I Drank the Koolaid and Bought the Harley Davidson of Handguns

**TEA** · Posted On: 3/10/2012 1:24pm

After a very long time, I finally was able to talk Mrs. TEA into allowing me to purchase a 1911. It is an original Colt's Series 70 in .45 ACP manufactured in 1978.

I've always wanted a 1911 and wanted one that was as close to a USGI 1911A1 (i.e. WWII vintage 1911) as I could get, but one that I can shoot and not have to worry about babying because of collector's value. My Great Uncle Joe carried a 1911 and a Garand in WWII. Now I have both a Garand (International Harvester) and a 1911.

My Uncle Joe receiving his DSC from Ike in Normandy in June of 1944.

My new (to me) Series 70.

So, being a rainy day, I went to an indoor range in Joshua, just up the road from here. Not only is this my first 1911, this was my first time to shoot a 1911 and the first time I've even shot a pistol in a very long time (at least six or seven years).

I started off with American Eagle just to make sure that everything was working fine with the pistol. (all targets shot at 25yds)

My first magazine wasn't very impressive, but I don't think too awful for a total noob. I called the one in the wrist and the one in the hip (jerked the trigger).

I then shot 11 more seven round magazines of American Eagle (so, 84 rounds total) with one stove pipe on the second to last round of the last magazine.

After that, I tried some Bitter Root Valley 230gr FMJ reloads I got from Cheaper Than Dirt. No failures to feed or stovepiping out of 50 rounds of BVAC.

Then I tried Remington/UMC 230gr JHP to see how she likes hollow points. While shooting the Remington/UMC I suffered a catastrophic magazine failure. While dropping the magazine from the pistol, it bounced off the bench and onto the floor - spilling its guts. The floor plate popped off and the spring and follower followed. I put it back together and started shooting again.

The first magazine went fine, but I had a failure to feed on the second magazine. While loading the third magazine after putting the floor plate back in, the floor plate popped back out when I was pushing in round #5. After that, I had the same problem again two more times. Each time just before the magazine would come apart, I would have a failure to feed on the second to last round.

I took the magazine to one of the guys running the shop to make sure I was putting it back together properly (I have lots of experience taking apart and putting back together M14 mags but not 1911 mags). He said I was putting it back together correctly but that the magazine just looked worn out. The "ears" inside the magazine that are supposed to hold the floor plate in place were worn down. I purchased a new Kimber mag and was good to go.

After that, I had another failure to feed. I think it was the same round that had failed to feed on the previous magazine just before it fell apart for the last time. I tried to load it in the next magazine, and it failed to feed again. Just to make sure, I tried it a third time, and it still failed to feed. At this point, I am not sure to what extent the failures to feed the JHP were caused by the magazine and/or one bad round. Overall, I fed 49 Remington/UMC rounds through my 1911 and just had that one round that wouldn't feed - and it wouldn't feed repeatedly.

For the BVAC and Remington/UMC I got a new target and tried the Mozambique Drill.

I need to work on this one quite a bit more. Looks like I'm pulling to the right fairly consistently. Is that more symptomatic of poor sight alignment, jerking the trigger, or flinching?

**TEA** · Posted On: 3/10/2012 1:26pm

This is a copy of a letter my Uncle Joe Dawson wrote to his family after the battle of the Falaise Gap. This is one of many letters published in Cole Kingseed's From Omaha Beach to Dawson's Ridge: The Combat Journal of Captain Joe Dawson I thought you all may appreciate this.

Originally Posted by Joe Dawson

September 8, 1944

My last letter a few days ago was written in an ancient fortress high above the plains stretching into Belgium and located near the lovely city of Laon. Indeed, the recital of events can hardly do justice to everything that transpires in this swift-moving climax. The bewildering speed with which we maintain inexorable pressure upon the enemy is a military achievement without parallel, but if it means victory soon, then I only hope I maintain the killing strain it puts upon me.

