A Grizzly at the Door

[Bongo Boy]

In an unprecedented display of member service, my Club actually called me today to say my Grizzly had arrived. In about 15 minutes my transfer was complete.



I actually thought I had won the auction for one with an ambidextrous, plated thumb safety, and that was the only thing I was a bit disappointed with. After checking the auction photos again, what I got was exactly as advertised: a black thumb safety, one side only. Just what I wanted.

This gun is in incredible condition overall. A couple of tiny spots of corrosion on the top of the beaver tail, but that's about all I see--no signs of wear anywhere including holster wear. No signs of use, actually.

Anyway, around this forum and others, a number of gross misunderstandings regarding this weapon seem to have surfaced. Not having had experienced the gun until today, I certainly didn't feel qualified to clear up any ill-informed notions. However, at this point in time I'm able to address a few of the more common points of confusion, which I'll do now:

1. "It's too heavy". No, it isn't.
2. "It's too big." No, it's not.
3. "It has too much recoil." No, it doesn't.

Now that these matters have been adequately put to rest, I'd like to move on.

Whoever shipped this Grizzly threw in about 20 rds of factory Winchester ammo with it, and I had about 100 rds of my own loads in a mix of 200 gr XTPs, 200 gr cast round-nost flat points, and cast round nose. None of my lead loads fed worth a crap, all of them getting hung up in the chamber. My impression and that of another highly experienced shooter was that the barrel apparently has little or no leade. The truncated code XTPs fed flawlessly. My bullets jammed in tight enough that the extractor rode up over the rim when I held the slide and hit the frame forward--I would not extract the round from the chamber. Though I'd broken the extractor actually. Fortunately, not.

The gun was an absolute pleasure to shoot, although my light 44 Mag equivalent loads definitely felt more like hot 10mm. I'd load those up a full grain or two and use them for everyday fun at the range, though. The factory Winchesters had considerably more oomph, flash and bang, but I felt it would be no issue to fire several boxes of that in a sitting.

I was expecting the gun feel heavier and 'fatter', not just in the grip, but overall feel. I was a bit concerned it might be too light and that I'd underestimated how hard it would be to control. I think not. Granted, I didn't have full-up loads, but I think I have a good idea of where this is going. I could'n be happier unless I could afford a second one--no complaints at all and in fact I love everything about it.

At 15 yards freestyle I only managed a 4" group--maybe 3"--but I'm extremely confident with practice and loads that come up to speed, that's fixable. The Winchester factory ammo definitely printed a tighter group than my handloads, some of which were actually under the minimum recommended charge. I'll run through my cast loads and seat those all a little deeper, maybe as much as 0.020", and see if I have more success. I did field strip it and inspected the barrel, and sure enough those lands start right out of the gate--there's virtually no leade at all.

For handloaders who 1) prefer auto pistols over revolvers, 2) like to shoot big bore handgun with a little more oomph than average, 3) are okay with or love the 1911 and 4) who appreciate a first-rate machined firearm rendered in cold steel...this may be a dream come true. It sure is for me.

Anyway...thanks to everyone for twisting my arm until I gave in and bought this gun. This is not one I'll ever regret.

 

[44 AMP]

Congratulations Bongo!

Glad you like it.

I hope now that you have the gun in your hands, and have shot it a little you understand better some of the things I told you!

For me, the Grizzly "locks into my hand" a result of the size match between my hands, and the gun with its rubber grips. The original Auto Mag is close, but doesn't have the rubber grips that grip your hand back like the Grizzly does.

The Desert Eagle, and the Wildey are larger grips, and smooth. The Wildey does have grooves on the front and rear grip frame, but on my gun they don't seem to add much, for me.

So, you got the 5" barrel and comp bushing? that's what it looks like to me from the pic. At .45Win Mag levels, the comp should be more efficient that it is at .45ACP levels.

Enjoy! and let us know how things work for you.

 

[Bongo Boy]

For me, the Grizzly "locks into my hand"

I know exactly what you mean. Combined with its very comfortable weight and balance, I get the feeling of complete control, and that gives me very high confidence while shooting. She slipped from my weak hand just one time, and only partially.

Actually it's an un-ported 6 1/2" barrel--the comp doesn't and can't do a thing and probably didn't come from the factory like that. I'll likely find a standard bushing. I like the looks of the comp, but it's a bit embarassing.

I have an old 1920s era Colt 1911 that I don't shoot, but I pulled it out this evening to compare a few parts. It feels tiny and I'm quite serious. I have 'mens medium' sized hands and, while the Grizzly grip does feel a little too thick front-to-back, it's comfortable and puts my trigger finger in perfect position on the trigger. The standard Gov't 1911, however, feels considerably too small and my finger tends to wrap over the trigger without consciously refraining from wrap-around.

What I find turns out to be a miracle side-effect of that grip depth is how it provides such a perfect home for the weak hand--I'm really able to use my left hand to full advantage. Very, very nice.

Anyway, they did a first-class job when they built these. While I was a little baffled by the gun's relative lack of market success based only on its solid concept, I'm now even more puzzled based on its extraordinary execution.

 

[reticle]

Glad you like it. You'll find that not only are these tight guns , but they are capable of very small groups. Yours has the beaver tail which means it was a later manufacture. There are fewer of those from the factory.

Edit to add: IIRC there are parts from standard 1911 pistols that fit the Grizzly pistol. The barrel bushing might very well be one of them. Worth giving it a try.

 

[Bongo Boy]

Barrel bushing is definitely one of them, as well as the recoil spring plug and the standard spring guide. I'm also pleased to discover recoil springs are available from Wolff, as are 45 Win Mag magazine springs.

I wonder how effective a supressor would be.

 

[44 AMP]

I wonder how effective a supressor would be

Not as effective as they are in the movies...