Trying to figure out what USPSA division to shoot my .45 ACP 1911 in

[chbrow10]

I have a 45 ACP 1911 that I’d like to shoot in USPSA. I don’t really care (right now) on whether I shoot major or minor (I reload).

I do not want to shoot in Open Division, and my read on Production division is that “Handguns with external hammers must be fully decocked at the start signal.”, which means I cannot be cocked and locked. I assume that they will not let me put the hammer down with a round in the chamber in a Series 70 1911. My gun is a single stack, and Limited Division has no restriction on magazine capacity, so I’d be competing with the Para double stacks in 45, something I’d rather not do.

So that leaves Single Stack and Limited 10. I’d like to compete in the division that has the most competitors, and I believe that to be Limited-10 in my neck of the woods. Single stack doesn’t seem to have a lot of competitors.

I am right or wrong on the above?

[slinkwc2k]

For a non-widebody non-high cap 1911, your best division is limited 10 or single stack. Single stack has finer rules, such as placement of mag pouches, etc that you need to be aware of. Limited 10 is your best bet; just make sure you have some 10 round mags, and you are allowed to start with one in the chamber, so you can use an old 7 rounder for that purpose (remember to engage the safety after you load the pipe and before you change to your 10 round mag). You are also allowed skate tape on the front strap and on the slide, whereas you are not in single stack nor production.

[Ant1]

Single stack is a growing division, it also puts a premium on accuracy due to lower magazine capacity in .45ACP. Besides you can use the magazines you currently have. Skateboard tape is no problem.

[rduckwor]

Single stack is a whole lot of fun. Your times won't come close to the race gun guys, but at least you're competing with a "real" weapon with lots of history behind it.

Have fun.

RMD

[hardpuller]

If you shoot Lim10 you will still be shooting against guys with limited guns who download thier mags to ten rounds + you will need 10 rd mags which are harder to keep running in my opinion. So shooting lim 10 you would still be competing against wide body guns which you stated that you rather not do. I would shoot your single stack in single stack div and get five or six 8 rd power mags or wilson mags and shoot major power class. Load a 230 to about 750fps and use a 16 lb recoil spring and you will be in business. Just go to a match and the shooters will be glad to talk to you about what works.

[wichaka]

I shoot single stack, and like it a lot.

[JLH3]

+ 1 to Hardpuller's advice. Stay w/ the singlestack division.

[sethmark]

I shot single stack all year. Its fun, but you spend a lot of time on administrative work --- reloading. A new mag between almost EVERY array of targets. I have shot L10 also and its marginally less reloading, obviously, but it also gives you the flexibility to miss, which you're not afforded with the single stack.

On the flip side, the single stack makes you conscious of the quality of each shot...

I run limited now and its way more fun, as the concentration is on marksmanship.

[rdhrt]

I shoot single stack, its great fun! And I am getting practise with the same gun and magazine that I carry. This is important to me. Just my 2 cents.

[Viscon]

Single stack is the way to go with your gun. USPSA is a blast. Have fun!

[RickB]

I have been shooting L10 with a single stack .45, almost since the day the division was introduced. I find it more fun than Single Stack, which I have been shooting the last two or three months, as the whole point of USPSA competition is "racing" with handguns, and you can't race very fast when you are facing 8-round target arrays with eight or nine rounds in your gun. The additional two rounds may not sound like much, but it often makes a large difference. The competition in L10 has fallen off a lot in my area, and I have taken to shooting my L10 gear in Limited, and doing pretty well. If you are good at reloading, which you tend to get, shooting L10, you can keep up with the hi-caps, even when they have a 10-round capacity advantage. There's certainly no reason to think you can't beat downloaded hi-caps in L10.

[Gila Jorge]

I shoot Single Stack with my Les Baer and enjoy the heck out of it....more so than Limited with my CZ 75 TS...which I also shoot occasionally....But much prefer the SS
competition....this after 5 shoots....I am a beginner....

