While I appreciate some of the newer (PVD) finishes on handguns and how great a job they do protecting against wear and corrosion, I still like a blued gun more than either nickel, stainless, hard chrome or any other finish for that matter. There's just something about a deep polished blue/inky black finish on firearms I find very appealing. Anyone who has ever owned a Schultz & Larsen rifle or a Colt Python knows the feeling. It's beautiful but not exactly the most durable.
When S&W released the Model 629 during the early 1980's, I bought a 6" one and it immediately became a favorite. It was my first all-stainless steel firearm. The second whitetail deer I ever shot with a handgun was with that revolver during a steady rain and gusty wind that normally would've had me fretting about keeping my 6" Model 57 dry but, with the 629 wearing a set of Pachmayr target grips, I didn't have to care. Not even a little. Stainless was simple to maintain and corrosion was no longer a big consideration
Stainless 1911's, though? They're something you either love or you hate. I happen to like them a lot for the same reasons I appreciated my old S&W 629. They're a breeze to maintain. If I get caught out in lousy weather, I'm not scrambling to cover it up and nowadays semi-custom manufacturers like Guncrafter Industries and Ed Brown have really taken stainless to the next level of refinement. I don't think anyone makes a prettier matte stainless 1911 than Ed Brown but, this Guncrafter Frag .45 I got about a month ago (and just now have had a chance to shoot) is very close to it.
If there's anything better than hitting the range on a Saturday morning with friends and new guns to shoot, I don't know what it is, especially after the last month has been just one bizarre and terrifying incident after another in terms of family health issues and work-related insanity. The range is therapy even if it is an indoor one that challenges your low-light shooting abilities. I didn't care, though. It was range day!
The usual drill: reliability check, POA/POI check, mag drop and reload check, just-try-to-hit-the-target-and-not-look-stupid-doing-it check, distances: 7, 10 and 15 yards, 100 rounds of Geco 230gr FMJ for testing. I like Geco .45 ACP. It functions consistently reliable and accurate (for mass produced factory ammo). Plus, for .45 it's not outrageously expensive at .28 cents p/r and free shipping.
7 yards, 20 rounds.
To prevent shooting too fast, I loaded only three rounds at a time and paused for several seconds between magazine changes. One thing is certain: the 'Frag' pattern used on the grips and on the front and rear back straps of the frame is a lot more effective than I expected it to be. The pistol did not shift in my shooting hand at all.
10 yards, 15 rounds.
It's dead-on the $ using a six o'clock sight picture, even if I wasn't completely steady on this particular day. Blame it on the lighting, right? LOL It was impossible to clearly see the 'gold' bead front sight (it's actually brass) and that meant using front sight/rear sight height alignment and my best guess. It's probably a good thing to practice doing that intentionally.
15 yards, 20 rounds
Fifteen yards is where things start getting slightly hinky for me on an indoor range but, overall, I wasn't disappointed. The stainless Frag performed flawlessly and just as I expected it would. The Frag pattern is grippy without being abrasive at all. Guncrafter doesn't build a lot of stainless 1911's so I consider myself lucky to have got one.
