Springfield Range Officer

Springfield’s Range Officer appealed to me before I even picked one up simply because of its name. When I worked as a Range Safety Officer in the Marines and at the U.S. Training Center, one particular instruction regarding the responsibility for safety was driven home: Everyone is a range officer.

Now, I’m pretty certain that I’ve spent more time on the range with the Range Officer than almost any writer with any gun magazine I can think of, and I’ve come to this conclusion: If you could only have one 1911, this should probably be it. I’ve never seen a 1911 exceed expectations like this one.

The RO is basically a defrilled Trophy Match with an MSRP of less than $1,000 (in many gun stores I’ve seen them tagged for slightly more than $700). It was as if some pistolsmith at Springfield was handed a build sheet for a fully loaded 1911, minus the second page. There’s no checkering, no funneled magazine well, no full-length guide rod and no high-gloss blued finish. There are adjustable sights and the same barrel used in a Trophy Match. In short, the idea was to make a very accurate pistol affordable.

Start with a full-size 1911-A1 with a frame and slide forged from steel rather than any of today’s lightweight specialty metals. This gives the RO the same handling characteristics as the original. But unlike the century-old classic, the RO utilizes a stainless steel match barrel and bushing. Barrel and bushing fit is perfect, as is slide-to-frame fit.

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