Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns New Lightweight Super......

Although I have more .38 Supers than I will ever wear out this one was just too irresistible to pass up....(yes I am a sucker for Supers)

Had heard that TALO Distributing had contracted for a .38 Super Commander but when I asked the Colt Reps at the SHOT Show they didn't know anything about it...but last week the first ones started appearing on GunBroker.

It is about as perfect out of the box carry Commander as Colt has ever made. The XSE was great but the front serrations on the stainless slide were razor sharp tearing up both holsters and fingers. Also has the downswept beavertail which I have never cared for and looks like an added on part....but they did shoot well and were reliable out of the box.

This new model has the same nickel/Teflon coated frame but has the more expensive upswept beavertail safety and small single side manual safety. The mainspring housing is flat serrated plastic...which will get changed out to either an aluminum or plastic arched/serrated one.

The slide is a matte black but I can not really tell if it is a matte blue or some black coating. The serration almost feel "melted"....which is the way they should be... The barrel bushing can be turned in the slide without a bushing wrench but is not sloppy. The bushing to barrel fit is very tight. The rollmarks are look very much like Commanders made before 1980....nice touch.

Trigger pull is not really acceptable. It has the typical from the factory SERIES 80 gritty takeup and probably breaks about 5 pounds. It will get shot a bit before it sees the Smith. Trigger is black plastic also and will be replaced with an aluminum three hole model with overtravel stop....

The grips are EXTREMELY slim and probably have slim bushings...the screw heads are FLAT. Although they look checked they are almost smooth...and the there is no checking on the front gripstrap....(thank you Colt).

Sights are a plain Novak rear with a dovetailed tritium dot front. There are two magazies, both stainless from MetalForm. One is a standard welded bottom/flat follower and the other has a thick basepad and rounded follower.

Upon getting home the gun was field stripped. The insides were mostly dry but the barrel and frame rails were lubed. SHOOTERS CHOICE grease was used on the barrel and frame rails, some Mobile 1 20W/50 on other parts and the inside was sprayed down with silicone before the gun was reassembled. The standard recoil spring guide and plug were replaced with a King's Recoil Buffer and heavy duty plug...these are in all my 1911s. The unit looks like a stock recoil spring guide but has a spring loaded tip built in that acts both as a shock absorber the last 3/8" of slide travel and the also supplements the recoil spring helping strip the next round from the magazine...

This being a limited edition, there are probably only 200-500 that were made....glad I have mine.... Will be shooting it Friday if all goes as planned....















...now to see if I have an orphan 9mm barrel around......

Bob

Very cool; I've got the same sight setup (with a brass bead rather than tritium in the front) on my Colt Wiley Clapp Commander and it is a very fast setup.

That is a slick setup. I think the slide is Cerracoated, which Colt uses occasionally. The Super is very well balanced in that gun

I owned one of the limited edition 1of500 "Superlites" a while back. S/N 389, the only pistol I regret selling.

Colt is finally getting it right with these Wiley Clapp influenced versions.

Congrats!

That Superlite Edition was a very nice gun...have only seen one in person I think and not many for sale.... Was that the one with the silver grips with the big Colt on the panels?

Bob

Very nice. I expect it will be a very good shooter. Let us know how it shakes out.

Dave

Found this picture on the internet. Just a box stock lw commander with decent 3 dot sights, and a pencil barrel.

Had a Bar-Sto non ramped .38 super barrel fitted, but sold it soon after. Bought a Kimber Carry Pro II in 9mm. Shoulda kept it.

rooster...you still got the deal of the century from that guy with the GM Custom Super.... You'll be burning his ammo for a month at least....

rkamp....that is (was) a nice gun. Hope you find another....

Bob

Oh my, that is/was nice. I bid on one about a month ago on GB. It appeared to be as clean as yours was. I'm seriously thinking about buying one of the TALO pistols.

The nice thing about the TALO Commander is there isn't much to do to it.... One of the early Commanders in Super needs a barrel, sights and more...and you already priced that. There is one on GunBroker for $1099..that isn't much over wholesale. A lot of other dealers are asking $12-1500!! The older plain Commanders start at $950 and then one will have $1500+ into making it what this one already is....

