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Larry Case’s The Trail Less Traveled: Browning’s 1911 pistol changed everything

Remington is among the gunmakers who modeled a pistol on John Browning's Colt 1911 .45 ACP pistol.
Remington is among the gunmakers who modeled a pistol on John Browning's Colt 1911 .45 ACP pistol. Remington is among the gunmakers who modeled a pistol on John Browning's Colt 1911 .45 ACP pistol.

By Larry Case 4 min read

An unarmed man can only flee from evil, and evil is not overcome by fleeing from it.

I happen to like guns, and I am certainly not ashamed of it. Some readers of this column are thinking, “Yeah, that is readily apparent,” but in today’s crazy world, I feel it is just better to be up front about it.

There are several classic firearms that have become iconic by virtue of brilliance in design and dependability. Many have intensely loyal and devoted followings, but none more than the Colt 1911 .45 ACP pistol.

photo Larry Case

As the 19th century turned into the 20th, the U.S. military began to search for a sidearm that would supply more knockdown power for close quarters, and in 1904 the famous Thompson-LeGrande tests were held to find a better sidearm for our troops. At the end of these tests, Col. John Thompson uttered the immortal words, “The pistol should not be less than .45 caliber.”

I still marvel when I read that. Today, Col. Thompson would be subjected to a hail of criticism. The debate on the .45 versus the 9mm (and other cartridges) has long been standard fare for gun writers and barbershop bloviating.