired. You can send cans flying end-over-end with that Daisy.

It has a wooden stock and is made of metal. The only drawback is it’s made in China! Can you believe that! The Daisy Red Ryder BB Gun, an American icon still alive since the 1930s, is now made in China! That’s a shame but it is still a lot of fun to shoot.

Now, when I want to take out my frustrations on a few inanimate objects or punch holes in paper, I don’t have to pay to go to the gun range or spend a bunch of money on ammo. CO2, pellets and BBs are cheap and I can shoot them at home.

UPDATE MAY 2016:

Since writing the above article I’ve discovered people all over enjoy air gun shooting so much there are competitions, air-gun hunting and a tremendous variety of airguns that are replicas of the real thing, more coming all the time.

I now have a S&W M&P pellet gun, a John Wayne Colt .45 SAA pellet gun, a Sig Sauer P226 pellet gun, a Luger BB Gun (it’s very realistic and likely the only way I’ll ever get to shoot real Luger P08), and an M&P BB gun. Some of these have blow-back that emulates the real thing and all have the look and feel of their real-gun counterparts.

Enjoying Cowboy Style Single Actions

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I grew up playing Cowboys and Indians, watching Roy Rogers and Gene Autrey movies on TV and viewing westerns at the theater with stars like John Wayne, Randolph Scott and later Clint Eastwood. It’s natural for me to be attracted to old cowboy guns like the Colt 45 Single Action Army and it’s variants. Colt knows people like their guns and they’re priced accordingly. A genuine Colt SAA is way out of range of my gun budget.

That doesn’t meant I have to do without, however. In a previous article I’ve described my Ruger Blackhawk 357 Maximum. This is a gun I honestly purchased because of the way it looked and the price. It was $300. I didn’t know at the time that Ruger had recalled and discontinued it’s line of 357 Maximums, supposedly because of top-strap burning due to the heavy loads of the 357 Maximum cartridge. Evidence later emerged that the only incidents of the top-strap buring were the result of reloaders loading excessive charges. My gun has absolutely no evidence of any damage whatsoever. In fact, it’s nearly pristine.

Even with the Ruger, I’ve had a hankering for a true SAA clone for sometime and last year decided on a beautiful stainless steel Beretta Stampede. I was debating between a Ruger Vaquero and the Stampede and settled on the Stampede for two reasons: I’ve already got a Ruger revolver and the Stampede was available for less money than the particular Vaquero I would have wanted. It turns out the Stampede is made by the Italian Company Uberti, known for its authentic clones of Old West guns. The action was smoothed at the factory and this is one pistol I’m proud to own.

You’d think I’d have been satisfied, and I guess I was until cruising by the gun counter at Outdoor World and seeing an under $300 price tag on a new Uberti Hombre in 45 Colt. In fact, with a little inquiry I learned that I could apply a discount and get this particualar 45 Colt Cowboy pistol for $270. So I did. Then I went shooting.

It was a fun day at the range with a box of 45 Colt cartridges from Black Hills ammo and some Winchester 38 Specials for the Ruger Blackhawk. First I shot the Uberti. I’m going to show you the targets below, but I’ll be honest, this gun really surprised me. I had the targets out about 15 feet. I took a steady aim and the first shot went almost dead center of the target. I fired another one that touched the first one, and honestly the third shot went into one of the first two holes so that I was three shots in with only two holes in the target. I was impressed. The action was smooth, the gun well balanced. Nothing wrong with the workmanship. Wow. I fired a couple of cylinders full, then put up another target for the Beretta.

The Beretta Stampede grouped well, but slighlty left of point of aim. Recoil on either of these two guns was minimal. I found myself curling my right pinky under the grip for support. I didn’t think much about it, until later at another gun range I heard an old Cowboy Action Shooter tell his buddy that was his secret for shooting Cowboy guns accurately. Interesting. I’d just stumbled across something that worked for me and later found out it’s a secret of the experts.

I had recently adjusted the sights on the Blackhawk and boresighted it at the office. This was its first trip to the range after that adjustment. I fired part of a box of 38 specials and was pleased with the results. Experience has proven the Blackhawk is just as accurate with 357 or 357 Maximums as with the 38 Specials, just a lot louder.

Here are the targets for all three guns. You can see for yourself, the old Six Shooters are pretty darn accurate, even with their minimal iron sights.

Time constraints and bum knees may prevent me from it, but I’m getting a hankering for some Cowboy Action Shooting as sponsored by the Single Action Shooters Society (SSAS.org). Even if I don’t do the SASS thing, I’ll enjoy plinking with these guns and someday they’ll get passed along to the kids and/or grandkids. I’ll probably add a couple of .22 caliber models to the collection within the next year. Both Ruger and Uberti are making 10 shot 22’s. Ubertis can be converted to 22 Magnum. Now that’s really cool!