One thing I forgot to mention was that the slide to frame to barrel lock up is TIGHT.... There is no rattle or movement with this gun....

Bob

That is one very fine looking pistol. I can understand how you could not pass it up.

I keep thinking I am done buying handguns, but I could really use one like that (in .45), as I currently do not have a LW commander of any type. That setup is about ideal too.

Congrats on the new toy!

..you should get one like it Mac...then your 1903 wouldn't be lonely being the only .38 AUTO in the house.....

Bob

I agree completely after looking hard at that Combat Commander. They are selling high and then to do the upgrades..... It adds up waaaay to fast.

Just read this about the gun over on GunBroker....it is actually a stainless slide....

NIB COLT LIGHT WEIGHT 38 SUPER COMMANDER. S/S SLIDE ON A LIGHT WEIGHT ALLOY FRAME. LATEST EDITION FROM TALO. AFTER BEING DISCONTINUED FOR SEVERAL YEARS, TALO HAS REINTRODUCED THE 38 SUPER COMMANDER AND TAKEN IT TO THE NEXT LEVEL. THEY HAVE ADDED A BLACK CERAKOTE FINISH TO THE S/S SLIDE SIMILAR TO THE BLACKENED RAIL GUN, ADDED A FRONT NIGHT SITE, SLIM LINE GRIPS, ONE MAG W/BUMPER AND ONE MAG W/A FLAT BOTTOM. COMMANDER HAMMER, UPSWEPT BEAVERTAIL WITH PALM SWELL, SOLID TRIGGER, AND SINGLE SIDED SAFETY. VERY LIMITED QUANTITIES.

Range day...was about 90* and quite humid...

Shot at a 6" paperplate at 15 yards with no aiming dot. Load #1 was a 100 grain Berry's Round Nose Hollow Base plated bullet with 6.0 grains of Unique.

First thing I learned was this barrel has a VERY tight chamber. A lot of my brass has been in use since 1980 with all sorts of loads nothing less than +P...well this must be a Match Spec chamber as it rejected about 1/3 of the rounds whereas one of the other Supers I shot after only balked on two.

This is a go...



This is a no-go...



This was the first 23 rounds as 4 of the rounds in the three magazines would not chamber....





Load #2 was a 124 grain Berry's Hollow Base Flat Point plated bullet also with 6.0 grains of Unique. Both loads run around 1200 fps.





Then I pulled the barrel and dropped in rounds until there was 20 "go" rounds and shot another target were I could concentrate better....

Topped off the first mag and this was the first 10....



...followed by 10 more...the shot to the right was caused by resting my left thumb too high on the frame...




Second thing discovered is that to shoot up to potential it will need a trigger job. Each round went where called but the trigger was not only heavy but also seemed to sometime vary in the pull weight...which I have had happen before with Series 80 triggers... So will will shoot it a few more times and then off to the Smith it does go...

Out of the box one of the better carry 1911 I have ever seen...



Then pulled out a worked over Combat Commander by Dave Walters in Dallas. BarSto barrels in Super and 9mm, BoMar rear sight with a welded in serrated ramp front....

The three high shots were poor followthrough on my part and not the gun...this gun will put a bullet right where the sights are with either barrel...

[img]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b77/RJM52/1911/DSCF4391.jpg[/img]


Overall a great day.....Bob

And, it only took them how many years to finally wake up? No Colt's for me, ever.

I saw one at the local fun shop today. It was sorely tempting to grab - and it was $300 less than a Wiley Clapp, too!

In the end I talked myself out of it, for some odd reason..

....you'll be sorryyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy......

Heading back out to shoot mine again.

What did the shop want for it?

Bob

Put another 60 rounds through the gun without a hitch. This time they were all the 100 grain round nose hollow base load and I tested each round in the chamber to make sure there were no case bulge issues before loading.

58 of the 60 hit the 6" paper plate at 15 yards. The two that missed were within an inch of the plate at 5 o'clock. The 100 grain bullets hit about 2" lower than the 124 grain load at 15 yards.

Trigger pull is only fair. Also shot a 5" GM that had been worked over years ago and has a 4# trigger that breaks very cleanly... Shooting the new Commander after shooting the GM required much more concentration on the trigger pull to make good hits. I did find out from someone on the 1911 Forums that the trigger is aluminum not plastic like I thought..

