The M1911. Do not blaspheme this gun.
Preface
First off, the Canadian attitude towards guns is absolutely...what's the word? Gay. Everyone's so scared of 'em it makes me wanna barf. This country has turned into a nation of kittens. There's nothing wrong with guns. Using firearms illegally does suck but 99% of gun owners are lawful folk just hunting rabbits or trying to keep the king of England at bay. I served for a little while in the Artillery and I had the pleasure of firing a weapon and it ruled. The following article is about a government issued gun that was used by everyone from the US Army to the Secret Service. This gun pretty much only kills bad guys so don't get all teary thinking this gun kills kids or old ladies or puppies. It never did. This gun is a true American hero that killed tons of Commies and Nazis and other jerks. That said, let's talk about the coolest gun ever made, the Colt .45 Model 1911.
"Lincoln may have freed all men,
but Sam Colt made them equal."
Sam Colt invented a weapon that could fire without being reloaded in 1836. His invention changed the course of history. But he never lived to see the greatest gun ever produced to carry the name "Colt."
The M1911--AKA 'Old Ugly' and 'The Door Buster'--was designed by John Moses Browning for the US Army. Uncle Sam was looking for a handgun to replace their old .38s. They wanted a .45 caliber cartridge and the stopping power it would provide. Turns out, the US was fighting some dudes named the Moros who would get into a religious trance before fighting. The Americans were unloading round after round into these guys but they wouldn't sit down. They needed a bigger round. Browning, working for Colt, adapted an older autoloader design to take a .45 load and the Colt M1911 was born--so named because it was in 1911 that the US Ordnance Department adopted it as the government's official sidearm.
The M1911. The
perfect handgun.
The Colt M1911 is a semi-automatic pistol weighing 39oz with a barrel measuring 5 inches. Overall the gun comes in at around 8 inches long. It holds 7 rounds in the magazine with 1 more in the chamber but it might as well hold 1 round: that's all you'll need to sit your target down for good. Throw the magazine away if you want, you won't need it. Having 7 rounds pretty much only serves as a nice feature for soldiers who don't want to reload their gun each night because their arms are tired from stabbing Hitler in the face. Sgt. Alvin York singlehandedly captured a regiment of Germans using only his M1911. When the Germans saw he was armed with a Colt they just threw up their hands. It was over. This gun takes charge.
In WWII, only officers were issued sidearms but most every non-com and below had his own Colt .45 that he had purchased himself.
The Germans had engineered all of the best small arms in the War--the MP40, the MG42, the Sturmgewehr 44 (the world's first assault rifle)--but none of their handguns could hold a candle to the M1911. This gun was no joke. A .45 sounds like Jesus' gavel. In comparison, the German and British sidearms sounded like a kernel of popcorn popping. In fact, most US GIs who were shot by a P38 simply rubbed some dirt in the wound and walked it off. No chance of that if you happened to get hit with a .45 unfortunately. I mean, the Germans couldn't have been too excited to hear that while the US Army was equipped with "Door Busters" they were equipped with a gun nicknamed "The Can Opener."
This gun was so tight that even the Germans tried making them during the War. Turned out that Norway had a license to make M1911s for their forces. When the Germans occupied Norway they ordered the factory to start turning them out so they could issue the Wehrmacht with them. But the crafty Norweigans saw to it that only 1000 guns ever left the factory completed.
The most impressive thing about the M1911 is its durability. It was the US Government-issued sidearm for more than 80 years. It operated in every theatre of war the US was involved in between 1911 and 1990. Without any changes. The same gun. That's how far ahead of its time this weapon was. Sure there were a few cosmetic changes like a knurled trigger face but otherwise the gun was left unchanged. This gun was introduced when the US Cavalry rode actual horses into combat and stayed in service until Desert Storm.
Of course, Browning made sure the mechanisms behind this weapon would work no matter what and despite anything that combat conditions could throw at it. This is a durable weapon that won't let you down.
The US government has since "updated" to a Beretta or Glock--girl guns--but a lot of servicemen won't give up their Colt. No sir. I once read of an incident where an FBI agent showed up to a firing range where they were testing the new government sidearm. The agent pulled out his Colt and pretty much made fools of everyone else. I think he shot through a concrete wall or something. Anyway, the agent in charge of testing said it wasn't fair to use the Colt when everyone else was using the new weapon to which the FBI agent replied "When it comes to my weapon, I don't want it to be fair."
Safety first! Sgt. Mike's got his finger on
the trigger!
I've only ever fired one gun in my life: a C7 which is what the Canadian Army calls the Colt M16. I've never had the chance to fire Old Ugly but I have had the pleasure to hold one once; it was a lot heavier than I thought it would be but it felt almost perfect in my hand. When I held it, I felt a surge of power, like Homer must have felt when he held a gun. You can buy a replica Colt or if you're rich you can buy a WWII era Model 1911 with the corresponding M1916 leather holster. Then you'd really have something.
The Colt M1911. Another example of fine American engineering.
Specification and Operation courtesy Jane's Guns Recognition Guide.
Cartridge: .45 ACP
Magazine Capacity: 7 Rounds
In Service Dates: 1911-1990
Markings: All models will be marked "United States Property" with a
serial number on the right side of the frame.