Powerful Little Backup Gun

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I‘ve been watching the hype about the 327 Federal Magnum cartridge and wondering where it might fit in my personal defense strategy. I like to have backup guns in strategic locations – my truck console, my laptop case, even the pocket of my jeans. Last year I had a Taurus Ultralite revolver in .22 magnum. It was just the right size and I figured .22 magnum would at least get someone’s attention, especially since it carried 8 rounds, but I didn’t like the heavy double-action trigger pull on that particular gun. A trade opportunity came along and I took advantage of it. That left a small revolver gap in my defense arsenal.

Cheaper Than Dirt in Fort Worth ran a Taurus sale one week and the advertised price for the little 327 Federal Magnum revolver was just too low to pass up. The cartridge is similar in size to the .30 caliber rounds I carried in the M2 Carbine I kept on the back of the seat in my helicopter in Vietnam. I read the specs and found the cartridge is loaded to around 40,000 psi pressure, making it have more impact velocity than even a 357 Magnum.

It’s a pretty gun – mine’s stainless steel – and fairly lightweight. It holds 6 rounds. I took it to the range and not surprisingly, it’s loud and it ‘s got a fair amount of recoil. It is not painful to shoot, but you wouldn’t want to shoot it all day. From approximately 10 feet away I put most of my rounds somewhere near the center of the target.

I find the gun is easy to hide and I expect it to be totally reliable. When you pull the trigger on a revolver you can usually count on it to go “bang.” This one will do that six times. If I place my shots carefully and make them count I have no doubt the 327 magnum bullets will stop somebody in their tracks!

Personal Security for Ordinary People

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By David Freeman

Guns are great equalizers. You don’t have to be big, physically fit or trained in the Marshall Arts to defend yourself when you have a gun.

So much of the training I see about personal defense features young, physically fit, police or personal security-type individuals. You know what I mean, the ones with the ripped abs that run 10 miles before breakfast, rappel off the side of mountains and eat rattlesnakes for breakfast.

I’m not like that, but I can defend myself. I legally carry a concealed handgun and I’m relatively proficient with it. So while I’m not looking for a fight, if one comes my way I have a good chance of prevailing.

With a gun, a small woman can defend herself against a man the size of a defensive linebacker. An old guy like me can defend himself against a young, agressive street thug. A person in a wheelchair with a gun is no longer the easy victim an assailant might plan to rob.

While carrying a gun doesn’t require Olympic-like training, there are some things you should do to insure you’re prepared to use one effectively to defend yourself:

Be mentally prepared. This involves always being aware of your surroundings and recognizing potential threats early enough to do something about it should the potential threat become an actual threat.
Have the right gun. The gun should fit you, it should be reliable and comfortable for you to shoot. It should also be of a large enough caliber to actually stop an attacker.
Have your gun accessible. It must be concealed, but if it’s hidden away where you can’t get to it quickly, it’s of no use.
Be proficient with your gun.
Practice, practice, practice!
Mentally rehearse possible scenarios, including how you would react.
Get involved in the gun community – read the magazines, participate in shooting sports, train when you can.

Bottom line: guns are great equalizers, but only if you know how to use them

SigPro SP2022

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The price was unbelievable. A Sig Sauer for $399? Something must be wrong with it. There were a few rumors on the net about a new Pistol, the SP250, coming out as a replacement for the SP2022. Wrong! They’re both stil in Sig’s lineup. Maybe it was a police buy that got caught up in politics. Who knows, but Cheaper Than Dirt had ten at this unbelievable price and they were sure to go fast.

I didn’t need another pistol, especially not another 9mm, but what the heck. It was a Sig and I could always get my money back. When I got to looking closer, I discovered the gun had a few add-ons that would normally jack the price up. It has Tijicon night sights and a double action only (DAO) trigger.

The gun feels good in the hand. It hold 15 + 1 and magazines are readily available. I bought one at the Fort Worth Gun Show and a couple more from CDNN Sports in Abilene. The gun came with two. There’s no question that it’s a Sig with the quality typical of the brand.

At the range I found it frustrating at first. The trigger pull is just over 10 pounds and it’s a long pull. I found myself tiring while waiting for it happen. More than once I did the shooter’s equivalent of stepping out of the batter’s box on my first shot. After a while I got used to it and my shots didn’t suffer. Here’s a target from my third or fourth trip to the range. This was shot at 15 yards.

I made one adjustment to the gun that doesn’t seem to make much difference in either shootability or accuracy. I replaced the stock trigger with a short pull trigger, a $9.95 mod. This didn’t change the weight of the pull, but was supposed to shorten the length of pull. I honesty can’t feel any difference.

The SP2022 spent a few months as my daily carry weapon. Although it has no external safety, the heavy double action trigger makes it a very safe IWB carry weapon. Had I needed the gun, the trigger pull would have been a non-issue. Now, it’s my upstairs household gun and with it’s Trijicon sights and excellent accuracy, it is comforting to have around.

Follow Up – April 2011

It’s now a year after I wrote the original blog entry and I still have an SP2022, but it’s not the original DAO pistol. I advertised the original one for sale on TexasGunTrader.com and it found a new home. A couple of months later Academy Sports put the Sig Sauer SP2022 on sale for $399 and this one was a DA/SA pistol. I bought one. It doesn’t have the night sights the original one had, but it sure shoots easier. I often take it to our CHL classes to let people who have not yet decided on the gun they want to carry shoot it for their proficiencey test. This one I’ll probablykeep.

