Tag Archives: GI 1911

New CMP 1911s?

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The CMP has been in the Army surplus M1911 business for the past half-decade, drawing up to 10,000 each year since 2018 from a dwindling supply of 100,000 mostly World War II-era guns long-stored at the Anniston Army Depot. However, everyone realizes these guns are in short supply – leading to a lottery system by CMP to sell them to the public with prices starting at $1,050 for even a very well-worn pistol – and eventually, the Depot will run dry. 

With that in mind, in a partnership announced at the SHOT Show, the organization and SDS have teamed up with Tisas to produce a special CMP M1911A1 model for sale to the public to help fund its national youth-focused marksmanship efforts. 

The production of a new-manufactured M1911 for the CMP is big news. (Photo: Chris Eger/Guns.com)

The .45 ACP Government model, according to SDS, will be “a museum-grade reproduction of a mid-war M1911A1 as it was issued during the Second World War.” This will include “United States Property” markings, a Type E hammer, and reproduction WWII-style brown plastic grips – although an extra set of walnut double diamond checkered grips will be included with each gun. 

In a nod to the special status with the marksmanship organization, they will be “CMP” marked. (Photo: Chris Eger/Guns.com)

The slide, frame, and small parts will be Manganese Phosphate finished, and there will be no MIM parts used in the manufacturing process. Like most Tisas 1911s, it will have Series 70 internals. 

Sure, they are made in Turkey, but Tisas makes a hell of a 1911.

The cost, sold through the CMP, will be $479. 

Running a basic 1911, successfully

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So I’ve been testing a basic $500 U.S.-made vanilla GI .45 format– the Auto-Ordnance BKO.

This thing

On the outside, it is a dead-ringer for a post-1926 made martial M1911A1. On this inside, it is an 80-series update with arguably a better trigger and tighter tolerances (due to CNC) than the old warhorse.

In range tests so far I have found that it ate 600 rounds of mixed bulk ammo from various makers, run through a hodgepodge of factory and aftermarket mags, with accuracy that is “close enough for Government work.”

Boom

Much more details in my column at Guns.com

All Quiet in the Ardennes

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American engineers emerge from the woods and move out of defensive positions after fighting in the vicinity of Bastogne, Belgium, in December 1944. Note the M1 Garand, M1 Carbine and M9 Bazookas, along with a liberal sprinkling of grenades and spare ammo. (Photo: U.S. Army)

Today is the 75th Anniversary of the last great German offensive of WWII. Launched through the densely forested Ardennes region near the intersection of the eastern borders of Belgium, France, and Luxembourg, some 200,000 Germans fell on less than 80,000 unsuspecting American troops, many of which were recovering from the summer and Fall push through France and the Lowlands.

While the German offensive gained ground at first, eventually reinforcements– including Lt. Gen. George S. Patton Jr.’s Third Army–were rushed to the scene and counterattacked.

However, for the men trapped inside the 75-mile “bulged” salient from St. Vith to the week-long Siege of Bastogne, it was a white hell of exploding trees and an onslaught from 1,000 German panzers that those who survived never forgot.

The U.S. Army suffered over 89,000 casualties in the six-week-long Battle of the Bulge, making it one of the largest and bloodiest battles fought by the nation’s servicemen.

U.S. Army infantrymen of the 290th Regiment, 75th Infantry Division, fight in fresh snowfall near Amonines, Belgium during the Battle of the Bulge, Jan. 4, 1945. Note the M3 Grease Gun to the right and M1 Carbine to the left. (Photo: U.S. Army)

For a more detailed look at the men, firepower, and background of the battle, check out the (free) 685-page U.S. Army Center of Military History reference, “The Ardennes: Battle of the Bulge” by Hugh M. Cole, as well as the vast records available through the National Archives. For more information about commemorating the battle Bastogne and other events, visit Bastogne 75 and Belgium Remembers 44-45.

The 411 on 1911s

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I had a few people ask me recently as to the differences between the M1911 and M1911A1, as well as what makes a 1911 a GI Longslide or a Commander, or Officer; 70 series or 80, so I put this together.

For more detail on how to speak 1911, check out the article below in my column over at Guns.com

https://www.guns.com/news/2019/11/14/how-to-speak-1911-holding-class-on-the-evolutionary-differences

An elegant weapon, for a more civilized age

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At SHOT Show last month I saw a bunch or really sweet 1911s  and shot a few (the rebooted Colt Combat Commander is squared away), but I have to admit, the nicest of the pack were (IMHO) the 1911’s of Berryville, Arkansas-based Nighthawk Custom.

These guys are the Jedi knights of the next-level longslide experience and I have long admired their work.

Their new Tri-Cut Carry was formulated by one of their gunsmiths as part of a successful application for the American Pistolsmiths Guild and features a flattened trigger and a very futuristic styling to go along with Heinie Ledge Straight Eight Tritium rear and Nighthawk tritium front sights. The distinctive tri-cut continues throughout the gun, making the grip more narrow which Nighthawk’s owner Mark Stone told me has been well received by those with smaller hands.

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Another new entry for Nighthawk is The Turnbull VIP, or Very Impressive Pistol. The collaboration between Stone and Doug Turnbull of Turnbull finishes produced a limited run of heirloom firearms whose case hardened frame and cross cut mastodon ivory grips vary from gun to gun, making each one unique. Crowned barrels, custom triggers and a complete dehorning make the guns not only beautiful but functional as well.

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More in my column at Guns.com

Of men and steel

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1911 battle of bulge

“Today I held hell in my hands,” said a firearms buff who came across a battered 1911, pockmarked from its wartime service before it was recovered from a World War II battlefield.

Some 71 years ago this week, Hitler launched the last great German offensive through the densely forested Ardennes region near the intersection of the eastern borders of  Belgium, France, and Luxembourg.

Codenamed “Operation Watch on the Rhine” over 200,000 Germans, including some of the most crack units remaining in the Army at the time, fell upon just 80,000 American troops, including many units such as the 101st Airborne, who were under strength following heavy losses and looking forward to some time in a “quiet area” to regroup.

While the German offensive gained ground at first, eventually reinforcements– including  Lt. Gen. George S. Patton Jr.’s Third Army–were rushed to the scene and counterattacked.

However, for the men trapped inside the “bulged” salient from St. Vith to the week-long Siege of Bastogne, it was a white hell of exploding trees and German panzers that those who survived never forgot.

The pistol examined by Daniel ED MacMurray IV, marked with a yellowed tag that reads, “Colt pistol picked up after battle at Bastonge Dec. 1944,” is battered with shrapnel wounds across the top of the slide, muzzle and grip including several that penetrated deep into the steel.

More images and the rest of the story as Mr. Harvey said, in my column at Guns.com