SR1911 .45 ACP

5of7 · Jul 9, 2017

I had a Hell of a time with this gun. I even sent it back to Ruger because of the wild groups. They shot it and returned it with a target in which it grouped about 1-1/2" at 15 yards.

Yeah right, I thought. Well it turns out that it was me all along, not the gun.

I was getting 5 shot groups at 25 yards that would have 3 or sometimes 4 shots in 3" (acceptable) but with 1 or 2 fliers that made it 6 to 9 inches! Well, just on a hunch, I tried shooting it with a pair of goatskin gloves on that I use when shooting the 480 or 44 Mg. revolvers. Voila! I am now getting groups of 4" at 25 years, which I will settle for.

I think that shooting a heavy slow moving bullet in a gun like this one calls for a better grip than I was getting. Too much slippage before the bullet exits the muzzle.

So, whaddya think? Is my thinking right on this? This is my first experience with the 1911 in 45 ACP. I have always been a revolver guy. 8)

ditto1958 · Jul 9, 2017

Hi Hunter. I used to have a girlfriend in SW Michigan.

While I am sure they exist, I have yet to see a truly inaccurate gun at the range. Any time someone has a gun that they can't get to shoot straight, we have them hand it to one of the guys who can REALLY shoot. Normally, they pick the gun up and shoot a one hole group with it.

Still, there are always guns that, even though we know there is nothing wrong with them, we just can't seem to shoot them well. I had a 9mm semi-auto pistol like that. I sold it after awhile, because I never could master the trigger. I know, though, that if had handed my pistol to a more talented shooter, the gun would have been very accurate.

I'm glad to hear you have found a way to shoot better with your SR1911. The Ruger, like almost all 1911 guns, is normally a very good shooting gun. Keep working at it!

bayou5252 · Jul 9, 2017

I thought the same with my SR1911 when I first got it. I was all over the paper. I thought it was the pistol (this is my one and only autoloader).

I then asked a more experienced shooter to give it a run. He was grouping about an inch or so at 15 yards.

At that point I knew I needed better gripping and trigger control. With much more practice, my groupings have tightened considerably.

Ruger Redhawk · Jul 11, 2017

Some guns just feel different to you and it takes time getting use to them. It might have a different feel to the trigger or the sights are different or even the different grip. Several things can cause it and most people want to blame the gun.
There are cases when it might be the gun but in most cases it's user error.
As many do when in doubt let an experienced shooter fire that gun. I'm nowhere near what I would consider myself a sharp-shooter but I can hold my own.
I was at the range one day.
The guy in the booth next to me was lucky to even hit the paper let alone the black. He didn't know I had been watching him. He came over and asked me if I'd fire a few shots for him. He said I don't know what's wrong with this gun and it's brand new. (I can't even remember what gun he had it's been so long ago) other than it being a semi auto and I want to say a 45 ACP. The target was about 7yds out. I put 2 shots almost center in the black and handed it back to him. I told him there's nothing wrong with that gun. I think he was a happy it wasn't his gun but he knew he had allot of work to do learning to shoot that gun.

I still have an older 7 1/2" Redhawk in 44mag I bought brand new. It would shoot way left with the rear sight all the way to the right. It went back to Ruger twice and on the 2nd trip back they basically rebuilt that gun with a new barrel ,cylinder, crane and misc internal parts. It was right after that so it does happen.
I had contacted the service manager (Dick Beileau sp?) who has since passed away but he made sure it was right before they shipped it back for a 2nd time. The worse part I paid the shipping because it was an older gun.