Guncrafter Polara
Ultra-Class .45 Fighter!
Alex Zimmermann, the founder and brains behind Guncrafter Industries, is a driven man. I’ve known Alex for almost 20 years and he’s been a guest at my home — with a case of guns, I might add. The sheer magnitude of his personal knowledge of the 1911 platform is both compelling and humbling. I mean, I’m no slouch when it comes to 1911-speak, but the first time I met Alex I simply listened and learned.
Every now and again, you stumble onto someone who honestly does think outside of the box. Gents like Hamilton Bowen, Ted Yost and a handful of uncommonly talented others do work almost impossible to believe is accomplished by mere mortals. Alex ranks among those gifted few. As he talks about his guns, his passion for perfection, innovation, workmanship and commitment to his clients is obvious. He’s an “all or nothing” sort of fellow. Either what comes out of his shop is as perfect as he and his rarefied team can make it — or it doesn’t get made at all.
I’m fortunate to own one of his FRAG models. I honestly consider it to be one of the most accurate 5″ 9mm 1911 designs I’ve ever fired, well within the top two — or maybe one? It’s consistent, predictable, comfortable, has a stunning trigger, bold sights and hammers out 1″ groups at 25 yards all day with virtually anything you feed it. Alex has explained how they do it, but I think he leaves out the “And then a miracle occurs” part — which is, I think, needed to accomplish this sort of surprising result with something mechanical. Whatever the secret “gift” is, Guncrafter Industries has it in spades.
Melonite isn’t the only finish available. This is an example
of a stainless Guncrafter pistol. Photo: Guncrafter
Prior Ideas
Alex first came to my house to personally show me his HOSS design, a 1911 with some surprises. HOSS stands for Heavy Operating Shooting System and it’s just that. He decided the extractor, slide stop, plunger tube, ejector, barrel link, barrel bushing and barrel are the parts most likely to fail, then redesigned each of them. Stronger, slightly bigger when needed, engineered more thoughtfully and honed to do their specific jobs better than ever before, the result was the HOSS.
Alex calls this the most reliable 1911 ever. In the military, they talk about the MTBF (Mean Time Between Failures) and with the improvements done, Alex has always felt that with normal use, failures in these parts simply won’t happen. And time has proven him to be right.
If you’ve heard of the ground-breaking .50 GI cartridge, that’s another “why didn’t I think of that” idea from Alex. Consider, if you would, a .50 caliber bullet from a GLOCK or 1911 platform with some eye-opening performance options. Guncrafter offers, among other loads, a 300-grain FP at 700 fps (recoil is more of a thump and it’s fun to shoot), a 255 LSWC at 800 fps (things begin to get serious here) and a nearly mind-boggling 185-grain solid copper HP at 1,200 fps. Remember these are all .50 caliber from a defensive handgun! The best part is you can buy different “kits” to convert your own gun. The .50 GI does tend to help re-write “stopping power” concepts.
Guncrafter Polara 45 Gear List
Ammo: Federal Premium 230-grain Punch
Light: Streamlight Wedge XT
Knife: Spartan Pallas Folder
Latest & Newest
The Polara is Guncrafter’s newest idea. There’s a reason for the name. “Polara” is actually medieval Latin meaning “heavenly” and I don’t disagree at all. Not only is the Polara eye-catching, it’s available as a full-sized 5″ 1911 and a Commander-sized version. This gun you see here caught my attention at the last NRA show, and it frankly stopped me in my tracks as I walked by. I think you can see why.
In typical Guncrafter fashion, it shows all the attention to detail and pride in workmanship their other guns are famous for, and they’ve stirred in a few surprises, too. Looks may only be skin deep, but many times, those looks are also sensible material ideas contributing to functionality. The fact they look good in the process is a testament to their engineering and design quality.
In the case of the Polara, the list of custom touches is lengthy, practical and complete. One of the most obvious and appealing things about the design are the finishes. The Melonite (our sample gun here) accented by the eye-catching TiN gold parts is both showy and sublime at the same time. A stainless steel version is also offered along with a handsome Nickel Boron version with blacked-out controls. Decisions, decisions … decisions.
The stainless version speaks for itself when it comes to weather resistance and the Melonite finish is extremely wear and corrosion resistant, with the added virtue of looking like a million bucks. The Nickel Boron option can weather any storm and look good while doing it.
The Polara slide serrations look like little directional arrows and act a bit like controlling angles when you rack the slide. They grab, without hurting at all, while the serrations on the front and backstrap of the frame are machined directionally as well, forcing the gun into your hand when you fire it.
