You are correct sir!
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Heard that the first time in ROTC from our cadre Major who was tab’ed out (pathfinder, ranger, etc).
Gun Discussion
I went through the a academy as the first class that couldn’t carry a 1911. So of course what did a bunch of us want? Fast forward a bit, and I’m in a training class with guys who are all “shooters” and I’m watching 1911’s go TU left and right. Supposedly good ones too. That left an impression on me for sure. Our SWAT team got Springfield Operators and those things barely seemed to run. I remember two SWAT guys trying to beat a stuck case out with a range rod and a claw hammer on a new $2k gun as it was locked solid.
I’ve owned a couple that have run well for me, and I have carried them as my secondary on occasion. With that said, some kind of double stack auto has pretty much always been my work or carry gun for the same reasons you listed. G34, P226, USP, Beretta 92, and the M&P (I think that’s all of them). I did run a P7M8 for about a decade as my backup gun and low profile primary. Great gun, but it’s been eclipsed by all the polymer single stacks.
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May i ask why?
I’m not allowed a gun so they obviously fascinate me
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I would also like to know. Was it replaced as the issue sidearm by something else?
We have quite restrictive gun ownership laws here, though not as bad as the UK, but I am always up for a bit of
Gun Chat
Even though I currently only own two rifles and a 12G shotgun, over the years I have owned or fired quite the variety of handguns. The 1911 never impressed me, I have never fired a ‘tricked out’ version but standard they had weak rifling and it showed. The stand-out autos for me have been the Sig P226 for 9mm and the USP in .45
If I was going to buy a handgun today it would be a revolver, I have always had a soft spot for them, probably a Korth in .357 magnum.
Practically all the competition shooting I did was with revolvers - Police/Service Match (timed practical shooting at fixed targets from 50 and 25 yards, multiple shooting positions), I had a S&W .357 for that and later on got into ‘Western Action’ for a bit of fun. Had a Ruger Blackhawk in .44 Mag for that, total overkill (most guys used .45’s) but I loved the Ka-Boom and muzzle flash 
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Now that’s classy! 
Always thought those were cool. A gas-operated (well, sorta- gas delayed) handgun with a German accent…
I've actually never had an unreliable 1911
with the exception of one 9mm that needed Chip McCormick mags to feed anything but FMJs (became a range toy anyway, but a fun one!). I won’t say I’ve shot tens of thousands of rounds through them like competitors or folks running a pistol course, but I’ve shot mine quite a bit between cleanings. That said, I’ve also never owned a Kimber, or Para Ordinance and have seen both of those brands (and a couple Springfields manufactured during their less-spectacular period) that didn’t seem like happy guns when new. It’s definitely (in my opinion) a design that doesn’t lend itself well to being ‘tightened up’; it was intended to have some clearances (not tolerances 
) for reliability. Kimber seemed to forget that in the late 90’s/early 2000’s and tried to tighten things up too much ‘for accuracy’, leading to folks ‘having to shoot 500 rounds for break-in’ or lubing their pistols with toothpaste for the first few boxes. Colt never seemed to have that problem with their series 80s or 1991, for whatever reasons. The closer to the original they are on the inside, the more reliable, IMO. That said, they’re never going to be something you can put 20,000 rounds through with just spring changes like a Glock. There are some really decent 1911’s on the market these days, and the 2011 market is really booming, which is cool.
Like Glocks, loved the older Sigs (before they turned into whatever they are now), never touched a USP but love the VP9 (if mags weren’t expensive and I wasn’t already invested in lots of Glocks/Glock mags I probably would have switched to it when it came out), owned a few Berettas including a couple M9/92s that shot really well but were too big for practicality, and hated the M&P I rented, for whatever arbitrary reason at the time.
Can you tell I have a lot of ‘range toy’ handguns, but pretty much only carry Glocks these days? 
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If the mods find it appropriate, maybe move the firearms discussion over to a new thread?
