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It's finally been settled!

Pawpaw wrote:

VoiceofReason wrote:Replacing a pistol with a rifle? Sort of defeats the purpose that a pistol was issued for.

Not really. A pistol is largely a defensive weapon. That's fine if you also have a rifle, but many of the troops it was originally intended for only had the pistol. When rear echelon troops, mortar crews, etc. had to fight, the carbine was a better choice. It's more accurate, with less training, and at longer distances than the pistol. When not in use, it is bulkier, but not as bulky and heavy as a Garand.

You are right that

“many of the troops it was originally intended for only had the pistol”

. Flame Thrower operators, machine gunners, pilots etc. could not carry their equipment or fly a plane plus carry a rifle. They also needed something they could keep on them that they could get to quickly.

I believe the 1911 was designed with soldiers in mind that came from big cities and never had fired a gun. The thumb safety and the grip safety probably saved a lot of lives due to accidental discharges.

G26ster wrote:Whenever the 1911 vs. Glock discussions re-appear, I'm always reminded of the following quote from the book "War Baby":

"When in 1941, the Army was looking to replace the M1911 pistol with the M1 Carbine, speaking of the pistol, the ARMY R&D published the following, “This weapon (the M1911) was primarily for defensive purposes since its effective range is limited to not more than 25 yards, except when handled by an expert. Its ineffectiveness was well proven by the amazingly small number of casualties it inflicted upon enemy troops during WWI as revealed by post-war inspection of German casualty lists and hospital records.”

Also, I have to wonder how many defenders of either the 1911, or the Glock (and I own both), have ever actually had to use one in a real life self defense situation to really know with certainty just how well they will perform (the gun and themselves).

They must have had something going for them, they were used in WWII, Korea, and Viet Nam. Sounds like someone in R&D was getting a little money to trash the 1911.

Also that doesn’t make any sense.

"When in 1941, the Army was looking to replace the M1911 pistol with the M1 Carbine,”

Replacing a pistol with a rifle? Sort of defeats the purpose that a pistol was issued for.

Abraham wrote:Yep, it'll go pew pew pew 8 times and then it's outta juice...A Glock .45 caliber on the other hand will go pew, pew, pew 10/13 times before it's outta juice (plus, it's dependable)

The idea is to hit what you are shooting at with the first two or three shots so you have bullets left over. But then there are those that follow the "spray and pray" school of thought. My Kimber holds 9 and I carry two spare mags. It goes bang bang bang not pew pew pew and I have never had any trouble with it.