I finally managed to get to the range again with the S&W 1911 in the OP. The wife and I fired 100 rounds through it for a grand total of a meager 150 rounds (Hey, gotta spread the love to the other three pistols in the family!).
I used the second mag on this trip, and experienced the same issue on it that I had with the first mag, ie, it was hard to get it to seat for the first use. After the first mag was fired, the "issue" completely disappeared.
There were no other failures or malfunctions of any kind. It still feels a bit stiff, but it feels like a well-tuned machine.
Compared to my M&P9 FS, the night sights, longer barrel, etc made for a modest improvement in my ability to pick up the front sight and feel I had the sights centered on target. This is always a concern for me with my old eyes.
The trigger is significantly different than my other pistols (duh!), and I like it a lot (double duh!). After 1000+ rounds, the M&P9 trigger is nice and certainly no barrier to shooting the pistol well. But the 1911's trigger is sweet from Round #1.
Recoil is, of course, more powerful than my 9. But it is not at all unpleasant. Its just a somewhat bigger push, not at all sharp, snappy, or scary. My wife can fire it and enjoy doing it. And, as she says, if she can do it anyone who is physically healthy certainly can lol.
All in all, I'd say that at 7 yds I can shoot this 1911 as well as I can shoot my M&P9 even though I have lots less experience on the 1911. And I'm already better at 12 yds with the 1911 than the M&P9, probably due to a better personal afinity for the sights/radius.
But I also have to say - as much as I *love* the 1911 - it made me appreciate even more what S&W accomplished with the M&P9. If I had to choose only one at the range, atm it would be the 1911. But then again I may just be attracted to new shiny things
I've been shooting pistols for only 3 months now . . . and I'm old lol. With that caveat, here's a view of 16 rounds at 7 yards. The target on the squirrel is 2.75" in diameter, and I might have done better if I could have seen the damn circle at 7 yards