Remington's R1 Hunter 10mm Auto Part 1

The Remington R1 10mm Auto Hunter Long Slide is a well thought out firearm. It is a combination of the 1911’s proven design; accuracy, performance and reliability, a longer than standard length barrel and a stout cartridge that is suitable for taking medium size game at woodland hunting distances. Assuming proper bullet selection, deer and feral hogs fit the “medium” definition, as would most black bear found in the state of Maine. The Remington 10mm Auto Hunter also makes for a good secondary firearm when hunting larger game.

The Remington R1 Hunter, other than barrel length and minor external features, shares all of the good traits of other stainless steel R1 models, including a firing pin plunger to prevent the inertial firing pin from causing an accidental discharge in the event the pistol is dropped in rough terrain.

The Long Slide Hunter has a stainless ramped match grade barrel and a stainless frame and slide that are blackened with an Ionbond© PVD Finish. Metal is vaporized at very high temperatures and deposited uniformly to the firearm’s surfaces within a vacuum environment. The PVD surface easily wipes clean, holds lubrication and is highly resistant to wear. The Hunter is very slick mechanical assembly overall, with each each pistol hand assembled.

It is easy to see pistol grips predominately for their aesthetic appeal rather than assessing them based on the way they influence shooting. Personally I like the VZ G10 look and the way they function. G10 is a very tough, dense fiberglass weave laminate with very aggressive texturing that is milled into the grip’s surface. They don’t slip around in the hand under recoil, but they also don’t scuff up the palm of the hand. The left panel is contoured to facilitate magazine release. However, the Hunter takes any standard full size 1911 grip that has been relieved for ambidextrous safeties.

The Remington R1 Hunter has all of the typical 1911 controls in the typical 1911 locations. The thumb safeties are the extended, narrow type so they are easy to operate, but tucked out of the way. There is an accessory rail for those who like to hang lights, lasers and other forms of light shows on their firearms… which actually comes in handy for a defensive weapon or for use in legal night hunting.

The Hunter’s trigger pull was a bit on the heavy side and had just a little creep. I would chalk most of that up to a tight new firearm, but then a very light trigger and trail carry or hunting does not usually make an ideal combination. Trigger offers overtravel adjustment.

Field stripped, the R1 Hunter has all of the appearances of  a well made 1911 type, with a full length guide rod, an 0.005″ clearance bushing to barrel fit and a ramped stainless steel barrel for reliable feeding. The recoil spring is wound flat stock. The flat material allows for more coils in a relatively small space and a much smaller compressed length without chance of coil bind.

The Hunter has a small, bright red 0.035″ front fiber optic sight element that works well against just about any type of backdrop. Dovetail mounted, the front sight is easy to change out if there is a preference for a different color or type.

The rear sight is an LPA fully adjustable match type with a grooved, matte anti glare face. The rear sight aperture measures 0.130″, the front sight post that holds the fiber optic element measures a narrow 0.110″ and does not obscure a game size target out beyond twenty five yards.

One of the nice features of a 1911, standard and long slide single stack is that they are narrow and easy to carry. There are many holsters available to make field and defensive carry comfortable.

It is relatively easy to build 1911 type pistol proficciency. Pick one up, build muscle memory and accuracy and chances are you will shoot any 1911 skillfully. The bulk of my current experience is with a Colt Officers model and R1 Commander. Picking up the Hunter, there was a bit more heft, but the slightly forward point of balance was steadying and the long sight radius quickened precise sight placement on target.

The 10mm Auto, in some quarters, has a reputation for being a hard kicker. Between the heft of the R1 Hunter and ammo selection, recoil was very manageable. The Federal 180 grain Hyra-Shok JHP defensive ammo was soft shooting, clocking 1063 fps over the chronograph. Far right, Buffalo Bore 220 grain Heavy 10mm recorded 1203 fps with just a bit more recoil than the Federal.

Shooting casually for accuracy from a rest of sand bags, with targets at 25 yards, resulted in 1 1/4″ to 2″ three shot groups. The plan is to assemble some handloads in various bullet weights and types and see how the Remington R1 Hunter performs with high performance hunting loads.