Anytime I notice a new 1911 on the market, I am interested. But when the new pistol is billed as a “full-size hybrid 1911?”
I’m doubly interested!
This was the case when I read about the FXH-45M Moxie 1911 pistol from American Tactical, a US manufacturer and worldwide importer of firearms, ammunition, and tactical equipment. So, I asked for and received a Moxie chambered in .45 AUTO for review purposes. What I discovered was a quality home and self-defense handgun that’s also light enough for concealed carry at 27.5 ounces (unloaded), making it roughly ten ounces lighter than a metal framed 1911 with the same five-inch barrel.
Manufactured in the United States, the FXH-45M Moxie features a patented polymer frame with two metal inserts for added stability and durability. The Moxie also features a 4140-steel slide with a parkerized finish. The frame was designed with built-in finger grooves for an ergonomic feel to compliment the black poly grips.
Poly frame aside, the FXH-45M Moxie is pretty much traditional 1911, single action and semi-auto, 5.4-inches in height 8.7 inches long. It also sports a removable top plate that allows for the addition of an optics mount.
The Moxie accepts Glock front and rear sights, including aftermarket night sights, and has a rail under the barrel for attaching a light or laser. The oversized trigger guard will accept all but the largest gloved fingers.
This new breed of 1911 is compatible with most standard 1911 parts and grips, and ships with one 8-round magazine.
I had a handful of loose 45 AUTO rounds, so I first ran those thru the Moxie. The rounds and the semi-auto worked together fine. But for actual accuracy purposes, I focused on one self-defense load—the 230-grain Hydra-Shok JHP from Federal Premium—and two range rounds—a standard 230-grain FMJ load made by Aguila and the Team Never Quit Training Ammunition firing a 155-grain frangible bullet.
Accuracy? Very impressive with all rounds. The Aguila Ammunition 45 AUTO, at seven yards offhand, drilled a five-shot group at just .75-inches and four shots at 20 yards from a rest at 1.0-inches—pretty damned good!
Team Never Quit scored four rounds at .80-inches at the seven-yard mark, while shot #5 expanded that group to 1.25-inches. At the 20-yard test, Team Never Quit’s best group for five shots was 2.15-inches.
My self-defense load, the Federal Premium Hydra-Shok, pegged a .80-inch five shot group shooting from the seven-yard line and a very nice five shots at 1.25-inches shooting from a rest at 20-yards. Shot Number Six went wide, but the group still held at 2.0-inches.
If you need a firearm that’s more accurate than the Moxie? Buy a rifle and mount a high-end scope on it!
The Moxie’s trigger snapped off nicely at 3.7 pounds according to my Lyman Digital Trigger Pull Gauge. The trigger resets quickly, too, as I discovered when I mag dumped several magazines. Grooves cut inside the trigger’s curve helped with providing a steady trigger pull and greater overall stability. And the trigger also looks cool, with a silver-colored finish and the three triangular holes.
The sights on the Moxie are good, but they didn’t exactly pop, at least not for these aging eyes. The white line around the rear notch does show up well, as does the dot on the front post. But I did wish both were a little large and slightly higher, to put me on target quicker and easier. And the sights, it should be noted, can be replaced with aftermarket Glock sights.
If you’d like to put an optic on the Moxie, the top, rear of the slide features a removable plate to allow for the easy installation of the Trijicon RMR and Burris Fastfire Sights. (These optics and adapter plates for them must be purchased separately.)
The combination of the checkered black polymer grips and the finger grooves built into the frame’s front strap provided for a firm hold, though I felt the checkering was a little shallow. I like deeper, sharper checkering that really grabs the palm of my shooting hand, but that’s my preference and not a deal breaker when recommending a pistol.
The Moxie disassembles exactly like a 1911 should—push back the slide, pop out the slide stop going from right to left, and ease the slide forward and off. Then, remove the recoil spring and the barrel bushing, and push the barrel out through the front of the slide.
A lighter-weight, very accurate pistol, the American Tactical FXH-45 Moxie is a solid handgun, well-suited for home defense. And those who prefer to carry a 1911 but have been put off in the past by the 38 to 40-ounces of all-steel version 1911’s would do well the give this semi-auto a hard look.
Specifications: American Tactical FXH-45 Moxie
Caliber: 45 ACP
Capacity: 8+1
Action: Single, Semi-Automatic
Barrel: 5.0,” Match Grade
Barrel Material: 416 Stainless Steel
Slide: 416 Stainless Steel
Slide Finish: QPQ Black Nitride
Frame:Polymer, with two (2) 7075-T6 Aluminum Inserts
Trigger:Overtravel Adjustable, Skeletonized Alloy, Silver Color
Height: 5.4”
Length: 8.7”
Weight: 27.5 oz., empty
Grips: Black polymer
Sights: 3-dot white sights, accepts all aftermarket GLOCK sights
Safeties: Manual, Ambidextrous Butterfly and Grip Safety
Included: One 8-round magazine, removable top plate for optics.
MSRP: $669.95
For more information visit American Tactical
Opinions are like BHs, everybody has one, some are just dirtier than others.
