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A good primer kit for those new to M1911s and their maintenance, the Real Avid 1911 Pro Pack provides the basic equipment and information needed to disassemble, clean, lubricate and reassembly the classic American pistol. The Pro Pack includes: Real Avid’s Gun Boss Handgun Cleaning Kit, with rods, brushes, patches and jags from .22 to .45 cal.; the 1911 Smart Wrench, a two-sided tool to help remove Government- and Officer-size barrel bushings; and a 1911 Quick Reference Field Guide, featuring instructions and illustrations for user-level maintenance.
The kit runs about $30, and is available exclusively from amazon.com. Learn more in this week's NRA Gun Gear of the Week video with American Rifleman's Joe Kurtenbach.
Defensive gun use is defined by uncertainty. You don’t know when it will happen, how far away the threat will be, how many threats you will face or what position you will be in when it begins.
In 2025, Turkish manufacturer Derya Arms opened a new facility in Florida, enabling the company to produce a number of new products domestically, such as its new OBone suppressor.
The cycle of operation is the mechanical sequence of events that it takes to fire one shot out of a firearm. If one of those steps fails to take place as designed, there is an interruption in the cycle of operation and the gun stops firing.
The Colt Model 1911 pistol and its derivatives are among the most iconic military handguns ever made. But in 2026, does the M1911 still hold up as a quality defensive arm?