I don't see too much discussion about the 1911's and/or the E series. At a gun auction this past weekend one was going way too cheap (to my thinking) so I bid in and bought it. It is in excellent + condition in the box with spare mag etc. I don't ever recall hearing anything negative about them, and the 1911 platform is legendary. ( I already have 4 other 1911's, Colt, Springfield Armory, Rock Island Armory (2). I would tend to think the S&W would be a well made example.
Picked up this morning: Up close it's even better than I thought. Mfg date on box 11/7/17, Shows evidence of maybe a half box or full box having been shot through it. Action very still but trigger crisp. I may try a 17 lb recoil spring and a 19 lb hammer spring. I'm pretty sure it has a 20+ lb recoil and a 24? lb hammer spring. Very heavy. I'm going to shoot it a little to see what I think. The gun is basically brand new. Auction price I paid was about 40% of retail.
Now Range Report: See the picture of target, first 7 rounds from this 1911. Not great, not bad, probably about 3" spread. Distance was 12 yards. Shot it with my target loads, my cast lead major load, and Win White Box 230. Pretty much destroyed the middle of the target, it does drift a little left, (most likely me as that is common for me). Did not lock back with target loads, and once with 230 white box. The recoil spring is really stiff, I did try the factory mags, some Wilson mags, and some 10 rd Chip McCormick mags. Fed and functioned well with all, but had two instances of first rd miss-feed. When I got home, after I cleaned it, I swapped a 18 lb recoil spring, and installed a 19 lb competition main spring (hammer). I did not do any trigger work, as it felt nice and crisp, it just needs about 500 rounds to break in. I did polish the feed ramp. The trigger now breaks at a consistent 4.75 lbs, just right for me.
Update 9/6/18. after about 300 rounds the trigger has become more sluggish. I did a total disassembly and the hammer and sear are coated with some kind of matte black finish, and not particularly smooth where it counts. I did a trigger job, and brought the hammer hook down to .020, and stoned it smooth with a 1000 grit ceramic stone, and redid the sear and also polished it. It is now a consistent 4 1/4 lb and very clean and smooth. As a result my groups did improve and I ran another 100 rounds through it yesterday and was pleased. Probably another couple hundred rounds and it will be deemed ready for any use.
Picked up this morning: Up close it's even better than I thought. Mfg date on box 11/7/17, Shows evidence of maybe a half box or full box having been shot through it. Action very still but trigger crisp. I may try a 17 lb recoil spring and a 19 lb hammer spring. I'm pretty sure it has a 20+ lb recoil and a 24? lb hammer spring. Very heavy. I'm going to shoot it a little to see what I think. The gun is basically brand new. Auction price I paid was about 40% of retail.
Now Range Report: See the picture of target, first 7 rounds from this 1911. Not great, not bad, probably about 3" spread. Distance was 12 yards. Shot it with my target loads, my cast lead major load, and Win White Box 230. Pretty much destroyed the middle of the target, it does drift a little left, (most likely me as that is common for me). Did not lock back with target loads, and once with 230 white box. The recoil spring is really stiff, I did try the factory mags, some Wilson mags, and some 10 rd Chip McCormick mags. Fed and functioned well with all, but had two instances of first rd miss-feed. When I got home, after I cleaned it, I swapped a 18 lb recoil spring, and installed a 19 lb competition main spring (hammer). I did not do any trigger work, as it felt nice and crisp, it just needs about 500 rounds to break in. I did polish the feed ramp. The trigger now breaks at a consistent 4.75 lbs, just right for me.
Update 9/6/18. after about 300 rounds the trigger has become more sluggish. I did a total disassembly and the hammer and sear are coated with some kind of matte black finish, and not particularly smooth where it counts. I did a trigger job, and brought the hammer hook down to .020, and stoned it smooth with a 1000 grit ceramic stone, and redid the sear and also polished it. It is now a consistent 4 1/4 lb and very clean and smooth. As a result my groups did improve and I ran another 100 rounds through it yesterday and was pleased. Probably another couple hundred rounds and it will be deemed ready for any use.
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