Auto-Ordnance 1911 45 ACP Stainless Cerakote — Superb Night Sight Build

Description

The Auto-Ordnance 1911 in Savage Stainless Cerakote is the company’s upgraded 1911 rather than the GI-pattern one, and the feature list reads like a parts catalog of everything people normally pay a gunsmith to add. Adjustable trigger, skeletonized hammer, full-length recoil guide rod, extended beavertail grip safety, extended magazine release, checkered front strap and mainspring housing at 20 lines per inch, a match grade barrel, night sights and gray G10 grips. It is American made.

The Upgrades That Usually Cost Extra

Anyone who has built up a base 1911 knows the list. A beavertail grip safety so the hammer does not bite. An extended magazine release you can reach without shifting grip. A skeletonized hammer and an adjustable trigger. A full-length guide rod. Front strap checkering, which is the single most expensive thing on that list because it is machine work on a finished frame. The Auto-Ordnance 1911 arrives with all of it fitted.

The checkering deserves particular mention: 20 lines per inch, machined on both the front strap and the mainspring housing. That is the aggressive end of the range, and it is what stops a 45 shifting in the hand under recoil. Having it done aftermarket on a plain frame typically costs a meaningful fraction of what this whole pistol costs.

Specifications

• Model: Auto-Ordnance 1911
• Caliber: 45 ACP
• Barrel: 5 in, match grade
• Capacity: 7+1
• Finish: Savage Stainless Cerakote
• Grips: gray G10
• Sights: night sights
• Trigger: adjustable
• Hammer: skeletonized
• Grip safety: extended beavertail
• Magazine release: extended
• Guide rod: full length
• Checkering: front strap and mainspring housing, 20 lines per inch
• Safeties: thumb safety, grip safety, firing pin block
• Origin: American made

A note on the firing pin block. Some 1911 purists dislike them on the grounds that the original had none, and it is true that a Series 70 pattern has a marginally cleaner trigger. The practical argument goes the other way: a firing pin block means the pistol will not discharge if dropped on the muzzle, which is worth having on a gun that might be carried. The trigger here is adjustable in any case.

Why it is worth considering

• Beavertail, extended magazine release, skeletonized hammer and adjustable trigger all fitted
• Front strap and mainspring housing checkered at 20 lines per inch
• Match grade 5 inch barrel
• Night sights, not a later upgrade
• Savage Stainless Cerakote, harder wearing than bluing and corrosion resistant
• Gray G10 grips that will not swell, crack or wear smooth
• American made

Who it suits

The Auto-Ordnance 1911 in Cerakote suits the buyer who wants a built 1911 without building one. Every upgrade on it is something a shooter would otherwise add over a couple of years and several gunsmith visits, and having them done at the factory costs a great deal less than doing them one at a time. It is a range gun, a nightstand gun and a carry gun depending on how you dress it, and the night sights and firing pin block mean the last of those is a reasonable proposition.

Ammunition, Magazines and Transfer

The Auto-Ordnance 1911 runs standard 45 ACP. For practice, 230 grain round nose full metal jacket is the default and what the platform feeds best; for defensive use, a quality jacketed hollow point in 185 or 230 grain. Single-stack 1911s can be particular about hollow point profiles, so run a box or two of your chosen load through it before relying on it — that is sound practice with any pistol and especially a 1911.

Magazines are standard single-stack 1911 pattern, so the entire aftermarket fits and good magazines are inexpensive. Manufacturer information is published by Auto-Ordnance. Compare this pistol with the GI-pattern 1911A1 in 9mm and the engraved Texas Ranger edition, browse our full Auto-Ordnance range, or the handgun catalog.

All firearm orders ship to a licensed FFL dealer for transfer, and MAG5 Firearms will coordinate the paperwork with the dealer of your choice.