Have not done any holster work yet but I think the slim grips are also going to be replaced with a set of standard width ones. Will not do anything until the mainspring housing is replaced with the standard arched one that fits my hand better...

All in all still a very impressive defensive 1911....

Bob

$1230 or so, IIRC.

Cheapest I've seen it was $1095.00 plus $30 shipping....highest was $1500.

Bob

Shot several Supers last week just to compare accuracy with the same load...the 100 grain Berry RNHB/6.0 grains of Unique.

Fired two rounds at 5-10-15-20-25 yards from 2/3 guns and then three magazines for 27 more rounds at 12 yards...it was a good day of shooting...

New TALO....









Combat Commander







1952 daily carry Commander

[img]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b77/RJM52/1911/DSCF6121.jpg[/img]

[img]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b77/RJM52/1911/DSCF6122.jpg[/img]


Anything out of the "hole" on each target was my poor shooting not the gun...

Also put 20 rounds of CorBon PowR'Ball through the TALO yesterday. Even at 1500 fps the recoil is pleasant...something I can not say about .45 Commanders.... The rounds go right in back of the dot which is lower than I prefer but expected for such a light high speed bullet.

Bob

When my targets look like that I'll be happy.

Bob, BTW, is the TALO still bone stock or have you tweaked it a little?

Still bone stock.... I have to order some standard stock bushings from Brownells before I can put on the standard thickness grips. Also have to locate a arched mainspring housing that will match the finish. Then will put in the three hole trigger...the stock one is just a little long for me...

Bob

Put some rounds over the chrono today....

CorBon 100 grain PowR'Ball 1534-1500-1546...smokin'.

A 1960s vintage box of Remington 38 AUTO 130 ball...964-998

Bob

May have missed it in earlier post. What is your everyday jack of all trades carry load?

Great shooting!

...PowR'Ball. I really like the CorBon 115s also.... Carry the same in the 9mms. All the rest of the .38 Supers are 200 fps+ behind...

http://www.hipowersandhandguns.com/Corbon%2038%20Super%20Ammo%20Tests.htm

Bob

Stephen Camp sure did put out some quality material.

Was a very nice person. He worked for the Denton County Sheriffs Office when I was with Dallas PD. Did not know him at the time but when I later talked to him on the phone turns out we shot in the same LE matches that the Tarrent County SO put on.

His boss was the now gun writer Jim Wilson. Jim sold .38 Super serial number 1000 (1929) to my partner at one of the gun shows...and regretted it ever since.

Bob

...a 1951 Commander.....

Full hard chrome....BarSto barrel....Officers Model grip safety....MMC sights





..a girlfriend gave me the ivories for my 50th Birthday....









[img]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b77/RJM52/1911/DSCF6158.jpg[/img]



Bob

I find the LW Commanders to be about the perfect full sized carry gun. They�re lightweight, flat, powerful, excellent ergonomics, reliable, and easy to shoot well; what�s not to like? I carry a Scandium S&W in .45 ACP. I�ve tested the LW Colt�s in .38 Super and I�d trade off my S&W for the Colt�s in a heartbeat if given the chance. That said, my S&W has been a stellar performer, so perhaps trading it off would be a foolish move on my part.

I�m a big fan of the Super myself, having recently purchased a band new Colt�s .38 Super Government Model that I just adore. All stock, very classic looking. I really like your new LW Commander, hope it serves you well.

They really are just about the perfect carry gun.. Only reason I no longer have a Commander in .45 is I don't like the recoil. Even shooting a Defender is more pleasant to me than a Commander....

As to ".....hope it serves you well." this is the one that served me for 27 years...every day....

...purchased in 1980 from another officer I worked with. We were partnered up and I told him I had just bought my first Super...a 1969 Government. He said that his father had been a bailiff up in the Panhandle of Texas and after a robbery or murder trial the judge had given the gun to him...a Commander in .38 Super...just one of the ways things were back in the 1950s.... Next question was....was I interested in buying it???!! YES!!!

