I doubt that many would argue that the 1911 pistol is the single-hottest-selling handgun on the market today. They are available from a host of sources, both foreign and domestic, and the guns we can get today are a far cry from those we had when Colt had the monopoly.

During range testing, barrels were changed without removing the frame from the Ransom Rest. This eliminated any possible error caused by taking the gun out of the rest.

It is so rare as to be remarkable if a new 1911 pistol--regardless of who made it--does not feed and function right out of the box, and most shoot far better than the 5- to 6-inch groups of old.

Almost everyone likes to put a personal touch on their guns, but most of the things we used to do, such as installing sights and beavertail safeties, are done for us already thanks to Kimber and Springfield. When Kimber introduced its Custom Target with a factory-installed beavertail, extended thumb safety, and good sights, the company really revitalized the 1911 market, but it also took away some fun from the home gunsmith and money from the professional. Today, guns of the pattern, such as the Loaded Springfield featured in this report, don't leave much to be desired.

But there are two things we hear shooters still complain about: accuracy and the trigger. Both are fairly easy to remedy unless the accuracy problem arises from the shooter flinching or jerking the trigger. No gunsmith can fix those issues, and if people won't believe that it's is their fault, even the best coach can't fix 'em either. I guess accuracy means different things to different people, but my view is based on the absolute certainty that we will never have an absolute answer. The choice of ammunition alone can turn pig's ears into silk purses or gilt carriages into pumpkins.

There is also a lot of mythology associated with improving accuracy in the 1911 that is either marginal or downright fraudulent. Things like group grippers, guide rods, links, bushings, and duct tape are all claimed to improve accuracy. Some do for a while, but unless the major accuracy issues are addressed in some permanent form, more often than not, it's a waste of time and money. The most important thing of all is that the barrel returns to the same place after every shot. If it does, rather pedestrian barrels will shoot well, and good ones will shine. There are three points to ponder.

The single, most important is the fit of the bottom barrel lugs to the slide-stop pin. Of lesser importance are the fit of the headspace extension on the barrel to the slide, and the barrel bushing-to-slide fit.

While the Ransom Rest does most of the work, you still have to operate it with care to be sure everything goes back to the same place for each shot. The good news is that it doesn't get tired and start jerking the trigger.

One of the myths is that if you put in a tight bushing, things will get better. Of course, if it's too tight, the gun won't work at all; if it is really binding, it can break stuff. But the bushing by itself is really only a small part of the story.

Another fallacy is that tightening the slide does wonders. Actually this is probably the least important part because if the barrel is properly fitted, it will take up much of the slide play. The only time slide fit is a big deal is in the few microseconds that the bullet is going down the barrel. As long as the barrel is locked up and stays that way long enough for the bullet to get gone, the rest doesn't matter. That time is provided by the flats on the bottom barrel lugs, which allow the barrel to move to the rear about 0.020 inch before it begins to unlock--ample time for the bullet to leave. The unlocking is done by the barrel link, whose only purpose in life is to pull the barrel down out of battery and help get it started upward on the return.

One question that comes up all the time is who makes the best barrels. I have been able to test quite a few in a fixture that allows only the barrel to be tested independent of the gun. I have concluded that there really is not very much difference between a World War II GI barrel and one of today's finest match barrels. I shot 13 different barrels and fired five 10-shot groups from each at 50 yards. The ammo was Federal Gold Medal 185-grain .45 ACP, and the accuracy range was from a smallest average of 1.36 inches to a largest of 1.99 inches. There was a difference of 0.28 inch in the averages of the top nine barrels. With things that close, it's hard to crown a winner with any degree of statistical accuracy.