Tisas USA Packs Value, Performance Across 1911 Lines
By Allen Forkner, GunBroker Publisher
What can I write about the 1911 that hasn’t been done (and likely done better) by thousands of gunwriters over the past 113 years?
More than 70 years of mainline service as the U.S. military’s sidearm. Winner of two world wars. Designed by the most holy saint of gun designers, John Moses Browning. Questionably the most customized handgun in the existence of handguns.
We know the resume and we know what we get when we pick the 1911 out of the gun counter. A classic design, with a few idiosyncrasies to deal with, and probably a $1,000 price tag for anything but the most basic of models.
Enter Tisas USA to change that thinking.
This Turkish-manufactured brand, imported by SDS Imports, has changed the way American gun owners are thinking about the 1911. And that’s a great thing.
Performance Before Price
In days not long past, there were value-priced 1911s on the market, next to import versions of the Beretta 92, Walther PPK and Browning Hi-Power designs. Most were lacking in both build quality and performance. If you wanted a proper 1911 that would run consistently, you needed to look at one of the U.S.-based companies.
Tisas USA has flipped that perception on its head, challenging the home-grown brands in quality, options and performance.
Often, quality can be determined by simply handling a product. Cheaply or poorly made firearms tell you that just from the feel in your hand, or from cycling the action. Bad triggers speak for themselves in dry fire. This can be bit harder to tell with polymer-framed handguns, as the very material is good at hiding poor craftsmanship. Not so with the 1911. There’s no hiding bad QC in an all-metal gun.
And the second you pick up a Tisas 1911, you immediately can tell that everything is well done. It’s solid, with no rattle or immediate play in parts. In the straight out of the box samples I’ve handled, the slides cycle smooth and immediate. No grit, play or friction. If you’ve hand-cycled a properly built 1911, it’s hard to explain the emotional joy it can bring.
The triggers are also what you find in a higher-end 1911, smooth, crisp, clean and without stacking. The advantage of the 1911 design has always been its straight-back trigger design and the “glass rod” break of its single-action trigger. Tisas USA obviously takes the time in the factory to make these very good from the get-go.
Options Abound
As we said, the 1911 is supremely customizable, but again Tisas USA saves you the money with a massive catalog of options. From base WWII-style 1911s to more modern versions with all the upgrades and caliber options from 9mm to .38 Super to the venerable .45 Auto, Tisas USA has the model to fit your demand.
They also have a line of double-stack 1911s, which have seen a recent shift from the world of competition to legitimate choices for carry and defensive use. Hunters can also find long-slide 10mms for handgun hunting or defense in puma and bear country.
Don’t let the bells and whistles fool you, however, at the core is a solidly built 1911 ready to run.
To help you get started, I have selected my five favorite Tisas 1911s. These cover a wide range of offerings in purpose, features and calibers.
Tisas 1911 A1 US Army
If you only own one 1911, it should be the classic American sidearm. The slabside 5-inch 1911 was the official sidearm from 1911 to the mid-80s, and this is a spot-on recreation.
The grey Cerakote finish provides a more durable coating that the original’s Parkerizing, but other than that this pistol would be immediately recognizable to Browning. Single-side safety, sliver thin trigger, lanyard loop and the barest minimum of bumps for sights make this a perfect throwback to the good ol’ days of global combat zones. Chambered in the famed .45 Auto cartridge, this pistol demands to live in a US-stamped leather flap holster. MSRP: $419.99
Tisas 1911 Duty B9R
Now that we have the classic, let’s look for a workhorse, and that’s the Duty series. These working guns are built to shoot, and nothing about them deviates from that goal.
The 5-inch Duty B9R is chambered in the ubiquitous 9mm and is a great choice for those trapped in 10-round magazine states. Skeletonized trigger and hammer look great and cut lock times. A dust cover rail takes almost any weapon light, while the ambi-safety is good for right-and left-handers. Front and rear cocking serrations and Novak-style three-dot sights round out this duty pistol. MSRP: $579.99
Tisas 1911 Desperado 9/38
The Modern series brings a 4.25-inch variant to the fold, with a stunning hard-chrome finish. The perfect size for carry, the Desperado offers a two-fer by including 9mm and .38 Super barrels and magazines, so you can run this 1911 on regular or premium. Based on the company’s popular Tank Commander, this retro-styled 1911 harkens back to the roaring 20s, when the motorized bandits of the day had a love affair with the high-velocity .38 Super and high-polish guns.
A bobbed hammer, thin trigger and minimalist sights just add to the authenticity. Purists will also appreciate the Colt 70 series internals, which for many was the pinnacle of the model. The forged and machined barrel features button rifling and a Clark Para ramp design to help feed the longer .38 Super cartridges.
Tisas 1911 Stingray Carry B45BA
Modern concealed carry demands modern handgun solutions, and the Stingray Carry 1911 meets and exceeds these. A 4.25-inch pistol, the Stingray features an Ed Brown Signature bobtail cut, eliminating one of the many printing culprits of the design. A lighter weight aluminum frame shaves ounces, making this an all-day carry gem. Fixed Novak 3-dot sights and Black G10 Sunburst texture stocks are beautiful, but also highly functional.
The Stingray Carry is available in both .45 Auto and 9mm, so you can choose your preferred caliber and carry away. Forged slides and frames, hammer-forged barrels and Colt Series 70-based internals are paired with an undercut trigger guard, lowered and flared ejection port, and custom cocking serrations to make the Stingray Carry the perfect choice for EDC. MSRP: $619.99
Tisas 1911 Night Stalker Double Stack SF 9mm
Finally, from the company’s Pinnacle line comes the crème de la crème. With double-stack 1911s and 2011s being the hot commodity now, Tisas offers several versions with the higher capacity frames in a variety of calibers. But the alpha dog of the pack is the Night Stalker.
This double-stack 9mm carries 17 in the magazine and one in the chamber. A flared magwell helps guide the Checkmate (STI/Prodigy 2011-pattern) magazines home. The Night Stalker is optics-ready and uses the common Holosun 507k/RMSc footprint. Taller sights co-witness with most optics, and feature my favorite front sight, a tritium dot surround by a large, orange daylight bright circle.
A stunning Cerakote platinum-grey finish, with Cerakote black parts, is as tough as they come. To round out the package, a 5.5-inch barrel features threading for easy suppressor use. We have one of these on hand now, so keep a look out for a detailed review to come soon. MSRP: $959.99
We could go on and on covering the whole catalog and there are more than a few great guns we left out (like the 10mm options). The best advice we can give is, take a look for yourself at all the variations on the 1911 theme Tisas USA offers. I’m hard-pressed to name another company making as good of a 1911, at such an affordable price point, with the variety of options as Tisas USA.
