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Thoughts on the Para 45 LDA


Sheldon

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Hello All.  Anyone here have any experience with this pistol?  I'm thinking of getting one but am kinda worried of problems I keep hearing about the reliability of the high capacity Para mags.  Are the mags reliable or not in the 45 ACP caliber?  What are your feelings about the LDA trigger?  I tried a single stack version and thought the trigger was sweet!!  Is the single stack any more reliable than the P14 model?  Thanks for the info. in advance guys.

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Theoretically, as the rounds only have to feed up in a single stack, the original is more reliable than the double-stack magazine.

Theoretically.

As many matches have been won with ultra-reliable Para hi-caps, I'd have to say it works plenty well.

What application, and why hi-cap?  If you're shooting Production, you're limited to 10 shots anyway, and can use some of the many ten-shot single stack mags.  If you're shooting Limited, you'll be one of the few shooting an LDA against the single action hordes.

If its for carry, you may find the hi-cap just a bit bulky.  And heavy, fully-loaded.

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Patrick,

we don't know where Sheldon is writing from (Canada, eh?). For IPSC, the Para LDA in 9mm is one of the hottest options in Production. Mags hold something like 21 rds, and there is no 10-rd. rule....

In another forum category, he said *for fun*, and you can't argue with the legitimacy of that! The LDA sure would be fun to shoot...

--Detlef

(Edited by Detlef at 4:07 pm on Oct. 22, 2001)

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Except for cranky, inaccurate guns, which ones aren't fun to shoot?

As far as reliability goes, the hi-caps work as well as the single stacks.

Sheldon, try the hi-cap and see if you like it.  The Para can be large for some hands, and it would be a shame to get one wihtout knowing how it feels.

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Good point Patrick.  My hands fit the single stack really good and I'm wondering how big a difference the P14 is.  I'll check it out before I make the final decision.  One drawback is another magazine I'll have to stock up on that is not compatible with any of my existing pistols.............hmmmmmm a single stack is looking better in that regard.

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  • 1 month later...

i carry one myself, i like it. but i also know a few people

that has had alot of problems with them, lots! and as far as working on them, or tearing them down completely to clean them, nobody knows how. after many months of tinkering it seems i finally have them down pat. para won`t even give a manual out fot them, they said you should not take them apart except for field stripping. that`s crazy my guns are always cleaned thoroughly. just my 3 cents  

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I shot a LDA at the vendor demos at the IDPA nationals.  It was pretty sweet, but it was also highly tuned, not box stock.  The LDA has a definite two stage reset.  At least that one did.  Not saying that is good or bad, just something one would have to adjust to.  At first, while trying to fire from reset, I couldn't get the gun to fire at all.  It was because I was only releasing to the first reset.  My Para escort said, "you're obviously used to shooting a Glock.  You've got a longer, two stage reset on this gun".

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Another thought when considering a single stack versus a hi-cap is the reloads. The single stack reloads can be mastered after mucho practice. But there's nothing like throwing a tapered hi-cap mag in the general direction of that wide body frame and being reasonably assured of hitting. Trust me, that won't happen with a single stack. But to answer the question the LDA is a "fun" gun to shoot.

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  • 3 weeks later...

old thread i know,,,

i shot an lda .45 a couple of weeks ago,,,i liked it so much i bought the company!!!,,,(well not really but i did buy a po two days later ),,,the  trigger pull was the only thing i didn't like,,,it wasn't the #'s,,,i think the pull on the lda was smoother than the limited i bought,,,but i don't have both now to compare,,,it was a very long pull,,,and the  reset was half way,,,i tend to wait for the reset,,,if its a  long way off it slows me down,,,(i'm fixing that on my limited!!!),,,i'm sure you could adjust that somehow but that was my only gripe,,,i loved the way the gun felt,,,

my para is s/a only but i wouldn't fret in buying an lda,,,they make a really cool carry one!!!,,,i would really be interested in that,,,can't remember the numbers but they are pushing it hard in all the mags,,,its a .45,,,and i want a .40,,,but i still like it alot,,,!!!

probably don't help,,,or you probaby already bought the one you want,,,but i can't help sharing my ' para ' experience,,,

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  • 11 months later...

"Another thought when considering a single stack versus a hi-cap is the reloads....there's nothing like throwing a tapered hi-cap mag in the general direction of that wide body frame and being reasonably assured of hitting."

That's not going to be true with the high cap Para unless you're running a mag funnel. The Para mags are very squared-off and blocky in front. Even a bevelled mag well will frequently catch the mag. Todd Jarrett, who used a stock, mag funnelless Para P16-40 LDA Limited to win Production at the 2002 Factory Gun Nationals, called reloading his gun "like trying to stick a square peg into a round hole - fast."

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my $0.02 worth on double stack vs single stack.  i shoot double stack Paras in each of Open and Ltd.  i wear a womens large glove which is a bit smaller than a mens small glove.  i find i truly like the double stack fit in my hand.  before getting the Open Para i shot a single stack Open class 45 (gee is my age showing?).

the best fitting double stack IMHO is the Caspian. but i had already had the Para open gun built and i chose not to start over.

SharonAnne L2387

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