Well, if you can stand the color - Heck of a bargain

Pistolero

Well-Known Member
OK, I went to the gun safe and got out the Savage .32. It DOES hold 10 rounds, but the
mag is sort of a semi-double stack, they definitely stagger sideways and it is wider than
a single stack, but not as really double wide as double stack 9mms like Hi Power and all
the later copies of that mag design.

And the pinky finger mag release can't be accidentally released when gripping the gun because
the release is held down by the ring finger in a normal grip.

I guess I can drift my own thread as far as I want. :)

Bill
 

Pistolero

Well-Known Member
Oh, OK. IIRC Browning came up with the cartridge with a 200 gr bullet, the Army wanted heavier,
switched it to 230 gr and had Frankfort Arsenal run a batch. I'll do some internet searching on that.

Here is an interesting link. It shows a captured Phillipino enemy who had been shot twice in the chest
with the Colt .38 that the Army was issueing, not much the worse for it, alive and finally buttstroked into
compliance. Yikes. I can see why they were unhappy with the new cartridge. It also says 200 gr to start.

https://www.ammoland.com/2016/07/history-45-acp-cartridge/

Another source says that Browning was working on a .41 caliber to meet the needs for upgraded stopping
power after the problems with the .38 Colt, and then the Thompson-LaGarde tests came out which
recommended "not less than .45 caliber handgun', so Browning bumped it up to .45 cal, 200 gr at 900 fps.
The Army wanted it to be closer than the 'known effective' .45 Schofield round used in the .45 SAAs so got
the ammo bumped up to 230 gr bullet, dropped velocity to 830 fps. This was in 1905-1906, so before
the final trials. There were 1910 trials and then 1911 trials. From what I remember, the Colt-Browning
bested the Savage in each case, although there were issues with barrel cracking on the Colt-Browning
design in 1910.

Bill Laughridge of Cylinder and Slide had the amazing opportunity to study in detail, field strip and
photograph a Browning 1910 model .45 ACP prototype pistol with American Handgunner a few years ago.
Pix here.
http://www.cylinder-slide.com/hammerless.shtml

Not a 1911, but getting pretty close. The hammerless .45 ACP is interesting.-

Interesting video on the final 1911 trials after various development trials, many tests and
several significant variations.


Bill
 
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