Home on the Range

Barrel length in three .45s

“So, if we have three .45 caliber handguns, and one has a 3.5 inch barrel, the next has 4 inch and the last has 5 inch, they will all shoot in a similar manner?” I ask.

“Yep. Give ‘em to me, and I’ll show you. Who else wants to shoot three .45s?” he asks. “In fact, to confirm what I’ve just said, I won’t even shoot. Henry, Sam, Rose and Joe can shoot each gun. The Kimber will shoot best. It’s just a better handgun.”

Tony knows best. He always knows best.

It’s Wednesday, and we’re at the Wakulla County Sheriff’s Office range, like we are most Wednesdays. We try to be here at 10 a.m. each Wednesday so we can shoot with friends. We also like to help out newcomers at the range to learn to be safe and to assist with any questions. Newbies like this range because there’s always a deputy available, and the WCSO range has a reputation for being a safe place to shoot and also the membership comes at a very reasonable price at $75 for husband and wife and also their children under 18 who live with them.

Henry just moved here. This is his first time at the WCSO range. Henry’s a mature, big-boned guy and he has shot a lot before. Sam is tall, and is much younger than the rest of us. Rose has shot often here at the range and she’s willing to try them out, too. And Joe, well, Joe has his favorite of the three guns. I pretty much know which gun will get the best marks from him. Today we are shooting a Rock Island 1911 A1CS handgun with a 3.5 inch barrel. The next gun is a 4-inch Kimber Eclipse Pro II and the last is a 5-inch Auto Ordnance Thompson Custom 1911. All are .45s.

The Rock Island’s usual magazine holds seven rounds, but today it has a longer magazine holding eight rounds. It weighs 2 pounds, 6 ounces and is 5.1 inches tall. It’s heavy for its small barrel size.

The Kimber Eclipse Pro weighs 2 pounds, 3 ounces and is 5.25 inches tall. Except for barrel length, you can see it’s about the same weight and height as the Rock Island. The Kimber’s magazine holds eight rounds.

The Auto Ordnance is the third handgun. Its barrel is 5 inches long. It weighs 2 pounds, 5 ounces and is 5.25 inches tall. All three guns are similar in weight and height, but have different barrel lengths.

We are going to rate the three guns for trigger pull, trigger pull length, kick, and grip. On a 1-5 scale, 1 means they like it and it is easy and 5 means they hate it and it is difficult.

Henry is up first. He plants his feet, breathes out and aims the Rock Island. This gun has the shortest barrel. He finds the trigger easy. Trigger gets a 1 for easy and a 2 for trigger pull travel. Recoil gets a 2 as well. He’s steady as he shoots. He says the Rock Island feels good in his hands. He gives the Kimber’s trigger pull a 1 for difficulty and a 1 for travel. He likes the trigger pull. But the kick? He says it kicks hard and gives it a 3 for the heavy kick.

Last, he tries the Auto Ordnance. Again, he likes the trigger. He gives the recoil a 2. It’s a sturdy kick. He likes the way this gun fits in his hands. He has no trouble hitting the target. Sam doesn’t like the trigger on the Rock Island very well and he gives it a 5 for recoil. That’s the highest number in our rating system. He likes the grip and says it fits in his hand.

Sam thinks trigger pull on the Kimber is nice, but gives it a 2 for difficulty and travel. He gives it a 3 for kick, saying it doesn’t kick as hard as the Rock Island, but it’s still a firm kick. He does like how it fits in his hands, saying that the bigger grip is more comfortable. He also likes the grip’s stippling.

He likes the Auto Ordnance and gives it best points for trigger difficulty and travel. He finds it to have less kick than either the Rock Island or the Kimber.

Rose shoots next. She gives the trigger pull and travel of the Rock Island a 2. Not hard. Even though she likes the grip, and is able to hold the gun firmly, she finds the recoil very hard and gives it a 5.

She likes the trigger of the Kimber and gives it great marks. However, she still finds the recoil to be hard and gives recoil a 4. She likes it better than the Rock Island because she is able to get a good grip on it.

She likes the Auto Ordnance. She likes the trigger and the grip, but the recoil to her is hard and she gives recoil a 3. She says it’s a sweet gun, feels good, and shoots well.

Joe likes all three guns. He does give the Rock Island a 2 for both kick and grip. He says it’s small and light and a bit harder to control. The targets show tightest groupings with the Auto Ordnance.

All 3 find recoil on Rock Island to be strongest. Except for Joe, they find Kimber to have a sturdy recoil as well. They all do well with the Auto Ordnance, giving it best marks for smooth recoil.

I don’t count Joe’s scores, because I know how much he likes the Kimber. I feel his liking will skew the comparisons. However, now Tony isn’t so certain that there’s no difference in how a gun shoots with a longer barrel. Adding up points for recoil, the Kimber beats Rock Island and the Auto Ordnance beats the Kimber.

Of course, barrel length is never the only factor on how well a gun shoots. Mass and grip make a difference. Sights and sight radius make a difference too. Just knowing a gun is a Kimber makes a huge difference to many. I know it does to Joe. And there’s that personal preference. Sometimes it’s just difficult to say what makes you like one gun over another.

I like comparing these three guns because they are all about the same weight and height. They are all the same caliber.

Tony has seen that all three people shoot better with the Kimber than the Rock Island. Is it the stippling or the grip? Is this because of barrel length? Is there a predisposed liking for the brand of Kimber?

Tony then picks up the Kimber and shoots. He does the same for the Rock Island.

“Hm,” he says. Then he shoots the Auto Ordnance. “Hm,” he says again.

“Do you want to sell the Auto Ordnance?” he asks.