DUE TO A LARGE BACKLOG, I AM NOT ACCEPTING ANY NEW WORK AT THIS TIME

Old Version

Force Reconnaissance units in the Marine Expeditionary Unit (Special Operations Capable) or MEU(SOC) of the United States Marine Corps carry a 1911 as a secondary weapon. These are some highly motivated individuals that are trained in hostage rescue, the boarding, searching and seizure of vessels and the tactical recovery of aircraft and personnel among other things. These 1911s are built by Marine Corps armorers of the Precision Weapons Section (PWS) in Quantico, VA using 1911s that are in their inventory, commercially available parts and a rear sight that is made by the armorers. These pistols have developed somewhat of a cult status among fans of the 1911.

There have been a few articles written about the MEU(SOC) 1911s, most notably two written by Pat Rogers, one is online and the other for SWAT Magazine. I did quite a bit of research and came up with a replica pistol that is as close to the original as I could make it. Actually, I came up with 2 different versions of this pistol since the original has evolved as the Marine Corps armorers have upgraded some of the parts while rebuilding the guns. For lack of a better term I call them the “Old Version” and the “New Version” (these designations of Old Version and New Version are my own and are not used by the Marine Corps). These two pistols represent an early configuration and one of the latest versions of the Marines’ pistol although there are other versions of this pistol with different combinations of the various parts used on this gun.

Just like the original, I stamp the last 4 digits of the frame’s serial number on the right-rear corner of the slide, on the barrel hood, the inside of the grip safety, the mainspring housing and on the inside of both safety levers. The Marines issue their pistols with ambi thumb safeties so that any member can use any of the pistols whether he is right- or left-handed. There are also several internal modifications that the Marine Corps Armorers make to help ensure reliability and to make the replacement of certain parts easier should they break and I am including those modifications as well.

The differences between the Old Version and the New Version are the grip safeties, the sights, the front cocking serrations, the barrels and the barrel bushings. The Old Version uses a grip safety from Clark, a replica of the Marine rear sight with a Millet front sight that is silver soldered to the slide. The Marines used a Bar Sto barrel and bushing and an MGW Commander-style hammer and some of these barrels were replaced with Wilson barrels when the pistols were rebuilt so I will substitute a Wilson Combat barrel and bushing on the Old Version if you wish. Also, I have seen photos of pistols with solid aluminum triggers so I will substitute a solid trigger for the 3-hole trigger.

The New Version has an Ed Brown Memory Groove grip safety, forward cocking serrations, a Wilson barrel/bushing combination, a Cylinder and Slide Tactical hammer and a Novak low-mount rear sight along with a front sight that is dovetailed and pinned. I have chosen quality aftermarket parts where no particular manufacturer was specified because that is what the Marine armorers have done when suitable military parts were not available.

The bushing is fit with no play but it can be removed without a wrench. The guns are tuned for total reliability and include a bar stock extractor and an oversize firing pin stop to keep the extractor from moving. Both guns also get a flat serrated mainspring housing with a military style lanyard loop, Pachmayr black rubber wrap-around grips and a black parkerized finish.

Remember that this is just a replica. If you want the real thing you are going to have to earn it from Uncle Sam (and that is not an easy task!). This pistol is my tribute to those that carry the real thing. Thank you for your service to our country!

Update 5-13-06: MGW has discontinued the production of their Commander ring hammer.  After searching for a suitable replacement, I finally found a parts manufacturer who would make a hammer to the original specs.  This part, the BFP Commander ring hammer, will now be used in the MEU(SOC) replica in place of the MGW hammer.  