Had a gunsmith named Dennis Sloan of Dallas put on the MMC sights and ambi Colt safety....didn't shoot all that well. Then a pistolsmith who I shot with, Dave Walters, put a BarSto barrel in the gun....went from 18" groups at 50 yards to 3.5".... Carried the gun on duty for about 4 years until our "progressive" chief decided all semis were dangerous and converted the department back to revolvers.... Still carried the gun off-duty however...and every day for 27 years..... Years later when I checked the serial number I found out it was a 1952....same year I was born....guess it was just meant to be....







Colt Custom Shop ebony grips with ivory circle...never did have my initials put in...







...and after 5K+ rounds still a great shooter...10 rounds at 10 yards...

[img]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b77/RJM52/1911/Pict0049.jpg[/img]


Bob

In a world full of plastic pistols, the pictured Colt is pure sex.

...then does this one also "float your boat"?











[img]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b77/RJM52/1911/DSCF6175.jpg[/img]


Glad to make your day.....

Thank you sir!

Sorry for the lousy pics.... The gun is so high polished it is like a mirror and hard for me to photograph....

Bob

These pictures and the old school stories have been simply outstanding.

This week has been a pretty nasty week, dealing with some really ugly things on the job and a couple of times I have taken a short "mental time out" and come here and just checked out RJMs old school COOL Commanders and it has made me grin.

Thanks for the thread friend!

U R welcome.....I'ld say "any time" but I am running out of Commanders to post....

...but not yet....

70s vintage Combat Commander frame that was hard chromed with a stainless Caspian slide... The sights were done by master gunsmith Karl Sokol in Vermont. XS Big Dot front and his wide U rear.













[img]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b77/RJM52/1911/DSCF6212.jpg[/img]

...also has a 9mm barrel with it....

[img]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b77/RJM52/1911/DSCF6215.jpg[/img]

...somewhere I know there is another Commander I am missing....

Bob

RJM,

I see you're a man of class. Really hard to beat a .38 Super Commander.

Well then, buy more ya selfish bastid. We'll wait.

Kevin, I'd say he is also a man who knows what it is that he likes.

I just want to go on record saying how refreshing it is to look at a picture of John Browning's art, and not see forward slide serrations or and ambidextrous safety.

As a southpaw, I can endure the latter.

I've never seen one I liked though. The one I picture in my head is mechanically a Wilson Bulletproof, but with standard Colt levers.

Mrs. Tide is wronghanded too. Well, she writes left handed, but she shoots right handed.

The knuckle on my index finger seems to want to re-engage most starboard mounted safety levers. Just annoying.

I can understand the need if one were truly left handed though.

Much agreed. Both can occasionally have their place on a defensive gun provide they're useful to the shooter in question. The front slide serrations on my S&W Scandium gun are so uttlely useless they're just an eye sore. They are completely slick with nothing to grab, so they're just window dressing, and not good looking window dressing at that.

Thanks to all of you on all the nice comments on the guns. I have shooting/collecting/carrying Commanders in .38 Super since 1980. Some were purchased as is and some were stock and modified by me.

One of the people who influenced my "old school" ways of the 1911 was master shooter Chuck Taylor. His guns were for "go" not "show" and with his personal defense guns he did little in the way of modification that went beyond reliability/shootability.

Except for the new TALO Commander most of the guns are built to the following specifications:

Reliability..has to feed and cycle. This is not to say all the guns will feed semiwadcutters but they need to reliably feed what I need to have them shoot.

Accuracy/Shootability..trigger pull has a lot to do with the shootability so a crisp 3.5-4.5 pull is a must. Once the gun is shootable for me then it has to be accurate enough to do head shots at 25 yards. If the trigger breaks and the sights were in the middle of the head and the bullet lands somewhere else time after time then the gun has a problem. The above stainless Combat Commander with BoMar sights was a gun that came with a Colt correctly headspaced barrel and I had a match bushing fitted when the trigger job was done. Accuracy was not up to par. Had a BarSto barrel fitted and went out and put 4/5 into a 1" patch at 50'...and the miss was called and landed right where called. Problem solved and is now one of my most "shootable" Commanders.



Grip...there are no checked grips, front straps or mainspring housings... Grab a heavily checked gun wrong on the draw and it takes a major effort to get the gun back into the proper position. I can just loosen my grip slightly and the guns slips right into the pocket on the way to the target. I just don't like the feel of checking and since the gun doesn't squirm around in my hand while being shot is unnecessary. Mainspring housing are traditional serrated arched as they fill my hand better and make the gun point where I am looking.

