Personally, I tend not to like most of the "1911" style .22s out there for the simple reason that pretty much all of them are made of zinc alloy. The Colt, which is made by Carl Walther, Germany and imported by Umarex is touted as having the frame made of zinc alloy, but the slide being of aluminum; I have seen tests on this gun that say otherwise, that the slide is also made of zinc alloy. The choices right now seem to be: GSG 1911 .22, SIG 1911 .22 (same gun as GSG but a little more refined), Chiappa 1911 .22, Colt/Walther/Umarex 1911 .22, and Browning 1911 .22 A1. All of these guns include some zinc alloy if not all zinc alloy, except the Browning. I opted to purchase the Browning. This little .22 is approximately 85% the size of a standard .45 caliber 1911. While smaller, it feels really nice in the hand and all the controls are EXACTLY the same and the gun breaks down EXACTLY the same as the full size 1911. Accuracy is pretty good too. Mine will group, depending on ammo, between 2"-4" at 15 yards and opens up considerably at 25 yards. Ten yard groups are in the 2" range. This is from a rested position. However, the Browning costs almost twice as much as the others with an MSRP of $599.00, although it can be purchased about $100.00 cheaper than that at some places. I traded in my Walther P22 on the Browning and am glad I did. It is by far the most fun .22 pistol I have ever owned. In over 800+ rounds of all types, and manufacturers, I have had 3 failures to feed; those I attribute to the ammo though. I believe it is the "1911" .22 pistol to own, if you can get past the size difference. I wouldn't have the slightest clue what the MK I would go for, but seeing how you can get them new for way under $400.00 I don't think $250-$275 would be out of line.

The mk 1 is the first model and in some places I"ve seen it command a premium over the mk2 for some reason...no clue why.

A guy at the range had some 1911 22 a few weeks ago. I held it, felt good but very light - so your observation about zinc may be right. I have a catalog with the chiappa in it and it says the frame is some allow that has a melting point of 765F and may not be legal in all states....first i heard of something like that. I would think polymer guns would melt at a lower point than that.

The ruger is more accurate than your gun, in my experience, but I don't find 22's to be all that super accurate (cheap ammo?)

What's the beef about zinc alloy? You can't ask a .22 cal to move the same amount of steel that a .45 cal can move. Obviously the zinc alloys can handle the loads put on them because they are not blowing up everywhere.

I understand the 1911 purists, but there is a time for being practical, too. The zinc alloy is just that, practical.

For the record, I have two 1911 22 LRs, an American Classic (Chiappa) and a Sig Sauer along with an American Classic Government Model 45ACP. I shoot both 22s with confidence they won't blow up. If they crack after 10,000 rounds, they will have long paid for themselves.

JM2Cents...

I have the GSG1911/22 -super fun gun. I have the version with the DD walnut grips, no fake suppressor. It does not have adjustable sights. You get spare front posts to swap in to adjust height. I have read that replacment rear sights can be had - but the GSG has a not-quite-1911-standard dovetail. Can't recall if the SIG-branded GSG1911/22 has an adjustable rear sight or not. It does have nicer cosmetics.

IMHO, the Umarex "Colt 1911" offerings have even sweeter cosmetics than GSG, and the mags are offered as 12rounders in Free America. If I had the spare ducats, I'd buy an Umarex Colt 1911/22 as well.

Note that GSG1911/22 was first to market, and so like their GSG5 "HK94" .22 carbine - they have a slightly larger 3rd party market than does Umarex.

Both of the above supposedly take many standard 1911 parts, whereas the down-scaled Browning 1911/22 is its own unique beast - so no ready swapping of 1911 grips.

I haven't read much good about the Italian cosmetic 1911s from Chiappa.

check out the rock island xt22 1911 XT-22LR Rock Island with Matte Black Finish #AC-RI1911-22LR all steel construction they cut down the slide like a beretta 92 to keep the weight down its also offered as a 45/22 combo I like mine Randy