The Marines never stopped using the 1911 and now they have ordered more



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http://www.foxnews.com/us/2012...-45-caliber-pistols/



Sticking to their guns: Marines place $22.5M order for the Colt .45 M1911
By Maegan Vazquez

Published July 28, 2012

FoxNews.com



The M1911 Colt .45


The Colt .45 M1911 is making a big comeback, now that the U.S. Marines have placed a $22.5 million order for the Connecticut-made pistols.



It’s been called the greatest handgun ever made, and it has barely changed sine 1911, when the legendary John Browning designed it especially for the U.S. Military.

And now, the Colt .45 M1911 is making a big comeback, now that the U.S. Marines have placed a $22.5 million order for the Connecticut-made pistols.

The gun, which has been wielded on film by John Wayne and in real life by Sgt. Alvin York and Maj. Audie Murphy, was the standard-issue sidearm in the military for decades, until it was replaced by the Beretta M9 in 1985.


"It just became an iconic part of military and American history."
- Gerry Dinkel, CEO and president of Colt Defense


"It just became an iconic part of military and American history," Gerry Dinkel, CEO and president of Colt Defense, told FoxNews.com.

The gun, one of the most successful pistols ever used at Camp Perry's National Matches, a competition known to be the main world event in artillery sports, has barely changed since it's creation. Dinkel says that shows the gun's "elegant design" just can't be improved on. And firearms experts agree.

"You can’t beat a .45 cartridge," Jack Lewis, firearms director for Cowan's Auctions, told FoxNews.com. "Some things are hard to replace," he said.

Colt Defense, based in Hartford, Conn., will supply as many as 12,000 of the 200,000 U.S. Marines with semi-automatic, tan-colored M45 Close Quarter Battle Pistols, and they will include spare parts and logistical support. The gun has long been the weapon of choice for special operations agents, thanks to its reliability and the stopping power of its massive bullets.

"I'm really glad that they're keeping it in the American economy," Lewis, who used the gun while he was in the armed forces, said. "I was quite upset when they went to the Beretta," Lewis said.

Some reports suggest Marines are not happy with their main Beretta M9s for their lack of accuracy and stopping power. With M1911's now supplying Special Ops, growing interest may lead to a better solution.

"To have the 1911 selected again for U. S. Forces 101 years after its initial introduction is just an incredible testament to the timeless design and effectiveness of the Colt 1911," Dinkel said. "This is truly a gratifying contract award."

I'm not sure that any 1911 is worth $1,875 each, even with 10 magazines each, or a cool tan color.

quote:

"This is truly a gratifying contract award."

Damn skippy since that is more than they make for the M4 Carbine.

the guns are probably $175 each, the other 1700 probably covers the government paperwork

quote:

Originally posted by butchloc:
the guns are probably $175 each, the other 1700 probably covers the government paperwork

Yeh, and the cash kickbacks, gifts, and perks to the politicos and brass hats who helped get the order placed with Colt.

More info on the contract, those that thought they had it figured out apparently didn't

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http://www.military.com/daily-news/2...ESRC=marine.nl

Marines Pick Colt for New Pistol

Jul 20, 2012

Military.com| by Matthew Cox


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The Marine Corps has tapped Colt Defense LLC to make more than 10,000 new Close Quarter Battle Pistols for the service's elite special operations troops.

The July 19 contract, which has a total value of $22.5 million, brings an end to the Corps' exhaustive search for the top .45 caliber, 1911-style pistol to replace the fleet of worn-out Marine Corps Forces Special Operations Command, or MARSOC, M45 pistols.




Colt Defense, based in Hartford, Conn., was the original maker of John Browning's revered 1911 design – a potent handgun that served all branches of the U.S. Military for more than 70 years until it was replaced by the M9 9mm pistol in 1985.

Marine officials, however, say they didn't play favorites.

"It was performance based. . . . We picked the best-performing pistol," said Charles Clark III, who oversees infantry weapons requirements at the Corps' Combat Development and Integration office in Quantico, Va. "There were three candidates that made the final round of consideration," but Clark would not discuss the competitors.

In addition to Colt, Springfield Armory's Full Size MC Operator and Smith & Wesson's 1911 design were also contenders, sources tell Military.com.

Marine testers placed a high priority on accuracy. The winner had to be capable of putting five-shot groups on target that "didn't exceed four inches by four inches at 25 yards" from an unsupported firing position, Clark said. Reliability and magazine life were other important factors in the decision.

The new Close Quarter Battle Pistols will be very similar to the M45s they are replacing this fall. They will have a rail for mounting lights, a custom trigger, a manual safety, improved ergonomics and glowing Tritium sights for low-light conditions.