As I write this, I am deep in Belgium with only a few miles now before I am in Germany. A brief few hours have elapsed since I was actually engaged with the enemy - yesterday noon - so I'll bring you down to date.

A few days ago, we were assigned an objective and were proceeding to it without any difficulty, when suddenly, an urgent call came from one of our units to some five miles away to bring all possible support at once as they were being overrun by a very large enemy force. Our air corps showed up about then and proceeded to wreak the the most complete destruction I have ever seen on their guns and trucks. Then we moved in with our tanks and infantry.

I was given the mission of sweeping a rather large forest some mile square. I deployed my men on either side of a road, which bisected the woods and proceeded with my tanks, I being on the lead tank. I noticed a bit of movement in the thick woods just to my right, but thought it was one of my men. Suddenly, a couple of shots whined very close to my head, striking the tank and ricocheting away from me. I jumped off the tank and just as I did, another shot whizzed by me. Not more than twenty yards away, I saw the guy who was doing this poor job of marksmanship. Fortunately, my forty-five was in good order, and he was sent to permanent slumber without further delay.

By the time this took place, the entire woods seemed to come alive, and immediately I was surrounded - by prisoners who came toward me crying, "Kamerad! Kamerad!" In less time than it takes to write this, I had captured thirty-seven bosche. Meanwhile, my men were literally being overwhelmed by large numbers who were doing the same thing. Well, to make the story short, we finished sweeping through the woods, losing only three of our men and netting 800 prisoners. The total for the division ran into the thousands, so you can well understand what a great victory was achieved. We also captured a Major General, a Colonel, and many other officers. Thus, the Wermacht is rapidly disintegrating.

But with all the rumors and reports, he still fights savagely and bitterly. I know it will end soon, but even so, I am growing so tired. God knows how I've stood it for this long, yet still there is the old drive, drive, drive, putting one foot in front of the other. I''ll continue this somehow, but the old heart is beginning to slow a bit. Mayhap this is the real test now. Let us hope I measure up.

To my precious Donna, be assured that I shall seek Roy just as soon as I can, but at present, I am too deeply enmeshed in the front line to get any sources of information. Keep the faith, darling, and know I adore you as no other in all of this life. To each of you, a heart of devoted love.

Donna was Uncle Joe's little sister and had just received news that her husband Roy, who was in the Air Corps, had been shot down and was MIA. Uncle Joe never did find Roy. Seven days later, Uncle Joe and G Company took up defensive positions on a ridge above Aachen with orders to prevent at all costs resupply of the beleaguered German garrison stubbornly holding the city below. Company G and I held the ridge against repeated assaults by superior forces for 39 days and sustained heavy casualties - 117 out of 139 for G Company - for which they received a Presidential Unit Citation.

**TEA** · Posted On: 3/10/2012 1:29pm

Just in case y'all were curious:

Originally Posted by Distinguished Service Cross Citation:

Captain Joseph T. Dawson, 0452348, 16th Infantry, United States Army. For extraordinary heroism in action against the enemy of 6 June 1944 near Colleville-sur-Mer, France. Captain Dawson, in the initial landing on the coast of France, disembarked under a hail of enemy machine gun and rifle fire, and with utmost calmness, proceeded to organize a large group of men who were foundering near their bullet-riddled craft and led them ashore. However, upon reaching the beach, he found that his company was pinned down by direct fire from three enemy machine guns, which were placed in an enemy strongpoint in a cliff immediately beyond the heavily mined sands. With absolute disregard for his own personal safety, Captain Dawson moved from his position of cover on to the mined field, deliberately drawing the fire of the enemy machine guns in order that his men might be free to move. This heroic diversion succeeded, and his combat group crossed the beach to move into the assault on the enemy strongpoint. During this action, Captain Dawson was wounded in the leg. In a superb display of courage in the face of heavy enemy fire, Captain Dawson, although wounded, led a successful attack into the enemy stronghold. The gallantry and outstanding leadership of Captain Dawson reflect great credit upon himself and were in keeping with the highest traditions of the Armed Forces of the United States.

