This ingenious 1911 pistol modification turns it into a dart gun

The 1911 pistol has been around for over 100 years. It is beloved by many for its ergonomics, accuracy and heavy-hitting .45 caliber round. In fact, some versions are still in service with the Marine Corps as the M45.

When something's been around for so long, it's also a safe bet that people are tinkering with its design. You can find 1911s in various calibers aside from its original .45 ACO, including 9mm NATO, 10mm Auto, and .22 long rifle.

In an article at PopularMechanics.com, Ian McCollum of ForgottenWeapons.com noted that during World War II, the Office of Strategic Services wanted something that could allow commandos and other secret agents to kill sentries quietly and at a distance.

This is actually very important because if the sentry sees you and sounds the alarm, he's won. It doesn't matter if he's hit the alarm with his dying effort. That alarm could even be him dying very noisily.

The key to this was a two-part system that could be added to just about any M1911 pistol that was called "Bigot." The rear portion was inserted through the ejection port. It had to be set up right to allow the M1911's slide to close. Then, the piston would be screwed in. After that, a variety of darts – or even mini grenades – could be inserted for use in silently dispatching a sentry of the two-legged or four-legged variety. The darts and grenades would be fired by a .25 ACP blank.

Tests with a quickly-made reproduction were kind of iffy (only one-third of the darts broke a glass target eight feet away). It's probably why the Bigot never saw any real action.

Still, if Buffy needed a little extra edge to dust some vamps or if 007 wants a gadget that makes for great cinematic eye candy, it's probably a good choice. Watch the video below to hear Ian relate what we know about this nifty-looking piece!