jakes10mm

Has the excitement over the S&W SW1911 left the building? Not seeing many "general" posts about the pistol. In the process of picking one up. Found an awesome deal on one and couldn't walk away.

Experiences to share?
Is S&W still carrying a scarlet letter from the Brits days?

GlenS

My S&W 1911 is actually the best shooting 1911 I own. The firing pin safety hasn't been a problem. Haven't decided if I want to send it in to be fixed. The grip safety is real stiff and I plan to ease it up at some point or pin it.

Geno

Very impressed with mine. Accurate, reliable and well made.

gunfiter

Good gun but I just don't care for the 9mm outside extractor that they used.

luckyhoser

I finally got to play with one yesterday. Didn't care for it all that much. It felt more like a regular Smith autoloader than a 1911 in my hand. The thumb safety was horrible, came off with virtually no pressure but almost required two hands to put back on. Barrel fit was looser than I like, didn't care for the faux Novak sights at all. I'll pass.

American1911

Great Gun, mine is accurate and reliable.

NEtracker

Mine is excellent & very accurate. I went over the 800 rnd mark today at the outdoor range (it warmed up to 32F).
I've fed it Golden Sabres 185, 230, Gold Dots 200, 230, H Shoks, Corbon 200, 230, Blazer FMJ, Lead RN & SWC. All functioned fine.

jakes10mm

Left the Para Ord P16-40 to collect dust in the safe and took my S&W 1911 to the first local USPSA match of the season. The pistol performed very well. I'm not the fastest in the crowd, but my accuracy was a cut above. I had only 100 rounds through the gun at the range to check point of impact before the match. Functioned perfectly without any stoppages using CMC 10rd Powermags and 230gr LRN bullets.

Current Modifications from original form.......an arched S&A Magazine Guide.
Planned for USPSA Limited 10......Caspian Trik Trigger and Ed Brown Mag Release/Catch.

Loved the pistol since it was all but USPSA ready out of the box! And of course, now they offer the adjustable sight model....oh well, I wouldn't know what to do with adjustable sights, been using "Kentucky Windage" too long.

My evaluation on the S&W 1911......two thumbs up.

Bob Buffa

Tthe three that I have seen/fondled/used have been disapointing. Loose, sloppy slide to frame fit, (compared to statee of the art) loose barrel bushing (and the Briley, IMHO, is an elegant solution to a non esxistent problem, to quote Colonel Jeff). the thumb safety is sticky and has 3 "clicks"! I guess 93 years is too short a time to figure out how to do it right. Dovetail cuts for the sights ard sloppy and huge.
Accurate enough I suppose, but trash the Wilson mags.
External extractor? Newest buzz word, newest "gotta have it", but necessary? I don't think so.
Priced about the same as a Kimber custom, and you all know what my choice would be. :lol:
Just MHO guys. Thanks

boogie1911

the first time i saw the SW1911 in a magazine i snagged up the phone and called a local dealer to see if he had one... no. i waited several months he called me back... i went and looked. slide to frame fit was not as good as a charles daly. wich is the biggest 1911 joke around. i would take a old worn out norinco before charles daly. any hoo - we shot it. it hit fairly consistent with winchester white box. and beleive it or not best with sellior and bellot 230gr balls. it fed the S&B best as well... when it fed. i don't know what the "break in" period is for the gun but at this point we have fired about 1500 rounds out of it and it still consitently jams. why? i dont know but i hear of smith's that will feed empty brass. they should stick to the autos that made them popular - the cheap ones. compare it to a springfield and then buy two springfields after you hand the sw back. the sw that we shot when i got i it out had a metal sliver under the rear adj. sight. we yanked it out with some needle nose pliers. take it apart and it had bad mill marks in in the areas i personaly want smooth as glass. basically i found it to be a let down but recently looked at another in a another larger shop and the slide to frame fit on it was as tight as a kimber. so i am thinking wait a few years to let them get it down pat then buy one.... but that would be only because you want the SW name on it. any hoo just my opinion and since i dont really care for SW any ways... i guess some one could bash springfield.

i dont own one but have not been impressed with the one i examined and shot.

Dwolf00

I own a SW1911, a Kimber Custom, and several Colts. I think the SW1911 is on par with the Kimber Custom and the current production Colts. My SW1911 is my favorite 1911, my Colt XSE that did some light custom work on is my favorite.

I have been very pleased with my SW1911 and the only changes I've made were changing the CMC thumb safety to a Wilson thumb safety and adding a set of Pearce Fingergrooves under the stock grips. The machine work of the SW1911 slide and frame is superb. The only thing I don't like is the look of the external safety. It functions fine and I don't have any problems with it that way, I just dislike the way it changes the lines of a 1911. The slide to frame fit is smooth as glass. And those are real Novak sights, S&W is using the 4006 Novak sights and not the 1911 Novaks on them. I've found mine to shoot point of aim and I've had no malfunctions with any of my Wilson mags in this gun, including the ones that came with the gun.

