I went to a local store to day to get some ammo. Lo and behold, to my suprise, they had to of the new Loaded Springfield's in stock, a full size and a champion. Both were in parkerized finish.
Notes on the new model:
- No more sharp edges. Though it still has the blocky frame, the previously sharp edges has been very mildly dehorned to prevent painful metal to skin contact.
- Front sight is now dovetailed instead of staked on. It's about time.
- Sights were standard with tritium inserts in 3 dot pattern. Though I prefer the bar-dot pattern, these are certainly serviceable and wonderful considering the price of the gun.
- Slide to frame was good. No noticeable movement at all either laterally or vertically. Barrel lockup with slide in battery seemed tight also.
- You get wood grips not plastic or rubber. Always been the case with the loaded models.
The retail at the store was $689. I'm sure you could find it cheaper if you looked around. Overall, I gotta say that the new loaded models are more appealing than ever. Except for the MSH lock a vast improvement over the old model for a very modest increase in the price. Now if I could just convince my wife that I absolutely have to have that new Champion .45. Well...back to the drawing board.
Notes on the new model:
- No more sharp edges. Though it still has the blocky frame, the previously sharp edges has been very mildly dehorned to prevent painful metal to skin contact.
- Front sight is now dovetailed instead of staked on. It's about time.
- Sights were standard with tritium inserts in 3 dot pattern. Though I prefer the bar-dot pattern, these are certainly serviceable and wonderful considering the price of the gun.
- Slide to frame was good. No noticeable movement at all either laterally or vertically. Barrel lockup with slide in battery seemed tight also.
- You get wood grips not plastic or rubber. Always been the case with the loaded models.
The retail at the store was $689. I'm sure you could find it cheaper if you looked around. Overall, I gotta say that the new loaded models are more appealing than ever. Except for the MSH lock a vast improvement over the old model for a very modest increase in the price. Now if I could just convince my wife that I absolutely have to have that new Champion .45. Well...back to the drawing board.
