Carnival of Cordite .45

Welcome, readers, to the monumental and stupendous Carnival of Cordite. 45!

The Carnival of Cordite is a weekly round-up of posts from across the blogosphere showcasing writing and photography dedicated to guns, shooting, hunting, marksmanship, personal protection, and the law and politics of the Second Amendment to the Constitution of the United States.

Ordinarily, we feature posts on a very broad range of topics within that sphere.  But this week, in honor of it being our 45th issue, we are focusing on a more narrow theme.  You guessed it: the magical number 45!

Let's leap right in, shall we?

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There have been firearms using bullets of approximately .45 inch diameter for a very, very long time.  One of the first wildly successful centerfire cartridges, popular in both six-shooters and lever action rifles, was the .45 Colt.

Shakey Pete just loves his six-shooters in .45 Colt:

Mr. Completely enjoys not only modern reproductions, but also authentic antique Colt .45 six-shooters.  Can you tell which is which?

And there is video of enthusiasts shooting their six-guns here.

And for some great photographs of one of the most collectible vintage double action revolvers, check out Anthroblogogy's spread on the Colt 1909.

The .45 Colt found its way into lever actions as well as revolvers.  And The Ten Ring is here to show us that it remains popular in such firearms today, as in this modern Winchester 94:

The success of this round led Colt to develop the .45 ACP round for use in auto-loading pistols prior to World War One.  Now we come to what many consider the single greatest hand gun ever made, the model 1911.  Ronocracy has a great run down on 100 years of 1911s.  And South Park Pundit posts along a similar theme.

Tam is here with a report on one of the more popular modern incarnations, the Springfield Professional Model:

Many shooters love to grab a quality 1911 and just enjoy right out of the box.  But many others love the 1911 design because there is so much you can do with it.  That is, like hotrodders who customize classic cars with special parts and bodywork, 1911 owners can customize their pistols to improve performance or just make it look special.  OK, you just bought your 1911 "project" gun... Now what?

If you look at the picture above and just see a bunch of parts, Anthroblogogy has some links to resources to help get you started on your quest to master the 1911.

Xavier has some helpful information for those looking to build up a 1911 as he describes working on his Colt Combat Elite:

Xavier also writes about one thing most 1911 customizers like to tweak, the grip safety.  But should it be eliminated altogether?

Josh gets lots of visitors to his website looking for photographs of guns.  Here's one he just put up of his premium Wilson Protector:

Another Josh shares some of his favorite 45s...

Seriously, though, South Park Pundit is talking .45 ACP ammo:

I'll bet later this weekend, some of those bullets will be fired off in a farewell salute to this:

I guess once he loses possession of his star short stop, he'll have to fall back on his utility infielder:

Countertop has been shooting some .45 ACP:

And while it's not .45 related, he wanted to remind you all to vote in the gunblogger awards.  Uhhh... vote for me 45 times!

The 1911 just might be the one firearm design built by more different manufacturers in more different configurations than any other.  Xavier reports on some attempted wheeling and dealing over one such clone, the Interarms Sistema:

Not every 1911 is a full sized pistol.  Xavier brings us Jeff Cooper's article on miniature .45 pistols:

No doubt, the 1911 in .45 ACP has truly been a long term success.  And, strangely enough, the success of the .45 ACP led to the development of a special breed of six-gun, built to handle it!  Les Jones posts a great letter from one of readers discussing the Smith & Wesson model 625, a revolver chambered in .45 ACP.

I don't have any idea how many different types of ammunition have been devised over the years featuring a .45 inch bullet.  But I'll bet it's a lot.  And likewise, I can't begin to guess how many different firearms have been built over the years to take advantage of even just the more popular rounds, like .45 Colt and .45 ACP.  But I do know that one of my all time favorites is the Thompson Sub Machine Gun in .45 ACP.  I also know that, if I want to see a great photograph of a beautiful woman with one of my favorite guns, I should ask Kit:

Hell in a Handbasket has more information on the Tommy Gun, along with other .45 sub guns through the years.

Sadly, the Tommy is being used in some shameful videos to attack Judge Alito... videos that turned out to be stolen...

While the Tommy-Gun and 1911 are "classics," the .45 ACP round continues to be used in the most modern designs.  One of the most highly-regarded modern handguns is the Heckler and Koch USP.  And, you guessed it, it comes in .45 ACP.  Life in the Great Midwest shares photos of his pride and joy:

And the .45 is making a comeback with the U.S. Military!

While some people might think that .45 firearms today are all either vintage "cowboy" guns or tools for military and police only, let's also remember that the .45, in its many configurations, remains one of the best bullet sizes for personal protection.  As the Civilian Gun Self-Defense Blog points out, the .45 is often used for lawful self-defense.

Here's one for the "what in the heck?" file:

According to ROFASix, this is a prototype fully automatic recoil-free firearm in .45 ACP.  Will wonders never cease?

It's not just the .45 ACP that thrives in new designs.  Check out Posse Incitatus and his latest toy, a gorgeous stainless Thompson-Center in .45 Long Colt:

In our penultimate post, Blogonomicon ties several themes together (including the records):

And finally, the magical number 45 relates to things other than bullet diameter.  For instance, Heartless Libertarian, in an attempt to fit this week's entry in with the "must be 45 related" theme, e-mailed in saying "here is how you get rid of 45 year old cosmoline."  Well, I'll give him an A for originality...

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That wraps up our special Carnival of Cordite .45!  We'll be back next week with our regular all-inclusive carnival, which will include some non-45 posts held over from this week.  To submit your posts, e-mail:

c a r n i v a l o f c o r d i t e A T h o t m a i l D O T c o m

Or, use the handy submit forms from Blog Carnival or Conservative Cat.  And catch up on all your carnival needs with Ubercarnival.

See you next week!  Until then, keep your powder dry!

Comments

[Ken Summers]

Another righteous edition, sir!

But one quibble... the .45 is great and all, but you didn't do a paean to the .44 last week. And since I happen to shoot a .44, well... ;)

[Rivrdog]

Shucks, I was hoping to see words regarding the .45 Super Auto, and what it takes to do a 1911 in it.

I've read of the .460 Rowland, a similar idea (to up the pressure in the .45ACP and use a better cartridge case), but it seems that the Rowland is going the way of the dodo bird.

Any .45 Super Auto gunnies out there?

[Randle Galneau]

Any info on a .460 Rowland conversion on a Auto Ord. M1A1 Thompson carbine? It seems to me that the big Thompson would be perfect to soak up the recoil of the .460 and at the same time would be awesome to shoot!

[Larry]

Wow. I totally want to shoot each and every one of those firearms! My Comanche in .45 Long Colt is a blast but it's not a well-made firearm.