For the summer of 2016, Colt’s Manufacturing Company (aka Colt) updated and expanded its Defender series of 1911 style pistols. The original gun has been updated, while the company added new “black and blue models” – one in .45 ACP and a second in 9mm.

Original Updated

According to Colt’s senior vice president, Paul Spitale, the original Defender was a gun he loved, but it was not a perfect concealed carry gun. So, when he went to work for Colt in 2015, updating the gun was an important project for him.

The original stainless steel model now features G10 grip panels and a carry cut on the front of the slide. Otherwise, the gun is the same as the original: a seven round .45 ACP pistol with a brushed stainless finish on the slide and a Cerakote stainless finish on the frame. The barrel length is 3″ and it has an unloaded weight of 24 ounces. The original gun’s suggested retail price of $899 remains the same.

Black and Blue

The expansion of the line happens with a pair of “black and blue” models. The guns pick up the nickname due to the blued slide finish matched with the Cerakote black finish on the frames. These guns are similar to the stainless fished pistol with a 3″ barrel, Novak three dot sights and the black cherry G10 grips.

However, in addition to the .45 ACP pistol, the black and blue can be had in 9mm. Should you opt for that model, you pick up an extra round in the magazine (eight instead of seven) and increase the unloaded gun weight from 24.0 to 25.0 ounces.

Both caliber versions of the black and blue model carry a MSRP of $949.

Colt announced a number of updates to its 1911 lines of handguns, including the iconic Delta Elite.