Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns 9x23

Any experience with the 9x23 here? A 1911 in this chambering intrigues me.

I've got 4 .38 Supers, but no 9x23, which is a SUPER-DUPER .38 Super (higher pressure, more velocity). While Colt never bothered to use a ramped barrel on their guns, I don't think I"d want one withOUT a ramped barrel. Despite the stronger case design, I'd want the hopefully added strength of a ramp. Three of my Supers were actually SA 9mms, which I rebarreled to .38 Super with custom ramped barrels. The fourth is a stock Colt Super.

I don't even know if Winchester is still selling the ammo, to tell the truth, I know Colt doesn't make the pistols any more. It came and went so quickly I didn't even notice it during it's brief lifetime. The design of the case itself is brilliant, but since Starline is selling rimless .38 Super cases now, it's probably not worth the effort to chase down the zippier 9x23, when you can do the same thing with the rimless Super brass.

Unless you're a collector and just want one of the rare Colts, I think I'd buy a 1911 9mm of some flavor, and rebarrel it to Super, and run the handloads hot. I doubt I'd buy a Colt to do that, since they don't have ramps on their pistols.

the website Pistolsmith is what you want to read. The founder of the site was a gunsmith who advocates upgrades for 1911s to the 23.
Good luck getting brass. The 357 sig will do everything the 9x23 does.. Regardless of what you choose the COL is still limited by the bullet mag length of the magazines. So basically your just getting more brass than say a 9mm seated out. Both the 38 super and the 9x23 were developed before supported barrel chambers.

This is what I do, so take it any way you want. Using supported barrels in 1911, I ream the chamber with a Brownells reamer and remove the sharp shoulder as the lands start. The seat the bullets to max. magazine length Using Longshot and small rifle primers I get 357 sig/ 9x23 velocity. The latest is a Kimber LW 5" which currently has close to 4000rds. and is a joy to carry, I use 38 super mags, but McCormick 45acp mags work just as well. regular 9mm do not work as they have the spacer. The gun is a joy to shoot and carry and shoots 9mm still.with reg. 9mm mags.

As a side note I have a 9mm without supported barrel, built by Clark about 30 years ago. Tapered cone compensator and one of their Beavertails. It was built to make 9mm major in IPSC. It has over 200,000 rounds with only a hammer and sear change.

This .

Except you get more rounds in a single stack magazine with the 9x23, or, for that matter, in a double-stack. Diameter makes a difference.

one in single stack, maybe 2 in double

.357 Sig 1911's seem to be as much a thing of the past as the 9x23 at this point. Sig seemed to be the last holdout but nobody currently has any in stock.

no more so than the 40 S&W

and going by SAMI or what ever they are, 9 major and 6mm ARC aren't even a thing

Sooooooooo

Sooooooo one glaring difference is the wide acceptance the .40 S&W achieved, easily the most popular caliber in Law Enforcement for 25 plus years, if I wanted one I'd have my pick. 9x23's don't exist and taking the suggestion that a .357 sig does everything a 9x23 does I did a little bit of looking around and 1911 .357 sigs are nearly as unobtainable. My only point, I'd take either one, I don't care about magazine capacity plus or minus 1-2 rounds one way or the other and like the .357 sig, owning a 229 I'm very familiar with the caliber, platform is what I'm seeking (1911)

Big question is do you reload? Just take one of those most popular law enforcement 40 bought at a bargain price order a sig 357 barrel from a good maker Barsto, etc. and heavier spring and your good to go. Hmm don't think law uses 1911s. Or get a 40 or 10mm in a 1911 and go custom barrel. Wilson combat 40 cal. mags work great.

I shoot reloads exclusively. Having swapped .40 and .357 sig barrels back and forth in my 229 the concept isn't foreign to me and this conversation did have me thinking of trying to source a .40 1911 if that would be easier. I like 1911's and I'm just looking to scratch some inexplicable itch, I've got the 10's, and .38 Supers covered, just looking for a new toy.

If you're reloading for the 357 you already have the major problem solved, with all it peculiarities . Building one up from a 40 would be a good project, you could select all the good stuff, and enjoy doing it.

I have a single-stack Para 1911 in .38 Super with a ramped barrel.
It works perfectly with Winchester 9x23 ammunition. 125 JSP at nearly 1500 fps.
Handloads can achieve the same with .38 Super Comp cases.

My understanding of .38 Super Comp brass is that the only advantage is in the feed function department when using a double stack setup? What is it about Super Comp brass in your experience that allows for a 150 fps gain over regular semi rimmed cases?

Definitely leaning this direction at the moment.

erickg,
Nothing about the cases. The fully-supported chamber of a ramped barrel allows higher pressure without danger of the case giving way. 9x23 Winchester cases are thicker at the base to prevent blowouts with a standard chamber.