Devil Dog Arms 1911: Shooting the DDA-350 1911

In the firearms community, it is nearly impossible to swing a dead cat and not hit a former U.S. Marine. Guns and Jarheads just seem to go together. In 2010, Devil Dog Arms started producing ARs. They were good-looking guns, each adorned with a scowling Marine-style bulldog with devil horns, and attracted immediate attention. However, Devil Dog Arms also produces a line of 1911 pistols, and we take a look at the DDA-350.

The Devil Dog Arms DDA-350 1911

No one seemed to mind that a former Marine Scout Sniper was capitalizing on his military service. That is until it was discovered that he’d never served. Not as a Scout Sniper, not as a Marine, not as anything!

He did the right thing—he admitted his stolen valor and walked away from the company he’d helped found. One of the investors, the same one who’d uncovered the stolen valor, decided to keep the company running. The bulldog is gone now, replaced with a wolflike logo, but the name remains the same.

The Devil Dog Arms product line is solid, with some very nice-looking and -performing ARs chambered for 5.56 NATO, an AR-10 in .308, and 6.5 Creedmoor. As well as the Hog bolt-action rifle in a variety of calibers. With this ugly chapter behind them, it appears as though Devil Dog Arms has weathered the storm.

In 2018 Devil Dog Arms introduced a 1911 line, building guns with 3.5-inch, 4.25-inch, and 5-inch barrels. Built at the Geneva, Illinois facility by a handful of craftsmen, the guns feature exceptional attention to detail. Likewise, they impart the Devil Dog stamp on the time-honored 1911 design.

I recently received a sample of the DDA-350 for review. The gun features a full-length steel frame with an Officer’s-sized top end. It’s a unique combination, to say the least. It offers the user full-sized control of the .45 ACP pistol, with a short slide for concealment.

Details of the DDA-350 1911

Immediately noticeable is the DDA-350’s unique styling, with dramatic cocking serrations and machined G10 grips. Our test sample is Cerakoted with a flat dark earth (FDE) finish, though several other finish options are available.

Devil Dog typically offers their 1911s with railed dust covers and squared triggerguards. However, our DDA-350 possesses the more traditional plain dust cover and rounded triggerguard.

Devil Dog machines their frames from 4140 heat-treated castings. If the use of castings versus forgings is a concern, you should probably know that this is the process the majority of manufacturers now use.

I have several 1911s built on cast frames that I used for USPSA competition. They have had literally tens of thousands of rounds through them without any kind of structural failure or deficit. Those guns were built more than a decade ago. And in the interim, both technology and metallurgy in the casting industry have improved.

If you think you’ll shoot enough rounds to bring the frame to failure, buy something else. But this is a non-issue for me.

The DDA-350’s frontstrap features 22-lines-per-inch machine-cut checkering, and the magazine well is beveled. Additionally, the gun is outfitted with a beavertail grip safety, extended thumb safety, and checkered mainspring housing and slide release.

These parts are black in color and make a nice contrast to the FDE coloring of the frame’s Cerakote finish.

Digging Deeper into the Design

Devil Dog uses 4140 heat-treated billet for the slide and machines it into a tri-top configuration. It is flat on top, with descending flats on either side, rather than the rounded surfaces found on traditional slides.

The ejection port is lowered and flared to give the empty casing every possible chance to exit the gun. The Officer’s-sized slide features wide and deep cocking serrations fore and aft that should give the operator plenty of traction whether their hands are wet or dry. Low-profile sights are dovetailed into the slide and feature the usual three-dot pattern.

The DDA-350’s barrel is constructed from 416 stainless steel and possesses a belled muzzle, aiding in the short barrel’s unlocking. It is not a supported barrel, but the Devil Dog Arms craftsmen throat and chamfer the barrel’s mouth to feed just about any bullet nose profile and overall length.

A stainless steel barrel bushing is used. Likewise, it also uses a two-piece full-length recoil spring guide rod constructed of the same material. The gun uses a single recoil spring. Our test gun was shipped with an additional recoil spring, one coil length longer than the one installed in the gun. This is presumably for shooting heavy defense loads.

Bucking the current trend, the DDA-350 does not use a Series 80-style firing-pin block safety. Its design is strictly Series 70, without the superfluous block designed to prevent inertia ignition if the gun is dropped on its muzzle.

The gun uses an elongated, skeletonized hammer with a conventional sear and disconnector. And the parts are mated to produce a 4.75-pound trigger pull.

