Posted on 07/10/2009 7:46:55 AM PDT by Shooter 2.5
Thomas’s Navy Cross citation states: “His deadly accuracy accounted for at least one enemy dead and held the aggressors at bay until an Army rescue helicopter landed.” It is assumed Thomas was given credit solely for the VC killed and witnessed at the rescue chopper. When a second Army rescue helicopter landed to retrieve the bodies of the dead co-pilot and gunner, the soldiers noted a plethora of VC dead all around the area. One was as close as three yards from Thomas’s shooting position, and the furthest was 150 yards. It was clear to those on the scene that many of these were killed with .45-caliber bullets. Thomas was the only combatant using a .45 pistol. LTC Mark Eberhard, USMCR, stated in an article for the American Marksman Group (www.americanmarksman.com) that there were 37 VC bodies at the scene.
I was on out unit’s Combat Pistol Team for many years. I love the M 1911. We had to use “rack weapons”, but I got to shoot with a match grade on several occassions. Hitting the “10” ring at 25 meters is not all that easy. I’ve had several chunks of skin bitten out by the hammer.
I have about 15 handguns and iron-sighted, I am most proficient with my Series 80 Colt. It just feels natural and it’s never failed me.
9mm’s may expand, by 45’s never shrink.
Yes they are. They have more recoil, but anyone getting hit by that round is not coming after you anymore.
I started shooting a 1911 when I was 13. It was my first handgun. It was an older Remington-Rand that had seen a LOT of miles and rounds. If you could shake it hard enough the pins would back out and it would literally come apart in your hands.
Needless to say that was also my first foray into gunsmithing fixing the damn thing, and it pushed me into a life long hobby of gunsmithing and shooting the 1911.
There is no substitute for cubic inches.
Mine is just a lowly Taurus, but I still love it!
Actually, I have found 1911’s to be very well-balanced in the standard configuration (full-size barrel, 8-rd. magazine). They have less recoil than you would imagine, even with +P loads. Heavy to carry, but heavy-hitting, and that’s what counts.
Taurus makes good iron.
I have a Taurus as well, and there’s no reason to be ashamed of it. I have run well over 2000 rounds of various ammo through it without a single misfeed and with fine accuracy. The original grips are a bit cheesy, but relatively easy to replace (you need a strong-side notch cut to accommodate the ambidextrous safety). I also like the vented trigger and the fact that the recoil spring is not overly tight.
Yes, they are well balanced. I have no problem with it. I remember one warrant officer who used to shoot one handed. He was very accurate using one hand.
I remember some of the officers on the range and they had a hard time with the 1911. One MAJ told his COL, “One thing about that weapon, is if you empty your magazine and miss, just throw the thing and kill the person”.
Andy, the guy who made my Monkey grips is a friend of my son. Larry made those beautiful grips for my Taurus on my profile page. He will cut the ambitextrous safety inlet for you if you request it.
There is something you should know about the Taurus 1911’s. They don’t use the same diameter grip screws as the Colt’s. The Colts were always too small for the grips and Taurus corrected that. You may check to see if you have the Colt diameter screw head of the Taurus before sending for the grips. I had to cut the screw heads down because I didn’t want Larry’s beautiful grips to be destroyed by me. It was cheaper and easier to cut the screws down on a pedestal grinder.
http://davidsonknives.com/grips/grips.htm
Fixing the typo
You may check to see if you have the Colt diameter screw head OR the Taurus before sending for the grips.
Bookmark for an awesome story.
I wonder how many magazines that guy was carrying? If he killed 37 it was at least 5.
You’re absolutely right, and thanks for the reminder. Those monkey grips are both beautiful and functional, and quite reasonably priced.
1911s and other .45 ACPs are great for defending against two-legged attackers. ...love ‘em. Alas, I’ll be way out in the high-elevation boonies (way) with enormous ranges of visibility, so it’s back to heavier single action artillery.
Excellent profile page FRiend........and the Mateba is absolutely bada@@!
Thank you. The Mateba here is mine.
http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/chat/2287396/posts?q=1&;page=51
Post 79.
It’s uglier than Betty’s on Oleg Volk’s page.
He fired 80 rounds and two magazines come in the pouch. Whether they had additional pouches or less than the two is unknown.
I still wonder if this hero is still with us. He retired as a Navy Commander.
If you hear about a feat such as this, it’s probably a SEAL.
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