On March 29, 1911, the United States Government adopted the Colt .45 caliber semiautomatic pistol as its standard issue military sidearm. The instrument has served with distinction ever since. Though replaced as general standard in the mid-1980s with the 9mm Beretta M9, the 1911 .45 has remained in service with military pistol teams across the services – and with the Army’s Delta Force and the Marine Expeditionary Unit/Special Operations Command (MEU-SOC) – for the duration.

The Utah legislature just approved the 1911 as the official “state pistol,” since it was conceived by a son of Utah. The great firearms genius John M. Browning lived in Ogden, where his home still stands, recently put up for sale as mentioned a few months ago in this blog.

I got my first 1911, a military surplus Colt, for Christmas at the age of 12. The year was 1960. That makes the pistol’s hundredth anniversary also my fiftieth with it.  So, this week I set aside the puissant polymer pistols I’ve been carrying of late, and strapped on a 1911 .45.

I still love the feel of this gun. Before the term “ergonomics” was in common parlance, John Browning understood the concept. The reach of finger to trigger is easy and natural. The gun affords a controllable trigger pull for every shot. It’s remarkably slim for its power level: easy and comfortable to carry holstered inside the waistband for maximum discretion. The .45 ACP (Automatic Colt Pistol) cartridge has very controllable recoil due to its low pressure, but hits with legendary authority. JMB fitted it with a manual (thumb) safety and a grip safety, and the ones I carry today are also drop-safe, either via passive firing pin safeties or the combination of lightweight firing pin and heavy duty firing pin spring. The one I’m carrying today, an Ed Brown Signature Model, can put five shots out of five into about an inch at 25 yards with the ammunition it likes best.

It’s history. It’s Americana. It’s American ingenuity at its best, and it’s a timelessly functional tool.

On the 29th of this month, the official day of its Centennial, I can’t imagine myself wearing anything else on my hip.

 

The Ed Brown Signature Model .45 I’m carrying today, with five shots (3 in one hole) it printed from 25 yard bench rest using Remington Golden Saber 230 grain ammo. Yes, 1911 .45s can deliver accuracy.

 

And, if you know how to shoot them, .45 1911s are controllable, too. This SIG 1911 TacOps has put a triple tap of spent casings in the air with full power 230 grain “hardball, is still locked on the target at the base of the berm.

1 COMMENT

  2. Mas, I am with you. Every day I carry a Glock 31 inside my waistband…it is a duty pistol I carried on duty for years, and it is second nature. But on the 29th, I too, will stuff my Dan Wesson Pointman 7 in 10 MM into my waistband and carry it for the day. While you REALLY have to hold on to this gun in rapid fire, it is as accurate as any single handgun I have ever shot, and I have about shot them all! JMB, may we all say, thank you, and R.I.P. Jack

  3. Amen.

    I’ve carried one as a cop, on and off duty, for over thirty-years.

    I may get my “strange” by varying the back-up gun, but it’s always backing up a 1911.

  4. Long live the 1911. Ya just gotta love ’em. Just getting another, you can’t have too many you know.

  5. Hi Mas,

    Quick 1911 question for you, that Kimber Custom (II?) you carry does it have a stainless steel slide and frame or did you get it refinished with some kind of black coating?

    The current Kimber Custom IIs that are black are nonstainless steel with a black oxide finish and are somewhat rust prone. Thinking about getting mine refinished in KimPro before carrying it or just getting a stainless to begin with.

    Thanks in advance and Happy 1911 Day!

    -Tim

  6. Iwoots, I do still have that old Colt. I oughta dig it out for the 29th…

    Tim, my old workhorse Kimber Custom II has the same finish as yours, a lot worse for wear. Makes it look salty and gives it character…:-)

    best,
    Mas

  7. 1911s are great pistols with superior ergonomics and crisp triggers. A Glock feels like a 2×4 compared to the 1911. Its the combination of the flat yet roundy grip panels, the grip safety and slim single stack design. These design points come together to create the best handling pistol of our lifetime !

  9. I first got acquainted with the M1911 in .45 ACP during Military Boot Camp in 1954, however I had previously owned a M1911 in .38 Super earlier.
    Later, I carried and competed in both 2700 matches and hard Ball Service weapon events, as well as carrying .45 M1911s both on and off duty during my 36 years of Navy, Border Patrol (Yes, USBP, I was the first PI to carry a M1911 on duty in the Yuma Sector), and with the US Customs Service.
    I still own several (including a .460 and a .464 (.40 Super) Rowland conversions, although I reserve them for “Oh Shit” situations, and no longer carry or use them every day now.
    Mas, good luck with the 1911 Centennial Celebration!

    Paul

  10. Heh what’s the round count on that Custom II now?

    Guess I don’t need to worry as much if you haven’t had a problem with rust. I’ve had a few people tell me since the Custom II isn’t stainless under the black oxide it’s somewhat rust prone.

    Then again a lot of people I know say the 1911 is old and not as reliable as a SIG or Glock. Funny thing is, after they shoot my Custom II, they start asking me questions about who makes a good 1911. I think a lot of people are surprised by their accuracy with a 1911 over handguns.

    Thanks for answer my question Mas 🙂

    And thank you Mr. Browning for giving us the 1911

  11. Sure enough, the 1911 is as pleasing a pistol to handle as it is a tried-and-true performer to shoot.

    The only real problem I have with them- aside from the capacity issue, which is understandable given its age- is that $$^&! grip safety. I heard a while back that JMB didn’t even have that grip safety in his original plans, but the Army contract stipulated it (or some such). What a cruel mistake.

    I’ve seen some guys at competitions wind a bunch of electrical tape around the grip to make it stay held down permanently; apparently some shooters’ hands don’t cooperate with it so well. If that’s what you’ve gotta do to benefit from the gun’s remarkable accuracy and handling (such as it is), more power to ’em.

  12. Andy, there is a solution for the grip safety.
    You can have a small hole drilled into the side of the frame with the grip safety depressed, and then either insert a pin into it, or thread it, and use a small screw instead.
    People will say that is not a good way to go, but I have done it to several M1911s and had no problems with this means of disabling the grip safety.
    Good luck using your M1911 too.

    Paul

  13. Still VASTLY prefer the Browning HP over the 1911 design – and I’ve shot both.
    Twice as many rounds, much better grippability (especially for women), natural pointer.

  14. I’ve had one since I was 18, a Remington Rand GI that I sold off for $125.00….oops!

    Still own a few and haven’t found anything that fits my hand better.

    I even like the grip safety (beavertail with speed bumb anyway)

  15. TIm, I don’t keep logs of shots fired on my own guns (as opposed to test guns), but it’s gotta be five figures by now. That old Kimber II is kinda like the old Timex ads…”takes a lickin’ an’ keeps on tickin’.”
    best,
    Mas

  16. Look JMB was a great man and what he did for our country proved that. The 1911 is a fantastic gun, but lets not start knocking the Glock. To each his own. JMB pistol should be taken and set outside the UN. 🙂

  17. Started in law enforcement with old slab sides. Went through the 38 special, 357 mag. then ended back with a Combat commander. What a confidence builder. God blessed me in that I never had to fire a shot in anger, but if I had to, I know the old .45 would have never let me down
    GOD BLESS AMERICA