Speed bumps...since I use a Humanoid Grip instead of a Hitcher Hiker or Indexing Thumbs the palm of the hand is in full contact with the entire backstrap. As such there is no need for the Speedbump.

Sights...fixed or adjustable have to be able to be seen clearly. My favorite fixed is (or was before the company went out of business) the MMC Classic with the Crossbar front and white outline rear. They were small, low profile and needed no modification to the slide. And in the days before night sights the white crossbar on the front ramp was clearly visible under street lights. Several of the guns have tritium sights many with just a tritium dot in the front as the new TALO is. While nice to have for target shooting and gun games tritium sights really are not necessary as 99% of the gun fights civilians get into and most LEOs are under 5 yards and day or night NO ONE EVER SEES THE SIGHTS ANYWAY.... I also like Novak and what was BoMar adjustable sights.

Front Cocking Serrations...none but the TALO has them and I wish it didn't. Like the Speedbump it came from the GunGames because of comps and full length guide rods. At least the TALOs are muted and smooth...the early XSE Commanders were razor sharp.

No beavertails...just the small hook that originally came on the OFFICERS ACP Model...everything one needs to keep from getting bit without all the bulk. They will be eventually fitted to the rest of the Commanders that don't have time.

Safeties....just prefer to stay with original. As to ambi safeties if you look there are only two guns with them...the two 1952 Commanders that are the daily carry guns. The reason being is how I carry a Commander...behind the left hip butt forwards. If need be I can draw and fire left hand only.

Finish...if I have a choice it is hard chrome.... There is nothing tougher and really helps with wear on the aluminum frame rails and feed ramp. The current carry Commander has been worn daily for 5 years and still looks like the day it came back from the shop....

So that is why my Commanders look like they do....thanks again....

Bob

Amen to the ban on full length guide rods. Thanks for the run down on your preferences. It is good to hear that I'm not the only one who doesn't care for all the ways manufacturers guild the lily, so to speak.

RJM,

Great explanation of your "whys and what fors". I noticed we have a few likes, a few differences, but overall, I think I would very easily be able to pick up one of your fine Commanders in a pinch and run and gun with it on the streets without a problem.

I wish they would offer the upgraded/higher end 1911s with a standard Colt style thumb safety like the one shown on my old Officer's ACP below:



That reminds me,

I have a Baer 5" gun that has a HUGE boat paddle of a safety. It actually is an amby safety that I would like to get swapped out for a standard sized, single sided one. I love the gun, stunningly accurate, but the boat paddle annoys me.

Mackay - Nice pistol. What front sight are you using?

It has been so long that I cannot recall, It is a fiber optic. I am thinkiing it is a Dawson. I almost always run a narrow .10 front sight.



I can snap a pic from the driver's seat if ya want.

If so, I will start a new thread so as not to derail RJM's since he has such a cool thing going on with the Commanders and simply out of respect.

MS

Mac you can just post it here...nothing is lost as this is a 1911 thread...everything is welcome....

Bob

RJM and Mackay, this is a great thread. Really enjoying it and learning from it as well.

Mac...those boat paddle safeties have no place on a carry gun...it is too easy to have them get bumped off while in the holster...again something from the GunGames. Brownells carries replacement standard size safeties in single sided and ambi.

Your Officers is a nice Classic.....Bob

whoa...

...can't take credit for building that one. Found it at a gun show. I did put on the MMC sights, BarSto barrel, trigger and ivory grips.

Bob

I agree about the boat paddle/carry gun sentiment. I "think" I may still have an old Colt safety somewhere in the basement. The question is "where?.

My Kimber is more my style for carry in a 1911:



Or my old 70 series:

..nice guns Mac..with lots of character...for .45s that is...

That safety doesn't look too big. I was expecting to see one of the BIG ones....

Bob

My S&W 1911PD has the same safety that comes on a Kimber and I have found it to be absolutely ideal; very well thought out. Never once had it get bumped off, easy to disengage/re-engage, and I can rest my thumb on top; just perfect.

The ones on the old 70 Series Colt and 1st series Kimber are fine. It is the monster paddle that comes standard on the Premier II from Baer that is the issue.

