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Loading 1911 From The Body.


Brazos John

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During a recent monthly shoot, where we can shoot cowboy or WB, I had issues with cycling the ammo for my 1911. I ejected a live round, and after emptying the magazine, I pulled a round from my pocket to reload. I was told I could not load it into the pistol, and was told to take the miss. I shoot for accuracy, not for time, and this was disappointing. After the shoot, I asked the TO, and he admitted that he was not sure about the call, so I asked the club President. He wasn't sure either, hence my question here.

 

Since we use several mags per stage:

1. After the current mag is emptied and dropped, can I insert a round into the chamber of the locked-open 1911, shoot the round, and then reinsert a full mag and resume shooting? Or,

2. After the current mag is emptied and dropped, can I lay down the locked-open pistol, reload the empty mag with 1 round from my pocket, reinsert the mag into the locked-open 1911, and resume shooting?

3. If I can't reload a round from the body, what is the difference between inserting a full mag (5 or 7) and inserting a mag that was loaded from the body on the clock?

 

I was able to get a lot of opinions in response to my questions, but what are the rules?

I also tried to Search in the WBAS Forum, but it kept asking me who is SASS #4, and even though I've been shooting since 1996, I have no idea.

 

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You cannot drop the round into the chamber and drop the slide and shoot.   All reloads must be done with a magazine.  If I have a FTF and am short rounds for the string, I'll load a full magazine in, complete the string and then work the slide to get rid of the rounds in the mag until I hit slide lock.  For me, it's faster than dropping the mag, jacking out the last round and manually locking the slide back.

 

If you only have one round left in your pocket, you can pick up a mag, put the round in the mag and then insert it in the 1911 to fire the one round.

 

NNV

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Quote

Since we use several mags per stage:

1. After the current mag is emptied and dropped, can I insert a round into the chamber of the locked-open 1911, shoot the round, and then reinsert a full mag and resume shooting?

 

No, loading a single round into the 1911 is both NOT PERMITTED under the rules for WB, and never a good idea with a 1911 because it breaks extractors (sometimes, but often enough to not be a good idea).

 

Or,

2. After the current mag is emptied and dropped, can I lay down the locked-open pistol, reload the empty mag with 1 round from my pocket, reinsert the mag into the locked-open 1911, and resume shooting?

 

Yes, you can do that, albeit rather slowly.

 

Quote

3. If I can't reload a round from the body, what is the difference between inserting a full mag (5 or 7) and inserting a mag that was loaded from the body on the clock?

 

Don't quite get that question, but the practical difference is that it is very quick to pull one more magazine out, even if you only need one more round.  It's not quick to load a loose round.  

 

Get out of the habit of carrying loose rounds in a pocket.  If you want to, carry a loaded magazine in that pocket.  Much more useful.

 

And, asking WB questions on the WB forum is considered a good thing to do.  (Yes, I see you tried that)

www.sassnet.com/wildbunch/forum/

 

To get in there, you'll need to answer that SASS#4 is .....  Tex!

 

Good luck, GJ

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There is no restriction noted in the rules on reloading a magazine from the pocket.

 

"• Magazines may be loaded with cartridges at any time.

 

All ammunition must be loaded from a magazine."

 

Excellent advice is provided above. At least carry a mag with one round in it. Best on belt but legal to carry in pocket.

 

Church Key

 

 

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1 minute ago, Boggus Deal #64218 said:

Don’t carry a mag with only one round in it, a “Barney” mag. That will bite you at some point. You’ll end up grabbing it at the wrong time and then have to reload again. 

 

Put that mag in a vest pocket or in a pouch behind you; just somewhere you don't normally grab.

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3 minutes ago, Abilene, SASS # 27489 said:

 

Put that mag in a vest pocket or in a pouch behind you; just somewhere you don't normally grab.

Just carry a full mag! 6 state championships, a Western Territorial, 2 national championships, I’ve never needed a single round. Needed a full magazine a lot!

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11 hours ago, Abilene, SASS # 27489 said:

 

Put that mag in a vest pocket or in a pouch behind you; just somewhere you don't normally grab.

My "Barney" mag is the farthest back on my belt.  Behind the one I load at the loading table.  I've needed it a few times and never grabbed it by mistake.  