Shooting the DDA-350

Because of the gun’s short barrel—just 3.50 inches—I decided to do the accuracy testing at 15 yards. I fired all groups from a seated rest using my D.O.A. Tactical bench. In addition, I rested the gun’s dust cover on a Millett Benchmaster for support. Five shots were fired for each group, and the best of five groups is listed in the accuracy chart below.

Federal’s HST 230-grain JHP Personal Defense round produced our very best group, measuring 0.95 inch. Our average for all four rounds tried measured just a hair over 1.25 inches. And that is plenty good for a concealed-carry handgun.

The Black Hills 135-grain HoneyBadger is a neat little round that produced very little felt recoil. However, it generated the most energy of any of the ammunition types tried, with 436 foot-pounds of energy.

Observations of Note

There were a couple of issues right off the bat. I had a couple of rounds stop with their bullet noses stuck in the middle of the frame’s feed ramp.

It was then that I noticed the feed ramp was Cerakoted, like the rest of the gun. It’s been my experience that other manufacturers will remove the coating from the feed ramp and hand-polish it bright.

The other problem I had was that the slide failed to lock open on an empty magazine. I was carrying my personal 1911 on this outing, and I borrowed its 8-round Wilson Combat Elite Tactical Magazine (ETM) for the rest of the evaluation.

It is my opinion, based on thousands of rounds of shooting experience, that the ETMs are the very best magazines you can carry. Especially when your life may depend on your firearm. After substituting the magazine, the DDA-350 ran flawlessly. And there were no more stoppages or failures for the slide to lock back on an empty magazine.

I did a number of draw-and-fire exercises with the DDA-350 and found that the gun pointed well and was very controllable. One of the questions I had before shooting the gun was just how well it would handle with its full-sized grip and short top end. I liked it!

The shorter sight radius didn’t hamper my ability to make quick, decisive hits. And the steel frame, with its weight and length, made double-taps easy.

Kydex Carry

Earlier this year, I ordered a Kydex AIWB holster from Bravo Concealment and was impressed with its design and quality. So, when I received the DDA-350, I wanted to try one of their OWB belt holsters.

Designed to be worn at the 4-o’clock position, the holster accommodates the natural curvature of the hip in that position. I got my test holster for a 1.5-inch belt. Likewise, I also ordered a Kydex single magazine pouch to be worn on my weak side also on the belt.

Bravo Concealment’s holster holds the DDA-350 securely, yet it’s as fast as any holster I have ever used. The holster makes an audible “pop” when drawing the gun, and you’ll never have to worry about the mouth collapsing.

Reholstering the gun is just as easy as drawing it. And the holster will make the same pop when you reinsert the gun, letting you know it is securely locked.

There’s a lot to like about the Bravo Concealment holster, from its design and construction to the 30-day money-back guarantee. They also offer holsters for guns with suppressor sights, guns with rails, and guns with weapon lights mounted.

Chances are, if you carry a popular handgun, you’ll find a Bravo Concealment holster to meet your needs. Get on their mailing list, as they frequently send out killer email specials.

Final Notes

The Devil Dog Arms DDA-350 1911 is capable of fine accuracy. And after switching magazines, it proved to be reliable enough for concealed carry.

Despite the gun’s very dramatic styling, it is indeed a 1911 through and through and can be accessorized and tuned like any other. I found the gun to have an exceptional degree of fit and finish and enjoyed my time with it.

Devil Dog Arms builds 1911s in three different barrel lengths, two calibers (.45 ACP and 9mm), with and without railed dust covers, and in a variety of finishes. The DDA-350 starts at $1,149 and comes with a limited lifetime warranty.

For more information, please visit DevilDogArms.com.

Devil Dog Arms DDA-350 1911 Specs

Caliber: .45 ACP
Barrel: 3.5 inches
Overall Length: 7.38 inches
Weight: 33 ounces (empty)
Grips: Black G10
Sights: Fixed low-profile 3-dot
Action: SA
Finish: FDE Cerakote
Capacity: 8+1
MSRP: Starts at $1,149

Performance

Bullet weight measured in grains, velocity in feet per second and accuracy in inches for best 5-shot group from 15 yards.

This article was originally published in the Personal Defense World Gun Buyer’s Guide December/January 2022 issue. Subscription is available in print and digital editions at OutdoorGroupStore.com. Or call 1-800-284-5668, or email [email protected].

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