Boge
03-05-2009, 01:21 AM
This is a review of the S&W 1911 Model 108285. It is the the most basic 1911 made by S&W and is blued. However, don't be mislead by the word basic as this gun has the right features IMO such as a nice beavertail, Novak Lo Mount sights & an external extractor. It also does not have those hideous front cocking serrations that have become so commonplace on "tacticool" 1911 models. Another point in its favor is that it uses the normal GI recoil spring bushing and not the superfluous one or two piece rods, hence it is far easier to disassemble. After all, there is no scientifically plausible way that the recoil spring can kink while in the gun. In summary, you have a rock solid forged 1911 with a great beavertail, great sights and an external extractor that is the best in the industry according to many.
Physically, there was one fault found with the gun. More on that later. The safety engages like a door on a Mercedes and the trigger is delightful and right at 5 lbs., but breaks like a glass rod with a hint of takeup. The gun was not overpolished and all flat surfaces were just that. The only fault was that the recoil spring bushing needed polished as it was extremely tight and refused to budge. It finally came out after racking the slide vigorously several times. All in all, I am very pleased with the gun aesthetically.
I took the gun to the local range and fired exactly 134 rds. of Fioccho 230 gr. ball through it. There were two failures. The first failure was ironically the very first cartridge in a Wilson mag. It chambered about halfway and then stopped. It was cleared and successive rounds fired with aplomb. On the 2nd mag of ammo (a Novak mag) the last round in the mag (#8) "short stroked". After these two FTF's the gun ran like a well oiled Vickers gun. I attributed these two to break in as the mags and ammo are both top shelf. However, I will add that visions of a S&W UPS pick up tag danced through my mind.
The gun was extremely accurate at 15 yds. The major hurdle was my adjusting over to the crisp glass rod trigger pull having spent the last Fall exclusively shooting Glocks & SIG semi-autos. I had several shots break before I was mentally prepared to fire. Ideally, that is the way it is supposed to be but as we all know that can wreak havoc with a new gun. I feel safe in saying that someone who was a regular 1911 shooter with ability could easily tear out the 10 ring at 15 yds. with boring regularity. The sights were dead nuts on for the ammo used as well. By the second box of ammo the gun began to settle in (as well as I) and I was easily putting all shots into 2" at the aforementioned distance. We'll call the 2nd box my "Mulligan". ;)
Having owned many 1911's in the past I was skeptical of purchasing a new one without dumping a boatload of cash on a custom gun. The 1911 is a wonderful design when all parts function as intended and few handguns can give the outright pleasure that it does. It is especially nice for people such as myself who have medium sized hands or smaller. Another big selling point for me is the fanatical attention paid to customer service by S&W. If something goes wrong they will repair it as well as pay shipping to & fro.
The guns was cleaned and lubed thoroughly the night before with Ballistol. I give the gun a big thumbs up and am particularly impressed with S&W's attention to detail on the whole.
Thank you for reading this.
http://i368.photobucket.com/albums/oo129/Boge_1960/IMG_0091.jpg
http://i368.photobucket.com/albums/oo129/Boge_1960/IMG_0090.jpg
Physically, there was one fault found with the gun. More on that later. The safety engages like a door on a Mercedes and the trigger is delightful and right at 5 lbs., but breaks like a glass rod with a hint of takeup. The gun was not overpolished and all flat surfaces were just that. The only fault was that the recoil spring bushing needed polished as it was extremely tight and refused to budge. It finally came out after racking the slide vigorously several times. All in all, I am very pleased with the gun aesthetically.
I took the gun to the local range and fired exactly 134 rds. of Fioccho 230 gr. ball through it. There were two failures. The first failure was ironically the very first cartridge in a Wilson mag. It chambered about halfway and then stopped. It was cleared and successive rounds fired with aplomb. On the 2nd mag of ammo (a Novak mag) the last round in the mag (#8) "short stroked". After these two FTF's the gun ran like a well oiled Vickers gun. I attributed these two to break in as the mags and ammo are both top shelf. However, I will add that visions of a S&W UPS pick up tag danced through my mind.
The gun was extremely accurate at 15 yds. The major hurdle was my adjusting over to the crisp glass rod trigger pull having spent the last Fall exclusively shooting Glocks & SIG semi-autos. I had several shots break before I was mentally prepared to fire. Ideally, that is the way it is supposed to be but as we all know that can wreak havoc with a new gun. I feel safe in saying that someone who was a regular 1911 shooter with ability could easily tear out the 10 ring at 15 yds. with boring regularity. The sights were dead nuts on for the ammo used as well. By the second box of ammo the gun began to settle in (as well as I) and I was easily putting all shots into 2" at the aforementioned distance. We'll call the 2nd box my "Mulligan". ;)
Having owned many 1911's in the past I was skeptical of purchasing a new one without dumping a boatload of cash on a custom gun. The 1911 is a wonderful design when all parts function as intended and few handguns can give the outright pleasure that it does. It is especially nice for people such as myself who have medium sized hands or smaller. Another big selling point for me is the fanatical attention paid to customer service by S&W. If something goes wrong they will repair it as well as pay shipping to & fro.
The guns was cleaned and lubed thoroughly the night before with Ballistol. I give the gun a big thumbs up and am particularly impressed with S&W's attention to detail on the whole.
Thank you for reading this.
http://i368.photobucket.com/albums/oo129/Boge_1960/IMG_0091.jpg
http://i368.photobucket.com/albums/oo129/Boge_1960/IMG_0090.jpg