Back to the 1911

My first handgun...
The Genesis pistol...
Numero Uno...

I bet you remember yours. Maybe you still own it, maybe you still love it.

For me, that's an emphatic double "nope."

My first pistol was a Kimber Custom II that never ran. Yep, one of the "bad" ones, and horribly so. Their customer service and even the (in)famous Custom Shop couldn't get it to work well enough that I trusted it 100%.

I KNEW I should have bought a Colt or a Smith & Wesson or a Springfield Armory or even a Rock Island for that matter after reading story after story from people who had experiences like mine.

Hitting hard times a few years ago, I eventually sold the Kimber for close to what I had put into it, minus the regret and the heartache. I stayed with the plastic fantastics I was shooting well and didn't have problem one with. It wasn't that I was a "Glock Guy" as much as I was sick of my part-time 1911. I'd heard they could be made to run, but figured I was more likely to find a package of unicorn jerky than a sub-$1000 1911 that ran. Ultimately, I would find myself wholly converting my carry and gamer guns to the M&P platform with much success.

The 1911 saw a HUGE comeback for its 100-year anniversary. As much as I wanted to fall back in love with the 1911 on its centennial, it wasn't to be. I didn't have the $1000 I would have needed and missed that boat.

Fast-forward to 2013.
My son was born.
I became Dad.
Dad needs a "Dad" pistol.

My father carried a stainless Ruger Super Redhawk in .44 Magnum. A serious man-cannon for a serious Alaskan man... and an object of awe as I grew up.

I've got a fairly deep collection of handguns; nothing outrageous but all serve a purpose, be it for carry or for fun. However, I felt I was missing that one iconic pistol a serious shooter needs... that classic 1911. The pistol my son is going to see, admire, and hold in that same reverence.

Ironically, that's not going to be my $3,000 STI Limited gun, it's too "race." It doesn't carry that emotional weight of an old leather jacket or a well-loved Harley.

My Christmas / birthday gift from my family this year does, however. Springfield. 1911. Cal .45.

Nuff said.

I've already made a few changes and have plans to slowly build it up into the pistol I know will last for generations and get passed down through my family.

...knowing the only way my son will get his hands on my 1911 will be the same way I will one day acquire my father's .44, when it's time and not a second sooner.













- Posted from somewhere on this big blue marble.