1911 what should I know?

[Army]

Still luvs ya Bill!


........in a purely platonic, Odd Couple, sort of way............

[BillCA]

Still luvs ya Bill!

........in a purely platonic, Odd Couple, sort of way............

[brassburnz]

I have alwas liked the 1911's but stayed away because I was told they unsafe(SA cocked and locked).Looking to get a Colt Gold Cup.Anything I should know as opposed to handling DA weapons?

First of all, you should know that JM Browning was a genius and the gun we call the 1911 evolved into the perfect combat handgun with his guidance. The 1911 you see on most dealer's shelves is a compromise to what a 1911 can really be. The lawyers and politicians have seen to that.

Most people on this forum are into combat handguns and eye candy. Nothing wrong with that. I like a good looking pistol. But to really appreciate what a 1911 can do, you need to see what a bullseye shooter can do, especially one with a Distinguished Pistol medal.

Distinguished Pistol requires you to use open sights on a 1911 with few if any external modifications. Even the width of the grips is regulated. You shoot 230 grain hardball ammo loaded to factory specs at 50 and 25 yards with one hand. To be competitive, a "Hardball gun" needs to be able to hold 10 shots into a two inch group at 50 yards from a machine rest. Many can shoot 1 inch groups.

I shoot bullseye from time to time, and I am no where close to shooting Distinguished Pistol, but I compete with them all the time, and these guys and their guns are truly amazing. When I first started out, I thought what these guys were doing was impossible. Nobody could shoot factory hardball into groups like that, but I was so wrong. You should see what these guys can do with custom target wadcutter loads and .22 rimfires.

A 1911 wadgun is expected to shoot 1 inch groups at 50 yards. A .22 is expected to shoot 1/2 to 3/4 inch groups at 50 yards, all from a machine rest. I have two 1911's set up to shoot .22 rimfire. One unit came with a .67 inch test target and the other came with a .43 inch test target at 50 yards from a machine rest.