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1 hour ago, Doc McCoy, SASS #8381 said:

My "Barney" mag is the farthest back on my belt.  Behind the one I load at the loading table.  I've needed it a few times and never grabbed it by mistake.  

You will. Sooner or later. Seen it too many times...

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I never use a Barney Fife magazine

If you are shooting against me, please feel free to do so yourself.

;)

 

Good luck, GJ

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13 hours ago, Boggus Deal #64218 said:

Don’t carry a mag with only one round in it, a “Barney” mag. That will bite you at some point. You’ll end up grabbing it at the wrong time and then have to reload again. 

Each to their own.  I've saved many a run with that 1 round mag.  My fully loaded mags go in the first five pouches closest to my belt buckle with the front of the mags pointed at the buckle.  I place the "Barney" in the last mag pouch on my belt and face it away from my belt buckle so I know it by position and feel.

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Thanks to all for taking the time to leave the great comments.

So, if I carry another full mag, and use one round to finish the stage, I can hand-eject the remainders, and it won't be on the clock.

That would be faster than loading one into a mag from the pocket. A Barney mag occurred to me, but the full mag sounds like a better idea.

I'll make sure this info is passed on to all that can use it.

 

If y'all are interested, here's a link to the WB rules at the Texas Historical Shooting Society. We've been shooting WB for a long time. My first cowboy match was on San Jacinto Day, 1996, and I shot my first WB in October, '96. The club had been shooting WB for some time already, but I don't know when the first shoot was. Now, we can shoot it every month. I usually shoot cowboy the rest of the year, but always dress Army for the October shoot. I was using my military 1918-built 1911, but decided to save it, and I bought a Remington 1911 R1S. It's too tight to accept just any ol' reloads, so I've started reloading my own 45's. Last year was great, but this year, I didn't push the bullet far enough into the case, leaving a shoulder that catches on the chamber. OAL was fine, but the shoulder was a problem. Living and learning.......

 

http://www.thss.org/rules/thss-wild-bunch-rules/

Thanks again. I knew y'all would give some good advice.

Brazos John

 

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The rules that have been stated here are the official rules from SASS. THHS may have their own rules in place concerning loading a round directly into the chamber. If it were me I would start using the official rules so long as they are not contrary to the THHS rules. This way you can begin to get your skills attuned to the way everyone else is running matches so you don't get bit at a later date for non-compliance. None the less, as has been pointed out, it is a bad practice to load a round directly into the gun as it can harm the gun. As for stripping remaining rounds, simply shoot the round(s) you need, eject the mag with the remaining rounds, and lock the slide back manually. This way would be the most consistent as the pistol would not always be the last weapon in the sequence.

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1 hour ago, Ozark Shark said:

Each to their own.  I've saved many a run with that 1 round mag.  My fully loaded mags go in the first five pouches closest to my belt buckle with the front of the mags pointed at the buckle.  I place the "Barney" in the last mag pouch on my belt and face it away from my belt buckle so I know it by position and feel.

My first question, would be to figure out why I would need one round that often? Faulty ammo causing jams? Bad magazines? Operator error? As I stated earlier, I have never needed one round to finish a stage but I have needed a full magazine because I dropped one or lost one out of a pouch.

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33 minutes ago, Boggus Deal #64218 said:
2 hours ago, Ozark Shark said:

Each to their own.  I've saved many a run with that 1 round mag.  My fully loaded mags go in the first five pouches closest to my belt buckle with the front of the mags pointed at the buckle.  I place the "Barney" in the last mag pouch on my belt and face it away from my belt buckle so I know it by position and feel.

My first question, would be to figure out why I would need one round that often? Faulty ammo causing jams? Bad magazines? Operator error? As I stated earlier, I have never needed one round to finish a stage but I have needed a full magazine because I dropped one or lost one out of a pouch.

All of the above, but this was when I was learning WB and shooting it infrequently.  Since I began chamber checking all my match ammo and shooting WB more regularly, it's become a rarity.  With that I may change my approach and the move to 7 in the mag may also change my thinking.

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I agree with Boggus and Joe. I don't carry a Barney Fife but I know many shooters who do. As Boggus said the usual reason to need one is a malfunction.  Make sure your pistol works properly and you shouldn't ever need one. I always carry at least one more magazine than the stage requires though. I've dropped one a few times in the last 50+ years.

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