By: Greg Chabot

Photos Sasha Steadman

Double-stack 1911s are the rage in the shooting community as of late, with many using them for competition and self-defense. Before brands like Staccato/STI, if one wanted a double-stack 1911 there wasn’t much to choose from. Wilson had the KZ45, or one could go with offerings from Para-Ordnance that offered complete guns or kits to upgrade ones 1911. The KZ45 wasn’t on the market long and discontinued. Para-Ordnance suffered from unreliable magazines and poor QC. Having owned two of their products, a P14 and a Tac-Four, I can attest to them being total garbage. The magazines were overpriced and completely unreliable. The one redeeming quality was the LDA trigger on the Tac-Four. Other than that, if you see any Para products on the used market, run away as Para-Ordnance has been defunct since 2015 and magazines and parts are hard to come by.

STI, which later rebranded as Staccato, started to dominate competition circles and for a short time was also used by the Army’s Delta Force. Due to problems with parts breakage and magazines that could not stand up to the rigors of harsh military use, Delta stopped using the STI 2011 and went to another weapon system. Undeterred, STI kept evolving their line coming out in 2019 with their Staccato line geared towards duty and personal defense. With the success of that line, competitors not wanting to be left out started to design double stacks of their own.

One of the main drawbacks of 2011-style handguns is the price. Due to being a broke gun writer and prior bad experiences with Para, I tended to avoid double-stack 1911s. Knowing the market, I just bided my time as a workingman’s 2011 style would come out.

In 2022, Springfield Armory released their Prodigy line to the public with much fanfare, releasing both a 5” and 4.25” with an MSRP of $1,500 USD, which is far below the competition. Granted, $1,500 is above my definition of “workingman’s gun” but for those who want a double-stack US-made 1911, $1,500 is a bargain. There are 2011-style guns made in Turkey that are sub $1K with most being garbage that won’t hold up to high round counts. And being a GWOT Veteran I won’t support countries that go behind our backs in supporting terrorist groups. I have wanted to test out a Prodigy and decided to let Springfield work out any issues with the platform before buying. Last summer my local shop got a few in stock and after handling both I decided on the 4.25”.

Initial Impression

The Prodigy comes in a cardboard box with a soft case with one 17-round mag and a 20-round made in the USA by Duramag. The pistol itself cycled a tad rough due to lack of lube. There were no defects in the Cerakote finish. The mags dropped free, and the slide locked back on both. Upon disassembly, I gave it a good once over and lubed it up for the range. I noticed the Cerakote was thick on the rails and after cycling it by hand, I noticed a thick sludge at the back of the weapon. I kept cycling it and stripped it down and it looked like I had shot it! I cleaned it again and it cycled smoother and there was no sludge from the Cerakote. I could see this being an issue and recommend readers lube and cycle it by hand to get the excess Cerakote off before going to the range, you’ll thank me.

The Prodigy makes use of MIM parts to keep the cost down. Here is the trigger warning to the “MIM will get you killed” crowd to go somewhere else. The fit and finish of the parts was excellent with no slop. The stainless bull barrel was properly fitted with no burs on the feed ramp. The trigger broke smoothly at 5 pounds. On my sample, the take-up was a tad gritty, it did smooth out with use. The ambi-safety was tightly fitted and it too smoothed out with use. The fiber-optic front sight was easy to pick up through the U-notch rear sight. All Prodigys come optics-ready with plates available from Springfield for the optic of your choice. The polymer grip is very grippy but not overly aggressive for concealed carry. The grip is thick, reminding me of Pre-SF Glock 20/21s. All screws were tight on the sample, and I recommend checking them before hitting the range. The Prodigy comes with a reverse plug and two-piece guide rod; I know many hate two-piece guide rods and there are offerings from the aftermarket to delete them. It doesn’t bother me as 98% of shooters don’t field strip their weapons “in the field.” I always test weapons as they come out of the box and tend not to make modifications. The Prodigy comes with a rail that worked with all my lights.

Note: Full specs of the Prodigy line are available at Springfield Armory.

Ergonomics

The ergonomics are the same as most 1911s, just thicker with undercuts on the trigger guard to get a high grip. The slide release is recessed into the frame, and it is very difficult to depress it with small hands. For testing I just power stroked it during reloads. My other gripe is the mag release, it is extended and very stiff — I really had to press it in to get the mags to drop free. It did improve as it was used, due to the finish wearing down. The slide serrations are aggressive, and I had no issues manipulating the slide with winter gloves or oily hands. The mainspring housing is flat like most modern 1911s.

Range Report

Testing was done from early summer until winter with various brands of mixed ammo at first. For a holster I used the OWB “Covert Slim” from Kydex Holster Solutions. The Prodigy passed my bloody hand test using mineral oil. The Prodigy is front heavy but balances well with a loaded magazine and during testing I didn’t notice any major shifts in balance as it was fired. It is a hefty gun for its size, weighing 32.5 ounces unloaded and depending on bullet grain used, can weigh up to 40 ounces or more. So, I was expecting felt recoil to be mild, I wasn’t disappointed. It was like shooting a .22 even with +P loads. The gun cycled smoothly, and muzzle climb was minimal doing a mag dump. The sights were easy to pick up while transitioning between targets. After a few hundred rounds the trigger smoothed out considerably, making fast, accurate shots a breeze. I advise readers to try the “case of ammo” trigger job before spending money on upgrades. The Prodigy was a laser in the accuracy department if I did my part. The magwell is flared and reloads under stress were a simple task.  The weapon carried well with a good holster and belt, and I had no trouble concealing it under a jacket or button-up shirt. The Prodigy has a traditional internal extractor, and it put the brass in a nice, neat pile and ejected every time. It was nice not to have to tune it on a new gun. A total of 3K rounds were fired during testing.