Update May 2016:

I’m now surrounded by Sigs. The second 9mm, the one written about in the April 2011 follow-up is one of the loaners we use at Texas Gun Pros for our License to Carry Class. After 5,000 to 6,000 rounds the slide got to where it wouldn’t lock back after the last round was fired, no matter what magazine was in it. A quick trip back to Sig with a very small repair charge and it’s back at work again.

I got a replacement for the house, one with night sights and it’s now my wife’s upstairs comfort gun. She has an M&P 9mm by her side of the bed. One thing that continues to intrigue me about the SP2022 is the quality for the money. I have a couple of P226s and a couple of P229s that are $900 to $1200 pistols. The SP2022 is almost exactly the same size as the very popular PP229. The slide operation is easier, or seems so to me, and the slide lock is definitely easier to operate. There is not $500 difference in those guns. The SP2022 is one of the best values on the market for a good 9mm or .40 ACP handgun.

Taurus 24/7 DS – 45 ACP

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By David Freeman

I grew up shooting revolvers. The first semi-automatic hangun I owned was a Stoeger Cougar 8000 in 9mm. It was a sweet handling and shooting gun. My son liked it and I had been eyeing a Taurus 24/7, so I sold him the Cougar (at least it’s still in the family) and picked up a 9mm Taurus 24/7 at Academy Sports.

The gun was winner from day one. No jams, no misfires and right on target. Plus the trigger was nice and smooth and easy. Since I was getting the gun bug, I soon bought a Sig Sauer SP2022 (it’s a Sig, right?) on sale at Cheaper Than Dirt for a really great price. You can read about that gun elsewhere in my blog, as well as the Beretta PX-4 Storm. Here I was with three 9mm semi-automatics (one to carry, one for the truck and one for the upstairs bedroom was my argument). I carried the Storm, kept the Taurus in the truck and the Sig upstairs. But on range day, I carried all three. Even though the Taurus was the least expensive of the three and the one from the company that has to fight against a bad rap from years gone by, it was the most fun to shoot and at least as accurate as the other, two, if not more so.

Because I had so much invested in 9mm pistols and had good supply of ammunition, I tended to resist the magazine articles and instructor admonitions that for defensive carry, a 45 is better. It was while attending the NRA Handgun Instructor Course that it finally dawned on me. It wasn’t that I couldn’t effectively stop a bad guy with my 9mm. It was more about who else I might endanger while doing so. The instructor explained quite graphically, that even with hollow point ammunition, because of it’s muzzle velocity, a 9mm will shoot through things, including people and possibly hit innocents, even if they’re behind a wall.

I sold the 9mm Taurus 24/7 and bought the 45 ACP version of what I thought was the same gun. It looks the same. It feels the same, even weighs about the same. It carries well. I loaded it up with some 230 grain hollow point ammunition and felt safe. Until I went to the range. Bang – jam. Bang – jam. Over and over. I took the gun home, cleaned it really well and tried it again. I got as much as a bang, bang jam out of it this time. I tried different ammo and discovered I could shoot FMJ (full metal jacket, also known as “ball”) ammo through it without jamming.

It seemed at first it was a magazine problem. Taurus offered to send me a new one if I sent in the bad one, but I felt a little more testing was in order. I tried three different brands of 225-230 grain hollow point ammo: Winchester Supreme Elite, MagTech Gold and Remington Golden Sabre. None of them fed without jamming. They did what gun people call “nosediving” where the nose of the cartridge doesn’t slide up the ramp into the chamber like it’s supposed to.

Most gun guys caution that it takes from 300 to 500 rounds to “break in” a new semi-automatic handgun. That wasn’t true with my 9mm Taurus. It was perfect right out of the box. But I after shooting 300 or so expensive rounds through the Taurus 45, it wasn’t getting any better.

I made another stop at Cheaper Than Dirt and picked up two types of 185 grain JHP (jacketed hollow point) — Black Hills and Speer Gold Dot. Problem solved. I may try some other brands later, but for now, I’m satisified that my 45 will perform when and if called upon in a defensive situation.

Oh, and it is pretty accurate. What misses is my fault, not the gun’s. Here’s an example:

UPDATE MAY 2016:

One of my mentors suggested trying Winchester Silvertip 185 Grain jacketed hollow points in the Taurus 45. After shooting two boxes of that ammunition with no failures I discovered that for this particular gun the break-in rule appeared to be real. It shoots anything and everything I feed it now with no problems whatsoever. Now that I’ve discovered the Ruger/Polycase ARX rounds, this .45 ACP Taurus 24/7 makes a nice addition to my carry gun rotation. I know many people opt for carrying the same gun all the time, but I like to vary my carry guns to justify having a “collection of them” (just kidding). The real reason is so that I have a broad experience from which to provide advice and guidance to the many students that come through our classes.