The hottest selling pistol in America right now is impossible to find. Brand-new, yet a century old, this handgun is literally flying off dealer shelves. It’s not a self-defense pistol and it’s not a limited edition collectible. What is it?

Your first hint is that it’s a .22 LR plinker. Your second hint is that it’s made by Browning, or rather by a vendor on behalf of Browning. You must have it by now…

It’s Browning’s M1911A1 miniature-scale .22 LR. I saw the gun at the SHOT Show in January and immediately knew it to be a winner. I asked Browning’s Kevin Howard how many units Browning had projected for sales and he allowed that he wasn’t privy to such information. We pinned down a Browning salesman that knew the answer but refused to divulge the precise number. I finagled and cajoled and came away with a ballpark estimate of 25,000.

“That won’t scratch the surface,” I said to Kevin as the salesman walked away.

“Probably not,” Kevin agreed.

“They’ll sell 50,000 if they sell one,” I continued.

It’s now September, nine months after that initial sneak-peek and guess what? I can’t find one for love nor money.

The guns are back-ordered says Lipsey’s, a major Browning distributor. I asked my local dealer, Long Mountain Outfitters in Henderson, Nev., to order three for me. Two are going to my step-sons for Christmas. Unfortunately, bad news came back: Lipsey’s won’t get their next shipment until November and then it’s only 300 guns—and they’re all taken.

“Maybe you should shop around,” advised my dealer.

None on Guns America and none on Gun Broker, the two top Internet sites for gun buying. I also checked with Ellett Brothers, another leading Browning distributor. Their website said: “The Browning 1911-22 is the hot product of the year. What are people saying? They think it may be the best practice and training 22 ever made. This is because it works, feels and functions just like a full size 1911. It is simply scaled down and chambered in the best of all practice rounds: 22 LR. I am guessing that a huge number of Browning fans all across American will have one of these in their collection in the next few years. The consensus seems to be that it will have an extra special popularity with women and younger shooters in training and practice. No heavy recoil here, so you can focus on the fundamentals.”

Pivoting from Ellett Brother’s website to one of their “buy online dealers,” I found another dead end. The Browning M1911A1 .22 LR is “out of stock.”

In desperation, I contacted my buddy Kevin Howard, he of PR fame who boasts Browning for a client. When all else fails, pull a string. I figured I could always “borrow” one under the pretext of writing a story and then buy it when the invoice came. Wrong.

Kevin said all T&E samples must be returned and that only a limited number are even available. And could I buy three in time for Christmas? Not likely, Kevin said apologetically. “Try looking for one at a dealer,” he advised helpfully.

That turns out to be not so easy. Which is why the Browning M1911A1 .22 LR is the hottest pistol in America right now.