PACKIN’ OLD STYLE

So here I am, teaching a class of mostly high-tech polymer pistol shooters. Glocks, S&W M&Ps, Springfield XD series, and the very popular and very cool new Heckler & Koch VP9.  And what’s on my hip but that old WWI relic, the 1911 pistol?

Well, hell, I’m a relic myself. I try to change guns every training tour to stay current with everything out there. But the still-popular 1911, even though it happens to be the only one on the firing line this week, is like the proverbial handshake of an old friend.  Been using one since I was 12 years old, and frankly, still shoot the old .45 as well as I do anything else.

My significant other, smugly flaunting polymer pistolry on her hip, considers it a symptom of fogeyism.  I suppose the diagnosis is confirmed.  Still, there’s something to be said for the old, proven hardware.  It isn’t fair to teach with one of the fancy custom ones – it gives the student the false impression that you need a Ferrari to drive skillfully, when a Chevy can still get you where you’re going perfectly well.  So this week’s .45 is an out-of-the-box Springfield Armory Range Officer, which I think is as nice a 1911 as you can buy new for under a grand today.

How about y’all?  Is there any corner in the world of the gun where you cleave to the old-style stuff instead of the latest and greatest?

 

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