June 8th, 2020
4:06 runtimeWhat happens when Vickers Tactical, Springfield Armory and Wilson Combat get together? Well, the answer is the Vickers Tactical Master Class 1911 .45 ACP. While each of these brands has specialties outside of the 1911, if there were a Venn diagram where the 1911 is the center, they’d all share. The resulting combination of expertise resulted in a spectacular blend of manufacturing, operational expertise and purpose-driven design. Check out my video review above, and keep reading below for the rest of the article.
For those of you who may not be familiar with Vickers Tactical, it is the brainchild of Larry Vickers. Vickers is a retired U.S. Army 1st SFOD-Delta combat veteran with years of experience in the firearms industry as a combat marksmanship instructor and industry consultant. Also, he’s been directly or indirectly involved in some of the most significant special operations missions for the United States of the last quarter-century. So, needless to say, he knows about how a serious-grade gun should be configured — and he felt Springfield Armory had the skill and expertise to deliver him that kind of pistol.
Devil’s in the Details
A Lipsey’s Distributor exclusive offering, the Vickers Tactical Master Class is a classic 1911 in many ways. It has a 5″ barrel, a single-sided safety, is chambered in .45 ACP and uses a G.I.-style recoil system. However, Larry Vickers has taken the classic 1911 and equipped it with features and parts that push the design into the modern realm.
That 5″ barrel is match grade, the safety is a Wilson Combat design with a generous shelf, and the two eight-round mags are Vickers Duty Magazines with Vickers Tactical baseplates. On top of that, the trigger is match grade, the grips are aggressively textured, and the massive beavertail allows for a high and tight grip.
My absolute favorite feature is the sights. The rear sight is a Vickers Elite Battle Sight, and the front sight is a night sight with a bright orange ring for daytime use. These sights are bright and easy to find and easy to track as you shoot and engage targets.
The Vickers Tactical Master Class 1911 ends up being a very capable pistol designed for combat. As a home defense or concealed carry weapon, you’d be hard-pressed to find a better 1911. Each and every decision was made to give you the most reliable, accurate and controllable 1911 out of the box.
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Hands On
On the range, the gun is very easy to control, even under rapid-fire conditions. Blowing through 400 rounds in various tactical drills showed me how easy the gun was to operate and use.
The Vickers Tactical Master Class was capable of delivering six accurate shots on two targets in under 3.5 seconds from the draw. This six-round drill was a box drill with two rounds to the chest and one round to the head of each target. The gun landed each and every shot where I wanted it to.
When it comes to pure accuracy, the gun manages to hold its own. Moving back to 50 yards showed how precise the weapon can be. I shot at a 10″ gong and hit it way more than I missed it. The sights are small enough to still see the target, and it makes it very simple to hit it. The Vickers Tactical Master Class is also easy to fire accurately at various ranges. When firing up close and personal you can stack rounds on top of each other with ease.
Shooting double taps and failure-to-stop drills feels very controllable and quite easy to do. That 40-plus ounces of forged steel does quite a bit to reduce recoil and muzzle flip. That weight can also make the gun a bit challenging to carry. However, the right holster makes a big difference.
I’m using a Crossbreed Hybrid ST2 and it’s been an excellent option for strongside IWB carry. It’s very supportive and comfortable for daily carry. I’m also using the CrossBreed Accomplice magazine carrier to carry my spare magazine.
Conclusion
The Vickers Tactical Master Class is an excellent example of a well-made and well-designed 1911 developed for combat purposes. It keeps what works about the classic 1911 design while pushing the individual components to modern standards. The end result is nothing short of awesome. Springfield and Larry Vickers should be very proud. And at an MSRP of $1,495, it’s a steal for what you get.
Editor’s Note: As noted in the article above, the Vickers Tactical Master Class is a Lipsey’s Distributor exclusive offering. Check out the link below to find out more.
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Travis Pike
Travis Pike is a former Marine Machine gunner who served with 2nd Bn 2nd Marines for 5 years. He deployed in 2009 to Afghanistan and again in 2011 with the 22nd MEU(SOC) during a record-setting 11 months at sea. He’s trained with the Romanian Army, the Spanish Marines, the Emirate Marines, and the Afghan National Army. He serves as an NRA certified pistol instructor and pursues a variety of firearms based hobbies.
