Everyone has an opinion on the U.S. Pistol, Caliber .45, Model 1911, et seq., just as they do on which caliber is better or worse for self-defense. We've heard it all at one point or the other and while the faux controversies drive viewers to sites and readers to magazines, the 1911 and variants are still overwhelmingly popular. Is it just nostalgia? It could be for some, but not for others. The 1873 Model P isn't quite that popular for self-defense, nor is the S&W Hand Ejector, the Walther P-38 or the Browning P-35; it's still the old 1911 that's the top dog of the geriatric handgun set. One of the premier trainers of that handgun is our own Tiger McKee. Author of the book The Book of Two Guns -- a tome covering use of the 1911 and the AR15 - he's now done a DVD in conjunction with Tom Gresham's Gun Talk. That DVD is Fighting With the 1911. No, he doesn't mean fighting through feedway stoppages, though malfunction reduction is discussed and demonstrated. And the DVD has a lot to recommend it for the user of any semi-auto pistol in terms of giving a practical, considered way to operate that gun in adverse situations and environments. Tiger's plain-spoken, as you can see from the SKILL SET column he does for this wire service. He doesn't beat around the bush or dress things up with pseudo-intellectual claptrap. He tells you, and shows you, how he does things. And he explains how he got there, giving you the chance to apply his method to your pistol of choice. Aside from use and nomenclature of the 1911 system of pistols, he teaches the how and why of tactical (in-battery, mag-retained) reloads, stoppage reduction, verbalization, movement, safety, the use of dummy guns in training and practice, and overcoming mistakes. Tiger takes you along the long list of 1911 choices and modifications, various holsters, shooting with the less-dominant hand and shows the "Mystery Malfunction" drill. I've been shooting for a lot of years - having purchased my first centerfire handgun in late 1972 and having spent considerable time with a Colt Frontier Scout from 1968 to 1971. I found I was picking up a lot of pointers from Tiger - how to better explain or execute a style or technique, his take on grip, the reasoning he uses behind certain aspects that had, over years, become little more than articles of faith for many of us. It's quite simply the best treatment of use of the 1911 I've seen in many years and it strongly rivals the best of instructional videos from any instructor. I'll be referring to it often. Buy the DVD at Fighting With the 1911 DVD. And keep reading Tiger McKee's column right here, as he helps us keep you posted. (The pistol shown is a lightly customized Springfield M1911A1 Mil Spec: fire control parts by Actions by T, safety by Ed Brown, stocks by Ergo Grip. -- Rich Grassi