Ed Brown Kobra Carry Dual Caliber Pistol: Immaculately Dynamic

The 9mm vs. .45 debate is the most tired one in the handgun world. Which is superior? Both certainly have their merits. The 9mm offers low recoil, has a greater magazine capacity and feeds and extracts well thanks to its significant body taper. The .45 has more bullet mass, greater frontal area and arguably better terminal performance. It’s difficult to pick a winner but, with the release of the Kobra Carry Dual Caliber 1911, you don’t have to. This compact handgun from Ed Brown allows shooters to swap chamberings, and their virtues, in seconds.

The late Ed Brown was a legend in the 1911 community. He was the first person I met at my very first SHOT Show way back in 2003. He was a gentleman, and he is missed by many. His contributions to the handgun world—the Bobtail cut and Kobra Carry, which celebrates its 25th anniversary, being two of the most notable—were significant and often imitated. Brown’s legacy lives on in his company, which is still a family-run operation.

The Kobra Carry Dual Caliber melds together two of the company’s flagship products: the Kobra Carry and the EVO series. The Kobra Carry, which will be familiar to many readers, is an enhanced compact 1911 that mostly sticks to traditional functional elements such as the internal extractor, recoil assembly and barrel bushing. The EVO was created from the ground up as a 9mm and takes a more modern approach, including a bull barrel and external extractor.

Both slides work with the same frame, meaning that changing chamberings is as simple as swapping slide assemblies. That frame is Commander-length stainless steel, and it has the distinctive Bobtail cut—a signature Ed Brown feature that makes the gun more concealable.

Snakeskin Pattern

As the Kobra name indicates, the frontstrap is milled with the company’s exclusive Snakeskin pattern, which provides a functional gripping surface as well as an aesthetic touch. The flat section of the mainspring housing has the same treatment. The high-cut frame allows for a full grip on the pistol, and that purchase is enhanced by the Kobra cuts and the checkered G10 grip panels.

In a world where many 1911 parts are metal-injection molded, Ed Brown’s parts are fully machined in-house from bar stock. This adds significant cost but demonstrates a commitment to quality and longevity as opposed to meeting a price point. The company provides a limited lifetime warranty on its firearms to back up this commitment to quality construction.

The rear of the frame is cut with a .250-inch radius to allow for the use of Ed Brown’s Memory Groove grip safety. This grip safety is easily engaged regardless of how the shooter grips the gun, and protects the hands from hammer bite. The manual safety is strong side only with an extended lever, and the company’s .145-inch-wide carry profile. The lever is easy to actuate without being overly big.

The slide stop is fairly standard, with an HRT cut on the opposite side of the frame so the stop’s recessed pin sits flush. The magazine catch is checkered. The gun features a three-hole aluminum trigger, along with a Delta-style hammer.

Componetry

The EDM-cut trigger components provide smooth and precise surfaces for an excellent trigger pull. The trigger on our sample broke at a very shootable 4.5 pounds with no apparent creep. This is the kind of fantastic trigger pull that has kept the 1911 relevant for so many decades.

The .45 ACP slide is built on the Kobra Carry pattern and matches the satin stainless steel finish of the frame. The .45 uses a 4.25-inch, Commander-length barrel. The round-top slide’s rear cocking cuts use the same Snakeskin pattern as the frame. The bottom of the slide is machine-beveled to eliminate the sharp edge, and that tasteful bevel is matched on the leading edges of the slide as well as on the frame’s dust cover. The ejection port is lowered and flared back to facilitate the flawless ejection of spent cases.

The iron sights are dovetailed into the slide. The rear sight is a black drift-adjustable Novak style with a square notch. The front sight is a highly visible HD XR with an orange doughnut surrounding a small tritium lamp. Pairing a black rear with the HD front is one of my favorite combinations on a carry gun.

The EVO was built around the 9mm and specifically designed to make the 1911 more cost effective and reliable on a production basis. The EVO 9mm slide on the Dual Caliber is functionally and stylistically different from the Kobra Carry but still looks good on the frame.

Finish and Fit

The black polymer Gen 4 finish applied over the stainless steel slide gives the gun a two-tone look reminiscent of old race guns like the Pachmayr Combat Special. Because I was influenced heavily by the custom handguns of the 1980s as a kid, I’m a big fan of this color scheme.

While the Kobra Carry slide has a fairly traditional profile, the EVO is more modern. Instead of a radiused top it uses a series of flats. The cocking serrations are angled cuts with shorter lines toward the muzzle.

The EVO 9mm slide is both shorter and narrower than the Commander-length .45 slide. The barrel is four inches instead of 4.25 inches, and the slide is 0.06 inch slimmer. Not only does this make the pistol slightly more concealable, I think that it actually improves function.

Sometimes 9mm 1911s, even Commander-length guns, struggle to perform with anything but full-power ammo with bullets on the heavier end of the spectrum. This smaller, lighter slide is better tuned to the power level of most 9mm Luger ammo.

