Bersa’s announcement that it was introducing several 1911 models came as a surprise, as did the price of the pistols. The Bersa B1911, while being competitively priced against, is more than double the price of any of its other offerings, save the longslide competition-­oriented TPR9 XT. Pricing is undoubtedly due, in part, to increased labor costs, as the B1911 is not just its first 1911, but its first American-­made pistol. The B1911 is being produced by Bersa in its Kennesaw, Georgia, facility. Other Bersa pistols are made in Argentina, so this is quite a departure from the expected.

Initially, there are six models offered. All are full-­size all-­steel Government Models chambered in .45 ACP, and all are built using 416 stainless-
steel frames and slides. Other variants are identical in construction but different in finish and grip color. There’s a matte stainless model with blue grips; a mirrored stainless; a traditional two-­tone model with a natural stainless frame, black slide, and rosewood-color grips; a two-­tone model with a black frame and silver slide; an all-­black model; and one with a flat-dark-earth (FDE) finish. Every B1911 sports aggressively textured G10 grip panels from VZ Grips.

I have examined several B1911 samples and they all displayed similar fit, finish, and quality. In photos, the 1911s look well-­thought-­out. In person, they were just as impressive. 

While the B1911 isn’t as tightly fitted as more expensive 1911s, Bersa’s seemed better put together than many 1911s I’ve laid my hands on recently. For this evaluation, I chose the “B19117050SMBL,” or what I’ll refer to as the “Blue-Stainless” model. It features a matte stainless-steel finish and blue G10 grips.

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The B1911 follows the basic M1911 design — this is a single-­action-­only semiautomatic fed by eight-­round magazines, only one of which is included with the pistol. It has a barrel bushing, short recoil spring and guiderod, a tilting barrel that uses a swinging link, and a Series 70-­type fire control system. The B1911 has a round-­topped slide, and angled, flat-­bottomed serrations front and back. Flat-­bottom serrations are more aggressive and functional than original angle-­cut serrations. The only markings on the slide are the circled “B” logo at the rear on either side.

Every model of B1911 has the same sights; they are a good choice for a pistol meant for self-­defense. The sights are steel and dovetailed in place. The front sight is a day/night model made by Night Fision. There is a tritium insert surrounded by a bright orange ring. The tritium glows in the dark, and the orange ring is visible in any light, making the setup suitable at all times. 

The rear sight is a copy of the famous Novak LoMount no-­snag design. The rear sight is plain black, with nothing to distract you from the front sight, and there is a set screw in the top to keep it from drifting in the dovetail. The front sight is .15-inch wide, and the rear notch is .17-inch wide; the combination provides a big, hard-­to-­miss front sight that still has a lot of daylight around it in the rear notch when the sights are lined up.

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The stainless-­steel barrel has a small cutout at the rear of the hood to serve as a loaded chamber indicator. The caliber is marked on the barrel hood, as well. The muzzle-­end of the barrel is slightly flared for a tight fit to the bushing, and the bushing and recoil spring plug have a black finish for color contrast to the brushed-stainless slide. In fact, all the small parts on the pistol, including the slide stop, plunger tube, thumb safety, beavertail grip safety, mainspring housing, hammer, trigger, magazine release, ejector, extractor, and grip screws, have a black finish for visual contrast to the stainless-­steel frame, barrel, and slide.

To test the barrel fit, I pushed down on the top of the barrel with the slide closed. It displayed a tiny amount of play. Slide-to-frame fit was perfect; snug but not tight. And the slide cycled smoothly. The chamber mouth isn’t as beveled as I’ve seen in more expensive 1911s, and the frame’s feed ramp isn’t as polished. Would these affect reliability?

There is no frame rail on the initial B1911 models, but it’s already a heavy firearm that mitigates felt recoil. It tipped my digital scale at 40.2 ounces with an empty magazine inserted.

On the right side of the frame, you’ll see the only other markings: “BERSA USA, CARTERSVILLE GA USA”, along with the model and serial number. Fit and finish on Guns & Ammo’s B1911 test sample was excellent. There were clean lines and no machine marks on the exterior. The front and bottom edges of the slide were rounded, so you won’t cut up your hand or holster.

Sum of its Parts

With a single-action-only (SAO) pistol modeled after the venerable 1911, if the hammer isn’t cocked the pistol won’t fire. Most advocates of the 1911 for carry tend to carry it in “Condition One,” i.e., “cocked-­and-­locked”: Hammer cocked with the thumb safety engaged and a round in the chamber. In my opinion, whatever pistol you carry, you should be able to draw and fire it with one hand — just in case. If you’re going to carry a 1911, carry it cocked and locked. If you’re not comfortable doing that, let me suggest that you carry a different type of gun. (End of rant.)

