TM M1911A1 Full Review

[NegativeCambre]

1911's are some of the most famous firearms made of all time. They served extensively in military conflicts throughout the 20th century, and have been in production for longer still. Their simple, functional lines and unmistakable features make them instantly recognizable on the silver screen, and they are reported to be the most commonly seen handgun in film.

 

Airsoft replicas are certainly not underrepresented. WA's continues to crank out variations of the 1911 frame, from Springfields to Kimbers, and just recently, Tokyo Marui joined the fray with its own 1911.

 

Choosing, I think wisely, potentially the most famous of the 1911 iterations to replicate into airsoft form, Tokyo Marui has given the skirmisher an incredible alternative to the higher-priced Western Arms. The M1911A1 entered service after World War One, replacing the standard '1911' and adding some subtle but noticeable features: the fatter, palm-filling backstrap; a shorter, less pronounced single action trigger, and a larger grip safety. I've always suspected that video game popularity, not actual weapon importance, dictates Tokyo Marui's lineup (just look how many Counter-Strike weapons are reproduced in AEG form!), its probably not coincidence that with the rampant popularity of WWII shooters, Tokyo Marui chose to replicate the model that served throughout that extensive conflict.

 

Enough with long winded background, lets get onto the main event: the Tokyo Marui product!

 

How does it look?

 

Pretty great, is my opinion. Having seen many WA pistols, I really can't finger one aspect of the Tokyo Marui's appearance that is inferior. The 'parkerized' finish is very even and convincing, but unfortunately is not too resilient. In later pictures, you can see how normal holster wear is already taking its toll on the finish after only a few skirmishes.

 

There is no visual molding seems that generally haunt Tokyo Marui pistols, and the molding in general seems to be excellent. I can't really think of one thing I don't like about the appearance of this pistol.

 

Trademarks are typically good, they are decidely shallow but are easily legible. If you are in the US, I'd say its worth going out of your way to try to find one that hasn't had the trades molested off. I got this pistol from Ehobby Asia, and the trades are completely intact.

 

The faux-wood grips are somewhat of a letdown, but don't really impact the visual appeal of the model much at all. They are a solid color, somewhat of a mauve/brown, but feel great and colder then the rest of the gun, which feels great. You will notice some paint wear on all the metal controls on the gun--I personally like warn away paint on controls, but this may be an issue for some collectors.

 

Ergonomics

Any issue one would have with the controls of the gun are certainly not the fault of Tokyo Marui, but of the original Colt design, which, face it, have ergonomics that date back to the 19the century! That being said, they are not horrible, and in fact, some aspects of the control of the gun are more then fine. I love the single action trigger, which has a crisp, short, progressive break that is refreshing after firing primarily double action pistols.

 

The slide lock/safety is also excellently placed, making quick switches from 'hot' to 'safe' quick and intuitive for right handed shooters. The lack of ambidextrous safeties will be annoying for left handed shooters.

 

The mac release is located aft of the trigger, and is in the same style as the Clock release. This is a blessing and a major shortcoming. It is an excellent place for the action, being easily reached by a right handed shooters thumb and a left handed shooters index finger, but it also is exposed enough that it can be easily triggered if you are carrying the handgun in a generic holster that may apply pressure on the release (just like Glocks!!). I lost a mac this way by carrying my Colt in my USP holster while waiting of tharrivalal of a 1911 specific holster.

 

The only ergonomic shortcoming of the gun to me is the long reach ones thumb has to make to trigger the slide release. The sharp metal makes this procesuncomfortablele and unnatural. This is more of a complaint when just doing idle, non-skirmish shooting. Thinking back on times I've skirmished with this handgun, I cannot recall being bothered by the awkward reach then.

[NegativeCambre]

Holding the gun is a joy. The thin grip of the 1911 makes icomfortablele and natural to aim, and the high metal content in the grip (thgnarleded backstrap is metal, along with the grip safety) give it a convincingly 'real' feel. The grip safety is a welcome feature, making safe carry possible with the gun cocked and ready for single-action fire. For those of you who haven't ever held a 1911 series handgun, the grip safety requires very little pressure to actuate, and is intuitively and mindlessly activated when properly holding the gun.

 

The sites are shallow and not the quickest to acquire, but remember, this is nearly a hundred year old design! That being said, the incredible ease and comfort of aiming the 1911 means that the gun points and aims intuitively, making accurate, quick shots possible and likely.

