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[FROM SHOOTING TIMES]
SHOOTING SPRINGFIELD ARMORY'S G.I. .45 ACPOur Handgun Editor says Springfield's new family of G.I. 1911s makes him recall fond memories of his first .45 ACP pistol--except Springfield's new pistols function and fire a whole lot better.By Sheriff Jim Wilson, Handgun Editor
Opening the box on the new Springfield G.I. .45 ACP pistol took me back some 40 years. In those days I was a starving college student who had just learned the joys of swapping guns. Truth be told, I didn't really like to swap guns; I had to swap if I wanted to try something new. You see, my budget at the time was not so grand that I could afford to actually own two guns at the same time. My first .45 auto pistol was a World War II-era 1911A1 that was manufactured by Ithaca. There was such a push for arms and equipment during the war that the government was letting out contracts to have it all built, and several companies held contracts to build the 1911 pistol for our troops. Besides Colt, Remington-Rand, Union Switch & Signal, Singer, and Ithaca all had a hand in the effort. According to one authority, Ithaca produced more than 400,000 1911A1 pistols from 1943 to 1945. My first .45 was one of them. It had a set of brown, checkered plastic grips that just had to go. Wandering around Fort Worth pawnshops, then a favorite foraging area of mine for forgotten treasures, I found a set of old, smooth, stag grips that quickly went on my Parkerized military .45. The pistol, of course, now did not have the true G.I. look, but those stag grips were really nice, and I sure wish I still had them. Back in those days, we had a choice of firing full metal jacket ammo, which we called hardball, or using some of the semiwadcutter factory target loads. The target loads were nice, but we soon found out that they wouldn't always feed reliably in our pistols. It was at about this time that Norma brought out a 230-grain jacketed hollowpoint round that was considered an amazing revolution for auto pistol shooters, even though the bullet would usually not expand on anything softer than concrete. Still, it was a beginning. 
The new Springfield G.I. Series pistols feature low-profile, military-style, fixed sights.
Prior to having some shooting experience with that old 1911A1 pistol, I had bought in to the beliefs that all autoloading pistols were undependable and would malfunction at the least opportune moments. My experience with that Ithaca .45 proved that this was simply not so. I found the 1911A1 pistol was a tough, powerful, reliable handgun that would function reliably when kept clean and properly maintained. I have no idea how many rounds of .45 ACP ammo I put through that old pistol, but I enjoyed every minute of it. 
The Remington-UMC 230-grain FMJ printed the tightest groups, averaging just 1.50 inches, and produced a muzzle velocity of 854 fps.
Springfield's New G.I. The new G.I. Series .45 pistol has a forged frame, slide, and barrel. It has a standard ejection port, standard spur hammer, and oiled walnut grips. Other features include a lanyard loop on the arched mainspring housing, a short trigger, and low-profile military sights. In a slight departure (and a welcome one, I might add) from the old military pistol, Springfield's G.I. Series has a barrel that has been throated and the feedramp polished. In addition to the standard Springfield Internal Locking System (ILS), the G.I. Series guns all have titanium firing pins. My test pistol weighed in at 36 ounces and had a trigger pull that breaks at just over five pounds.
The Five-Inch G.I. At The Range 
The 230-grain FMJ loading from Magtech gave groups that averaged 1.75 inches and generated a muzzle velocity of 782 fps.
During my tests this Springfield pistol did not malfunction a single time. The pistol functioned smoothly and flawlessly. Frame, barrel, and slide are fitted together very nicely and tightly. I was also impressed with the attractive Parkerized finish and the diamond-checkered walnut grips. The grips on this particular pistol had the U.S. logo in the middle of each grip panel. On the downside, the trigger was heavier than I like, and it had a bit of creep to it. And, of course, the small military sights are not the best choice for good accuracy work. For Collectors, Reenactors & Budget-Conscious Shooters 
The trigger of the G.I. Full Size 1911A1 is a standard military configuration. The sample pistol's trigger pull was a bit over five pounds.
Historical reenactment is becoming more and more popular, and these folks want guns, and other equipment, that are as historically correct as they can possibly find. Others might want to own a .45 pistol that is similar to the one they carried in Vietnam or the pistol their fathers carried ashore that day they first visited a Normandy beachhead. For these shooters and collectors, the Parkerized G.I. pistol is a mighty close reproduction of that pistol Uncle Sam issued them. And it has the added bonus of being a good shooter too. 
Other members of the new G.I. family include the three-inch Micro-Compact, the four-inch Champion, the five-inch OD green model, and the five-inch stainless-steel model. (Left Gun) G.I. .45 3-Inch Micro-Compact (Right Gun) G.I. .45 4-Inch Champion
The other shooters who should be interested in the Springfield G.I. Series are those who want a .45 ACP that can be customized to their particular specifications. They may prefer certain sights, grip safeties, triggers, and other accessories that are not offered in that particular combination on any other pistol. It's sort of a "roll your own" proposition. You start out with a box-stock .45 and trick it out to suit your particular needs. The various barrel lengths and finishes of the G.I. Series lend themselves admirably to this personal selection. 
(Left Gun) G.I. .45 5-Inch Stainless Steel (Right Gun) G.I. .45 5-Inch OD Green
And, finally, there are those shooters who have to deal with a pretty tight budget. They want a good .45 pistol but just can't lay out the cash all at once for a top-of-the-line custom model. With suggested retail prices of $482 for Parkerized and OD green finishes and $545 for stainless steel, the Springfield G.I. Series gives them an excellent pistol to serve as a solid foundation, and they can make custom additions as their personal budget allows. In the meantime, they've got an awfully good .45 auto pistol that they can enjoy shooting.
This Parkerized Springfield G.I. I've been shooting sure reminds me of my first .45 ACP, the old Ithaca 1911A1. The biggest differences being that the Springfield is quite a bit more accurate than my old warhorse was, and it eats hollowpoint ammo right out of the box. A friend of mine suggested that I might have it fitted out with a set of fixed combat sights and use the pistol as a pickup truck gun. That wasn't a bad idea, but on further reflection, I think I'll leave it just like it is to remind me of where my enjoyment of .45s started. Now if I could only find a set of those old, smooth, stag grips. |
Springfield Armory Links
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