Cardinal Arms G2

The Cardinal Arms G2 is a modern double-stack 1911, often called a 2011, built by a small team in Mooresville, North Carolina. Cardinal Arms grew out of Optimum Manufacturing, a machine shop that spent years producing parts and complete guns for other well-known 2011 builders before putting its own name on a slide. The G2 started as a prototype in 2024 and reached the market in 2025, so this is a current production pistol, not a vintage or historical piece.

Every G2 begins as a 4140 chromoly steel frame and slide, machined in-house and then hand-fitted by a gunsmith rather than assembled from parts bins. Cardinal states that each frame-and-slide pairing is matched to the thousandth of an inch before it ships, which is part of why the company keeps output small. The stainless match-grade barrel is fitted in the same careful way, and the flat-face trigger is set to a light two- to two-and-a-half-pound pull and checked by hand.

This example features a black DLC finish with deep, aggressive texturing across the slide's top and sides for grip and manipulation, along with an aluminum grip module with the same fine checkering on both sides. It comes with a Trijicon SRO red dot mounted to the optics-ready slide cut that every G2 is built around, and the frame shows Cardinal's small bird mark near the rear.

At 8.5 inches overall with a 5-inch barrel and a double-stack magazine well, this is a full-size pistol built for high round counts on the range rather than concealment. It isn't a large-production gun. Cardinal builds these one at a time, so buyers should confirm exact finish details and included accessories with the seller before purchase.

At 8.5 inches overall with a 5 inch barrel and a double-stack magazine well, this is a full-size pistol built for high round counts on the range rather than concealment. It isn't a large-production gun. Cardinal builds these one at a time, so buyers should confirm exact finish details and included accessories with the seller before purchase.