eventually trading it for a Browning BDM 9mm. Admittedly, this was a serious lapse of judgment on my part. It seems no matter what kinds of
new handguns find their way to the market place, the 1911 still has a tre- mendous following. Many 1911 afi- cionados are not just old, crotchety WWII veterans and .45 ACP devotees. Shooters from all walks that are fed up with squishy triggers and polymer- framed handguns with snappy recoil, are finding that John Browning got it right 100 years ago. The 1911 lives on because it works. Smith & Wesson offers a full line of
1911s in over a dozen models. They’re similar in design to the series-80-style Colt 1911 with the firing-pin block, but differ with their external extrac- tor. Included in this group is only one chambered for the 9mm Luger; the SW1911 Pro Series. Smith & Wesson describes Pro
Series pistols as completing the line between main production and their Performance Center;
representing
the next step up from standard mod- els. Essentially, Pro Series handguns are factory stock but with features generally considered custom. For ex- ample, the SW1911 9mm Pro Series
has an advertised crisp, smooth 4- to 5-1/2-pound trigger pull. This can be attributed to the hand-polished sear and hammer. According to my Tim- ney trigger-pull gauge, the trigger on the test pistol broke consistently crisp at 4.75 pounds. The pistol’s stainless steel frame
also has a 30 LPI checkered front- strap. This checkering is machine ap- plied and there were no run-outs at the top edge under the triggerguard, but the checkering was not as sharp as you’ll find with precision hand- checkering work. The blued-steel, mainspring housing is checkered at 20
Richard Mann
The SW1911 9mm Pro Series pistol utilizes a full-length guide rod. This is a common custom alteration per- formed on many 1911 handguns.
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