I have been getting requests to build MEU(SOC) 1911s with other parts or modifications than those listed here. I have tried to make this pistol as close a replica to the USMC’s MEU(SOC) 1911 as possible so I’d rather not make a modification or use a part that the Marines haven’t used. If you would like to make some changes I will do my best to accommodate you in two ways: Either I can build a 1911 that looks very similar to the MEU(SOC) replica with the sights, finish and other parts but without the serial numbers and other unique modifications or I can fit an additional part such as a short trigger, standard (non-ambi) safety or a custom mainspring housing with a recessed lanyard loop. That way you will be able to configure the pistol to fit your hand better and still be able to return it to the original condition. I will be glad to discuss these options if you are interested.

MEU(SOC) Old Version:
· BFP Commander ring hammer, C&S Tactical sear and disconnector, Ed Brown hammer strut.
· 3-hole aluminum Videcki-style trigger with permanently attached overtravel stop and a 4 to 4 1/2 lb. trigger job.
· Bar Sto stainless steel match barrel and bushing with bushing fit finger tight.
· MEU(SOC) replica fixed black rear sight and a Millet black front sight.
· Kings ambi thumb safety.
· Clark grip safety.
· Lowered and flared ejection port.
· Ed Brown or Wilson serrated slide stop.
· Flat serrated steel mainspring housing with military style lanyard loop.
· Beveled mag well.
· Full Reliability Package including a bar stock extractor and an oversize firing pin stop.
· Tested and tuned for complete reliability with 230 grain FMJ ammo.
· Pachmayr black rubber wrap-around grips.
· 2 Wilson 7-round magazines.
· Mild dehorn keeping the gun’s lines intact.
· Wolff springs including an 18 lb. recoil spring.
· Wilson Shok-Buffs.
· Slide, barrel hood, grip safety, mainspring housing and both safety levers stamped with the last 4 digits of the frame’s serial number.
· Blackened parkerizing (manganese phosphate) with blackened stainless steel parts.

Total price for the Old Version package is $1350 plus return shipping and insurance built on your pistol.

New Version

MEU(SOC) New Version: Same specs as old version with the following changes:
· Cylinder & Slide Tactical hammer, sear and disconnector, Ed Brown hammer strut.
· Novak black low-mount rear and dovetail/pinned black front sight.
· Ed Brown Memory Groove grip safety. On Springfield Armory pistols there is an extra $40 charge to weld up the frame tangs to accommodate the Ed Brown grip safety if necessary.
· Wilson Combat barrel and bushing.
· Front cocking serrations milled in the slide.

Total price for the New Version package is $1600 plus return shipping and insurance built on your pistol.

Options:
· Substitute a solid match trigger for the 3-hole trigger (no charge).
· Substitute Wilson barrel and bushing in Old Style pistol (subtract $10).
· BFP Commander ring hammer in New Style pistol (subtract $30).
· Front cocking serrations cut into slide on Old Style pistol (add $95).
· Weld frame on Springfield Armory pistols for Ed Brown grip safety (add $40).
· Additional Kings strong side (non-ambi) thumb safety (add $50).
· Additional custom flat serrated mainspring housing with recessed lanyard loop (add $70).
· Night sights available on New Style pistol.
· Light mount options are also available.

Suitable base guns for either version include unmodified Colt Series 70 1911s, Springfield Armory Mil-Specs, GI .45s and similar pistols (blue steel only). A Caspian slide and frame can also be used.  Please contact me for the specs on the Caspian components or if you have questions on the suitability of a base gun. Sorry, but I don't feel that a Norinco 1911 is a suitable base gun for this pistol. It just doesn't seem right to build a replica of a pistol used by the United States Marine Corps on a pistol made in China.

Articles about the MEU(SOC) 1911:

The Marine Corps MEU(SOC) Pistol by Pat Rogers (not currently available online)
Some MEU’s Still Carry Proven M1911 .45s by Mark Oliva
The Marine MEU(SOC) M1911 in Iraq (author unknown)
MEU(SOC) 1911 .45 by R.E. Brown, American Handgunner Jul/Aug 2004 (not available online)
The MEU(SOC) Pistol: An Overview by Pat Rogers, SWAT Magazine, April 2005 (not available online)