Para Warthog info wanted...

[imadragonkeeper]

I saw one of these at my local dealer a few weeks ago and I really liked the feel of it despite the 'double stack' magazine (which I thought would be too large for my female hands - until I picked it up). I am very interested in purchasing one for concealed carry as I Love my 1911 but it is just a little bit too big. Does anyone have one? Or have you shot one? How is the recoil/muzzle flip? They (Para) say that they have some special recoil system to cut down on felt recoil but how do they compare with other small/compact 1911's? The one I have now has a 4" bull barrel and the recoil is pretty mild for a short barreled .45. I have been calling around to some local ranges that rent guns but none that I have found yet have one of these that I can shoot so until I find one (or find a used one that I can test fire) I am hoping you guys have some feedback you can share.
Thanks in advance to anyone who replies whether thumbs up or down - all feedback is greatly appreciated!

Lisa B.

[wolfhunter]

There are at least two of us on this Forum that carry Warthogs in .45.

I find mine to be a great shooter. The larger diameter seems to compensate for the shortness of the grip, allowing me to handle the recoil just fine. Your results may vary since I'm 5.11", 230#, and wear size 10 gloves. My avatar shows mine in hand.

[capo2186]

Sorry for a late response on this. I have shot one of these and I loved it. I personaly think they are a great CC firearm. Didn't feel too small, and the recoil was perfect. I am 6'4 300lbs and had no problem with it. My only issue is I think these are a little pricy. Otherwise, awesome firearm

[njsportsman]

I carry a P13 which I believe is no longer made. I bought this pistol when it was still called Para Ordnance. It’s a medium frame pistol 4.25” barrel. I love my P13 although not ideal for light clothes attire but, fine with heavier clothing. I have been looking at a compact 1911 but, not in the market just yet. The best judge is getting one in your hands and shooting. Even if you get a compact .45 from another manufacture just to get the feel of shooting a compact .45. Of course there will be slight differences with some .45’s but; if you can't find the warthog at least you can an idea and the feel of shooting a compact .45. This won't be apples to apples comparison but, close enough to see if you handle a .45 compact. I have done that in the past and have done ok. You may not be able to get a double stack 1911 since Para is the only one who makes a double stack 1911(I think). Don’t quote me on that one because when I bought my P13 they were the only one at that time who did that’s what drew me to Para ordnance. Good luck with your search.

[jreXD9]

I had one and really liked the feel of it except that it was, IMO, quite heavy. Mine had constant feed/eject issues so I traded it for a S'field xd45c that ran like a sewing machine. I wanted the Para to work. It was a heavy shooter, too. I now carry a Kahr CW45 which is much thinner and lighter but has about 1/2 the recoil. Go figure.....It, too, runs like a sewing machine.

[kybandit]

On the borderline of being too heavy for comfortable everyday carry; otherwise excellent. Very little recoil, exceptionally accurate. Right purdy, too.

[Keith_H1]

Well, this will be my cherry poppin' post here since I just joined. I bought one of these today. I was at lunch and rode down to Ronnie Barrett's (yes, the .50 caliber sniper rifle guy) gun shop (The Outpost Armory, just south of Murfreesboro, TN) to kill some time and look for another ccw to reach out and say, "take me home with you" as I've been doing for months now at every gun shop, pawn shop and gun show I could squeeze into the schedule.I either find junk for cheap or cadillacs that surpass my "cost to benefit" ratio. Names don't mean much to me. Actual people FEEDBACK is king. Today, things changed. They had a brand spankin' new one for $829 and I wouldn't even let him get it out of the case for me to hold it. Besides, I've done that before, many times. Just as I was about to leave he told me he'd almost forgotten about one he'd taken in on trade. It had a little holster rash on it but then he shocked me when I asked how much he was giving it away for..............$499!!! Even MORE surprisingly, I asked him if that was the best he could do and, after checking on his computer, told me he could go $450!! With the box and manual!! I snagged it. Cadillac gun at a Yugo gun price. I haven't had the chance to shoot it yet but I have compared it to my full size 1911 and, although the mag is thicker, the overall grip thickness is only about a 1/16"....MAYBE 1/8" thicker.That, to me, is negligible. Even loaded, the Para is waaaaaaay lighter and carries just perfectly in my Galco STO460 IWB holster that I bought for a Sig P238.

I I've had a Colt series 80 Officers model and a hot rodded (springs, polished ramp, etc..) Charles Daly officers model in the past and had many, many FTF issues out of both. Now, after many hours of research, I've carried a Taurus 1911 for over a year now and have only had maybe five FTF/jams in 500+ rounds. This works well for me since some of my buddies have Kimbers that aren't nearly as reliable. Anyway, I have carried a Sig P238 and Kel Tec PF9 as backups but just didn't feel comfortable with the smaller rounds. Of course, the idea is not to have to use it in the first place, but, If I DO have to I want it to stop a meth head as opposed to just pissing them off. Also, I wanted to stay with one caliber because it just makes practical sense to me.......no trying to jam a .380 round into a 1911 mag while nervously trying to re-load in a situation you hope never happens. I know, carry extra mags, etc.... My logic is that if one jams and you have to grab the other, you can steal ammo from the first if you need to and .380 doesn't chamber properly in a .45 or vice-verse. This thing is the pefect answer to me. two inches shorter barrell, an inch or so shorter grip, MORE capacity, much lighter and, like I said, negligible difference in thickness.

I'll post my range impressions sometime this weekend and will hopefully have something good to say. I haven't read much bad stuff about these little powerhouses except from people who are loyal to other brands. As with anything that's mass produced, lemons make it through sometimes. Sorry forthe small novel but I'm kind of thorough with most things.

Keith