Free Republic

After 123 years, the immortal Colt-Browning 1911 pistol has finally left U.S. military service. This is after a long history without parallel in the annals of American arms, a history that began well before the Great War. Advertisement Early in the 20th century, the U.S. Army was looking to upgrade its standard service sidearm. The Army at that time was issuing the Colt M1892 revolver in the rather anemic .38 Long Colt cartridge, and U.S. servicemen found that this piece gave poor results, particularly when employed against rawhide-armored Moro rebels who were hopped up on drugs. To deal with this,...

tularemia has been long used as a military biological weapon. We should consider the presence of tularemia a shot across the bow to the peace movement from an administration willing to cheat, steal, torture, lie and kill to further its political agenda. Karl Rove, the president’s brain, brags of his worship of Machiavelli and will do anything to keep his Texas prince in power...........What do we make of the Saturday, October 1 Washington Post headline “Poison Found in Air During Anti-War Protest”? Washington D.C. Public Health Director Greg A. Pane posed the right question in the Post article, “Why that...

More than a century after a mentally ill concert violinist shot and killed an up-and-coming novelist in New York City, leading to the strictest gun restrictions in the nation, the U.S. Supreme Court has struck down the law. The 6-3 ruling on Thursday reversed a lower court's opinion, which had upheld the 111-year-old New York law restricting licenses to carry concealed weapons in public to those demonstrating a specific need or threat.f Following a bizarre murder-suicide in 1911 on a New York City sidewalk outside The Princeton Club - a building that was home to a legendary architect gunned down...

Versatility, dependable function, and high hit potential are among the reasons why so many of us cling to a 110-year-old pistol design. However, we have a couple of generations of gun owners who didn’t grow up with that particular pistol — the 1911 — and can benefit from the experiences with it of those who have gone before. Let’s look at a few “hacks” that make life with the 1911 a little bit easier and, even, safer. Safest grasp for holstering: thumb safety engaged, shooters thumb holding the hammer, no pressure on grip safety and the finger off of the...

A COUPLE of generations ago sanitary conditions on shipboard were either of the crudest or did not exist at all. It is a fact that in the days of the famous Yankee clippers the crews of those and contemporaneous craft were absolutely without toilet conveniences. The first-class passengers of the sailing "packets" of the 1840's and 1850's and still later had no bathing facilities and the so-called lavatories were as foul as they were inefficient. The unfortunates who had to journey in the steerages were even worse off, the filth and immodesty of the sanitary arrangements, if they could be...

I have recently become the custodian of an WWII Army 1911. During a cleaning< I noticed that it has a light crack in the slide on the left side by at the ejection cutout. I'm considering taking to a Gunsmith for a professional opinion, but I'd like to hear Freeper's opinions or experiences with this before I shoot it or waste the time of the Gunsmith.

There is always this never-ending 1911 vs Glock argument. The two guns are as different as night and day. It’s time to look at another popular debate. Which is better, the 1911 or the Sig P220? Right off the bat most gun advocates in the shooting crowd that are not die-hard 1911 users have recognize the Sig P220 taking the lead on this. Yet, there are still debates among the hard core users. The short answer why Sig P220 trumps the 1911: ReliabilitySimple operationOnly one company builds Sig P220s (but, TJ is the man that can customize to your needs)You...

Rare Footage of New York City in 1911 shows everyday life in New York City over 100 years ago. The film features famous landmarks like the Statue of Liberty and the Flatiron Building, and showcases what life on New York streets looked like. The early 1900s were a period of rapid change for New York City. The city's population was ballooning as an influx of immigrants passed through Ellis Island. Massive skyscrapers began popping up seemingly overnight, many of them among the tallest in the world at the time. And new technology such as automobiles and elevated trains made the...

Thanks to John Moses Browning, his iconic 1911 pistol has been giving us pleasure and serving us for over 100 years and still going strong. Modern day 1911 has new features and more calibers which opens this pistol up to even more shooters. This is not the complete list but a good starter to get a glimpse at some of the best 1911 pistols currently out in the market for the gun community, competitive shooters and the few serving law enforcement. Springfield Armory Mil-Spec The Stainless Steel Mil-Spec is built on a full-size frame and slide. Proper alignment slow and...

Pretty much anyone on the planet who studies firearms or military history has heard of the pistol known as the 1911. In continual service and production for over 100 years, it is the longest serving handgun in US military history and one of the longest serving weapons in world history.With such longevity, there are naturally many myths, legends, and stories attached to the 1911.The pistol was designed in the early 1900s for a US Army contract. It was a product of the fertile mind of John M. Browning, a man considered to be one of the most important and...

