The Continuing Evolution  of the 1911   

Bill Wilson began as a jeweler and watch maker who left his family’s business to open a small gun and sporting goods store. He began tinkering with guns after one of his own choked, sputtered and died it its first shooting match.

“I thought if I could make tiny parts for something as intricate as a piece of jewelry or a watch, I could certainly build a gun I liked,” he says. Fellow shooters admired his work, so Wilson began modifying their 1911-type pistols. He and his wife, Darla, eventually opened Wilson’s Gun Shop, now called Wilson Combat.

From these humble beginnings, Wilson went on to develop a series of innovative custom parts for the 1911, making Wilson Combat a multi-million-dollar company with more than 30 employees and an 11,00-square-foor facility.

Throughout his career as a distinguished shooter, firearms designer, gunsmith and businessman, Wilson’s philosophy has remained the same: Stick to a minimum amount of tried and true modifications, and you won’t go wrong.

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