MY IMPRESSIONS
This pistol is noticeable. Its stainless-steel frame is highlighted by checked walnut grips with a distinctive design and prominent “E” in the center. The slide hold-open, extended safety, and magazine release are deep blued, contrasting with the silver slide and receiver. Check out the slide serrations. They are reptile-scaled to match the grips, making them functional and eye-catching. I like the way they feel when I draw back the slide.
Any of Smith & Wesson's E series guns beg to be held and fired. When I first held it, the front and rear grip checkering gave me the confidence of control needed to shoot a full-sized 1911 pistol. The extended beavertail safety assures me of further control and protection. At over 2 pounds, this 1911 is not meant to be tucked into your pocket. That is a good thing, in my book. The sights are a simple non-adjustable white dot arrangement. Notice the ejection port. It is widened and lowered to help with healthy ejection. S&W departed a bit with tradition and installed an external extractor.
The trigger is lightened, serrated, and adjustable for over-travel. Inserting a magazine is made easy by the beveled magazine well. These are all nice touches. It feels good despite the weight and points naturally as intended. You must hold this gun to feel what I mean. Knowing that it is powered by .45 ACP means that I can put a hole in anything at close range and knock it down, too! I cannot wait to shoot this baby.
SPECIFICATIONS
- Weight: 2.5 pounds
- Overall Length: 8.7 inches
- Height: 5.6 inches
- Barrel: 5 inches
- Material: Stainless steel throughout
- Grips: Custom checkered and scaled walnut
- Slide serrations: Wavy reptilian front and back
- Sights: Fixed front and rear white dots
- Trigger: 5.5 pounds as tested, over-travel adjustable
- Magazine: Stainless steel
- Capacity: 8 rounds
- Caliber: .45 ACP
- MSRP: $1,089
RANGE TIME
Welcome to Area 51 in Arizona springtime! What a beautiful sunny day to shoot targets. I love the 1911 design and am fond of anything .45 caliber. The S&W E series combines all in one package. Today I will shoot Sellier & Bellot 230-grain jacketed hollow points at all targets, including steel and liquid. The trigger pulls at over 5 pounds but has very little take-up and is crisp.
Although I anticipate kick, the full size and weight of the E series tames it nicely. The first round from the eight-round magazine was slow to chamber, possibly due to the hollow point round and the newness of the gun. No other feeding problems or jams were encountered while testing.
I fire a few shots on the steel target to check the gun’s zero and find that I can hit the flapper easily. Even a headshot on steel is possible when I follow through. My gosh, this gun is powerful! When shooting the heavy steel “milk-bottle” target on the right, it rings loudly and rocks like it is made of paper. That is .45 power, and I am impressed. The white dot sights are simple, eye-centering, and effective. I do not need a red dot or optic sight to hit at close range.
Power of a .45
Time for water jugs and 2-liter soda bottles. The water filled gallon jug explodes when hit. That is impressive. Even more so, the root beer jugs explode violently as if hit by a rifle! I can depend on this pistol to defend my turf.
The real test of a big pistol is hitting small soda-filled pop cans. Yes, they are close, but I must concentrate on my trigger squeeze to hit the first two. The .45 hollow points surprise me with their explosive reaction. The cans are opened, shredded, and flung many feet from where hit. The third can required a few shots and a reload to hit. No one told me it was wearing body armor! Maybe I should practice a bit more with the big .45?
Several magazines were reloaded during testing. Notice how smooth the stainless-steel mags drop freely from the gun. That is a mark of quality that I always expect from a high-quality 1911 platform. The rubber bumper pads on the two magazines included are nice. I know that they are inserted and ready to fire quickly. I like to empty my final magazine on steel in a mag-dump and notice no malfunctions as the heavy steel plate rings and swings.
PROS & CONS
