Remington 1911-R1 Range Report (kinda long)

I received a call a few weeks ago from my local Remington dealer to let me know they had received one of the new Remington 1911-R1 pistols. At a cost of $599, I asked my dealer to set it aside for me and I’d be by in a day or two to pick it up. I sure did make the right decision. Out of the box the pistol has an excellent fit and finish. You can instantly tell it isn’t meant to be a mil-spec gun. It has a good useable set of white 3-dot sights dovetailed in front and rear. The ejection port has been lowered and flared and the barrel hood has a loaded chamber indicator on it. The barrel as well as the barrel bushing is stainless steel. The trigger is an aluminum “Videki” style solid trigger, but lacks an over travel set screw. While it has a flat mainspring housing, the grip safety is very much mil-spec, as is the hammer and thumb safety. The pistol is finished out with a smooth black phosphate finish and nice set of walnut stocks. I took some of my standard IPSC/USPSA cardboard targets, the factory Mec-Gar magazines, some Novak magazines, and 500 rounds of Georgia Arms “Canned Heat” 230gr. FMJ .45 ACP ammunition to the range to see how the 1911-R1 performs.

While I have and do own many different types of pistols, I always come back to the 1911. It is my sidearm of choice provided I can set it up the way I like them. At $600 I had to buy this pistol. When a major firearms manufacturer comes out with their first 1911, I expect it to be a solid firearm. That is exactly what the 1911-R1 is, a solid firearm. The slide to frame fit is excellent. The rear of the slide, frame, ejector, and extractor are blended well. The barrel appears to be fit well and comes back to the same point after each cycle of the slide. The trigger, while naturally heavy, is smooth and without creep. Not to be confused with over travel, creep occurs when you squeeze the trigger and can feel the sear slide along the hooks of the hammer prior to releasing it. The mil-spec safeties function as they should and the magazine release is smooth and not overly heavy.

Once I had lubricated the pistol to my satisfaction, it was time to put rounds down range. My first impression was that the sights are great. Sure I rather have night sights, but these are clear, easy to pick up, and adjustable for windage. The trigger is heavy for my taste, but it was smooth and without creep. The pistol cycled through my first four magazines flawlessly. Once I was able to get use to the heaviness of the trigger, I was able to group rounds well. I usually wait until a pistol has had adequate break-in rounds through it before shooting for accuracy so I only took my bulk ammunition with me. I would categorize this ammo as combat accurate, meaning I wouldn’t take it to a bullseye match, but I’d have no problem on the Bianchi Cup 25yd. mover shooting the 3 shots in 6 seconds with it. I put another 270 rounds through the pistol before calling it a day. I had zero malfunctions.

I would have no problem carrying this pistol for self-defense. There are a couple things I’d change though. First is the grip safety. After 300 rounds it was digging into the web of my hand slowing peeling the flesh away. I prefer an upswept beavertail grip safety with a raised pad to ensure it is fully depressed in the hand. Second I’d at least install a Tritium lit front sight on. All things considered, I’d say this is an excellent pistol and would make someone a fine first 1911, or even a third or forth. If you can get your hands on one check it out. I’ll try and post some pic’s when I can.

I'll try and get some more pics when I break it down to clean it.