1911 pistols are some of the best handguns for competitive shooting and personal defense. Some gun folks don’t like to disassemble it, which is a small hiccup. A feature that we don’t hear much about is its incredible reliability due to other manufactures in the market blowing their horn louder. Do you think your pistol can fire in -65°F? Youtuber Brass Fetcher froze his Sig 45 1911 pistol for two hours prior to shooting it for the video. As you watch the 1911 chamber a second bullet after the discharge, you'll notice the frost coming off the hammer. Very impressive!,...

James gave Maxim the exclusive first look at his Trump gun, seen above in all its appropriately gilded glory. He also talked about his company, Jesse James Firearms Unlimited (that’s JJFU for short), designing firearms for the military, guns versus motorcycles, and, somewhat unexpectedly, his affection for the 1971 cult movie Harold and Maude.

Included in the 2018 National Defense Authorization Act, which President Donald Trump intends to sign soon, is a provision that will allow the military to save an estimated $200,000 per year by selling surplus M1911 pistols to those in the public interested in purchasing them. Used widely during World War I, World War II, the Korean War and the Vietnam War, these historic firearms have been officially out of service since 1985, when the military replaced them with Beretta 92 pistols. Since then, the military has been forced to store leftover M1911 pistols at a price of $2 per year....

Yes, it actually shoots a real .22 bullet. Unfortunately, its a one shot deal then you have to reload. The ejection of the brass actually works. (lol) For the 1911 lovers, you’ll enjoy this miniature 1911 pistol. You probably want one of these when you go to the next outing with your buddies to plink or bring it to a cocktail party for Ant-Man to try it out. Maybe, plinking at grasshoppers and their little friends. The source of this mini 1911 is unknown but the detail of this mini-1911 looks great to have for any gun collector that just...

To all CMP constituents: The CMP Board of Directors has discussed at length how the sales of 1911s would be handled, if the CMP were to ever receive them from the United States Army. Some preliminary decisions: Decisions concerning the grade and pricing of the 1911s will not be made until inspection has occurred of a substantial quantity which will take an estimated 150 days post receipt. All laws pertaining to the sale of 1911s by CMP will be strictly obeyed. Potential purchasers will have to provide to CMP a new set of documents exhibiting: 1) proof of U.S. Citizenship,...

On Friday, the U.S. House of Representatives passed H.R. 2810, the National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) for Fiscal Year 2018. Included in the bill is a provision that would make U.S. Army surplus 1911 .45 ACP pistols available to the American public through the Civilian Marksmanship program (CMP). In November of 2015, then-President Obama signed the NDAA for Fiscal year 2016 into law with language that authorized the Secretary of Defense to transfer 1911s no longer in service to the CMP for public sale. That language made the transfers subject to the Secretary’s discretion and capped them at 10,000...

  Dear Friends, Have you ever had a chance to buy something but didn't, then later kick yourself in the ass for not doing so. Well, that's the way I'm feeling about not buying a Colt New Agent 1911. Why can't I buy one? Well, it has to do with new Colt 1911s not being sold in California anymore. Colt rifles are accessible to residents of California, and so are Single Actions, but not the Colt 1911 or any of its versions including the Colt New Agent. In May of 2015, believe it or not, the California DOJ's endless...

Soliciting input on color scheme for 1911 build.

The GI's of WWII Insisted the 1911's were Inaccurate! There are numerous stories of GI’s returning from World War II complaining about the inaccuracy of the 1911A1, and since the 1911 can be one of the most accurate combat handguns why not put this myth to the test. Luckily, great minds think a like Dave Royer and Larry Vicker put together a test to debunk this myth. So they pitted an actual WWII US .45 cal with WWII 45 ACP ammunition against Larry's custom Colt 1911. Doesn't sound fair but let's wait to see the results. Results Though there were...

Now that we have a pro-gun President, do you think he will repatriate all the firearms out there that Obama didn't let in? I understand that there are boat loads of WWII weapons discovered since the fall of the Soviet Union and the merging of East Germany with Germany. At least that is my impression. And that Clinton and Obama have made it illegal for people to return these guns to America for sale. Am I completely out of touch with this or are there thousands and thousands of Garands, carbines and 1911s overseas that Trump could allow for sale...