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The most visual difference is the Colt models will come in Coyote tan instead of gunmetal, Clark said.

The Corps began issuing custom 1911 .45 pistols to its elite Force Reconnaissance units in the 1990s. Gunsmiths at the Quantico Weapons Training Battalion Precision Weapons Section hand built them from old 1911s that had been replaced by the M9 in the mid 1980s.

The creation of the first MARSOC units in 2006 caused the requirement to grow from 400 pistols to 4,000 pistols. Finding enough surplus 1911s for the Precision Weapons Section's custom rebuilds became impractical.

"We realized that hand building 4,000 guns was not sustainable," Clark said.

Marine officials would not discuss the individual price for each new pistol. But the $22.5 million contract to Colt will allow the Corps to buy replacements for the new pistols as they wear out, Clark said. The contract also includes some money for spare parts.

"The contract is built so we can re-buy the approved acquisitions objective three times, so we can buy 4,000 guns three times," Clark said. "These pistols will be getting used a lot; deployed a lot so the guns are going to get shot out."

MARSOC operators stay on a rigorous deployment cycle, "so they fire a lot of rounds. It's a 15,000-round plus [training] work-up to a deployment," Clark said.
"It's more efficient to replace the guns over time instead of attempting to completely rebuild them."

They never should have changed, The .38 special was proven 100 years ago that it was not enough.


I am glad to hear this.


cal30

Too true Butchloc. You can't sell anything to the US Military for less than a thousand bucks or so due to the paperwork involved.

The contract likely included a suppprt package worth the lions share of the cost. Recall, an end item costs $X, the replacement parts and components needed to keep them runing cost $X sq.

Really, you guys know that, right?

You buy a rifle, you need few parts and only ammo and oil/cleaning supplies to keep it for a lifetime of limited use operations.

Warriors buy a pistol (class II end item) and enough repair parts and supplies to keep in running for a lifetime too, let alone ammo (an expendable class V contract item).

Parts and service is what kills ya when you buy Yugo. Fine if that's what they want, it's not like it's the only waste of my tax dollars.

SG Olds,

Not sure of your point. The Colt 1911 is not a "yugo". It is rather a more like a Ford or GM truck. Tough as nails, robust, powerful and reliable, rather well suited to a variety of roles. Even though you need brakes, tires oil and a few high wear components to keep them on the road for twenty years plus.


My only compaint is that the US destroyed hundreds of thousands of M1911s that could have been used still, or at least sold to the public like M1s for a billion dollars....

I am certain the Singer 1911 I carried as an M60 gunner in W Germany during the cold war is now a stack of razor blades worth nothing....

I do not know of any other pistol that will last with heavy duty use longer than a 1911.

While I have worn out a few barrels over the years, I have had to replace very few internal parts, sometimes the trigger weight would get too light for Hardball matches, after a LOT of shooting, other than a recoil spring once in a while.

I did break the feet off of a barrel bushing once upon a time when I was shooting really HOT loads with a 24lb recoil spring, but I do not blame that on the design of the 1911.

The only other pistol that can come close to the 1911 in my personal experience is the Glock 17 in 9mm.
I have worn out a few barrels on them too.

Only ever broke one part, the trigger return spring.

I`m not even an American but I applaud this decision.

1911 is the only semi auto pistol I own, ever aspired to own.

Mind you its a 9mm but I only poke holes in cardboard with it.

One need only empty a magazine of 9mm ammunition to break out in a cold sweat at the thought of going into a theatre of war with that calibre...

It never hurts anyone to purchase goods or services produced or provided by someone who pays tax the same place as you do.

My favorite handgun for self defense! I carry a Kimber Pro Carry,and have a gov model in the driver side door pocket where I can reach it from the drivers seat. The gov model, is full of hard ball, to penetrate car doors,in a road rage defence conflict and the Kimber on my belt stoaked with TAP hollowpoints.

I do a lot of highway travel for hundreds of miles per trip, some in the far west where it is miles between cities and police presence!

I carried the 45 1911 in a tanker chest rig in the army as radio man in an M-42 Sherman tank where a rifle was not an optionand I never felt handicaped with the 1911! I also had access to a 45 ACP submachinegun close by in the tank.

MACD37. Have you read the 'Account of a Iwo Jima Tanker 'in the Military &Military Surplus Section ?

I'd be happy having the tank! what was that movie where the guy somehow has his own sherman tank and ends up causing all kinds of havoc, I think the actor that played maverick.

1911's are awesome, I could get a good deal on a wwii one a buddy has but it's a good deal that's still more than a new rock island (from the philippines yes) and then I don't know if I could bring myself to shoot it a lot. nothing feels as good in the hand as a 1911, even a big smith N frame isn't as comfy.

Red