Do not ascribe to malice that which can be adequately explained by ignorance or stupidity . Ignorance can be cured, stupidity can not.
And the ATI website still shows all the 1911 hybrids to be “out of stock” which status has been maintained for the last 2-3 years. Why advertise something that can’t be purchased?
Kimber did this year’s ago, with their BP Ten & Ultra Ten-2. I have both, having put thousands of rounds of all types & bullet weights downrange with each. Both are utterly reliable and still shoot to point of aim. The Ultra, which holds ten in the mag & one up the pipe, is my EDC.
You had me all the way to the finger groves in the frame. Get rid of those and you might have something.
Interesting that they stayed with an internal extractor with as many other changes as they made. Pretty cool. Love 1911s. What an breakthrough and icon, but time has passed them by.
The Corporate “woke” – cancel attitude is alive and well at Guns America, when you can’t post anything critical about a product, like this one, that may impair their revenues. Since it (like this) won’t get past their “Awaiting moderation.” Good job G-A., first time as a 45 year technical magazine author I’ve had a minor opinion “censored.” I’ll pass it along.
Oh please go fuck yourself. What do you think we are your lap dogs with our tongues hanging out waiting to moderate your stupid ass comments?
Clean up the comments please. Paul Helinski’s post does not need to be available. Keep it clean! Delete it.
And you can go fuck yourself too. Get a fucking life would you.
There’s no excuse for plastic guns, no matter how well you package and market them, except for saving money in production. When you need to have hell and furry under control in your hands to defend your life, you want the history of precision, weight, balance and engineering that seems to be a lost art, except for those who still replicate the 1911 in the spirit of its original design. Plastic with 7075 inserts? What that means, is we should have made the frame out of 7075, but wanted to save money. Try to find a working model of this in 20 years. You won’t see too many AR-15 upper and lower receivers made out of plastic, FOR A REASON.
Do you use the same logic to dismiss steel for frames due to the need for blueing or parkerizing to protect against corrosion?
Just like you can’t find any 2001 year model Springfield XD’s, or Glocks around.
Springfield bought HS Produkt in 2002, so an XD from 2001 would be a pretty noteworthy find.
This Michael guy makes a lot of sense. MIMS parts and dishwasher-safe combat Tupperware are ruining the hobby and tainting the American art of gunsmithing with short-lived artless garbage.
Says you. Last I checked Jesus hasn’t returned to earth so you’re just an asshole with nothing more than an opinion. No one in the gun community has elected you to any high office so you have no more to say about what someone chooses to use for shooting fun, self defense or art collecting. There’s still plenty of pricks like you and this Michael guy to keep the artisans busy with fancy guns as their canvas. Nothing wrong with that if you like it and I would never dis on someone’s choices on anything including guns. Those Tupperware guns have been around long enough and tested enough to have passed with flying colors. They don’t need to be works of art or pay homage to your god, JMB. Progress has been made in firearms since the first one and it won’t stop because you think that it should stop at the 1911. Why there? Oh because it’s just your little opinion. Not a damn thing more. If someone likes this gun at this price then they should buy it. And enjoy it and use it for whatever you use it for. It propels a 45 at the same speed with better accuracy than most 1911 type guns and will do the same job on our real enemy. Those that would try and take our lives and freedom by force or illegal laws. Or divide us by pretty guns and ugly guns. History demands you carry a 1911 as long as it meets Michael and blue dogs approval for its art value and material. But that hell and “furry” is too scary for plastic.
Allen, you get bent out of shape way to easy.
The comment was intended to be 90% satirical.
I’ll admit I’m pretty old school when it comes to my taste in hardware, and this gun just doesn’t appeal to me. I just think if you want a glock, buy a glock. If you want a 1911, buy a 1911. I’m also positive that there’s probably more than a few people out there that will be all over this ATI offering, so obviously I don’t speak for the gun community as a whole, and I never insinuated that I do.
The gun community is one of the most opinionated group of people on the planet. I’m one of them. But I maintain a good attitude, both when I’m ribbing and when I’m called a fudd. It’s all good natured fun, no need to be a dick.
A+
Cheers!
Right. Because there’s no working Glocks from the 90’s anywhere. Oh wait…
So I guess you still feel “the history of precision” found in the 1903 Springfield or the British Enfield are the only rifles you would take into the “hell and furry” of a life or death situation, rather than an AR or some other modern rifle that has been proven in combat. Glocks and all the excellent guns they inspired since are among the most reliable and durable guns ever made. To be clear, my first pistol was a 1911 Government Model and my wife and I both own and shoot 1911’s, but neither of us carry one for EDC because we prefer other pistols that are lighter and have a greater round capacity.
I like it,in 9mm id have to get one.i could live without the finger grooves but thats fixable.
The Holy prophet John Moses Browning (may he bask in the presence of our Lord forever) would be rolling in his grave had he not been ascended to heaven upon a cloud as a reward for bestowing upon man the blueprints of the sidearm of God himself.
Glock sights? Plastic frame?
You shan’t be forgiven for this unspeakable blasphemy.
Who knows what material Mr. Browning would have used, had it been at his disposal.