Smith & Wesson hates me. That
must be it. About a year and a half ago, they introduced
their 1911 .45 auto pistol.
It was a full-sized 1911 that was just about perfect, except
that it wore a right-hand-only safety. Now, S&W has
introduced a lightweight, Commander-sized version of the
1911. This new pistol, the 1911 Sc, has a full-sized grip,
carbon steel black slide, checkered wood grips, beavertail
grip safety, and many other features that make it an
excellent carry gun……and still it has no ambidextrous
safety. I am starting to take this personally.
For about a month now, I have been playing
with a pair of the new 1911 Sc autos. The "Sc"
stands for Scandium on the Periodic Table of Elements, and
is a microelement that is added to aluminum to make a
tougher, stronger alloy. Anyway, the 1911 Sc is a
lightweight, compact semiautomatic .45 pistol that is just
about perfect for concealment. It is relatively flat, and at
thirty ounces even with an empty magazine, it carries very
well in a proper holster.
The 1911 Sc is the size most often referred
to as "Commander" sized, referring to Colt’s
legendary Commander model. However, the S&W has many
features not found on the Colt. It has a four and
one-quarter inch barrel, and a full length grip, allowing
for a comfortable and secure hold on the weapon. The Smith
1911 Sc comes with two Novak eight-shot magazines,
giving a loaded capacity of nine .45 ACP cartridges, and a
spare mag with another eight rounds available.
The S&W has a high upswept beavertail
grip safety, a lightweight target trigger, skeletonized
Rowell-type hammer, stainless steel recoil spring guide rod,
throated barrel, and external extractor. It has an extended,
right-handed thumb safety, along with a firing pin safety
that is activated by the grip safety. The mainspring
housing is checkered, and the front of the grip grooved, for
a more secure hold on the weapon. The wood grips are
checkered, with the traditional diamond pattern. The sights
are Novak low-mount white dot pattern, and both front and
rear are drift adjustable for windage, with the rear sight
having a set screw to lock it in place. The gun has a
tightly fitted stainless steel barrel bushing, and is
supplied with a bushing wrench. The slide has grooves front
and rear to provide a secure grip for chambering or manually
ejecting a cartridge.
Shooting the 1911 Sc pistols proved them to
be excellent combat pistols to carry for self defense. I
tried the pistols with a variety of factory and handloaded
ammunition. There were no failures of any kind during the
extended testing of the pistols. One of the guns would group
into less than two inches at twenty-five yards with my heavy
target loads, which consists of a 200 grain lead
semi-wadcutter loaded to about 950 feet per second out of
the four and one-quarter inch barrels. The other gun grouped
almost as well, keeping five shots of the same ammunition
into just under two and one-half inches at the same
distance. Rapid fire drills, emptying the nine-shot capacity
of the weapon into a silhouette target at twenty-five yards
in less than four seconds, was easy with the S&W
pistols.
I carried one of the Smiths around holstered
in a High Noon "Need
for Speed" belt holster on a High Noon belt. This is
now my favorite holster for carrying a 1911-style auto
concealed. The High Noon rig carries the gun high and tight,
just as it should. The design of the belt slots keeps the
butt of the weapon pulled in tightly against the user’s
side so that it does not show even through lightweight
clothing. The combination of the NFS holster and belt keeps
the weapon absolutely in place, with no shifting at all. The
holster has a built-in sight track to protect the sights,
and to keep a sharp front sight from shaving leather on the
draw. I highly recommend this holster to anyone who carries
a 1911 pistol concealed. The quality is first class, and the
price is very reasonable.
Examining, handling, and shooting these two
Smiths has left me with a very favorable impression.
The trigger pulls are crisp, with one measuring five pounds
and one ounce, and the other measuring five pounds and
fifteen ounces. The magazines seem to be of the highest
quality. The sights are very visible in most lighting
conditions, but I would like to see tritium night sights
offered as an option. The guns handled and pointed well,
just as a 1911 style auto is expected to. The lightweight
Scandium alloy frame offers good balance, and the full-sized
grip helps to control the weapon during recoil. The magazine
well is beveled to help with a speedy magazine change, and
the magazines have an extended base pad to assure positive
seating. The combination of the checkered grips,
mainspring housing, and high beavertail grip safety provide
a secure, comfortable grip. The gun carries, handles, and
shoots extremely well.
Every concealed carry gun is a compromise. A
compromise between weight, bulk, speed, and power. It is
hard to find the perfect carry gun, but this 1911 Sc comes
very close. Being left-handed, I need a left-hand thumb
safety on a 1911. For a right-handed shooter, this is no big
deal. To me and the other southpaws in the world, it is a
requirement. I also prefer tritium night sights on a
fighting gun, to help with bullet placement in low-light
situations. It is hard to define perfection, but if
this gun had these two features, it would be the perfect
defense gun for concealed carry.
For more information on this and other Smith
& Wesson firearms, go to: www.smith-wesson.com.
To view the excellent High Noon holsters and
to order online, go to: www.highnoonholsters.com.
