USFA, THE LEADER IN “COWBOY” GUNS, STEPS INTO THE 20TH CENTURY. JOHN TAFFIN oug Donnelly, headman at USFA, has deep feelings about producing high-quality tra- ditionally styled firearms. His Single Actions are some of the finest ever produced with special attention to detail and authenticity while incorpo- rating some of his own ideas and he has now car- ried this over to semiautos. Before we go there, however, let us look back a ways. “Those who do not study history are doomed to repeat it How well i remember those valuable words posted on the front wall of one of my history classrooms. Unfortunately, it is quite another to learn from it and apply it. In so mam ake the same mistakes over and over nothing.” Itis one thing to study history In the 1870 handgun trials, the United States Army wanted a powerful cartridge approximate ff hac psx fx tat 900 fa fact, this cartridge was so powerful mili tary ammunition was soon dropped to a 30-grain load. Everything was fine, both cartridge and revolver performed their duties admirably and then someone decided sol- diers would be better served wit double-action revolver. This was defi- nitely a good move. A double-action Pie en rcrevolver with a. sw much easier to load and reload than a single action. The problem was the only such revolver available in the early 1890s was the Colt Army Model chambered in 38 Long Colt. Twenty years earlier the military had decided the available 44s were lacking in power and now went with something even lighter in .38 caliber and with even less muzzle energy than the .38 Special, which arrived in 1899. The failure of the 38 Long Colt is a well-known story and older Colt Single Action 45s were removed from am storage and sent to the troops in the Philippines. The lesson was learned and the military would never replace a 45 ith a .38. Well, at least not until 1981 (the one thing history teaches us ...) when the 45 was abandoned for the 9mm. Once again, the small bore — in this case the Imm — has been found inadequate and the next military sidearm will be a 45 once again. About the same time as our problems in the Philippines, semiauto pistols began to appear. The first guns, the Borchardt, the Broomhandle Mauser and the Luger, ‘Maker: United States Firearms Mfg. 453 Ledyard St. Hartford, CT 06114 breech, serniauto 01 Bright Blue xed, Windage djustable 1108 E. Fremont Tombs all came from Europe, however, our leading arms designer, John Browning. switched from those wonderful Winchester single-shots and leverguns and tured to semiauto pistols and fully automatic rifles. In 1897, Browning received a patent for what would become the Colt Model 1900 chambered in .38 ACP. The United States Army Board of Officers convened in 1898 and considered the available semiauto pistols undesirable for militar service, In 1899, sidearms considered were the Colt New Service and Smith & Wesson Military & Police and they also asked Colt to submit a semiau Subsequently the Model 1900 Colt 38 ACP was tested, however, the feeling was a larger caliber was needed and Browning went back to work. The result was the Model 1905 chambered in a new 45 rimless cartridge loaded moke less powder. Approximately 6, Model 1905s were pro ears improv at the request of the milita 200 modified model 1905s wereordered with grip safeties and spur-type hammers replacing the earlier rounded hammers. Further improvements were made resulting in the Model 1910, which now had the familiar grip frame of the soon-to-surface Model 1911. This last pre-1911 model was modified with two locking lugs on the top of the barrel and a stronger safety. Now United State Firearms (USFA) had reached back to that period with not one but two classic .45 semiauto pistols. USFA has been producing firearms for a relatively short period of time, less than 20 years. However, they have progressed from a company building revolvers using Italian parts" to. producing totally American-made si tion. revolvers and slide-action rifles both of very high quality and this same quality has now been carried over to .45 semiautos, I first saw the USFA 45s at the 2005 SHOT Show and was immediately taken by their fit, finish and form, Since then, I've had the time to thoroughly test both models being offered we can add the fourth “F” — function. On the exterior, there is very little dif- ference between the original Model 1910 and the improved Model 1911, In March of 1911 the Board of Officers concluded the Colt Calibre .45 Automatic Pistol of the design submitted to the Board for test be adopted for use by foot and ‘mounted troops in the Military service in consequence of its marked superiority to the present service revolvers, and to any other known pistol, and its extreme relia bility and endurance and of its fulfillment of all the essential requirements” Both the USFA 1910 and 1911 45s are essentially the same pistol mechani The 1910's hammer, trigger, slide stop and Cee een cally with some very minor and one major difference on the exterior. Let us first look at the USFA Model 1911 which is basically a recreation on. the original Model 1911. It has the Ion trigger, flat mainspring housing and double-diamond checkered. wood grips The rounded front sight and rear sight in Jjustable for winda sis the slide stop, thumb safety ip safety The 1911 is faithful to early Colt 1911s and has the wide-spur hammer, short-tang grip safety and ‘smooth, flat mainspring housing (above). The 1910 tures a hammer reminiscent of the early 1905 Colt pistol, John found the round hammer (below) attrac- eet ee ae The right side of the slide is