Barrel axis measurement?

[deadbattery]

i'm just curious about what you would use as a datum point to measure the bore axis. the highest point on the grip your hand sits?

[Waldo1]

deadbattery: "i'm just curious about what you would use as a datum point to measure the bore axis. the highest point on the grip your hand sits?"

Thats a good question and one that I pondered for a while. I'm looking at using the distance from the centerline of either barrel to the upper internal surface of the respective trigger-guard. This is not perfect by any means, but will be much more quantitative that anything I have now, which is mere opinion and conjecture. Please don't get me wrong: I'm not saying that I've got this figured out- just that I will have more info than I started with. Please let me know if you can think of a better way to measure this.

rgeliske: I appreciate the offer and be careful what you ask for- I just might take you up on it! I have in-laws over at King's Ridge in Clermont and we get over there quite a bit. I've been keeping my eyes open for an XD45 compact at the gunshows, but haven't found one yet. I might need to buy a Service model and just cut the grip down myself for CCW. I sincerely appreciate your offer and if I do get a chance to take you up on it, please let me know what I can bring (1911s, Garand, M1A, FAL?) in return.

What I intend to do is this; Take a 4" piece of aluminum rod and turn it down to about .441" OD, which should slip-fit onto the lands of a new, .45 ACP barrel. I'll leave a small flange in the middle that is slightly oversized. I'll take an 24x12 sheet of graph paper and this jig to a gun shop, insert one side of the barrel jig into a Glock 21 and the other end into an XD45. I'll place both guns (now joined on their bore axes) onto the graph paper and allign the top surface of the jig with the uppermost horizontal line on the graph paper. Then I'll scribe a couple of lines onto the graph paper (uppermost surface of the trigger guard, lower surface of the trigger guard and palm-web of the backstrap) so that I'll have datum points for comparative reference. In can then measure from this uppermost line of the graph paper to any of the scribed lines, subtract 1/2 of the bore diameter (.220") and compare the two pistol's rough ergonomics at those points. This will not be exact, but will serve the purpose of identifying whether there is any significant difference between the bore-heights of these two pistols in reference to a common point.

I do not anticipate a significant difference, but I might be surprised. Look, the guys in Croatia had lots of time to tear apart Glocks and find out what the best features were while they were designing the HS2000. It seems like they would have tried to duplicate or improve as many of them as they could (given patent considerations). I do not believe that they would have capriciously said, "Hey- Just for grins, lets make our bore axis .400" higher so that recoil is a real SOB!" I'm just trying to put a number to it so that it makes more sense to me.

Take care,

Waldo1

[Waldo1]

Someone much wiser and more experienced than I has already looked into this issue, using an XD9. From Stephen A. Camp's website, Hi Powers and Handguns;

"Recoil from any service-size handgun in 9mm is not much and this gun proved no different. I did note more muzzle flip than expected, but whether this has to do with its bore axis being 1.79" above the middle of the trigger, grip angle or a combination, I don't know. (On the Glock 26, the same measurement yielded 1.48".) The XD bbl was conventionally rifled, having lands and grooves and appeared to be a 1:10 twist."

The boldface highlighting was mine. How much this fact figures into the whole recoil-experience is subjective.

Take care,

Waldo1

[deadbattery]

while browsing the internet on this subject I found a reference stating that bore axis measurement was taken from the inside top of the triggerguard. (I don't remember where I saw that so citation is needed.)

Anyway I just checked a ruger single six and its bore axis is over 2" from the inside top of the trigger guard. It shoots very well so I think most of the hoopla about bore axis height is just that.

I think most modern firearms are very well made and people need to justify their purchases over another brand by finding "problems" with other products.

[Waldo1]

"I think most modern firearms are very well made and people need to justify their purchases over another brand by finding "problems" with other products."

Interesting response. Lorcins are modern firearms, but there might be some who would question whether or not they were "well made"- not that I ever said anything about any firearms not being "well made". Was there another post that I missed? Can you elaborate?

Waldo1

[deadbattery]

well I did say "most firearms", Lorcins are definitely questionable.

I was just responding in that manner simply because one of the few "cons" about the XD that I've seen around Web Forums (not here) is the "high bore axis" .