40 or 45 for single stack?

[RH45]

I use whichever one I happen to have the proper ammo loaded for.

I USUALLY have .40 major, and minor loaded, but, will only use minor for ESP division, in IDPA.

Although most of the ammo I have loaded in .45 is major, which I use in single stack division of USPSA, and CDP division of IDPA, I did load up some minor loads in .45, and shot it in ESP division, but, it SEEMED to take a really long time for the slide to move back and forth.

If I had to pick one, just for USPSA single stack division, it would be a .40.

[foilhat]

I would pick the .45, but I only own .45's and two nines.

[blue edge]

Brian Enos has said in that his experience, taking into account both the cartridge (.40 or .45) and magazine configuration (single or double stack), in order of how easy it is to get the gun to run reliably (descending from easiest to hardest), it goes:

.45 single stack

.40 double stack

.40 single stack

.45 double stack.

I've known a number of people who've gone the .40 single stack route. Invariably it took them a year or two of experimentation to get the gun to run reliably. Of course, once they made it through that process they had a very nice gun. (Not particularly nicer than the same gun in .45, mind you....)

2 WEEKS

[TonyT]

45 ACP seems to run more trouble free than 40 S&W in 1911's. When I first shot my STI Trojan in 40 S&W I was experiencing some feeding failure. STI came to the rescue and modified the feed ramp - since then it has functioned very reliably. The plus of a 40 S&W is that one can load it for both minor and major PF with a simple change of recoil spring and 40 S&W brass is plentifull. That being said I do load a 185 gr LSWC in 45 ACP for between 715 and 735 fps. There is a difference in the recoil sensation between the 40 S&W and 45 ACP even when loaded to the same PF.

[Duke Nukem]

Of the top 5 shooters at the single stack classic 4 of them shot 40 cals. There must be something to it.

[Duane Thomas]

I think it has more to do with the fact these are serous Limited shooters who already have their loading machines set up for .40 than any advantage of .40 over .45.

[tgford58]

I always take the opportunity to trumpet the .45. Don't get me wrong, I own and enjoy my .40s also-the .45 are just a personal choice. From a handling standpoint, I can't tell a nickels worth of difference between the recoil of the .45 and .40 if they are loaded to about the same PF. I can't speak to reliability, I have new guns gone over by a good pistolsmith prior to fielding and other than finding mags and loads that work well there are no issues - this applies to both. Reload cost is about identical, component costs are the same with brass being the swing vote - .45 can be a bit harder to find once fired. In the end, buy the pistol that makes you like - I bet you'll form an opinion pretty quick.

[steel1212]

Ok you guys want the real super secret squirrel secret? hmmmmm do ya? If you load for .40 get the .40 if you load for .45 get the .45. Pick a gun, load 8+1 and have fun.

[ParaGunner]

Ok you guys want the real super secret squirrel secret? hmmmmm do ya? If you load for .40 get the .40 if you load for .45 get the .45. Pick a gun, load 8+1 and have fun.

K.I.S.S.

[Merlin Orr]

Snip> Pick a gun, load 8+1 and have fun.

And if you load for both.....

Get several of each!

I really think I shoot a .40 a little better...

Edited August 18, 2010 by Merlin Orr

[steel1212]

Snip> Pick a gun, load 8+1 and have fun.

And if you load for both.....

Get several of each!

I really think I shoot a .40 a little better...

Then there is those of us that do that lol.

[Krag]

I compete in S.S. with a Nighthawk Custom and Springfield Loaded both in .45. I load my ammo with Berry's 185 gr. RNHB (round nosed hollow base) plated bullets. They give you the OAL and profilce of 230 gr. hardball ammo for reliability but with lighter recoil.

The reason I went with .45s is that I had been shooting Limited and L10 with .40s for years and had a ton of .45 brass, bullets, large pistol primers, etc. gathering dust in my workshop. It costs about the same to reload either caliber so what the heck! It's not that much trouble to switch the Dillon over from time to time. More important, I had several friends shooting S.S. with .40s and it seem to take them forever to get their guns running right. My .45s have run 100% since day one. In my situation it was a no brainer.

Edited August 18, 2010 by Krag

[jjanglin]

I shoot the .45 single stack mostly because I like it and the history.My limited gun is a 40,

mag capacity is the reason. If everyone shot .45 in Limited Id shoot a .45 so I would know the in's and out's

of the caliber so I could help the shooters get a good shooting limited gun.

