By R.K. Campbell | Contributing Editor
The Turkish arms industry has become among the most respected in the world.
They have secured military and police contracts and made strong inroads in the civilian market. European makers, notably Beretta, have contracted with Turkish makers for parts and complete firearms for decades.
The shortest route for a company in introducing competitive handguns is to manufacture a clone or close copy of a proven firearm. If a popular firearm may be manufactured for less expense- but not cheaply- there is a recipe for success. At the urging of two friends who own Tisas pistols, I followed Trey and Brian into ownership of this 1911 clone. I found a pistol well worth its modest price, and was frankly surprised.
I have had difficulty with some inexpensive 1911 handguns in the past. Rock Island remains the default inexpensive 1911 for most shooters. The Tisas 1911 is at least comparable and in some ways a better pistol. The primary advantage of the Tisas 1911 is that the pistol is of forged steel. The slide and frame are forged rather than cast. This should make for a long lived pistol.
Tisas offers a GI pistol with the standard GI types sights and controls. This is fine if you want a recreational shooter or a GI gun. The Tisas Duty offers several improvements. The pistol is supplied in a hard plastic box with a single magazine. I would like two magazines but at least 1911 magazines are affordable and readily available.
The stainless steel Duty pistol seems well machined and free of internal and external tool marks. The pistol takes down like the original 1911. The barrel bushing is only finger tight and does not require a bushing wrench, while the slide lock and magazine lock operate properly. The slide lock safety is an ambidextrous type. I detest a poorly fitted safety. The Tisas safety indents properly.
Sights are Novak types with three-dot inserts. The slide is well fitted and polished with minimal lateral play against the frame.
Two features are surprising in a handgun retailing for just shy of $600. The pistol features a cut out behind the trigger guard and this lowers the bore axis. When the line of the bore above the hand is lower muzzle flip is less.
The second feature is usually found only on pistols costing well over a thousand dollars: the slide stop is nicely polished flat with the slide. The slide also features forward cocking serrations. The pistol features the standard recoil spring and guide rather than a full length guide rod. In all, the Tisas Duty looks like a service grade handgun with good features.
Grips are checkered plastic utilitarian and nothing else. They serve better than uncheckered slabs.
The trigger is smooth, breaking at a relatively clean 6.9 pounds. Reset is sharp.
The Tisas seems a fairly priced pistol. Performance is the key to value. I lubricated the pistol on the long bearing surfaces, barrel hood, and barrel bushing.
Ammunition isn’t a problem. I had a good supply of Black Hills 230-grain FMJ loads. At an average of 857 fps, this is a hard hitting round well suited to many tasks. I added a Wilson Combat magazine to the set up.
Firing at man-sized silhouette targets at 5, 7, and 10 yards, I found the pistol gets on target quickly like an all steel 1911 should. Recoil is comfortable, and the sights allow rapid sight acquisition. Draw, get on target, press the trigger to the rear, and you have a hit. The pistol never failed to feed, chamber, fire or eject. There was no break-in period. The pistol would serve well as an all around 1911 short of the most demanding target word.
I also settled down and fired the pistol for absolute accuracy using the MTM K Zone shooting rest. The results from firing round groups follow.
Load 5 round group
Black Hills 230 gr FMJ 2.85 in.
Fiocchi 200 grain XTP 2.65 in.
Speer 230 grain Gold Dot 2.9 in.
The pistol is accurate enough to ride with. I changed the grips to a gorgeous set from A Woman’s Touch Grips. (Awtgrips@square.site) These grips are simply gorgeous and also offer good abrasion. Next I added a Talon Grips front strap treatment. This is an inexpensive addition that makes for much better gripping. Along with Wilson Combat magazines- the most reliable in the world- I deployed the Wilson Combat Range Tac holster. This is an outstanding holster design offering great versatility for range work, training, competetion and concealed carry.
Some are of the opinion that 25 feet is the maximum range for personal defense with a handgun and there is much merit in this argument. I like to be prepared for the exceptional incident as well. I have fired the pistol at longer ranges up to 50 yards and find it useful. For home defense, personal defense and outdoors chores the pistol makes the grade.
Specifications:
Model: Tisas 1911
Caliber: .45 ACP
Action: Single/Semi-auto
Capacity: 8 rounds
Barrel: 5 inches
Frame: Stainless forged
Slide: Stainless forged
Weight: 38 ounces
Sights: Fixed
Avg. Price: $600
