I have been shooting a USGI 1911A1 for about 45 years. I have been under the erroneous belief that is a Colt, because it has a Colt slide. Just in the last few days, I have discovered that the serial number on the frame is within the range of guns manufactured by Ithaca in 1943. That makes my gun what 1911A1 collectors call a "mixmaster." Still, it has been a good shooter and a reliable companion in all the years I have had it. I intend to give it to my nephew this Christmas, because I traded his Daddy (my brother) out of it, and have refused to trade it back to him. It has been a good'un.
Now, I have a couple of new favorites. Back in the early 90s, I had the itch for a new 1911. I looked, and talked with my pusher. Somehow, probably because it was very reasonably priced, I bought a Norinco. Soon afterward, the Clinton Administration banned import of a lot of Chinese stuff, including the Norks. Anyhow, I shot it a good bit. Recently, though, I have decided to check it for reliability, including testing some magazines for reliability. I have fired about 250 rounds through it, including about 40 rounds of some kind of hp ammo I got in a trade. No jams, no failure to feed, no problems whatever. I can tell that the initially rough trigger is smoothing out somewhat. Last Spring, I saw another one listed on a state s&s forum. I bought it with 90 rounds of factory ammo for $400. It had a trigger job.
Anyhow, research on these guns has revealed that they have turned out to be pretty desirable. They are made entirely from forged steel. They are supposedly an exact clone of the wartime 1911A1 pistols.
I took stock a couple of weeks back and discovered that I have accumulated (hoarded) about 4500 rounds of factory .45ACP hardball over the last 17 years. I intend to consume about 1500 rounds of that within the next several months putting these pistols to the test. I hope they turn out as good as my old USGI pistol.