The citation is actually a bit inaccurate in a few details. Steven Ambrose, who interviewed Uncle Joe extensively for his D-Day book, paints a much more accurate picture. He get's one detail wrong, though. Ambrose has my uncle carrying an M1 carbine when he exited the church in Colleville and was shot by a sniper (luckily, the bullet struck the cleaning kit in the butt stock, exploding the butt stock so that my uncle's right thigh and knee were full of splinters [the wound mentioned in the above citation] but stopped the bullet from hitting him in the chest) when he was actually carrying a Garand. My uncle was a big fan of the Garand and preferred to carry the Garand over a carbine or Tommy Gun, either of which was more normal for officers to carry, because of the accuracy, range, stopping power and reliability of the Garand.

Cole Kingseed largely relies on Ambrose's account in his book From Omaha Beach to Dawson's Ridge: The Combat Journal of Captain Joe Dawson for the details of Company G's ordeal on June 6, 1944, so replicates Ambrose's error.

Here is a link to his obituary, which provides a pretty good summary of his life - http://www.caller2.com/autoconv/funerals-Dec061998.html

**Robstafarian** · Posted On: 3/10/2012 6:01pm

A few thoughts:

You and I have similar tastes in pistols, but I went the extra mile and made sure my arched mainspring housing had a lanyard loop. I will probably never use it, but it doesn't match an M1911A1 without one.
I heartily recommend Checkmate magazines. They have the contract for Colt factory magazines, but buying direct gives you a lot more options.
Various styles of training targets (such as this one) can help you diagnose your flyers.

**TEA** · Posted On: 3/10/2012 6:15pm

Thanks for the target info. I'll try a Checkmate to see how well they work in my pistol. Checkmate is also the current USGI vendor for M14 mags.

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**ermghoti** · Posted On: 3/10/2012 8:50pm

Originally Posted by TEA

Looks like I'm pulling to the right fairly consistently. Is that more symptomatic of poor sight alignment, jerking the trigger, or flinching?

We have this as a poster at my club.

http://www.targetshooting.ca/docs/grp-analysis.pdf

Edit: Errrm, yeah, like Robstafarian said.

**JohnKenner** · Posted On: 3/11/2012 1:13am

I haven't had any experience with checkmate mags... but have had great experience with Wilson Combat and McCormick mags.

Nice 1911 btw, welcome to the club.

**TEA** · Posted On: 3/11/2012 10:40am

I think a lot of the spread in the second target (the one I practiced the Mozambique Drill on) may have been me firing without getting a good sight picture and/or not focusing on the front sight for the second round of the double tap and the head shot. I find it a bit hard to rapidly acquire and line up the small GI style front sight. I may have to put a set of Trijicons on it.

On the first target, looks like I was healing for the five shots that landed in his shoulder, anticipating recoil for the two in the wrist, and letting my front sight drop for the four in his belly. The other 72 rounds were pretty much where I wanted them to be - right through his hand over his heart.

I have a Wilson Combat on order and just received a Chip McCormick from Cheaper Than Dirt. I'll get a Checkmate next so that I can try all three and then stock up on whichever one my pistol likes best. I didn't realize that Chip McCormick's is just down the road in Spicewood. I wonder if they're any cheaper direct from the shop.

**Gary Busey** · Posted On: 4/09/2012 3:43am

I have the Series 70 from 1980. I love it. (Just don't drop it while it's loaded.)

Do you have a bushing wrench? If not I would seriously look into getting one. It makes life much simpler when taking the bushing off.

**Robstafarian** · Posted On: 4/09/2012 12:53pm

Originally Posted by Gary Busey

I have the Series 70 from 1980. I love it. (Just don't drop it while it's loaded.)

Have you actually experienced an accidental discharge caused by an M1911(A1) clone's lack of a firing pin safety?

As I understand it, the low mass of the firing pin and the resistance of the firing pin spring result in absolute safety when the gun is dropped in normal conditions (i.e. you weren't on the roof of a tall building with your gun over the edge when you lost your grip).