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April 4, 2013
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I'm the proud owner of a SS .44mag DW, but don't own any 1911s of any type. I just won a bid for the gun pictured below and want to see what you guys think. Of course, asking prior to bidding would have been a good idea, but time didn't allow. The seller says that it's a pre-CZ Pointman EXP (experimental). He says the EXP part is due to the two tone coloring produced for a trade show. I think it's gorgeous. That's what caught my eye at first. Maybe paid too much at $900 but that's cheaper than buying a new one in my area and that would have been my next option.
Looking forward to getting it in the mail.
Thanks,
Ken
DW SS .44 Mag 4&8" bbls, Pointman EXP .45ACP
Dans Club
March 2, 2008
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I think you did very well, and Pointman EXP is one I've never seen.
I went to a bookstore and asked the saleswoman "Were is the Self Help Section?" She said if she told me, it would defeat the purpose.
George Carlin
April 4, 2013
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Thanks. At first I thought I was doing well with it, too. But for some reason after reading more I started to second guess myself. Didn't really matter, though. It fit my budget and is a DW. Met both of my buying criteria. The seller says that after making this EXP one, they never ran a production lot of them, so it may be one of a kind. However, we all know that the internet rumor mill can be strong, so who knows about that one of a kind stuff....
Can't wait to light it off.
DW SS .44 Mag 4&8" bbls, Pointman EXP .45ACP
Dans Club
March 2, 2008
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It's listed HERE as a DW 1911 model, I'm not sure that a one of a kind would be listed or not.
I do like the two tone look.
I went to a bookstore and asked the saleswoman "Were is the Self Help Section?" She said if she told me, it would defeat the purpose.
George Carlin
April 4, 2013
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Yup. It's interesting that the first post in the thread with the pamphlets listing the PM varieties is in 2005. That's the year in which the seller was guessing it was made, though he wasn't positive.
DW SS .44 Mag 4&8" bbls, Pointman EXP .45ACP
Dans Club
DWF Supporters
April 20, 2010
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I am not up on 1911s so much, but my opinion is that you did just fine. Any Dan Wesson 1911 under a grand in good condition is a great value as far as I am concerned. It certainly is a rare one, and you wont ever go to the range only to see 2 or 3 other guys with a pistol like yours.
Really, at that price what other brand 1911 would give you all the features (Bomar sight etc) with the build quality?
We shall need a range report in the future.
"The lion and the tiger may be more powerful, but the Wolf does not perform in the circus"
April 4, 2013
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I was just thinking the same thing about not seeing 2 or 3 other guys with the same gun. Usually when I show up with my DW .44 and put the 8" barrel on, I have the same experience. A crowd forms and waits for the gun to go "boom". It's great fun picking off bowling pins with it.
You'll definitely get a range report-just as soon as I wipe the inevitable smile off my face. If all goes well I might see it show up here by next weekend. Here's the part that might turn your stomachs-
I'm an NRA instructor and plan on using it in class with new shooters. I have already been doing that with my .44. At first I was hoping that it wouldn't be dropped/damaged but I've had exactly zero problems with that, so now I"m comfortable doing it with this 1911. My teaching partner brings his DW and Kimber 1911s for the students to handle and shoot without problems, so I'm hoping I can continue the streak of successes with mine. At least the students will be able to say that they did in class what most other shooters never get a chance to do-shoot two DWs in one day.
DW SS .44 Mag 4&8" bbls, Pointman EXP .45ACP
Dans Club
October 17, 2008
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The EXP guns were pre production models, test the market to see what buyers would like some went on to be the main stay of the DW line up, that's a nice find, check out the Dan Wesson group at http://forums.1911forum.com/forumdisplay.php?f=52
Lots of info to be had there.
April 4, 2013
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It appears I have my work cut out for me to get up to speed on that link. There's a lot of stuff to digest there. Will be some good evening reading for many nights.
DW SS .44 Mag 4&8" bbls, Pointman EXP .45ACP
Dans Club
March 2, 2008
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icman95 said
It appears I have my work cut out for me to get up to speed on that link. There's a lot of stuff to digest there. Will be some good evening reading for many nights.
I find that site to be my favorite and best informed 1911 source, and not just for DW's
I went to a bookstore and asked the saleswoman "Were is the Self Help Section?" She said if she told me, it would defeat the purpose.
George Carlin
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Dans Club
February 22, 2009
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Yep- very good site but I hat waiting for all the crap to load on the page....
Technically, the glass is always full; half liquid, half air....
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Dans Club
March 25, 2013
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I recently found a Pointman Major- C in great shape. It is extremely accurate to my standards. There is not much information to be found on the early DW 1911's. Some reviewers are very critical. I wonder what guns they are reviewing. Mine has the familiar interchangable front sight and a Millett rear sight. The serial number is DWE0017x. I would love to hear any comments about early guns. Some comments on the internet panned the laser engraving. What idiots!