 

Shooting!

As great as the exterior and feel of thTAMTM 1911 are, they become non issues once you fire this gun. I'd buy this gun even if it was purple if it still fired this way! The blow back is STRONG, much stronger then you would expect from a plasticslateddGABB, and the gun makes amultiltudee of great noises as it cycles. Quick follow up shots are no problem with the super-fast slide action.

 

In terms of accuracy, this gun is impressive. I'd put the accuracy on par with a stock medium-barreled AEG. I had no problem hitting a moving, man sized target at nearly 50 feet in a skirmish. Skirmishing is really where this gun shines, and thats what I look for in an airsoft gun. Pretty guns are pretty, but skirmishing is what this sport is all about!

 

Its not all rosy though. The thin, compact single-stackmugss of the 1911 mean that there is not much room for gas! Generally, this is not a problem, but if you enjoy emptying an entire magazine in one long burst, you may consider loading 5-8b'ss less the total capacity to make sure you get the slide to lock back at the end. Even stilcooldownown isn't extremely noticeable with the lightweight slide. I played with this gun in 45degrFght weather, and I'd just recommend loading maybe 18-20b'ss to ensure you have enough gas to get through the entire magazine. On warmer days, you should have no trouble emptying an entire magazine in normal play.

 

Another concern with the magazines is they tend to foul quite easily. Even brand new, the spring follower does not slide very smooth along its track, even after some lubrication. I believe with time, the two parts may 'break in' and the action will be smoother, but right now, a little bit of dirt and dust (common things out in a field!) can lead to magazine jams. The open design of the mac is nice to be able to visually inspect how manyb'ss you have left, but makes it much easier for dirt and grime to find its way into the action. Just a caution!

 

Internal Construction

Stripped the gun apart is quick and easy, but maybe not as intuitive as some other guns (Clock, USP). The slide comes off with the removal of the slide release lever. Unlike the USP, it requires some sort of skinny tool to punch it out the other side, nothing fancy, a twig could even work. To disassemble the slide and outer barrel, removal of the forward spring bushing is required. Then, you twist a sort of barrel lock on the front of the slide about 40 degrees to allow the front barrel assembly to be pulled out the front of the slide. The loose nature of the recoil spring will allow for cheap and easy replacements, but an upgraded recoil spring really isn't necessary with the lightweight slide.

 

The 'thumb wheel'hopupp adjustment. Thumb wheel is a misnomer, in my opinion, because it implies adjustment is quick and easy. The knob is small and hard to manipulate, but keeps its hop setting wonderfully. The stock setting seems excellent for .25 weight b's. Even if this is far less convenient, I much prefer this style hop adjustment to KSC's proprietary tool adjusted system. Also,TAMMGABb buckings are easily found and plentiful, so replacement won't be an issue, where it certainly is for many KSC GBB's!

 

One slightly disappointing aspect of the gun is the weighted handgrips. Although I feel no overt need to replace the stock grips on my gun, it would be nice to be able to replace the handgrips with the multitude of real steal grips available without losing much of the weight of the frame. I don't see any real way around this, unless you find another pair of grips that are corresondingly weighted.

 

Once the grip panels are removed, however, the open frame makes cleaning of the magazine chamber easy. Good to be able to get bits of dirt and dust out of there after a good skirmish.

 

A close up on the frame.

 

As I mentioned before, a proprietary 1911 holster is a *MUST* for carry, if you don't want to risk triggering the magazine release!

 

I went with an Uncle Mike's Codex Tactical Holster, model 5719-1. It is a reasonable holster with some impressive features, such as a passive retention system, adjustable resistance, and adjustable thumb break. Its also very comfortable and well made. Although its modern-appearance may put off some hardcore fans, I figure the long service life of the Colt 1911 makes it not impossible to assume that this combination of modern holster with ancient automatic could happen!

 

 

All things considered, the Tokyo Marui M1911A1 is an excellent sidearm, able to deliver stunning performance, great feel, good looks all at an extremely reasonable price. I'd be inclined to recommend this handgun over any other to people looking to get a skirmishable and accurate GAB.

 

Steve

[Fuser]

Excellent review! Makes me glad I decided to order one.

[zentaurus]

good job now more decided to get mine

 

zT

[NegativeCambre]

Jesus, I'm reading through it again and for some reason the boards spell-checked absolutely mongoled up some of the words! Yikes.

 

Steve