Meaningful Differences

The size is not the only departure. The EVO slide uses a fluted bull barrel that eliminates the need for a bushing—as well as the time it takes to properly fit one by hand. The barrel locks up via a single top lug instead of the two lugs used on the .45. The crown is tapered back to the face of the slide.

Another meaningful difference is the external extractor. While an internal extractor often requires hand-tuning to work as it should, the milled 17-4 stainless steel unit on the EVO is a drop-in component. Under the hood, the EVO uses a one-piece recoil spring guide rod and a flat-wire recoil spring.

The front sight on my EVO was a plain black blade, but these sights are held in place by a TP6 Torx screw, so they can be easily removed without fiddling with a dovetail. Ed Brown offers several front sight options, including the HD XR night sight.

My EVO came with a Holosun SCS-320-GR optic installed directly to the slide. This optic allows the user to select between a two m.o.a. green dot, a green dot inside a larger circle or a circle with no center dot. Although there is no rear sight to co-witness, the front sight is visible through the sight window. If the sight ceased to function, the combination of the front sight and optic frame could be used as sort of a ghost ring arrangement at close range.

Refinement

The fit and finish on the Kobra Carry Dual Caliber was befitting a gun at this price point. The edges were tastefully beveled, eliminating every exposed sharp surface with the exception of the front sight. The stainless steel was blasted to an even satin sheen, and the black Gen 4 finish was expertly applied.

Shooting the Kobra Carry in either chambering was pleasurable. I’m partial to iron sights, so I felt most at home using the .45 ACP slide, but the reduced recoil of the EVO upper was certainly pleasant.

When it comes to shooting groups from the bench, a slide-mounted optic will spoil you. With quality sights—and here I’m referring to both the irons and the optic—a great trigger and well-executed gripping surfaces, this was a shootable pistol in either configuration.

Swapping over to 9mm is as simple as dropping the magazine, pulling the slide back to align the half-moon notch with the slide stop and removing the stop from the frame. Capture the recoil spring and the slide comes off the frame. Install the EVO slide as you normally would. The slide stop has a small bevel on the inside where it interfaces with the spring-loaded plunger. This bevel makes it easy to insert the stop into the frame without creating an “idiot scratch.”

Reliability and Accuracy

Ed Brown shipped the pistol with a separate ejector and slide stop that were designed to be used with the EVO slide. While changing slide stops is quick and simple, swapping ejectors requires removing a roll pin that transects the frame. Performing this correctly requires a roll pin punch and a small hammer, and takes about a minute.

Out of a combination of curiosity and laziness, I tried using the 9mm slide with the .45 ejector and slide stop. Guess what? It worked just fine. I can’t say I recommend this practice, but in my experience you can get away with it in a pinch.

On the subject of reliability, the Kobra Carry Dual Caliber did very well. In all my testing—with six different loads in two different chamberings—there was only one malfunction. It happened with the .45 ACP slide installed when one of the Federal Punch 230-grain jacketed hollowpoints failed to feed fully into the chamber. I cleared the malfunction easily and encountered no further problems.

Accuracy ranged from average to great in both chamberings. In both cases, the Federal Punch ammunition was the most accurate, as you can see in the accompanying chart.

Options

Why would anyone want a handgun with two slide assemblies? I can think of several reasons. Let’s say you want to carry a .45 for self-defense but want to practice with a less expensive cartridge with lower recoil. Check.

How about shooters who are making the transition between iron sights and optics but haven’t committed 100 percent? Check.

What about those living in jurisdictions that require red tape for purchasing another pistol, or require residents to commit to a single handgun for concealed carry? Got you covered. With either top end, the shooter has the benefit of the same grip, an identical trigger pull and the same manual-of-arms.

Ed Brown Products has always been on the cutting edge of 1911 design and production. The Kobra Carry Dual Caliber pays tribute to the company’s late founder with one of the company’s most identifiable handguns, but with the added benefit of the newer EVO series. This is a viable self-defense handgun in either configuration that offers a versatility that no single chambering can possibly match.

Ed Brown Kobra Carry Dual Caliber Specs

• Type: 1911
• Caliber: 9mm Luger/.45 ACP
• Capacity: 2 mags supplied—9-round 9mm, 8-round .45
• Barrel: 4 in. (9mm), 4.25 in (.45)
• Weight: 36-37 oz.
• OAL/Height/Width: 7.6/5.9/1.3 (9mm); 7.8/5.4/1.3 (.45)
• Construction: stainless steel Bobtail frame; stainless steel slide—satin finish (.45), black G4 finish (9mm)
• Grips: checkered G10
• Trigger: 4.5 lb. pull (measured)
• Sights: black front, Holosun SCS-320-GR (9mm, as tested); HD XR night sight, black rear (.45 ACP)
• Safeties: single-side manual thumb, beavertail grip
• MSRP: $4,995
• Manufacturer: Ed Brown Products; EdBrown.com

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