[spetznaz]

According to these guys (including a 1911 armorer for a large org) the 1911 would not be a good platform for service wide distribution. It has several issues, and more importantly (unlike almost a century ago) there are many better modern designs available. The same message has been said by former Delta Force operators, and explains their shift away from highly specialised 1911s to Glock .40s and even 9mm (not to mention the recent shift by the Marine Corps to let their MARSOC spec ops operatives be able to select Glocks rather than their traditional .45 1911s).

The Real Truth about 1911s

My Personal Path away from 1911s

...but my 1911 works perfectly ...

[RC one]

My feeling is that the mission dictates the choice of weapon. for example, I don't care a lot for the 9mm but if I'm carrying a 9mm submachine gun as a primary weapon, the 9mm makes quite a bit of sense. If my primary weapon is a 5.56mm or 7.62mm rifle, my choice of sidearm becomes less critical but I would probably choose the Glock 20 10 mm automatic just in case. If my primary weapon is my sidearm, I think the Glock 20 10mm automatic makes the most sense as well. A threaded barrel makes it a great suppressor platform too.

The military tends to look for one size fits all weapon solutions that are pretty much never ideal across the spectrum of possible battlefields e.g. the M16A2. They also focus on the "same-same" concept. Everybody has to be same-same. Deviation from same-same is almost always frowned upon. That isn't always as useful as they would like to believe either.

[papertyger]

You links track precisely with my own (limited) experience with the platform.

I believe the 1911 is the most ergonomically perfect design ever conceived. I’ve seen newbies damn near sport wood the first time they handled a 1911.

Nevertheless, the weight, ammunition limitations, and manual of arms for the platform place it firmly in the realm of the (very) dedicated hobbyist by modern standards of use.

Professionals could be dedicating their “time to mastery” toward more profitable skill development, and laymen rarely possess the dedication required for mastery.

I would estimate less than 30% of those pistol shooters I observe on any public range can consistently group their shots in 18 inches at ten yards. Clearly, these shooters have other skills that need be developed before approaching a master’s weapon like the 1911.

[The KG9 Kid]

There's more recent data on the suitability of the Marine Corps' re-adoption of the 1911 platform in the Colt M45 CQBP that doesn't come from glowing reviews in the fawning periodicals that the beaverbeards read.

It turns out that the adoption of the Glock 17/19 by MARSOC is because the acquirement of the Colt M45 CQBP is quickly being regarded as a big mistake. I'll let everyone do their own reading elsewhere on the subject of the problems they encountered with it.

I do think this spells the end once and for all of the 1911 in military service, sort of like bringing back a beloved movie star way past their prime to play the lead role in a new action movie. Just a miserable thing to watch.