Book Review: Vickers Guide to the 1911 (2nd Edition) (Patreon)

Book Review: Vickers Guide to the 1911 (2nd Edition)

James Rupley and Larry Vickers have released a second edition of their Vickers Guide: 1911 book, and it is a massive expansion on the original printing. The gorgeous photography remains as good as ever, but the book is now two volumes, with more than 150 pistols and nearly 850 total pages. It was photographed in at least six collections, and has no less than 14 contributors now. Where the original edition was mostly an assortment of customized 1911s, the second edition is now essentially a historical study of the 1911's service use and the development of custom competition modifications. Volume One is primarily service pistols, starting with Colt 1911 #5 (the gun that passed the endurance trial which led to the pattern being adopted by the US military) and continuing through World War One, World War Two, Delta Force, police SWAT use, and through the Colt M45A1. It also includes commercial developments, like the .22 Ace, .38 Super, National Match, and Gold Cup models. Volume Two focusses on custom guns, from the very beginning with King's Gun Shop through Swenson, Hoag, Pachmayr, Clark, Garthwaite, Boland, Larry Vickers' own work (of course!), Burton, and more. The first edition of the Vickers Guide to the 1911 was only of moderate interest to me personally; this expanded second edition is fantastic. It's really a whole new set of books in terms of coverage. They are available as individual volumes for $98 each, or as a package of both volumes for $176 ($260 for the premium slipcase set). I would strongly recommend getting both, rather than trying to choose just one of the two volumes: https://www.vickersguide.com/purchase/1911-set https://www.vickersguide.com/purchase/1911-slipcase-set