Review: Springfield Range Officer 1911 9mm

Took my new Springfield Armory 1911 Range Officer 9mm out to shoot at Firing Line on Saturday. As this was its first outing, I was eager to see how it shot.

The Range Officer series is a stroke of genius from Springfield. Take the features competitive shooters want, remove the "bling" and other features they don't and offer great performance at a modest price. Recognizing that most shooters will want to customize it to their preferences (which is one of the things I love about the 1911), this is a great way to get a tack-driver into the hands of the masses.

9mm 1911
Whoever made the first 1911 chambered in 9mm was a freakin' genius. You get the heft, accuracy, and reliability of the 1911 in a lower-cost, softer-shooting round. My only concern was would the lighter load cycle the heavier 1911? Turned out to be no problem - not a single misfeed.

Sights
With aging eyes, I'm finding a good, easy-to-acquire sight picture can make or break a handgun for me. The Range Officer succeeds admirably in this area. The target sights are large, visible, and seem to be dead-on accurate. Adjustment looks pretty simple, but at this point I don't think I'll need to do any tweaks. I do think I will pain the back of the front blade fluorescent orange - like my Kimber - to make it easier to pick up in low light situations.

Operation
The beauty of the 1911 is its intuitive operation. For me, everything is where it should be and works as you would expect. The Range Officer is a perfect interpretation. My only complaint is the slide stop. While it reliably locks open after shooting the last round, when doing it manually, it doesn't always catch without an assist. No matter - I love the Wilson Combat Extended Slide Release and was already planning to swap the stock part out for this much better aftermarket solution.

One Weird Observation
I did notice one odd quirk - nothing bad or detrimental to shooting - just weird. I could definitely feel the slide moving when shooting. I'm not sure if it was the reduced recoil, or perhaps the 9mm cycles more slowly, but I could definitely feel the slide travel throughout the cycle. Again, it didn't affect shootability or accuracy, it was just a funny sensation.

Tear-Down
I learn more about a gun from the first tear-down than any other point in time. The Range Officer proved equally solid on tear-down. Key components like the bushing-barrel or the slide-frame interfaces were tight and smooth. While some parts were a bit more rough, they were in less critical locations where it didn't really matter. As expected, the factory rust preventative gunk was pretty serious. It took a little blast of my go-to cleaner, Remington's RemAction, to get it all off.

Tweaks?
Regular readers know I usually can't leave well enough alone. Surprisingly, this one has relatively few planned or considered tweaks. The include:

• Wilson Combat Extended Slide Release - to simplify and ease slide release and provide a more positive lock-back
• Rubber Magazine Base Pads - I've been planning to do this for both this gun and the Kimber for a while; these should make mags easier to seat
• Full-Length Guide Rod - read online forums and the GI Spec versus Full Length debate is like politics in the Middle east; I like it on the Kimber and will probably consider it here, but I want to shoot this one some more

Summary

The Springfield Range Officer 1911 9mm offers a tremendous value - match-level quality in critical systems, without cost-escalating bells-and-whistles. If you're seeking a target pistol with good competitive potential, this one's worth a closer look.

-Sean-

New Gear: Springfield Range Officer 1911 9mm

I love my Kimber 1911 Stainless Custom II .45. The 1911 platform, in addition to being among the most proven around, just works for me. I love the ergonomics. The balance. The feel. How everything on it seems so perfectly logical. The wide range of aftermarket parts you can get to customize feel, improve accuracy, and just make it "yours".

What I don't love is the cost of .45 ammunition. Ouch.

I'm a big fan of Springfield Armory products. I own both a full-size and subcompact XD models. And the 1911's I've shot were always solid. They make a great product, with good features, at a very fair price. With their new Range Officer 1911 in 9mm they're definitely showing that they listen to customers.

The Range Officer is a relatively new offering that's geared for competitive target shooting. They've given you everything you need, and nothing you don't. A gun that's supposed to be a tack-driver right out of the box, but that leaves you room (and cash) to customize. For a very reasonable price you get a match-grade barrel and bushing, extended beavertail grip safety, and adjustable target sights.

And now, you can get it in a 9mm. I had the opportunity to shoot a Smith & Wesson Custom Shop 1911 9mm a few years back. I came away extremely impressed. The ergonomics of a 1911, combined with the low cost and recoil of 9mm. Well, now Springfield has done it with the 9mm Range Officer.

So, I put one on order (takes a while -- turns out customers really wanted these). Today I picked it up. Although I haven't shot it yet, I can see this will become a favorite. Feels like a well-built 1911 in-hand. Fit and finish are nice and tight. Grips are both elegant and hand-grabbing.

More to follow after I shoot it and give it a thorough clean and lube.

-Sean-

1911 - Phase II

While I've been very happy with my Kimber Custom Stainless II 1911 .45, the tweaker in me just can't resist. The 1911 platform affords so much opportunity for customization, that I knew this would happen before too long.

What initially fueled this was shooting my friend's Kimber TLE model. The checkering on the front strap really makes a huge difference. I'm more easily able to get a solid, consistent grip and as a result accuracy increases greatly.

These days it seems like finding a good gunsmith is a real challenge. Fortunately, I have a friend who shoots competitively and loves 1911's. He recommended I talk to Marianne Carniak - "The Accurizer". On Saturday, I paid Marianne a visit at her shop to have a look at my gun. This lady knows her 1911's! Super cool, incredibly knowledgeable, and really able to talk me through what I liked and didn't like about the gun. I knew at the outset that she'd be doing more than the checkering, I just didn't know what. With Marianne's guidance we were able to identify some modifications to make this MY gun. To say that I'm eager to have it back in my hands is a vast understatement.

Upon pulling the gun from its case, Marianne immediately identified a weakness -- the plastic mainspring housing. I'd never even noticed that this part was plastic! Though it's a non-critical functioning part, she said, "it just should be metal...". Music to my ears, I found the right resource.

I've not had a lot of luck with gunsmiths in the past, but I think that's because I was going to general, mass-market places. In the hands of specialist, I was really able to uncover areas for both significant and minor improvements that will customize this gun to me.

I'll write more after I get it back in a month or so!

FirePOWER

One of the earliest pistols I had the opportunity to shoot was a Kimber stainless Custom 1911 in .45ACP. As it was a rental unit at a local shooting range and had seen a lot of rounds fired and minimal maintenance, I loved that gun. So guns just fit and feel right - that was this gun's story.

Subsequent to that, I had a number of opportunities to shoot a friend's 1911's. These included a rather basic Springfield Armory that I could just never make friends with and a rather fussy Colt. While I liked the 1911 platform very much. Neither of those guns compared to that Kimber.

Last week, I was fortunate enough to finally own the object of my affections. While I haven't yet had the opportunity to shoot it, I love it already. The heft -- just right. The simple, logical action. The exceptional level of fit and finish is outstanding. Barrel lock-up seems perfect and the action is precise and controlled.

I'm glad I waited. I'd considered a Taurus, but that just didn't seem quite right for this very special pistol. A Remington seemed like a cost-effective American-made option, but the R1 is a pretty bare-bones model. This would have necessitated a bunch of work with a pistolsmith to do a trigger job, polish and flare the feed ramp, swap out the hammer, etc. Before long, you've got a $600 gun with $600 worth of custom work. Or, I could just buy the Kimber that already has all of that and more.

Finally, I must confess to some personal vanity. I can't explain WHY, but I just had to have a stainless model. Do I have any practical reason for this? Nope. It's just shiny and I like that.

More to follow once I've had the chance to shoot this beast.

-Sean-