At the range, I noted a few things. First, BOB IS LOUD. He barks. He's especially loud when I'm shooting from the hip. Watching for muzzle flash, I noted SIGNIFICANTLY less muzzle flash than when I was shooting "Phil," my 11.5" with an A2 flash hider. Phil is getting a Phantom tonight. I like the boom, don't like the flash.
Also noticed how accurate he was. The 1911 sights really seemed to do the trick. It was like shooting a heavy revolver, but with less muzzle jump. I was surprised that there was as much recoil as there was.
I also had several FtL's (Failure to Lock). I'm going to attribute this initially to the newness of the gun. I'd imagine that after the parts wear in a bit, it'll hum along much better. I'd also suspect that the spring is not powerful enough, but then again I swapped springs with Phil and Phil ran just fine with the same spring? One other possible cause was the lack of lube. I hadn't lubricated anything, I just shot it clean and dry. The temp was about 25 degrees, so I don't think weather was to blame.
Sights were nearly right on and only required two clicks left and two up to zero. The sight rail didn't shoot loose and I was able to get decent COM groups. More accurate than my 1911, but the bullet holes were harder to see! The handguard stayed comfortable to hold even after long strings and an obviously hot barrel. It was also comfortable to hold even when the cold trigger was making my trigger finger numb.
A few other observations. After shooting my 11.5" barreled gun with the cut carrier and standard grip, I prefer the "Ergo-Grip" by leaps and bounds. Already have one on my M4gery and of course on Bob. I'll be adding one to Phil and probably to my mid-length carbine as well. I think I need a single-point sling. I tried shooting from the hip and could get decent, 20" groups at 40 yards against the berm. When shooting from a rest, I was able to get nearly as good a groups with either gun as my M4 was printing. I think a single-point sling will help with shootability 100% and make these two pistols decent close-range weapons as well as toys.
I'm also SERIOUSLY considering the JP backup sight as a primary sight system. Laser? No, I'm going to stay away from that now. Maybe later though.