Gun discussion
Politics, hubris, paperwork, all the above? Short version was the new sergeant over firearms felt that the 1911 platform required more training then officers got in the academy (complete BS in my opinion), and didn’t want to be hassled with giving it after we got out. Stupid reason I know. At the time I came through, we had a list of about 50 guns we could pick from for our personally purchased and owned duty pistol. We went to a standard gun about 6 years later (which was a whole different kettle of stupid).
Specifically the issue most admin feels is a liability with the 1911 is the manual external safety. Which considering dang near every other tool on my belt besides my stick has some kind of safety including my pepper spray.
@Harry_Bumcrack, my USP was in .45, great gun. Eventually sold it and got one in 9mm, even better gun. Gotta admit seeing big .45" holes in the target is always fun. Just sold a 4" S&W 686 to a coworker, great gun, but taking up space in my safe. Still have my trusty model 15 combat masterpiece, which was the same model the USAF issued to air crews in VN.
@WarPig I’ve had a chance to shoot most of the big name 1911’s (Wilson, Les Baer, Night Hawk, etc) and I’ll say they have run pretty much flawlessly, and been match accurate. Ironically my Kimber never gave me issues. My RIA in 9mm wont feed hollow points out of anything other than shooting star mags, but since they’re $9 or so, I’m not complaining. My work 1911 is/was a Sig GSR, and it runs and shoots just fine even with a high round count. We had a few Texas Ranger recon guys in a class I was teaching years ago, and knowing that fact I made a point of running my 1911 (they carry the Sig Tacops which is the 2nd gen version of my gun). I also made a point of practicing with it for a few weeks ahead of time too (it’s not cheating, it’s shaping the battlefield). No issues running hard and dirty.
Ironically the VP9 is my second least favorite H&K pistol. To me it shoots like a Glock with a bad trigger, and has the audacity to take an extra $500 out of my wallet. The HK45 was even worse. The P7 was a good gun, but for a single stack 9mm I could get a lot of other guns and have another $2k in my bank acoount. If I win the lottery I’ll get another one.
We’ve been carrying M&P’s since 2012, and I’m closing in on half a million rounds through the platform Not my favorite pistol, but definitely one that will do work.
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Heh, even some of my power tools (saw, grinder) have safeties! 
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Egyptian Goose
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Went to Willingham Woods with a bunch from the IAM. Actually got struck by a car on the way - a right hand bend and he ran wide and hit my handlebar - lucky for me (and for him) it hit the end of the bar with his windscreen pillar and just pushed my bike upright a few yards before I would have done it. Only damage is a graze on the bar end. Could have been serious had it not been a glancing collision.
Think I’m improving with the selfies…
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Yikes! That’s about as close as it gets, I guess?
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Underwear change required! Lucky it was a 40 zone and the tight bend meant I was probably not doing more than 25ish.
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Baltic Sea during Winter
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Glad you kept the shiny side up!
I’m leaving on an early weekend MC trip Wednesday morning. Haven’t been since 2019, looking forward to it a bunch!
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Make sure you take it easy if it has been a while. I have seen too many riders who have been out of the saddle for a few years come unstuck trying to keep up with ‘regular’ riders. 
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Never mind a few years - I used to lay up my litre sportsbike every winter due to road salt and every spring when I had my first ride I’d find myself spinning up the rear wheel and it stepping out and taking me by surprise.
I had a break a few years back of about 3-4 years and when I returned I did it the safe way, starting with a 200 then a 500 for a couple of years and finally back to a litre bike. May have been over cautious, but better than being part of a tree!
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My Modified GSX-R is just over 175bhp on a bike designed to run 100. Its absolutely terrible in any conditions that aren’t perfect. Awful thing to ride on the road
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Definitely, stay safe! A former coworker had a few horror stories from his time riding bikes when he was young. He only stopped doing stupid sh*t (like going 300km/h on country roads) when he lost a friend in an accident.
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I used to ride 1100cc Honda Blackbird back in the day. It was a good ride, never dared to test top speed (apparently closer to 300km/h). I am a bit intrigued to buy bike again, but would definitely settle for smaller naked bike now.
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You should look up the Honda X11
A naked blackbird with a 5 speed gearbox. Short lived but a beast of a bike
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