I’ve had a good run on .45ACP pistols in the last month. I picked up a Mark 23 a couple of weeks ago, and just this week received my newest—a Dan Wesson CCO. It’s almost the polar opposite of the Mark 23—where that pistol is bold, over-engineered modern design, the CCO is an understated version of the classic 1911 design.
I’ve owned a Dan Wesson Heritage for a couple of years and while I really liked it I do have a thing for small 1911s, so when I saw this one come up on the EE a couple of weeks ago I had to go for it. CCO stands for “Concealed Carry Officer”—it’s a 4.25”/108mm Commander-length barrel matched with a 7-round capacity Officer model frame. Mine looks to be about ten years old—this model is now discontinued. Having both a shorter barrel and frame gives it more or less the same proportions as a full-size Government—here it is compared with my now-departed Heritage:
The pistol has a stainless slide with what Dan Wesson calls their “Duty Black” finish, which apparently is a type of ferritic nitrocarburizing. Despite being probably close to 10 years old the pistol has almost no visible wear on the slide or frame (which I think has regular anodizing)
The pistol’s muzzle is nicely flush with the barrel bushing, and there’s a regular-length guide rod (which is my preference).
The frontstrap has what Dan Wesson calls their “chain-link” treatment. It’s certainly comfortable to grip and seems to provide maybe a bit more purchase than a plain frontstrap. You can also see the slight undercut here at the rear of the trigger guard—it’s subtle but I was surprised at the difference in feel, and with a short grip I like to get my hand as high as possible. The grips are a similar style to my Heritage’s—some stippling where you need it, and a smooth finish where you don’t. I really like the feel and look of the grips, although they’re a bit dark for my taste on a black pistol.
The mainspring housing has a similar treatment, and the grip safety has the usual “bump” seen on most modern 1911s, although it’s not grooved like on the Heritage. Although they might be practical for concealed carry I must admit I don’t like the looks of a “bobtailed” 1911, but what Dan Wesson did with the CCO was neat—rather than going all-out with the full bobtail treatment they just bobbed bottom of the mainspring housing —I like the look much better.
The nicely grooved trigger looks to be a medium-length version of the longer one in the Heritage. While the trigger pull on the CCO is just as nice and crisp as the Heritage, it’s noticeably (but not objectionably) heavier. That makes sense for a pistol design for concealed carry. I did notice that the trigger return spring is heavier—I don’t mind that as a heavier return spring can make for a more positive reset and allow for faster follow-up shots.
The sights are my favourite on a 1911—Novak night-sight rear and front. Newer models of the CCO had a “ledged” rear sight designed to allow for one-handed use if needed, which is likely more useful in "real world" use, but I prefer the look of a Novak rear. You can also see the "super-skeletonized" hammer too.
What’s neat about this pistol—and unique about all the night-sighted pistols I’ve owned—is that the front and rear sights are coloured differently. Mine are pretty faded now (and it’s hard to see in the picture below) but the front is green and rear yellowish-orange. It’s only a theoretical benefit for me as night shooting this pistol is not in the works for me but still a neat touch.
Another unique feature among the dozen or so 1911s I’ve owned is the CCO’s ramped barrel:
Well—that’s it for a first look. I’ll update the thread once I’ve had it out to the range.
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