April 4, 2013
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I did some reading while shopping for the early DW1911 and found some great reviews in articles and posts, so I wasn't too concerned. For no particular reason I thought that perhaps pre CZ 1911s might be less than up to the current standards, but after doing that reading I was convinced it was ok to buy it
However, I did find a few comments here and there around the net that made me rethink that. That's why I started asking for opinions. I can't see any reason that it would be a problem. I'd imagine that even the worst DW out there is better than some of the best models from other brands.
DW SS .44 Mag 4&8" bbls, Pointman EXP .45ACP
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July 2, 2011
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That is interesting. It looks to favor my Guardian Duce in the two tone color scheme.
To the paranoid people who check behind shower curtains for murderers:
if you find one...what's your plan?
April 4, 2013
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Wow. They sure do look a lot alike.
DW SS .44 Mag 4&8" bbls, Pointman EXP .45ACP
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December 4, 2011
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I like the look of the two tone guns, that is a very nice way to enter the 1911 arena.
Anything worth doing is worth doing well.
My father
If a man designed it, and a man built it, then a man can fix it.
My grandfather
April 4, 2013
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So lonwolf asked for a range report and I'm happy to oblige. I said earlier that I would report as soon as I wiped the smile off my face from shooting it. Well, I shot it last night and there's a problem......I CAN'T wipe the smile off my face.
What a great gun! I don't have a gauge to measure trigger pull, but I'd say it's somewhere around sneeze level. That is, you sneeze and it goes off. I have a friend at my gun club who has a few custom trigger jobs on some things, one being .6 lbs pull, so I know what that feels like. My DW isn't quite that low, but it has to be no more that a couple, three pounds max. It's very crisp, no notchiness (is that a word?), and a pleasure to use.
The previous owner put on a red fiber optic front sight and left me the original iron sight in the box. (He gave me the original box and owner's manual with it. Nice!) What a great sight picture it produces. The contrast of the bright red against the dark color of the slide is wonderful and extremely easy to pick up on the black center rings of the target. He even added some grip tape to the front and backstraps so it won't slide around in the shooter's hand. That works well, too.
So my first couple of trigger pulls went off earlier than I expected and made some flyers on the target which you can see below. Once I got the first several shots off and started to learn what the gun likes, I was able to bring the shots in closer to one another. The gun came with one mag and I bought a spare at the store when I picked it up. The picture is both mags fired at about 30 feet. Once I got the hang of it, each round followed the other through the same area. The gun can group way tighter than I could yesterday. I was actually moving the group around to shoot out the red bullseye which made it bigger than it needed to be. I only brought one box of ammo with me so I'll have to go back tomorrow to try again. I'm sure now that I know what to expect, I can tighten up that group some more. This gun is phenomenal and now I can't decided if it just became my new favorite over my DW .44. I guess even if it did, at least it's all in the family.
P.S.- In case someone asks-the ammo was a brand that one of the members of my club tipped me off to. Freedom Munitions. They make new and reman ammo for extremely good prices so I bought some 9mm and some .45acp. Also have more of those coming along with .44mag. This was the reman 45acp 230gr jacketed. Works great, no jams, feeding problems, or misfires of any type. I don't know if accuracy was affected by this type of ammo vs. some premium factory target loads, but I'm happy with it.
DW SS .44 Mag 4&8" bbls, Pointman EXP .45ACP
Dans Club
March 2, 2008
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Sounds like a great day at the Range. Glad to see that the Pointman did the job, I'm not surprised at that at all.
Don't fret too much over the ammunition you are using, you got some very consistent results. You might do a little better with different ammunition, my advice would be to start reloading, if you are not doing so already.
If you are going to shoot a lot, and you want to really maximize your accuracy results, it's the way to go
I went to a bookstore and asked the saleswoman "Were is the Self Help Section?" She said if she told me, it would defeat the purpose.
George Carlin
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July 2, 2011
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That's some very nice consistent shooting. Not surprised the Pointman did the job for you. Don't worry, you should stop 
in a few more days! Well, until the next range day of course.
To the paranoid people who check behind shower curtains for murderers:
if you find one...what's your plan?
Dans Club
March 2, 2008
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icman- a .6# trigger pull is pretty light for any but a very experienced and careful shooter, I would not personally be comfortable under 2#
BTW-PM me if you'd like, let's do lunch or something someday, I'm in Middletown
Steve
I went to a bookstore and asked the saleswoman "Were is the Self Help Section?" She said if she told me, it would defeat the purpose.
George Carlin
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