The Sig Sauer 1911 Traditional or 1911T finally arrived and I was able to give it the usual treatment.
The 1911T is a round top slide that Sig has recently released to make up for the fact that their other 1911 slide profiles won't fit in any holster other than generics or custom made leather/kydex. My experience tells me that most folks that own 1911 guns, own more than one and having an odd duck that won't fit any of your leather pretty much makes it a safe queen. The 1911T solves this problem and I was able to fit it into all of my 1911 holsters made for the standard GI profile with 5" barrels. As far as I was concerned this was a huge improvement and proof that the folks in Epping are finally listening to the end users. Go figure, right? We actually know what we want!!!
Sig is currently producing a Target Model with adjustable sights, a CCO Model with the short grip and CDR length slide, an enhanced GI Model with Novak sights and I have heard stories about a CDR and a Bobtail gun but we'll have to wait and see. I saw a 1911T TACOPS in the Pro Shop last week. I began my 1911T collection with the enhanced 5" GI model.
I say it is enhanced because it has the obligatory enhancements such as front strap checkering and the beavertail grip safety. It is essentially a 5" all steel, .45acp bushing barrel 1911 pistol. The pictures speak for themselves.
Let me point out that all of the pics here are of the gun after I made my routine modifications. The low thumb safety, short trigger, 19# mainspring, VZ grips and grip screw changes are just things that I do to all my 1911 guns. Since this gun will eventually find it's way into my holster I also opted to change out the rear sight to a 10-8 all black "U" notch rear sight with single hand cocking ledge. I did have to spend some time with the firing pin safety again but went another route which i will explain below. Other than the changes noted here, it is as it came from the factory.
The overall fit and finish is very nice and it is even a bit tight for my tastes. I took the time to beat it into submission and it has since loosened up very nicely. The black finish on the slide is tough and well done which may indicate that the finish concerns of the past have been addressed. There are few sharp edges and I expect the overall finish to hold up very well. The mainspring housing could use a bit more attention in my opinion. It is designed for a lanyard and thus has sharp edges that bit into my hands. I have meaty paws with short fingers so my grip is pretty far around the right side of the gun. This puts the bottom of the MS housing right in the middle of the meat of the heel of my hand. It was a bit uncomfortable at first but quickly remedied with a smooth file and some flat black paint. It will eventually be replaced with a different style housing, but I am not sure which one yet.
The sights came standard with tritium inserts and were of the typical Novak 3 dot configuration in Novak cuts. I prefer to look for only one dot and since being able to one hand the gun is a must for me, I replaced the sight with a standard height .140 notch 10-8 rear sight.
http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/pid=26673/avs|Manufacturer_1=10-8%20PERFORMANCE%20LLC/Product/1911_AUTO_U_NOTCH_REAR_SIGHT The "U" notch makes things easier for me and the ledge is necessary for reliable one-handed operations. Hilton has done a great job with these sights and you would be well served with them. The front sight is a tritium dot and is pinned into the slide. The factory sights worked very well during initial testing so there is no need to replace them unless you have other preferences. From the box they were POA/POI at 10 yards.
Huge improvements were made over the Scorpion I reviewed a while back with this gun. The trigger bow channels were smooth, the plunger spring was not jacked up and the feed ramp was very smooth...All from the factory. It was nice not having to spend so much time on the gun to get it up to my standards. I did have top mess with the firing pin disconnect safety levers a small amount and I chose to fit them by filing on the underside of the slide. You'll see int he pics that I took a bit of meat off of the slide to allow for smoother clearance during operation and assembly. Note that it did not effect the overall appearance or fit of the slide to the frame. It just made it so that the slide would move more smoothly over the safety lever arm located next to the hammer.
The factory trigger broke at 6.2 to 6.5# as was not nearly as rough as the Scorpion. I did note that it had a lot of creep, but I'm not sure that would matter in a combat gun. I replaced the trigger with a Harrison Design short trigger.
http://www.brownells.com/.aspx/pid=27429/Product/1911_AUTO_EXTREME_SERVICE_TRIGGER Combined that with a 19# mainspring and some work on the hammer/sear interface and a leaf spring adjustment and I was able to get a smooth and consistent 4.4-4.7# break with very little creep. Using the factory parts I was very happy to get this and will likely stay with it unless the gun gives me a reason to change it out.
Shooting:
I broke it in with 500 rounds of 230gr Ball form Tactical Ammunition and them made the modifications. The original 500 rounds ran perfectly with oiling every 50 rounds and Wilson Combat #47 mags. Don't waste your time with the Sig Sauer supplied mags. They'll figure it out some day. Until then, go with what works so you can test the gun and take mags out of the equation. After the changes I ran an additional 500 rounds of 230gr ball and then 500 rounds of Winchester Ranger 230gr Bonded JHP. I am out of the shorter 185gr Hydra-SHok and since I plan to use the Win as my carry ammo I opted to go with the Ranger load exclusively.
I ran the ball ammo without the added oiling and was able to get it to slow up enough after 321 rounds to cause a FTF. The bullet hung up slightly on the ramp and was remedied with a quick palm heel strike. After that I oiled it and it went back to running perfectly. The Ranger ammunition ran very well and fed perfectly. I did note that the gun began to get sluggish more quickly so I was oiling approximately it every 100 rounds. Overall I was very happy with the gun and after a few thousand more trouble free rounds I will likely swap it out as my EDC.
Accuracy was as to be expected. I was able to print one hole groups at 7 yards with both the ball and the JHP ammunition. YMMV.
Note the Bow Tie cut on the frame to allow for the proper clearance. This significantly helps with frame life and is a good sign of things to come from the Sig 1911 guns. it's all in the details!
Ask and I will try to help as best I can.
