Can I play with your PM1-S .45 Pistol? (Deadly B.A.R Rating 5 out of 5)
Review by Gun Aficionado (a.k.a. Gun Nut) and beloved B.A.R. Team Member Deker “You’ll shoot your eye out!” Words anybody who’s even turned on a TV during the holiday season knows. What’s a kid in a pink bunny suit to do? Face it, at one time or another we’ve all been infatuated with guns and shooting stuff. Guess what kids? It’s not the ’50’s anymore, you’re not 8 years old, and if you wear a pink bunny suit it’s probably only in the privacy of your own bedroom. Now that we’re all grown up, we can buy all the guns we want! (unless you live in DC…Funny how our nation’s capitol is the one place the 2nd amendment doesn’t exist.) Just recently acquired: The Dan Wesson PM1-S .45 caliber semi-automatic pistol. Time for a quick bit of history. In 1911 the US Army needed new guns, so this really bright guy name of John Moses Browning designed what came to be known as the 1911 pattern pistol and the Army loved it. Fast-forward almost 100 years. The 1911 pattern is STILL one of the best handgun designs ever. So much so that there are literally dozens of companies that produce them. Dan Wesson (IMHO) makes one of the best.
Out to the range with a gun case in one hand and 200 rounds of America’s finest Winchester ammunition in the other. Get on my ear and eye protection (seriously, how Bad Ass would it be to be deaf and blind?), and “let-er-rip”! Two words ladies and gentlemen: HOLY. CRAP. At first I’m just so elated by the “Pull Trigger….*BOOM*” that I can hardly hit a target. “Relax…Breathe…Squeeze…” *BOOM*. You just can’t help but sport an ear to ear shit eating grin when you throw over half an ounce of hot lead at over 545 miles per hour down range. Once I settle down, I realize that this thing can really shoot. I’m not that great a shot (hell, it’s only my 4th time at a firing range) and I’m looking at targets that are mostly one ragged hole for 15 shots fired (OK, so there are a FEW shots out in the boonies…what do I look like? Rambo?). Conclusion? Conclusion? If you’re not some tree-hugging, whiney, whale-saving, son of a bitch who wants to take away our civil rights, you need to get out and shoot one of these! Hey, hey! Take it easy there! This tree-huggin’, whale-saving, son-of-a bitch would like nothing better than to go to a shooting range with ya and give it a whirl. - B.A.R. Editor Definitely a dead solid B.A.R. Rating of 5 out of 5! Insider Info - The Dan Wesson name. They're still a dark horse in the 1911 pistol world.- Buy direct from Dan Wesson (check out the Gunbroker Auctions under the "Direct Sales" link on their website). They sell some great stuff much cheaper than you can find at any gun store. - If you want to tweak or customize stuff on your gun, send email to the president of Dan Wesson, Bob Serva. Great guy, really knows his stuff. Not So Cool - Being stupid and thinking guns are toys. You can seriously ruin yours or somebody else's day with careless gun handling.- .45ACP ammo ain't exactly cheap. But hey, GO BIG OR GO HOME! - Maryland's 7-day waiting period when you buy a handgun. - Did I mention unsafe firearm handling? How Much Dinero? The PM1-S has an MSRP of $859.00. That said, I got mine for $695 including shipping, firearms transfer fees, and MD State Police fees. Like I said, buy direct.The Fine Print - Dan Wesson Firearms (www.danwessonfirearms.com)- The 1911 Forums (www.1911forum.com) for LOTS of info and really knowledgeable people |
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January 27th, 2005 at 9:07 am
What does owning a gun like this accomplish for you? Is it like having that huge big screen tv you always wanted… that awesome surround sound speaker system wired throughout your house… is it for protection… for fetish…or is it just an extention of your penis? Seriously… no offense intended, I’d genuinely like to know why you rave about owning a gun that appears to be more of a masculine trophy.. than anything else.
January 27th, 2005 at 9:27 am
:) Those are excellent questions and I shall defer to Deker for most of them.
But I can say this, we did debate it a bit whether or not to publish this review.
Our guiding principal at Bad Ass Reviews is the desire to explore all remarkable areas of (badass) human existance (yes, tall order). So after some thought, we decided that that we could not discriminate on personal viewpoints.
I’m not a gun fan, but I do appreciate the ingenuity that it takes to harness such explosive power within such relatively small device. To say the least, this thing certainly qualifies as bad ass and from this point of view, we agreeded to post it.
Deker probably has more intimate explaination as to what it attracts him.
Yo, Deker! Someone here has a question for ya!
B.A.R. Editor
www.badassreviews.com
January 27th, 2005 at 10:03 am
What does it accomplish? Well, frankly a few things:
- Gives me peace of mind in my own home. If you think that this isn’t in my bedside table with 15 rounds of .45 in magazines and ready to go, you’re wrong.
