by John Markwell | Contributing Editor
The Guncrafter Industries 10mm 1911 with some of the ammo tested and the Galco Great Alaskan and the Rafter-L #1 holsters.
We have been fortunate in our life to have had the ability and time to spend considerable time in America’s backcountry. Whether climbing (in our younger years), backpacking, fishing, paddling rivers, working in a hunting camp, or just exploring the west, or our backyard here in the Allegheny Mountains. We have had the opportunity to spend lots of time outdoors and have carried a handgun much of that time.
Recently, however, we have re-evaluated our wilderness armament due to arthritis in our elbows and wrists. What we’ve found, as we’ve gotten older, is that shooting magnum revolvers is not as easy or as much fun as it used to be. Also, it is much harder to put shots on target effectively when firing our beloved S&W 44 Magnums in the double action or trigger-cocking mode; tough to admit, but true. So, what to do? The solution we’ve come up with is to fall back on 100+ year old technology in the form of the 1911 pistol; not, however, a 45ACP, but a 10mm!
My buddy Ken Hackathorn has been carrying a Glock 20 in 10mm while boondocking for a couple of years now. While visiting him in Idaho last summer, we did some shooting with both the Glock 20 and a Colt Delta Elite. Sure enough, it was easier to shoot the 10mm autoloaders than the magnum wheel guns. We arranged to get our hands on two 1911s in 10mm as soon as we returned from that summer trip: a Colt Delta Elite (see the side bar) and a Guncrafter Industries No Name 1911. Both are full sized, all steel 10mm 1911 pistols.
The black Melonite finish of the Guncrafter Industries 10mm makes it resistant to the ravages of the elements and provides a long wearing, good looking finish.
We know that someone reading this is now thinking “but the 10mm ain’t no magnum”. And, they are correct. The 10mm is, however, pretty close to a magnum with the right loads. The original 10mm loading from Norma pushed a 200-gr. bullet to 1,200fps. This is close to 44 Magnum performance. Granted, the 44 Mag 300-gr. loads are real bear stompers but anyone who has shot them will tell you they are truly brutal in the recoil department. The 10mm, although not as powerful as the top end 44 loads, is way easier on the old joints.
The Guncrafter Industries 10mm we have came with two barrels fitted to the pistol; a 5 inch and 6 inch, both Ionbond treated. When fired from the GI pistol, a Double Tap 200-gr. hard cast bullet load clocks 1,232 fps and a 230-gr. version hits 1,133 fps from a 5” barrel. From the six-inch barrel the 200-gr. Double Tap load hits 1,271 fps and the 230 1,118fps. Hornady’s 155-gr. XTP 10mm load runs 1,362fps and 1397 fps from 5” and 6” barrels respectively (with fierce recoil). We are not going to argue the ballistic merits and differences between the magnum revolver cartridges and the 10mm. Suffice it to say, we don’t feel under-gunned when carrying the 10mm. We also understand that cartridges like the 460 Rowland and the 50GI are good alternatives to the 10mm. But, try finding those rounds on the shelves of a rural gun shop. The chart summarizes our velocity data obtained by shooting over a CED Chronograph.
The GI 10mm 1911 is a shooter. Bottom group was a bit left; top was fired after a minor sight change.
An interesting aside on the ammo situation is the lack of a CCI shot load in 10mm. We have dispatched a pretty good bunch of venomous snakes (Copperheads and Rattle Snakes) over the years with most of the calibers offered by CCI in their shot shell line. Although we do NOT normally recommend firing cartridges in chambers not specific to them, we could not resist trying the 40 S&W CCI shot shell in the GI 10mm. With the rim held securely by the extractor, the 40 S&W shot load worked just fine. It did not cycle the action when fired, which is OK, and the case split about a quarter of the way back from the mouth. Patterns of the shot load on a sheet of typing paper were, however, good enough for snake control. (See the photo)
Chronograph Data Guncrafter Industries 10mm 1911
Load 5”bbl. 6”bbl.
Velocity/fps Velocity/fps
Federal 190-gr. bonded HP 1181 1008
Am. Eagle 180-gr. FMJ 972 1052
Hornady Custom 155-gr. XTP 1362 1397
Hornady 180-gr. XTP 1155 1189
Double Tap 200-gr. hardcast solid 1232 1271
230-gr. hardcast solid 1133 1118
200-gr. JHP 1212 1184
Wilson Combat 180-gr. Horn. XTP 1229 1280
Sig Sauer 180-gr. JHP 1238 1254
180-gr. FMJ 1240 1283
The Guncrafter Industries 1911 we have is a nicely built pistol. Called the No-Name, the slide of this 1911 is devoid of any identifying markings; nothing mars its lines except the slanted grasping grooves at the slide’s rear. Thankfully, since we really dislike them, there are no forward grasping grooves. This pistol is meant to be used. The slide and frame are finished in Melonite which is rust resistant and somewhat self-lubricating. Every edge has been dehorned, or beveled, so as to not shred skin or clothing (even the edges of the hole in the Commander style hammer have been touched up). The sights are bold. The rear is similar to the old Bomar and is adjustable for both windage and elevation while the front is a gold bead set in a serrated ramp. The top of the slide is flattened and grooved, which is a nice cosmetic touch. The front strap of the frame is checkered 15LPI and the mainspring housing, with its recessed lanyard loop, is checkered 25LPI. The modified Commander-type hammer nestles nicely into the well fitted beavertail grip safety when at full cock. The magazine well has a proper 30 degree bevel to help with reloading and the grooved mag release button is extended just slightly. The enlarged thumb safety is nicely blended to the rear of the grip frame and, like the nicely shaped slide stop, is free of sharp edges.
This is the Guncrafter Industries checkered mainspring housing with their unique lanyard loop option. It is a simple and elegant addition to the 10mm backcountry pistol.
The felt recoil of the 10mm Guncrafter 1911 is similar to that experienced when shooting +P 45ACP ammo in a steel framed gun; maybe just a bit stouter. It is not a gun that we would take to the range for a 500-round practice session. We shoot the 10mm GI 1911 just enough to retain familiarity with the trigger action which, by the way, releases the sear at a very crisp 4lb 5oz. We have not shot the Guncrafter 10mm as much as we normally would when testing a new pistol mainly due to the cumulative effects of 35+ years of recoil. We have had the 10mm No-Name 1911 for a bit over 8 months now and have fired approximately 800 rounds through the gun. Early on we had to take a bit of metal off of the slide stop boss as some bullets were contacting it upon feeding which caused the pistol to go to premature slide lock. After this bit of file work, the pistol has been 100% reliable with all of the ammunition tested.
Before and after: firing CCI’s 40S&W shot loads in the 10mm pistol worked but led to the split case on the right. The shot loads patterned just fine out of the 10MM.
Sighted to place Federal 190-gr. HP bullets about 1½ inches high at 20 yards, the Guncrafter Industries 10mm 1911 was set to go on its first western trip during the Spring/Summer of 2016. Whether fishing in the mountains of Montana or Idaho, or prowling the Dog towns of the plains, the Guncrafter 10mm No Name 1911 will ride in either a Galco Great Alaskan chest holster or a Rafter-L #1 strong side belt rig. While a bit short of a magnum’s performance, we feel the GI 10mm 1911 will, with careful shooting, be more than capable of handling whatever problems it is tasked with. For more information, contact Guncrafter Industries by phone: 479-665-2466, or check their website: guncrafterindustries.com.
Good Shooting!