[Targetsight]

Hi guys, im thinking also of doing SS and im trying to decide which gun and caliber to choose. As the gun will be both for CCW and range use, it will need to be very reliable and accurate enough. Im considering either the STI Spartan or a Trojan 5.0 in 40cal to do the double job. Any pros and cons you can opine on my choices to straighten me out here guys? What's the popular caliber used in SS nowadays? Is there any caliber related problem with either round with the 1911 format (I heard 40cal is prone to FTF)?

[What Just Happened?]

.40 is the minimum caliber for SS, so a lot of people like to go with it. But yes, I've heard the same thing about troublesome feeding with the .40s&w round. A lot of people over at brianenos.com suggest that you load the round a little long - my loading manual says the same thing - to alleviate the problem. But if you are going to use the firearm as a carry piece, why not get it in 45acp?

[Targetsight]

Thanks for your advise, since I dont do my reloads and it might be foolish to trust someone else what might be a fatal mistake should I ever need to use my gun on a SD incident, i might have to go with the 45 then and use factory load during CCW and reload ammo during range time.

Would you have any idea on the present performance of the Spartan or am I better off spending the extra dollar for the Trojan in 45cal? I have heard plenty of positive things about it and a few problem reports compared with the Trojan, but Im thinking maybe its because the Spartan is just recently released and so few in circulation and the Trojan has been in production for a long time already which accounts for the number of complaints/experiences that can be gathered.

[What Just Happened?]

From reading the product descriptions of the Trojan and the Spartan, the real differences between the two are in the small details. The Trojan has a checkered backstrap and stippled frontstrap, an undercut trigger guard and some higher quality internals. Another consideration for you might be the RIA Tactical. The RIA is made in the same factory as the STI Spartan.

RIA Tactical (~$450)

STI Spartan ($700)
RIA Tactical +
Adjustible Rearsight
Serrations on the front of the slide
Fiber Optic Front Sight

STI Trojan ($1100)
STI Spartan +
Frontstrap Stippling
Backstrap Checkering
Undercut Triggerguard

I'm currently trying my hand at USPSA SS division with an RIA tactical. It's been functioning just fine through the 1000 rounds I've put through it and has withstood my less-than-ideal cleaning.

"reload ammo during range time"

I'm afraid that I don't understand what it is you're saying here. I understand that you do not reload your own ammunition, but I'm not sure what it is you're indicating by 'reloading during range time'.

[Targetsight]

Im sorry, what I meant was to use factory load when CCW and use reloaded ammo during range time purchased from the shop to cut cost. Thanks again.

[What Just Happened?]

np. And you might find that Wal-Mart sells factory ammunition just as inexpensively as reloaded ammunition elsewhere.

[sbninja]

If you shoot Lim10 you will still be shooting against guys with limited guns who download thier mags to ten rounds + you will need 10 rd mags which are harder to keep running in my opinion. So shooting lim 10 you would still be competing against wide body guns which you stated that you rather not do. I would shoot your single stack in single stack div and get five or six 8 rd power mags or wilson mags and shoot major power class. Load a 230 to about 750fps and use a 16 lb recoil spring and you will be in business. Just go to a match and the shooters will be glad to talk to you about what works.

Sorry to hijack, but I am also new to ss, shot my first match this past Sunday. What benfit will I gain from using a 16 lbs spring. I believe my Taurus PT1911 comes with a 14lbs spring from the factory. I will be shooting 230 grain factory ammo.

[What Just Happened?]

I think that a 16# spring is the factory weight. I believe that a lighter spring is supposed to give a lighter recoil and will allow you to shoot softer ammo without malfunctions (but you're shooting factory, so this isn't a problem).

[chbrow10]

for all that posted, I have been shooting single stack since about August, and am loving it. I am a high D shooter (38%) and getting better every match. Thanks for the great recommendation. We are off to our first Level III match this weekend (Mississippi Classic), and there are 10 single stack competitors as of May 4th, hopefully there will be more by Saturday.