I stumbled across 250 rounds of.45 acp and a leather 1911 holster I had purchased and forgot about late last week. I don't have a 1911 anymore, so I did the rational thing and gave the holster and ammo to a friend with one and wished them well.
...or I would have if I had a friend in such a situation. No I did the totally irresponsible but most likely of things. I bought a new gun.
The Defender series is a barebones Mil Spec/GI-ish pistol. It's not an exact clone, but the arched main spring housing, park finish, and standard hammer make it close enough to be a horseshoes/hand grenade sort of thing.
This is my 3rd or 4th SA pistol. All of them have come in a plastic case with 2 magazines, a kydex paddle holster, and a double magazine kydex pouch. As I already have 5 or 6 quality magazines kicking around somewhere, all of that fluff was wasted money.
The Defender costs under $500 (I got mine for $467.95+ tax) comes in a cardboard box, one magazine, and sports faux wood grips sans the rather gaudy ones SA usually supplies. No problem as I plan on making this a knock about camp pistol. I replaced the grips with thin rubber ones. I like the arched backstrap but having the grips just a touch thinner helps my finger reach the trigger better.
I had been thinking about another RIA pistol, but I just liked my SA Loaded better. However, two of the "upgrades" you could keep. The ambi safety that sometimes got flipped off and the stupid full length guide rod that requires a tool to take the gun apart. Obviously, the Defender (Mil Spec) doesn't have those annoyances, but you do lose the Novak or target sights and the beaver tail. Neither of those are a deal breaker for me. I don't have meaty hands, so hammer bite is a non issue.
So I hit the range today with a couple hundred rounds of ball ammo. I have to say, this isn't the most accurate 1911 I have ever owned. Then again, it's been awhile since I shot one. The fixed sites shot a little low if I put the front sight on the target and lined it up with the posts. This gun seems to like covering the target completely with front sight a bit proud. Once I did that, I was shooting ragged groups. My two previous more premium SA 1911s didn't require this site picture, but I did find the gun accurate. Once I started doing more instinctive shooting and not using the sites, my groups actually improved. Certainly combat accurate when point shooting. Drawing down and looking a black 2" dot I drew on the target managed a rapid fire group of about 4" across at 10 yards. Good enough to hit center mass.
The trigger wasn't the lightest or most glass-like with a bit of grit. However, the short travel and reset made for plenty fast shooting. I'm sure it will smooth out as I shoot it some more. I also shot this gun out of the box. I did squirt it with some Rem Oil on the rails, but using two lower quality magazines, I had zero FTF issues over 220+ rounds. After my range session I stripped the gun down and got the White Box GSR out of the nooks and crannies. Not pristine but certainly cleaner than when I had first shot it.
So far, I'm pretty impressed. For under $500 the Defender series is a nice entry level/knock around 1911. I'm keeping this one basic. It's proven to be accurate enough for my needs, super reliable, and has a build quality a tick above the lower end competition from the Philippines. I swore off belt guns for daily carry, but I could see this finding some hip time not just at the camp or cabin. In a couple months when the pocket guns go back in the safe and flannel shirts come out this 1911 could get the nod.
