Henry Rifle Forums

Well, with my Colt 1911 in the shop for who knows how long, it was clear that I “needed” something to shoot instead. A 1911, that is. I headed out today with some $$ burning a hole in my pocket intent on coming home with a worthy substitute to shoot.

I knew what I wanted- a 1911 that had all the same features as a Springfield Range Officer. Except not a Springfield (that’s a story for a different time and place). Unfortunately, the Range Officer seems to be somewhat unique in its feature set for 1911’s in $700-900 price range.

I went to several stores and looked at guns- and prices. At the last store on my list, I checked out the Ruger SR1911. They had the standard 5 inch model, and it was nice- as was the price- but the trigger was underwhelming. I then looked at the newish SR1911 Target Model. Unfortunately, it cost a bit more, but the trigger was NICE.

I took it home, cleaned and lubed it, and headed to the range. I only had an hour there, but I shot a box of American Eagle ammo, and there were no hiccups at all. The sights were dead on right out of the box, and I was a happy camper.

The picture isn’t good- it was a dark and cloudy day here in Wisconsin:

good to hear a positive report .... looking forward to future comments as you get to know it better

I have just about rationalized myself into needing a .357 Ruger single action to go with my .357 BBB.

dave77 wrote:I have just about rationalized myself into needing a .357 Ruger single action to go with my .357 BBB.

makes sense to me ... I rationalized myself into buying a Henry BBS 44Mag to go with my Ruger Redhawk 44Mag

dave77 wrote:I have just about rationalized myself into needing a .357 Ruger single action to go with my .357 BBB.

Oh, you need one. No rationalizing allowed.

I'm sure I will have one sooner or later. My neighbor's son who made me get my BBB by letting me shoot his is very interested in buying my XDs for his daughter, that will pay for about half of a Ruger.

We have a safe full of rationalizations.

Enjoy your SR1911. We had one of the first ones when the SR was introduced and it was perfectly reliable and very easy to shoot. Accuracy was decent, though not match grade. Overall, very good utility 1911.

Oh, yeah, winter is here in northern Wisconsin. Skiff of icy snow on the ground, this morning. On our range trip, earlier in the week, first time since last spring for fingers getting cold enough to affect our shooting.

We are a forum full of enablers so we won't be judging your rational. I like the picture and know how hard it is to photograph metallic objects.

North Country Gal wrote:We have a safe full of rationalizations.

Enjoy your SR1911. We had one of the first ones when the SR was introduced and it was perfectly reliable and very easy to shoot. Accuracy was decent, though not match grade. Overall, very good utility 1911.

Oh, yeah, winter is here in northern Wisconsin. Skiff of icy snow on the ground, this morning. On our range trip, earlier in the week, first time since last spring for fingers getting cold enough to affect our shooting.

Back when the SR1911 first came out reviewers tended to like it a lot, but I recall that some of them said the same thing, that it wasn’t all that accurate. I wonder if that’s something they have worked on since then.

With Ruger, hard to say. I'll let it go at that. Those adjustable sights will surely help, anyway.

Besides, accuracy is really a relative thing. We were able to get two inch to two and a half inch groups at 25 yards from a rest with the Ruger and in some circles, that is plenty accurate and in others, just okay. It was 100% reliable and pleasant to shoot, so for me, that was just as important. I liked the Ruger. Should have kept it and probably would have if it had come with target sights, since bullseye shooting is my main interest. At the time, the original fixed sight version was the only one Ruger offered.

Given that today's pistol shooter seldom shoots past 10 yards, anyway, I'd say it was way more accurate than it needed to be. It is now so rare to see people like me shooting handguns at 16, 25 and 50 yards on a regular basis that I've actually had people shake their heads in disbelief when they've seen me shooting at those distances, especially at 50 yards. That kind of shooting is so old school. Old time bullseye shooters like me are going extinct. Seems pointless to most shooters, now. I understand that, what with the popularity and emphasis these days on self-defense shooting and action shooting. Our 7 yard and 10 yard pistol range at the club gets more action than all our other ranges, put together. Just the way things are, now, and I'm okay with it. It's a very different shooting world than when I started with handguns. Besides, even at that 7 yard and 10 yard distance, from what I've witnessed at our range, the limiting factor on accuracy is still way more the shooter than the gun. Good to see so many people shooting their handguns, at least. Beats just buying one for protection and hardly ever firing it. That's a pet peeve of mine.

Anyway, I'd be very surprised if your new SR doesn't make a good showing for an experienced shooter like you. Good looking 1911, too. Would love to hear how it does for you.

NCG, you need to come down here and shoot sometime. Weekday mornings at our range we have a lot of informal pistol and revolver competitions. In the summer, we tend to shoot at 100 yards, but the rest of the year it’s mostly at 25 yards. If someone is getting a new handgun sighted in, or is experimenting with new loads, they set up a target at 7 yards, but that’s about the only time we shoot close up.

There are three shooters there who are in a completely different league with handguns than me. I’ve been getting better over time, but I’ve got a long ways to go; I’m sure I will never get as good as they are. Shooting with those guys, though, has been quite an experience, as it seems like almost every other day one of them makes a shot that you have to see with your own eyes to believe. They are good teachers, and watching them do amazing things provides a lot of good inspiration.

I am anxious to see what this new Ruger will be capable of. The sights are excellent, and the trigger is pretty nice. Add to that the fact that 45 acp seems to be an inherently accurate round, and I’m hoping for some good things.

No rationalizing at my house. Lifes to short for that. Go get it if you want it and can afford it. Al

My late dad was a gun collector all his life. His favorite phrase was, "sure as shootin." He told me (in the 1960s) that .45 caliber had "inherent accuracy". It was because of his blackpowder target shooting. The rifles he used were .40s and .45s. If the .50 was more accurate he would have shot one. There may be something to this inherent accuracy stuff.

Would love to come for a visit, but I think I'll wait for a bit warmer weather.

I agree that the 45 ACP is an inherently accurate round. Our 1911s in 45 generally shoot tighter groups than our 1911s in 9mm. Had a Ruger Blackhawk Convertible 45 Colt/45 ACP and the 45 ACP was the better shooter.

North Country Gal wrote:Would love to come for a visit, but I think I'll wait for a bit warmer weather.

I agree that the 45 ACP is an inherently accurate round. Our 1911s in 45 generally shoot tighter groups than our 1911s in 9mm. Had a Ruger Blackhawk Convertible 45 Colt/45 ACP and the 45 ACP was the better shooter.

Trust me- there’s a lotta hot air at the range, what with everyone there who has an opinion on just about everything.

I may love and own several Glocks but I think no pistol has the sex appeal of a 1911!

Abnermal wrote:I may love and own several Glocks but I think no pistol has the sex appeal of a 1911!

Except a Beretta 92

I used to shoot a LOT at 25 & 50 yards back when I was competing, but these days most of my shooting is at 15 & 25. It's hard for me to move up and down the range, so closer is better, and most of the time I am shooting compact handguns suitable for concealed carry anyway... so 7 & 15 would work.