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Slide length


wamcei

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I need some input from the experienced shooters here. In your opinion does having the longest slide possible help that much in our shooting. For example, is there really that much difference between a 4.5 inch barrel and a 5.25 inch barrel. I know I am talking barrels now but typically longer barrel = longer slide.?Yes I know there is .75 of an inch longer but do you get a drastic improvement? Thank you in advance for your experience

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You will typically get a longer sight radius which is good. You will typically get more velocity which is good as it takes a little less powder to make desired PF and every little bit helps.

Drastic improvement? probably not. Improvement? yes for sure.

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no. at your point, no. Get popular length, or whatevers cheapest. all that stuff means doody. a good shooter can win with a 3" over folks with 6" slide barrels.

Learning the fundamentals of shooting supercede the vast majority of equipment questions.

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  • 1 month later...

I don't think telling someone they're not good enough to worry about their equipment is a very reasonable response to an honest question.
<_<

Are there advantages to a longer gun? yes, but there are disadvantages as well; how these factors are balanced has a lot to do with personal preference and ability level. Like Sarge said, the longer the barrel, the less powder to make the same PF, the longer the sight radius, the easier it is to group well on far targets, the longer the recoil system, the softer/more linear the recoil; however, the longer the gun, the heavier it is, and the slower to get moving. Depending on the platform you choose and how strong you are the added weight may be an acceptable trade off, but a steel frame, full weight 6" Limited gun definitely steers like a battleship for most mere mortals.

To say that a C class shooter with a 6" 2011 will beat a GM with a 3" Glock is absurd, to to say Robert will not score any better with the former over the latter is also absurd.

Contrary to what Jack said above, I think the equipment makes a bigger relative difference at the lower skill levels, at least that seemed to be the case for me. When I first started out, the heavier and softer the better; I wanted to soak up all the recoil I could so I could feel more in control of the pistol. As I've gotten better I've begun to appreciate the quick transitions of a lighter pistol and have loosened up on my concept of 'control'. Now I prefer to look at my time with the pistol as more of a dance than 'control'. :wub:

Edited by kneelingatlas
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I've been shooting a 4.25" 1911, I have to load my rounds a little hot to make major PF. I haven't had any issues with accuracy. I really like the way the pistol balances and transitions. I will be going to a 5" gun this year. The longer sight radius does help, and the longer barrel helps with velocity.

I would say shoot whatever feels better to you and is reliable.

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  • 3 weeks later...

I have to agree with what Sarge said.

I am fairly new to USPSA shooting, a little less than a year. By no means am I an expert, but this is from my experience. I started off shooting an xdm 4.5 and shot that fair. After a couple of matches I decided to move to the xdm 5.25. There were several reasons for this. The one that pertains to this topic is the longer sight radius. I felt that it helped me with accuracy. I started out as a low D shooter and am now a higher D shooter. Did it make a difference in how I shot, yes. Was it a huge difference, no.

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