The Avenger is a flapper-delayed blowback, fixed barrel conversion upper assembly for the Model 1911 pistol. It was designed by Austrian Peter Spielberger, and manufactured by Hogue in the US and PowerSpeed in Austria. It is a product that came close to vaporware status, announced at SHOT Show in 2003 but not actually available until around 2011 – and by then at nearly double the initial advertised price.
The Avenger is a very well-made system capable of fantastic accuracy – but it was a commercial flop. It was too expensive, and didn’t offer sufficient practical benefit over a simply well-tuned 1911. It went out of production almost as soon as it was made available, and is quite scarce today.
I have seen aircraft with fewer machined parts.
“(…)fewer(…)”
If you prefer less machined parts, but you are okay with M1911 principle of operation then use https://www.historicalfirearms.info/post/105473829684/experimental-stamped-m1911-this-unusual-stamped
Thank you! I lived not far from the Springfield Armory, but only went to the museum once back in the early 1960’s. I somehow never made it back before we moved to NC in 2018. I don’t recall seeing that piece, but that was before it became a national heritage museum. It may not have been on display.
Hope this long known example will be Ians theme in video.
How does said fire-arm compares against Obregon http://modernfirearms.net/en/handguns/handguns-en/mexico-semi-automatic-pistols/obregon-eng/ which is also similar to M1911 in terms of grip angle and have barrel not tilting in terms of vertical spread?
Perhaps I’m not understanding the mechanism correctly, but is that just a sliding friction delay?
It’s a mechanical disadvantage delay. The more the slide surface is inclined in respect to the “locking lever”, the more the recoil force is directed towards / absorbed by the frame. At 90° the action doesn’t open any more due to recoil.
The Bernardelli Victor shotgun used a similar system (but in the form of a modified SVT-40 tilting lock action, but with the aid of the inertia-driven bolt carrier, to ensure opening even with light loads.
Obregon is recoil-operated, however unlike M1911 locking is achieved by rotation (along barrel axis) rather than tilting
Oh, sorry, I thought you were talking about the Avenger, not the Obregon.
The Obregon is rotating barrel locked, like a Steyr 1912 or a Beretta PX4. Not to mistake with rotating barrel delayed, like the Savage 1907 or the MAB PA-15.
It seems what happens when a designer falls in love with an idea, and spend his time and resources to make it work, ignoring the other considerations.
To me, the easiest way to make a 1911 fixed-barrel delayed-blowback is to make it gas delayed, since the gas piston simply takes the place of the spring guide rod.
Chiappa also, about 10 years ago, shown a prototype of a “Steyr GB” style 1911, a blowback that uses gas as recoil pad.
https://gundigest.com/wp-content/uploads/ChiappaDBB-3.jpg
The 1911 having a barrel bushing already (here enlongated) makes it particularly apt to this solution.
I remembered reading somewhere about a kit to convert the 1911 to gas-retarded blowback. A quick internet search came up with a 20-year-old web page:
http://www.ncggasgun.com/
Always thought it sounded like an interesting project, but never found a positive review of the company. Since the web page doesn’t appear to have been updated since 2004, I doubt I ever order one.
It seems that an Italian gunsmith took Chiappa’s idea, and makes custom conversions.
https://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Fixed_Barrel_1911_01_edited.png
https://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/2020/06/03/mr-new-system-arms/
However, it seems a standard 1911 slide has to be weighted to work that way. As said, the “Steyr GB” action is not gas delayed, but a pure blowback that uses gas as recoil pad (Chiappa’s prototype slide was evidently a little beefier than standard).
https://www.thefirearmblog.com/blog/wp-content/uploads/2020/05/Fixed_Barrel_1911_edited.png
https://patentimages.storage.googleapis.com/1f/2a/75/8015c15dd5ee1c/US7287456B2.pdf
The Australian Army had the good sense to stay with the Browning GP35.
I was issued one along with the Land-Rover 4WD and an M16 tucked under my legs.
Bn . Int. Sgt. Marksman and Coach!!!