If your looking for a good quality 1911, then the SW1911 is a great gun for you IMNSHO.

smsdba

I just ordered one and I'm wondering if the negative replies were with older production models.

Thanks. Hope I like mine as well as yours!

Dwolf00

Mine is in the SW19XX serial number range and is made before the recall. I have had the recall done, and not because the gun wasn't functioning, but I figured may as well get it done before their is a problem.

Catbird33

I am pleasantly surprised with my SW1911. It is far more accurate than I ever imagined. I fondled 2 or 3 at different gunshows and I was not impressed at all because they had such stiff grip safeties and poor triggers. I finally found one that didn't have these problems, so I bought it. I didn't care for the aesthetics of the OEM trigger, so I replaced it with an STI long trigger. While I had it disassembled, I decided to remove the firing pin safety at the same time. The trigger now feels superb!
This is definitely my favorite of all my 1911s.

JERRY FLANAGAN

I DON`T KNOW WHAT TO THINK ABOUT SOME OF THE REPLYS ON THE S/W 1911?? BOUGHT MINE DEC. `03. SERIAL # PAST THE RECALL #S. IT HAS BEEN AN GOOD AND RELIABLE 1911, SHOT IPSC WITH IT, WITH OUT ANY CONCERN ABOUT PROFORMANCE. I DID REPLACE THE GUIDE ROD WITH A CHIP McCORMICK . THE STOCK ROD KEPT UN-SCREWING MAYBE LOCTIGHT WOULD HAVE FIXED IT? COMPAREING IT TO MY OTHER 1911s[NOT "TRUE" CUSTOM GUNS] IN THE $800 TO $1000 RANGE IT WOULD BE HARD TO BEAT.

jakes10mm

I have used the SW1911 in three USPSA/IPSC matches now. That brings my final round count into the 750 neighborhood. I am very impressed with the pistol. Not one malfunction to date. Haven't really tested it for accuracy, but I keep getting "A" zone hits in the matches (probably 85%). I was contemplating replacing it with a Colt 1991 for competition, but it has been so reliable that I can't get myself to do it. I think the Colt has it beat on out-of-the-box accuracy, but not reliability. After a total of 24 competitive draws, the finish is also still in perfect condition. I like this pistol.

A fellow 1911 enthusiast made a great assessment of Smith & Wesson: While there are a lot of nice factory pistols out there, Smith & Wesson has truly been unique in letting their Custom Shop push the line on imagination. Makes sense that they can jump in and make some great 1911s.

jimcon

I have had my SW1911 for about 8 Months and the results are both good and bad. The good is that it is very accurate and well finished. The bad is that it barely works. I sent it in to S&W waranty srevice for the second time this week. The first time they replaced the slide stop which required a mallet to remove, lightened up the grip safety ( from 6.5 lbs to 4.25 lbs) and replaced the trigger (I do not know why except that it was very long). I returned it this time because occasionally the trigger pull would become excessive. It appears that their new trigger is binding and the sometimes the firing pin safety also appears to bind.

Someone mentioned that their thumb safety moved too freely. Simply replacing the plunger spring will cure this.

Catbird33

I've had my SW1911 for about 6-8 months. It is definitely my favorite 1911 in my personal inventory. I DID remove the firing pin safety because I could sometimes feel a little "hitch" when pulling the trigger. I also decided to install an STI brand carbon/aluminum trigger while I had it apart. On a scale of 1 to 10, I would give it a 10.

lil toad

Too much money, not enough gun. Get a better fit for cheaper.

sw1911shooter

I have the 108284 and I love it sold my glock to get it and I have shot around 500 rounds and have not had any problem mine came with the wilson combat mags. I got a good deal on it to. cheeper than the kimbers I could find.

Ike

This past friday I got a brand new S&W 1911 Scandium, after150 rnds of 230 Grain Golden Sabers and Win Rangers + 100 rnds of WWB FMJ's with out any problems and 0.75 inch groups at 21 feet I am extremly satisfied.
The Gun is fitted and finished almost custom quality (much better then many other guns that cost a lot more) at $799.00 it is a great buy, I hope it does not dissapoint me in the future because I am tired of 1911's that dont work or break down.

Tokarev

I've got a Scandium Commander and it's a great pistol. While I've only shot about 200 rounds through it, it has not failed once. I was dubious about the external extractor but it seems to work as designed.

Tinman

just got a 1911ta love the trigger pull smooth as silk

dondavis3

I love mine

Never a problem