going to a lesser caliber to save money?

[Boriqua]

Originally Posted by bigfelipe

After a number of rounds the muscles in your hands become fatigued and your concentration weakens. You get sloppier/inconsistent after this and are likely not gaining anything from the practice at that point. It varies with all shooters but everyone experiences it and if you are a novice shooter it can lead to bad habits.

I used to go to the range with 100-150 rds and it really was a waste of money. I am good for 50-70 ish before I am shooting like shit and wasting ammo. Now that I am a member of a local range I dont mind popping in and shooting 50 and calling it a day.

[Jake]

I am getting out of th habit about taking multiple handguns out to the range and shooting several ones. No doubt I enjoy my 1911 more than my PT145 and am more accurate with it by far. I have noticed that since shooting the 1911 so much, I'm not as good with the PT145 as I used to be. The 1911 is so easy to shoot, I've gotten into some bad habits or out of some good habits with the PT145.

[bigfelipe]

Originally Posted by 1911shooter

I see no benefit in useing a lesser caliber to practice with just to save a few pennies, If you carry a .45, shoot .45 at the range, carry a .40 shoot .40, etc,

One thing to remember is quality of practice is better then quanity, I shoot thousands of rounds a week, because I have to, If I want a 9mm I will shoot and carry a 9mm and so on, but the only thing I see as beneficial, is to use a 22lr to work on trigger control and beyond that you are gaining nothing by useing a smaller caliber.

I DISAGREE!


While I agree you should shoot what you carry, having no benefit is just, well, nuts. It's training and it's cost effective. Remember, everyone doesn't have your resources also. Doesn't mean they should be able to practice. It's not pennies to the average person. 45acp costs almost twice what 9mm does. 45acp costs 10-20 times more than .22. That's substantial. If you consider 100rds a week(maybe more, maybe less) you're talking $1000 a year if you shoot 9mm instead. That's not pennies to me. If you shoot a couple hundred rounds of .22 a week you are saving yourself $4k or more. That ain't pennies to anyone I know. For example, at 50 cents a round, I can't afford to dump rounds through my AR, but at 2 cents per round, I can waste all the .22 I want more or less.

Regardless of what you shoot, you should try to make it quality practice. Unless you're just messin' about as I like to do also

[bigfelipe]

Originally Posted by Kappy

Hmmm.

How many rounds are we talking about? Use yourself as an example.

While I often shoot a couple hundred rounds while practicing competition drills(because you shoot that many in a comp), usually 50 rounds is about the max you'll gain from in a session with anything bigger than a .22 and as Jake said, a .357 or other such magnum will tire you out faster. The only time I shot more anymore is when I'm playing at the farm shooting water bottes and reactive stuff. It's not really practice at that point it's playing

Originally Posted by Boriqua

I used to go to the range with 100-150 rds and it really was a waste of money. I am good for 50-70 ish before I am shooting like shit and wasting ammo. Now that I am a member of a local range I dont mind popping in and shooting 50 and calling it a day.

I often drop in just to run 2 mags and leave. A quick 5-10 minute refresher and I'm out.

[Larry D.]

I'm thinking practice with your primary carry is what really makes a difference.
If you can't afford it, just do it less often, or shoot it intermittently with the .22. I don't believe a 22 caliber "trainer" will help much at all if any.

[1911shooter]

Originally Posted by bigfelipe

I DISAGREE!

How did I know

I under stand that people dont have my resources, but I also understand that whill haveing a smaller caliber to shoot and have fun with, you need to focus on your primary defensive gun.

Thats why we live in the best country in the world you and I get to disagree and still be friends. Whatever works for you to get where you need to be thats fine, But like I said aside from a 22lr to work on trigger control, I have seen to many people show up that have been, Practicing with the 9mm and cant hit shit because they bought a Glock 17 and now want to take courses with their 1911,.

[Kappy]

So I just got back from the range... got there late, stayed late, etc... and one of our newer members blew through 800 rounds of (I think) 45.

Holy crap.

800 rounds.

[1911shooter]

Originally Posted by Kappy

So I just got back from the range... got there late, stayed late, etc... and one of our newer members blew through 800 rounds of (I think) 45.

Holy crap.

800 rounds.

Yeah and the problem lies where? I love it when I go through this much ammo the smell is awesome and the pile of brass case's gives you a warm fuzzy feeling deep in the cockles of my hearth.

[bigfelipe]

Originally Posted by 1911shooter

How did I know

I under stand that people dont have my resources, but I also understand that whill haveing a smaller caliber to shoot and have fun with, you need to focus on your primary defensive gun.

Thats why we live in the best country in the world you and I get to disagree and still be friends. Whatever works for you to get where you need to be thats fine, But like I said aside from a 22lr to work on trigger control, I have seen to many people show up that have been, Practicing with the 9mm and cant hit shit because they bought a Glock 17 and now want to take courses with their 1911,.

One of the few things we still have going for us in this country.

I do agree with the end of your last sentence, but not because of caliber. If you carry a SA only 1911, you shouldn't practice with a striker fired pistol in any caliber, you should practice with a SA only pistol in whatever caliber you feel. For example a 22/45 would be a fine practice pistol for a 1911 owner looking to save some cash.