marked ‘MODEL OF 1911. U.S. ARMY” while we find “UNITED STATES PROP- ERTY” on the left side of the frame. The left side of the slide is inscribed in two lines “PATENTED ,APR.20.1897" and SEPT.9.1902. DEC. 19.1905 FEB.14.1911” and behind these we find two other lines, “U.S.EA. MFG. CO” and “HARTFORD, CT. U.S.A.” The serial number is found above the trigger on the right side of the frame. I have no the or diers were still on horseback I would expect them to be fairly heavy. Both the 1910 and 1911 USFA .45s have pulls set at an even six pounds and T not find this to interfere with the great shooting qualities of either pistol Comparing 1911s This United States Firearms Model 1911 differs. from. an original Government Model 1911 in two major areas, First, it is absolutely beautifully finished in a deep, dark, highly polished blue black reminiscent of the Best Smith & Wessons and Colts of the era and repli cates the type of finish found on the Commercial Model 1911 prior to World War I. The second major difference is the fitting. We have many custom pistol- smiths offering superbly fitted, virtually hhandbuilt 191Ts with no perceptible play between slide and frame. This 1911 had the same careful fitting and not the loose ness found on military 1911s use by the doughboys and Gls of World War I and World War I As a result this 1911 marked “United States Property” shoots as well or better than any other 1911 1 have fired in the last 5O years. Identifying The 1910 Everything said about the fit and finish on the 1911 carries over to the 1910. The most obvious difference — in fact the only difference a cursory examination is the shape of the hammer, Instead of the spur hammer of the 1911, the Model 1910 carries the rounded hammer of the original Model noticeable in, CRs (brand, bullet weight & type) (ease Corn) Cre) \WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM + MAY 2007905. Historically and spiritually speaking, the slide markings found on the 1911 carries this shooter back near 100 years and the 1910 does this to an even greater degree. On the right side of the slide we find marked in two lines, U,S.FA. AUTOMATIC” and “CAL- IBRE 45 RIMLESS SMOK! : (note the use of the early spelling of calibre” on both the firearms and in the USFA advertising). The left side of the slide of the Model 1910 is. marked exactly the same as the Model 1911 except, as expected, the last patent date is. missing. On’ my circa 1914 Commercial Model there is still another patent date added of Aug. 19, 1913. The sights on the USEA versions are also to see than those on the Commercial Model as they have a square rear notch instead of the rounded ‘U” found on the 1914 pistol The Model 1910 has the same long trigger, flat mainspring housing, gr safety, double-diamond checkered stocks, perfect fitting of slide to frame, and beautiful blue finish as the model 1911 with a few extra embellishments The rounded hammer, the slide stop, and the thumb safety are finished in nitre blue instead of the traditional high polished blue found on the rest of these beautiful semiautomatics. In using the Model 1910 I can see why the rounded hammer of the Model 1905 was dropped in favor on the spur hammer found on the model 1911 as the latter is much easier to cock. Both Shoot! Both the Model 1910 and Model 1911 were test fired with 11 different factory lo: is covering the spectrum from 185- in jacketed hollowpoints to 230-grain Il metal jackets. Both pistols shot everything Well with no malfunctions whatsoever. Not only did they shoot well, I almost felt like I was riding with Blackjack Pershing along —_the Texas/Mexico border in 1916. As I get older it appears my imagination may be the last to go, Both pistols were shot from a padded rest at a distance of 20 yards using both eyes and hands now in the latter part of their seventh decade. If my results are this good, I can only imagine what someone with sharp young eyes could accomplish. All groups are for the best six of seven shots. The only thing I like 0 1 , throwaway shot. It aids my concentration knowing I have the possibility of messing up one time without being penalized. With 11 different loads the Model 1910 averaged 1" while the Model 1911 “opened” up to 1", which basi- cally means there's not a dime’s worth of practical difference between the two of them, Best results with the Model 1910 came with Black Hills 230-grain WWW.GUNSMAGAZINE.COM Typical groups with the USFA .45s were quite good at 20 yards distance despite the period-correct Pn ee ors FMI, CCI Blazer 200-grain JHP and Homady 230-grain JHP, while the Model 1911’s three favorites were Black Hills 185-grain JHP, CCI Blazer style ammo, which was all that was available way back in 1910 and 1911 Both the 1910 and 1911 were right on for windage, however, they shot any- where from 3” to 6” low for me. My old 1914 Commercial Model shoots right on, however the front sight is much lower, so it is obvious I would need to file down the USFA sights to match my hold and eyes. This Commercial Model is one of those things we fall into in times of good fortunié and I purchased it for $100 about 20 years ago. The grip frame was pitted from someone’s hands, so it has been refinished with a satin nickel frame and a blue slide, It is an attractive .45 but nowhere near as nicely finished as the 1910 and 1911 nor is the slide to frame fit as tight. USFA has made a great reputation in single-action sixgunning circles and are about to do the same thing with semi auto pistoleros. The 1911 is also now available in 38 Super (be still my heart!) and .22 versions. a