M14 Forum

tonyben · February 22nd, 2012, 07:22 AM

From the Marine Corps Times...

http://www.marinecorpstimes.com/news...pistol-022112/

The Marine Corps is closer to knowing who will manufacture its new .45-caliber M45 Close Quarters Battle Pistol, and could make a decision about the program’s future by spring, Marine officials said.

The semiautomatic weapon will be fielded to elite Marines in force reconnaissance and Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command. The service could buy between 400 and 12,000 of them as part of a contract worth up to $22.5 million, officials have said. The current requirement is for about 4,000 pistols.

Officials with Marine Corps Systems Command, out of Quantico, Va., declined to characterize testing or identify which companies are competing for the contract. However, the Corps is in the final round of source selection, said Charles Clark III, head of weapons requirements at Marine Corps Combat Development Command, MARCORSYSCOM’s parent command. He declined further comment.

The new pistol is modeled after earlier versions of the 1911 pistol used since the 1980s by force recon units. Those weapons were called the MEU (SOC) pistol, short for Marine expeditionary unit (special operations capable). The precision weapons section at Quantico’s Weapons Training Battalion has hand-assembled 1911s chambered for .45-caliber Automatic Colt Pistol ammo for years.

MARSOC’s expansion complicated that process, however. The Corps’ special operations command has been growing steadily since it was activated in 2006, and force recon was brought back in 2008 after a two-year hiatus designed to help solidify MARSOC.

Now with force recon and MARSOC both using the weapon, there is greater demand, and the Corps is seeking an off-the-shelf option to meet it. Like older 1911s, the new pistol would fill the requirement for a weapon with more stopping power than the 9mm M9 common across the conventional forces. Special operators have paired .45-caliber pistols with other weapons for years, including the MP5, a 9mm submachine gun. MARSOC already fields existing MEU (SOC) pistols, Marine officials said.

Several companies submitted samples to the Corps in 2010 as part of the competition, but it is unclear who remains in contention. They included Colt Defense of Hartford, Conn., and Springfield Armory of Geneseo, Ill.

Colt tweaked its 01070RG rail gun pistol and sent 10 prototypes to Quantico in 2010, Colt officials said. Colt’s prototypes for the Corps have a desert-color Cercoat finish, eliminating glare on the weapon and making it less identifiable at distance. They’re equipped with a popular night sight made by Novak of Parkersburg, W.Va., mounted on a Picatinny rail.

Springfield Armory sent the Corps at least six copies of its PX9105ML pistol for evaluation, company officials said. The company calls it the Full-Sized MC Operator. It has a black slide with a green chassis. The Corps has bought Springfield Armory 1911 slides in the past to use on pistols assembled at Quantico.

GeneCo · February 22nd, 2012, 07:35 AM

OOOrah and pass the ammo.......it'll be interesting to see who they decide on.

tonyben · February 22nd, 2012, 07:41 AM

I'd personally like to see the attention of a custom shop like Les or Ed but I am sure that's wishful thinking.

I don't have faith in today's Kimber to get the job done. I would trust Colt, SAI and S&W to pull it off though.

Tony.

LausDeo · February 22nd, 2012, 08:28 AM

At least they won't be slinging 9s!

perazziboy · February 22nd, 2012, 08:32 AM

This shows the Marines are "In it to win it" as the popular term goes...... Outstanding!

asa sarge · February 22nd, 2012, 09:18 AM

I don't have faith in today's Kimber to get the job done. I would trust Colt, SAI and S&W to pull it off though.

Tony.[/QUOTE]

TonyBen,

Please explain your comment on the Kimber not getting the job done. I don't have one but have heard good things about them. Just like to know why you said what you did.

larryp · February 22nd, 2012, 09:21 AM

So I wonder if they'll be switching away from the 9mm MP5's to some sub gun in .45 for ammo compatability?

Mindfield · February 22nd, 2012, 09:24 AM

The HK45 is a fine pistol, better than a 1911 IMO and they already are buying their M27 IAR from HK, the pistols already designed and proven, and can be had in FDE. Shoots way better than a 1911, easier to maintain, more capacity and less recoil

tonyben · February 22nd, 2012, 09:47 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by asa sarge

I don't have faith in today's Kimber to get the job done. I would trust Colt, SAI and S&W to pull it off though.

Tony.

TonyBen,

Please explain your comment on the Kimber not getting the job done. I don't have one but have heard good things about them. Just like to know why you said what you did.[/QUOTE]

http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2011/...#ixzz1DHs6Bb6p

RALEIGH, N.C., Feb. 6 (UPI) -- North Carolina's Alcohol Law Enforcement agency says 150 new pistols bought for their agents at $1,055 each were so unreliable they got rid of them.

Agency officials say the Kimber .45-caliber pistols repeatedly malfunctioned during training exercises, with rounds jamming, sights breaking and the weapons' safety buttons sometimes falling off, The (Raleigh) News & Observer reported Sunday.

Agency Director John Ledford said a deal was arranged with a local firearms dealer to swap the pricey handguns for less expensive models.

"Failure of a weapon during training is problematic enough, but if any of these types of failures occurred during a life-and-death situation the result could be loss of life to a sworn member of the division or an innocent civilian," Ledford wrote in a November memo announcing the change. "During violent encounters with armed suspects, reliability and speed are paramount."

Since the Kimbers were issued to agents in the fall of 2009, Ledford wrote, agents reported 289 malfunctions during training exercises, and many agents had chosen to carry personal weapons instead of the Kimbers.

Ledford said a deal was arranged to trade in the department's troublesome pistols to a Raleigh firearms dealer in exchange for 150 new Sig Sauer 220 handguns valued at $718 each.

"We are hopeful these will be quality products, and we believe they are," Ledford said. "The Sig handgun is the same model carried by the Secret Service."

Read more: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/US/2011/...#ixzz1n8N4cFjC

Also, google Kimber, Cohen, quality and Sig. Lots to read...

LausDeo · February 22nd, 2012, 10:01 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by larryp

So I wonder if they'll be switching away from the 9mm MP5's to some sub gun in .45 for ammo compatability?

Nothin like a good ole' Thompson

Tommo · February 22nd, 2012, 10:06 AM

+1 SA Inc.

Spray n pray · February 22nd, 2012, 10:18 AM

I love my MC Operator. My favorite pistol I have ever owned.

DukeRustfield · February 22nd, 2012, 11:30 AM

Thompsons were never especially top-of-the-line except when they first came out. Compared to the durability of a MP5 they aren't even in the same galaxy.

1911 pistols can be awful loud as far as I know. Maybe they just figure by the time they got to go to their sidearm (MP5 being pretty damn small itself) they want fairly decent stopping power.

Gunsup851212 · February 22nd, 2012, 11:54 AM

Good to hear. Hopefully they will do away with the M-9's for all grunts too. My M-9 was a piece of junk. You could give it a little shake and the whole thing would rattle.

LausDeo · February 22nd, 2012, 12:40 PM

I think larryp's comment was less aimed at the stopping power of the SMG and more aimed and ammo conformity. Just like with those old cowboy action rifles in .45LC, it's much more convenient and logistically simpler to fire the same ammo in both your primary and your sidearm, if it's reasonable.