The thumb safety on the B1911 is an extended example with bilateral levers designed for this carry and frequent use. The right-­side lever is slightly narrower than the left. My only real complaint about the Bersa was the action of the thumb safety. The safety lever should produce positive clicks, up and down. While the thumb safety snapped nicely down, when pushing up it it felt like mush; there was no sound and barely any feel that it had engaged. Some might not notice this (or care), but loyal 1911 users will. 

At the rear of the slide is a skeletonized Commander-­style hammer that, when cocked, nestles inside the beavertail grip safety. The grip safety has a bump at the bottom — a design invented by Ed Brown long ago — to ensure positive deactivation. The mainspring housing is aluminum and checkered 30 lines per inch (lpi).

The slide stop is standard size and checkered. The magazine release button is serrated and not extended, which is perfectly suited for carry. The trigger is an extended aluminum three-­hole model — Videcki style with an overtravel adjustment screw — with a curved and serrated face.

The triggerpull on G&A’s sample was excellent. There was a short take-­up and then a crisp break. Total pull weight was 4 pounds, and reset was short. A second B1911 I had produced a similar trigger experience.

The B1911 doesn’t have a true “undercut” triggerguard, but the curve on the frame underneath the triggerguard is cut back just a bit to allow the hand to climb higher on the gun. Considering the high-­ride beavertail grip safety, a shooter’s hand lands about a quarter-­inch higher on this gun than it would an original GI-­spec 1911. That might not sound like much, but when you start touching off .45s, you’ll definitely notice a difference in control.

Surprising for such an affordably-­priced 1911, the frontstrap of the B1911 sports 25 lpi checkering! It wasn’t so long ago that checkered frontstraps were only found on expensive, custom 1911s. This is a significant value-add to the B1911, and shouldn’t be dismissed.

And on the topic of “value added,” the grips found on the B1911 are VZ Grips’ Operator IIs. These G10 laminate grips have diagonally cut grooves on the back two-thirds, and a very aggressive golf ball texture on the front third of each grip panel. There is also a scallop cut into the left grip panel to more easily reach the magazine release.

At the base of the frame, you’ll see the magazine well opening sports a modest bevel to help smooth reloading. One eight-­round magazine is provided with each pistol. (Okay, one more complaint: I wish the pistol was supplied with more than one magazine.) Some 1911 users argue that ACT-­MAGs are the best 1911 magazines on the market, and the magazine provided with the B1911 is the KCI copy of the ACT-­MAG. These Korean-­made magazines have numbered index holes and a non-­tilt stainless-steel follower. A polymer basepad helps to ensure positive seating.

The B1911 is sold with a heavy-­duty Pelican-­style lockable case. The case has a pressure-relief valve and cutouts in the foam for the pistol and two spare magazines. There is also a sticker on the outside announcing the contents — Bersa B1911 — but it’s easy to peel off if you want the case to appear a little more discreet and not announce that there’s a Bersa pistol inside.

At the Range

I tried all sorts of different ammo to check its reliability. Speer’s 200-­grain jacketed hollowpoint (JHP), aka the “flying ashtray,” was the round used to test reliability of any .45 back in my day. It was short, flat-­faced, and had a huge cavity. That round is no longer made, but I’ve found the Hornady 200-­grain XTP JHP is a good choice for today. The cavity on the hollowpoint is wide, though, and some guns just don’t like it. The B1911 fed and fired it without any problems. In fact, the Bersa B1911 ran every type of ammo I shot through it, from 185-­grain JHP to 230-­grain Ball ammo. With most loads, G&A’s pistol placed rounds a few inches high, but it was nicely accurate. After a few boxes of ammunition were put through the pistol, I found that the slide cycled even more smoothly.

I was reminded why people started checkering their frontstraps: It works! Your hand doesn’t get tired holding onto the gun because good checkering holds onto you. The B1911 didn’t move in my hand, even when shooting +P ammo. Bersa producing a checkered frame at a near entry-­level price is a huge deal.

Another interesting detail I discovered during testing: The Bersa B1911 has a standard — not extended — ejector. I can’t remember the last time I tested a 1911 that didn’t have an extended ejector. A short ejector makes it easier to cycle loaded rounds out of the ejection port, but companies have moved away from them as extended ejectors do a better job of clearing spent brass from the gun. I didn’t have problems, but I thought it was interesting. 

As the B1911 follows original 1911 lines, it fits in just about every holster meant for the 5-­inch Government Model. Most people won’t want to carry a gun as big and heavy as this 1911, but for those who do, you’ll want a good outside-the-waistband (OWB) holster, mounted on a strong belt.

Bersa seems to have languished in the background for years while selling inexpensive Argentinian-­made pistols to the price-point crowd. Something has changed. The American-­made B1911 was a pleasant surprise. The B1911 is a noteworthy effort to branch out and update its reputation.