The .45 itself is a shooting machine. It is the 1.5" at 50 yard version. Not that I can take advantage of it, but I know I cannot blame the gun for any pulled shots.

Anyways, check the pic out, it is on my "To do" list of mods..



Driver's seat pic.

Colt, then Kimber, then Baer:

By now Mac probably needs another stress reliving "Old School" 1911 pic so here is a 1956 Commander TwoTone.





The original work was done by Dave Walters in Dallas, Texas. BarSto barrel with fitted bushing, Videki trigger with a 3.5# pull, correctly done BoMar sights, blue upper with hard chrome lower.



Has a King's Recoil Buffer and heavy duty spring plug...



Grips were from the Colt Custom Shop and are Indian Ebony.



Jody Joseph of JoJo's in Southington, Ct. installed the Officers Model grip safety and Ed Brown tritium dot front sight. The slide was reblued when the front sight dove tail was cut.



[img]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b77/RJM52/1911/DSCF6252.jpg[/img]

This was my alternate match gun to the 1969 Government Model...

Bob

Cripe Mac...that is a friggin brake peddle from a 56 Buick...

Bob

LOL,

Yeah, dang photobucket had one of my pics upside down! I just got that straightened out. Of course my whole day has been that way!

Dang nice carry piece there. That is my kind of style.

And for Mr. Crimson Tide some better El pics...













The polish on this gun is like a mirror...the camera is clearly visible in this one....

[img]http://i17.photobucket.com/albums/b77/RJM52/1911/DSCF6247.jpg[/img]

...and yes, that was Bond's gun...ELCAP007...my friend had 008...she made the mistake of selling it. Have seen them sell on GunBroker up to $3600.... This was the only Officers size slide .38 Super Colt ever made...I think there was 350 of them.


Bob

Snork!

I know! I dont think my old 70 series and the Officers ACP COMBINED had safeties that big. Granted, the PII was not marketed as a carry gun, but still, they went a bit overboard. Overboard witha paddle that is.

No biggie, an easy fix. It is a nice gun. With a small single sided safety, a narrow, tritium or fiber optic front sight and a S&A type magwell, it will be an excellent gun.

Holy crap!

I never even knew they existed!

That is one smoking bad A$$ Officers ACP!!

WHOA!!

It is really only 1/2 Officers as it does have a Combat Commander frame with Gold Cup front serrations....

There was a high polish Officers in .45 that looked just like it. There was also a two tone with super bright blue slide and high polished stainless frame...all very limited editions.

Bob

I rarely carry my little Officers ACP these days. That being said, I have some history with it, due to the fact that it was an offf duty piece and a BUG, so I keep it around. It really looks like an ugly cousin compared to that .38 Super though.




I did however point it at a dumbass one time who had a broadsword and did not want to go to jail.

Actually come to think of it, I have pointed it at more than a couple of dumbasses. The broadsword incident has alway just stuck in my memory as a strange one.

Goodtimes!

..well you could send it to Colt and have them high polish it..then a trip over to Bell Charter Oak for a set of Ivories....

Course there goes the riding lessons, but your daughter will forgive you, one day....

Bob

Back in my bartender days the bouncer at a neighboring joint watched an 86'd drunk cross the parking lot to his car and grab a handgun. I guess the drunk figured he had a score to settle with the bouncer. The bouncer steps out another door and grabs his own pistol, such as it was, from his car and the two meet in the middle of the bar.

The bouncer kills the drunk DRT with a black powder pistol, complete with humongous muzzle flash and smoke plume. I'm sure the drunk had a surprised look on his face before the lights went dim.

The other good news - the police didn't file charges and the drunk's kin let the matter drop - they knew the drunk was an asshat and he probably had it coming sooner or later.

Broadsword? Yeh, it'd stick in my mind too. You guys are pulling some nice pistols out of your cabinets. Mackay, I would like to see a pic of that fiber optic front if you wouldn't mind.

Bob- your collection is mind boggling. Tasteful, well thought out, beautifully done.

I have to admit a fondness for the flat mainspring housing. They feel so much better to my paws. Great looking heater!

broadswords, Commanders, and blackpowder pistols...they all sorta go together, in a strange way...