Both guns have bull barrels with spiral fluting and a flush cut, deep-crowned muzzle, all complimented by a keyed recoil spring plug. The Tri-topped slide showcases their unique Polara serration/pattern and is left Monolithic, with a heavy bevel on the muzzle. I think it’s both serious looking and streamlined at the same time.
The grips are what really stopped me at the show. Called Multi-Colored Shredder Grips by Guncrafter, they are a tough, resin-infused design loaded with strands of copper, aluminum and other secret materials to give them a vibrant, iridescent look. They feel just great in my hands and are “catchy” enough to help maintain control while looking smashing if you ask me!
There are optional sights available and here the bold
windage adjustable rear sits right at home.
he TiN gold parts add some panache — and performance —
working well with the unique slide serrations. The flat
match-grade trigger offers an adjustable, crisp break.
The front and rear serrations are machined in a manner
as to “force” the grip into the shooter’s hands when the gun is fired.
Some Specifics
Some of the ideas incorporated into the Polara are hiding in plain sight. They exhibit forged steel frames and slides, a fully machined tool steel hammer, sear and disconnector, along with a slide stop machined from bar stock.
A match-grade stainless barrel is standard, and you can have a choice of a solid curved or straight match-grade trigger. I really like the straight one and if you’ve never tried one, do it! A beveled mag well is standard, those Shredder grips or Aluma-Grips are options and GI Tritium sights, blacked out front post, square or U-notch rear or fiber optic front are all sight options.
The guns are fully de-horned and each has the Guncrafter Extreme Reliability Work done to it as standard procedure, and it comes with two fitted tuned magazines. It’s all tidily attended to in a black GI Logo Cordura case and every hand-built pistol is backed by the Guncrafter Lifetime Satisfaction Assurance and their typical great customer service. It’s a remarkable line-up of custom features done-up by one of the very best teams ever assembled in one shop.
The Polara — Medieval Latin meaning “heavenly” — is just that, impeccably crafted and works as good as the name hints at.
Among front sight options is this eye-catching fiber optic.
Note the Melonite finish and aggressive texturing.
Shooting
The Polara is fashioned to the same high degree of fit, finish and quality as every other Guncrafter gun I’ve tested. I was not in the least surprised to find the Polara shoots ragged 1″ to 1.25″ 5-shot groups at 25 yards from my fitted Ransom rest. I can chase 1.5″ with a good wrist rest. I’ve found Black Hills 230-grain .45 ACP FMJ ball ammo to be one of the most accurate loads I’ve ever tested and is consistent enough to offer a solid baseline to test against. It, and the Polara, didn’t disappoint on this occasion.
While a 5-shot group is interesting, I’ve found shooting a longer string, like 25 rounds, into the same aiming point will often allow quirks to rear their heads. The quirks may be in the ammo and/or the gun’s function. In the case of the Black Hills load, it’s consistent enough to point at the gun’s function if the group expands. A careful 25-round group using the Ransom rest ended up with a 1.35″ total group at 25 yards in one ragged hole. My Ransom is clamped to a solid bench and is allowed to seat well before shooting groups.
I also have a 12″x12″ square steel hanging plate at 100 yards. From the bench, once I dialed in the hold point, I was able to hit the gong time after time. By aiming at the top center point of the gong and with a fresh coat of paint on it, the 5-shot groups I fired generally clustered around the 6″ mark. Keep in mind this was with stock iron sights and my own ancient eyes. I plan on scoping this gun and conducting the test again. I’ll make a video and predict groups in the 3″ range or so — simply amazing accuracy from a 100+ year old design, updated with modern shop technology, engineering and superior hand work. It’s a bit like expecting a 1911 Model A Ford to safely go 100 MPH with an engine upgrade. But the Polara can — and does.
Final Thoughts
Over my almost 40 years in our industry I’ve watched the custom gun world grow, change, surprise — and flourish. In the early days, pistolsmiths crafted shop-made upgrades to factory stock parts, hot-rodding basic 1911s. As time passed, more and more custom parts became available and talent grew. Someone like Alex Zimmermann cut his teeth on the early days of these sorts of ground-breaking changes to the 1911 platform, then took his ideas and ran with them even further.
By combining his own innovative ideas with modern manufacturing opportunities — paired with the innate sense of what’s “right” a talented craftsman can add — the final product is sometimes almost impossible to believe was made from scratch.
But we have to believe it — because it’s sitting right here. At $5,095, what you’re paying for is the best of the best. Call it a “Bespoke” firearm, made just for you, by a very small cadre of craftsmen who are more magicians than milling machine operators. To hold a gun of this heritage is to hold an instant heirloom for your family. As Sir Henry Royce said about his famous cars, “The quality will remain long after the price is forgotten.” He also said, “Strive for perfection in everything you do. Take the best that exists and make it better.”
I think Alex Zimmermann was listening to him.