Reliability

Now for the bad, the 1911 can be a harsh mistress. And sadly, the Prodigy had its issues during range testing. I had numerous failures to feed due to magazine issues. Most were resolved with a hard tap to the bottom of the mag. I had one mag that would not feed 147 gr at all. The mag would feed everything else though. I had to stop using mixed ammo, so I could troubleshoot feeding issues I had with the weapon on the first range session. The feeding issues were with both ball and JHP of various weights. I eventually narrowed it down to a mag that I marked and kept out of rotation. The most issues I had were with some old 147 gr Federal JHPs the local shop had given me. After using it all up, reliability went up. The weapon was dropped in sand, water and snow and it ran fine. I could not induce malfunctions by limp-wristing.

My other issue with the Prodigy was the screws coming loose. To be safe I checked them every 100 rounds on the initial outing. After that session I broke out the blue Loctite and that solved the issue except for that damn optic plate. Per Springfield’s recommendation, I used red Loctite to secure it to the slide. It hasn’t loosened up since and I have no plans to run an optic on my Prodigy.

I took the time to drop test the problem magazine. When I had my Para-Ordnance I dropped a mag on concrete by accident, and it became an improvised frag grenade! I have also witnessed shooters at ranges having this happen while performing a Tac reload on 2011s. At $60 USD or more a pop, a mag should be able to withstand a hard drop. The Duramag passed with flying colors with multiple drops from a lifted truck onto pavement.

At 1.5K rounds, I replaced the recoil spring that I ordered from Springfield. As the round count went up so did reliability with one failure to feed every 300 rounds, which is an improvement from my earlier range sessions. The failures occurred when the gun was dirty during extended sessions. After range testing, I did a detailed strip and found no unusual wear on the “dreaded” MIM parts.

Tips for a Better Shooting Experience

I recommend doing the following to make your first range session more enjoyable.

  • Clean and lube then cycle it by hand at a minimum of 50 times and check for excessive coating coming off on the frame rails. Then clean the weapon again. Doing some research, it is a common complaint and possible factor in reliability.
  • Bring a set of Allen wrenches in case screws or the guide rod come loose.
  • Shoot as many different brands and weights of ammo as you can to see what works best.
  • Tape to mark problem magazines if you have issues.

Your results may vary but the above is a good idea for your first outing. Hopefully you won’t have any issues.

Pros and Cons

Pros:

  • Price point compared to competitors. $1,500 USD compared to $3K or more for competitors.
  • Very little felt recoil which makes this weapon a joy to shoot. Its weight makes it very easy to control during rapid fire.
  • Excellent grip texture and slide serrations.
  • Optics ready out of the box, one just needs to order corresponding plates for the optic they wish to use.
  • Good out of the box trigger that got better with use.
  • Excellent iron sights.
  • Industry-leading customer service if needed.

Cons:

  • Expensive magazines and optic plates.
  • Cerakote is very thick on frame rails which can cause functional issues.
  • Sample was picky with some ammo. Mostly related to magazine issues.
  • No factory night sights offered as an option. SA does offer a factory-mounted optic.
  • Recessed slide release is difficult to manipulate with smaller hands.
  • Screws came loose while shooting. Easy fix by end users, in my opinion factory should Loctite them.
  • Need an Allen wrench to field strip and it is a little more involved than a standard 1911.

Closing Thoughts

I like to tinker with guns, so I didn’t mind troubleshooting issues that I had with my Prodigy. And I concur, a weapon at that price point should run flawlessly out of the box. That doesn’t always happen regardless of brand or model. As I have stated before, 1911s can be harsh mistresses. Magazines are usually the main culprit with 1911s, and the Prodigy is no different. I have also seen Staccatos choke out of the box and their magazines are not cheap. I also theorize excessive Cerakote on the rails also caused issues until it wore off.

I like my Prodigy and plan to put it into regular shooting rotation. Now for the big question, would I trust my life to this weapon? Out of the box, no f—ing way, after 3K rounds with the right ammo and magazines I’d have no issue carrying the sample into a dangerous situation. Being honest, if given the choice, I’d take a single-stack 1911 in God’s caliber over a double stack any day of the week.

Should You Buy One?

This is a challenging question, and the answers depend on the intended use. As a range gun, I say go for it. For a defensive weapon, I strongly advise you to follow the above suggestions and find what works for you. When I carried mine, I used specific ammo and magazines that worked flawlessly for me. And that took time and ammo to figure out. If you are unwilling to do that, I suggest you save your money and buy something else such as a Glock or HK for defensive use. If you are unsure if a double-stack 1911 is right for you, go rent one and run 500 rounds through it to see if it works for you. Don’t go and buy one just because all the cool people have them. A defensive handgun is a personal choice, find what will work for your needs, not Instagram likes.

Springfield is always improving their product, and the Prodigy line is no different. They had a lot of issues upon release and if you do research, you’ll find many of the issues have been worked out. Another positive is that Springfield backs their products, and their customer service is top notch if needed. Springfield Armory introduced at the time of this writing a compensated version and a carry version of the Prodigy. And for the Tactifools out there, they are also available in FDE to get your operator on.

https://www.springfield-armory.com/

Big thanks to Coyote Creek Outfitters in Rochester, NH.

Thanks for reading, stay safe out there!