I enjoy both calibers, I shoot 200 grain bullets in the forty and 230 in the .45 , their isnt that much

differance in how they shoot.

Jim/Pa

Sailors

[HICKMAN]

I'm already set up to load .40, is the Trojan the best .40 if one wants to shoot Single Stack?

[Zerwas]

I'm already set up to load .40, is the Trojan the best .40 if one wants to shoot Single Stack?

That is a very good choice, but you will have to modify the feed ramp a bit to make it run 100%. It is a relatively easy fix though if you have a gunsmith local that can do it for you.

[Avezorak]

The Dan Wesson Pointman Target is a nice choice for a .40 SS...

[North]

I'm already set up to load .40, is the Trojan the best .40 if one wants to shoot Single Stack?

That is a very good choice, but you will have to modify the feed ramp a bit to make it run 100%. It is a relatively easy fix though if you have a gunsmith local that can do it for you.

The one I bought last year is fine. Buy with confidence, Zerwas had a little trouble with his and was too impatient to let STI fix it for him.

[Zerwas]

I'm already set up to load .40, is the Trojan the best .40 if one wants to shoot Single Stack?

That is a very good choice, but you will have to modify the feed ramp a bit to make it run 100%. It is a relatively easy fix though if you have a gunsmith local that can do it for you.

The one I bought last year is fine. Buy with confidence, Zerwas had a little trouble with his and was too impatient to let STI fix it for him.

Just for the record, I don't own the STI Trojan 40 caliber. I own a Fusion 40 caliber that has run 100% from day one (with the Cobra magazines). I very good friend of mine has 2 of the STI Trojans and he had feed problems until he added some material to the feed ramp which fixed the problems he was having. They are very nice pistols however and this is why I recommended them.

[BOGA]

I was at the same situation years ago. Cant decide so I bought a .40 and .45. Theyre both reliable and a pleasure to shoot. I'm one of the lucky guys to own a Trojan .40 that runs good from the day I bought it. No barrel mods. Loading 200 XTP's at 1.165/n330. The 45 is a colt combat elite/kart barrel loading Hornady 200swc/n310

[2alpha]

For me the recoil impulse of a 45 185 loaded down is really easy to shoot. No problems getting the 40 to run if you take the time to figure out the OAL your pistol wants with the bullets you are using. I think the bad rep the 40 got early was because some where just trying to use the OAL that worked for their HiCap Limited guns and sometimes that just don't work out.

[belus]

I have not shot a 40 SS, but I suspect it would be marginally easier to reload to 8+1 because you're further from completely compressing the mag spring. If I've recently shot production I find myself not seating the 45 mags hard enough.

[steel1212]

For me the recoil impulse of a 45 185 loaded down is really easy to shoot. No problems getting the 40 to run if you take the time to figure out the OAL your pistol wants with the bullets you are using. I think the bad rep the 40 got early was because some where just trying to use the OAL that worked for their HiCap Limited guns and sometimes that just don't work out.

If you shoot limited and it won't run the same loads as your limited gun then whats the point? I know I would make one or the other work with the same load. I'm not going to load 2 different major length .40 ammo for guns that should be able to run on one OAL.

I have not shot a 40 SS, but I suspect it would be marginally easier to reload to 8+1 because you're further from completely compressing the mag spring. If I've recently shot production I find myself not seating the 45 mags hard enough.

This is very true also. .40 mags are designed to work with 9 + 1 so have extra room in there, and it seems to me, reloads easier than a fully compressed .45. Now the Tripp mags have even more room in there than usual due to the way their basepads work and the extra mag body length.

[G-ManBart]

Just for the record, I don't own the STI Trojan 40 caliber. I own a Fusion 40 caliber that has run 100% from day one (with the Cobra magazines). I very good friend of mine has 2 of the STI Trojans and he had feed problems until he added some material to the feed ramp which fixed the problems he was having. They are very nice pistols however and this is why I recommended them.

Fushion = STI parts with different markings.

[dohboy]

Either a .40 or .45 SS as long as it runs reliably. As for the top SS shooters using a .40, let's be honest, at their level they would shoot well with either caliber. Like others have already mentioned, reloading & shooting.40 is just more practical / logistical for high volume shooters. I have both a .40 & .45 SS and yes, the .40 may take a little more tweaking to run reliably, but once you get there it is sweet and cheaper for me to shoot. Good luck and welcome to single stack!

[HICKMAN]

Ended up picking up an STI Spartan from a buddy and am having some Single Stack fun.

Hoping to get classified at the special match at WVPPS this coming weekend