December is approaching and I promised that I would take another pistol training class this year. I might not be able to fit it into 2024, sadly, but if not, I’ll try for Q1 of 2025.
That means I’ve to ensure I’m ready. I’ll need ammo and equipment.
I need 600 rounds of range ammo, with 100 of it being frangible.
I already have a duty belt from Wolf Tactical – I received two of them for Chrismas last year. They’re nice belts, too. They’re dual belts with a nice clasp. It’ll accept molle gear, as well.
I also need mag pouches. They can be easily bought from Amazon and I just need something that’ll allow three mags on the belt (whether it’s one pouch or three). I don’t have the mage pouches yet, but I’m thinking of these.
I’m not even sure which gun to take, but it’ll have to be a 1911 or 2011. Why? Because I went ahead and ordered an OWB holster (a requirement for the course) for a 5″ 2011 (it should fit a 1911 as well). Specifically, I bought the QVO Tactical 5″ “Secondary” OWB holster. They’ve what they call a quick-ship version (it’s already built and ready to ship – customization isn’t allowed for those shipments)…it was $100. The holster doesn’t accept weapon-mounted lights, but that’s OK. The holster mounts to the belt via metal angled belt loops.
The current plan is to take m Tisas DS9 since I already have 1000+ rounds through the gun.
If I haven’t yet taken the class by April 2025, I’ll wait a bit because I’m planning on buying two guns this coming spring and at least one will be a 2011. I’m looking at the new Kimber 2K11 – that’s a $2000 gun, so if I get that, I won’t get another. If I opt for something other than the Kimber 2K11, it’ll probably be a Springfield Armory Prodigy DS 5″ with the optic and three mags package, along with the Fusion/Ermox XP Pro. All of those guns are 2011s and should fit in the aforementioned holster. Then again, if I do decide to take whatever I buy in 2025, I’m going to have to postpone the training course until I get enough rounds through whatever I end up buying….I should probably just use the Tisas Carry DS9.
I also have several other compact- and larger-sized guns that I can use for the course. There are guns that I bought over the years that came with their own holsters, and all but the P320 have 3 mags:
- Sig Sauer P320 Compact – paddle-style holster
- Sig Sauer SP2022 – paddle-style holster
- Canik TP9SA (x2) – Safariland-type holsters with paddles
- Canik TP9 Elite SC – minimal style holster – covers trigger
Of the four above guns, the SP2022 would probably be the one to choose, but I don’t want to be messing with trying to cope with a DA trigger. At one point in time, DA/SA was all I’d carry, but things have changed and I’m now a SA guy – I don’t want to train to use two trigger types, so the SP2022 will be a backup gun for the training.
Or, I could forego that above list and focus on 1911s/2011s. I just didn’t want to bring a 1911 and have issues during the course – I don’t want to be that one 1911 guy that has constant feed issues. The Tisas has only had one fail to feed in like 1200 rounds, so I’m thinking it won’t have issues (I’ll stick with the ammo it’s been eating without fail – Blazer 124-gr FMJ).
Really, the only thing I need to determine now is what frangible ammo to buy. I’ve 50 rounds of Hevi-shot 9mm frangible that’s in the back of my safe, but I’m not sure if the Tisas will eat it (it should – my RIA Commander ate that ammo without issue).