- It’s fun for recreational shooting. I don’t expect people who haven’t been to a range and gone shooting to understand it, but it’s a fun sport activity. It requires a lot of various skills to shoot well, and I like to challenge myself.
- It’s a complex mechanical device. I’m an engineer and geek by nature, and enjoy understanding and appreciating good design. The M1911 pattern pistol is one of the best designed mechanical devices of this century. Heck, our military carried them as a standard issue sidearm well into the 1980s (when the Beretta 92 replaced it…mostly due to politics I won’t get into).
That’s the kind of short version. I do have a few more comments though.
The “feel” of this review was an attempt to stick with the B.A.R. light heartedness. I’m actually very serious about issues of safety and responsibility with regard to firearms. So, please don’t take my tongue-in-cheek style as representative of my actual attitude.
Also, i will admit that my choice of firearms is not SOLELY motivated by functionality for home defense. As with anything in life, personal preference and aesthetics do play a role in it. Here’s the breakdown.
Functional:
-I chose a .45 caliber pistol not as a “penis extention”, but because I believe that a .45 will stop an attacker faster and with less shots fired than a 9mm, .38, etc. Now, before you think that I’m “looking for an excuse” or any of the other stuff I hear from anti-gun folks, let me clarify that from my perspective less shots fired means less chances to hurt innocent bystanders.
- I chose the 1911 from an excellent manufacturer for reliability. When I need it it needs to go “BANG”. Every time. No questions asked.
Aesthetic:
- I prefer stainless steel as a material. It looks nice, feels nice, and has great corrosion resistance properties.
I understand that to a lot of folks guns are only “weapons” (especially city dwellers, dont’ know why exactly). I see it as a tool. The same way I look at a hammer, or a fishing rod, or a pencil. Frankly, a gun is no more dangerous than any other inanimate object.
If you want to chat further, drop more comments. I’ll happily respond, but now, it’s lunchtime
-d
January 27th, 2005 at 11:40 am
Oh yeah, to the editor:
Nice choice of stock photography from the Dan Wesson site. That PT-CBOB is on my list of “stuff to buy” if Maryland fixes it’s concealed carry laws or when I move to a state with reasonable laws.
As for going to the range, just let me know when!
-d
January 28th, 2005 at 8:20 pm
A lovely firearm indeed. Good pick.
January 30th, 2005 at 6:09 am
I have a Smith & Wesson 356-TSW, can you tell me anything about it? I will defer to your expertise.
February 1st, 2005 at 3:07 pm
Guns are such a foreign concept.
In a nutshell, they scare the fuck out of me, which in turn would gives me a wet spot, but that’s a seperate story.
I was going to ask why but you explain your reasons well. Each to their own as they say!
February 1st, 2005 at 3:57 pm
Rob — damn, that’s a nice lookin’ .45. If you think of it, let me know next time you head out to the range.
February 1st, 2005 at 6:44 pm
Cracker:
Hrmmm…not much around on those looks like. the .356TSW cartridge was a Smith & Wesson developed cartridge also known as the 9×21 (9mm bullet, 21mm cartridge length…I THINK the length is overall length…not positive though). From what I see, the TSW stands for either “Team Smith & Wesson” or “Tactical Smith & Wesson”. I’m betting on the “Team” moniker as from what I can find the cartridge was developed in order to have a 9mm ammunition that would safely make the “major power factor” in USPSA/IPSC competition (basically, for certain competition brackets a certain amount of energy must be carried by your ammunition. since a 9mm slug weighs less than say a .38 or .45, higher pressures were required in order to get the same amount of impact energy. It’s that whole e=mc^2 thing…) Looks like it may have been a load that never gained much popularity (except with some competition shooters and .38 super may have won a lot of them over since).
Is yours a revolver or a semi-auto? I’ve seen references to both types of guns being chambered in .356TSW.
I’m happy to do some asking around and see what more I can find out for you if you’d like. Drop me an email.
-d
February 1st, 2005 at 6:46 pm
Whoops… drop mail to the B.A.R. editor for my email address. DOn’t want to drop it here.
-d
October 20th, 2006 at 10:47 am
Hi
Nice article. I Just got my Taurus PT1911, 45 ACP, WOW, It is just as advertised, lots of coustom features at a “Very Good Price”. After 50-60 rounds break in, using 200 Gr LSWC, 5Gr Univeral,the holes were touching at 25 yds using a rest. No failures to feed, fire, eject. Paid $499 for it at Gander Mountain. Taurus Haters??? Mm I Love the gun!
August 4th, 2008 at 2:25 pm
Great site. I will bookmark for my sons to view as well!!!n