Jess –
Don’t get me wrong, I love 1911’s too. They are beautiful, especially the premium 1911's, they can be blazing fast, etc., as well as a lasting testament to the genius of John Moses Browning. While I carried 1911-A1s for roughly 25 years and I qualified Expert with my service weapon consistently, I’m new to the modern enhanced 1911’s, which are much nicer, BTW.
For many, many years we shot the pistol strictly from the bench like it was nothing more than a chunky target pistol. We didn't start to shooting from the holster shortly before I retired, but even then it was a par time scenario with more than enough time available. IDPA is
far more challenging.
Before I bought my SA, I researched the field as thoroughly as possible given the invariably kind words every gun reviewer seems to have for whatever their shooting. I wanted a 1911 with:
- A reputation for quality. Several choices here: Colt, Kimber, S&W, Springfield, STI.
- Good looking but without the kind of styling/marketing overhead of Kimber. SA was the winner with an obvious emphasis on performance with only token effort given to appearance finish.
- Competition oriented. STI was the clear leader with SA not far behind.
- Flexible and extensive custom shop services. SA was the clear winner.
- Reasonable price ($1000-1500)
- Brand name recognition for resale value. Colt is the winner, while STI is a non-starter outside of competition circles.
The Springfield Trophy Match is essentially the target version of the well-respected TRP. All the performance details are there, with very little effort (if any?) given to appearance. The machined edges are raw, there is no evidence of any melting, the “brushed” stainless slide looks crude, and the checkering is so aggressive and unfinished it almost draws blood. There’s no excuse for dropping this gun! But, it shoots like the best of them. Some quality time with my sander and files took care of the rough edges, and SA installed an Ed Brown bobtail eliminating my #1 comfort gripe with 1911s. At least the beavertail & thumb safety are nicely rounded and well blended – something I couldn’t say about my more expensive Dan Wesson.
No polymer gun ever looked this good, or ever will.
As for revolvers? Well, I do enjoy my S&W 686, like many I enjoy more competition than is typically available in SSR. Besides, my trigger finger runs out of gas before I run out of targets.
. . . it's the man...and NOT the gun that shoots well.
You are absolutely correct. I have no doubt that any of the Distinguished Masters with any box-stock pistol can easily best an Everyday Joe with the a Unlimited USPSA race gun. However, it’s been my experience that guys at the top also have the best equipment available. For example, we raced a sailboat in SF Bay for decades. Our experience and skill made us one of the boats to beat, but we also put in substantial effort to make sure that our boats was more than merely competitive.
The whole world believed that you could shoot a DAO or DA/SA gun faster than you could shoot a 1911 with a thumb safety until Jeff Cooper proved otherwise. OK, so Col. Cooper and a handful of others can do that, but was before the striker-fired hotrods came on the scene.
In other words, if we gave David Olhasso an NYPD-spec M&P 45 to shoot at the 2012 IDPA National’s, I’d wager that one of the other Masters would beat him.
Yep, all of those guys practice, practice, practice. Everyday. However, most of us, myself included, find family, financial and logistic challenges that make weekly practice about as good as it gets. Since I’ve been retired since 1993, I’ve left out career conflict, but I’ll toss in age with all of its repercussions such as slower reaction time, declining physical strength & agility, failing eyesight. My reality includes having children that complain about
their arthritis.
My shooting goals are simple, but still challenging consider what I'm working with:
- Don't shoot anyone that didn't richly deserve it.
- Classify Expert in SSP & ESP. CDP? In my dreams, yes. Revolvers? Not even in my dreams.
- Shoot at Expert level in sanctioned matches for a few years
- Classify in 5 guns
“Life is too short for an ugly gun” is one of my expressions. While the M&P will never have the classy look of a 1911, at least it’s attractive compared to a Glock! :biggrin1: The new Gen 4 Glock seems to have gained on the ergonomic advantages of the M&P, but it’s still too ugly to live in my gun safe, much less shoot in public.

ound:
IDPA was created to sell more guns and . . .
A very interesting take on the intended purpose of IDPA. Having an MBA, I don’t find this surprising, however I haven’t heard it said out loud before. Naturally, this explains why we have a CDP division and why HQ, aka the Wilson's are so protective of the 1911 platform. I wouldn’t be surprised a bit if the changes resulting from the Tiger Teams include changing CDP rules to outlaw striker-fired pistols. Say, by requiring that pistols in CDP start in Condition One. FYI, I would support that change, provided they changed SSP to require true traditional DAO or DA/SA triggers. Let the striker-fired pistols duke it out in their own division, such as ESP.
In other words, my take on what IDPA Divisions should look like:
SSP – Any trigger type, minimum trigger pull of 6#, no external mods; max 43 oz. Similar to the current SSP division but no striker-fired pistols and real-world service pistol trigger weights.
SSP Limited – true DAO or DA/SA trigger; minimum trigger pull of 6#; no external mods, max weight 43 oz (no reason to outlaw stock CZ’s or all stainless Sig’s, etc);
ESP – Any trigger type, minimum trigger pull of 3.5#, magwells with OD no wider than 1.25 magazine width. In other words, magwells similar to standard 1911 magwells are OK but competition style magwells are not – this is supposed to be a concealed carry oriented sport, isn’t it.
CDP – Pistols in CDP start in Condition One (requires a manual safety), 45 ACP. Polymer guns and 3rd Gen S&Ws with thumb safeties are OK, but must engage the safety. Min trigger pull 3.5# as a concession to the premium 1911’s); max 8-round mag. Note that SAO is not required, just a manual safety that must be used anytime the pistol is holstered. This gives the edge to 1911’s (and Sig P220 SAOs) but leaves the door open for 3rd Gen S&Ws, and others that have manual safeties.
CCW – Pistols & revolvers with 3.6” barrels MAX. Single stack required. Any trigger type; min trigger pull 6#; 6-round magazines, min power factor: 80,000 using the shooter’s gun (9mm-centric, but also allows for 38 SPL and hot 380’s). In other words, this division is for pistols/revolvers that are optimized for CCW, not merely compact versions of standard pistols. Obvious choices include Kahr K9 & PM9, Ruger LC9, Ruger LCR, Sig P232 & P238, S&W snubbies, SA EMP’s and even Kimber Ultras.
SSR/ESR – I understand the difference between these divisions, but there just doesn’t seem to be enough participation to justify both.
BUG – Pistols and revolvers with 3.0” barrels MAX, single stack, Any trigger type; min trigger pull 6#; 5-round magazines, min power factor: 60,000 (380 friendly).
IMHO, IDPA made a token gesture of putting the BUG in the book, and then generally ignores it. Just like IDPA ignores the vast population of folks that buy small CCW guns.
The more guys like us, the longer the "real" American spirit will survive.
We’re certainly on the same page there!