Nighthawk Custom Treasurer: Full Review

When we first opted to review the Nighthawk Custom Treasurer, Guns & Ammo’s California-­based contributors expressed excitement. Besides the “One Gun, One Gunsmith” tagline, it was the ability to personalize it through Nighthawk Custom’s Express Gunsmithing Initiative (EGI). The EGI program allows California residents to buy one of the brand’s California-­compliant models and then customize it with features. Milling the slide to mount a red dot, for example, is quite popular.

California Gun Laws

To understand why customizing a new 1911 is a big deal for Californians, first look at at California gun laws. They are some of the most restrictive in the United States. For a handgun to enter the California market, it must abide by California’s Unsafe Handgun Act (UHA). The UHA became effective in 2001, requiring handguns to be tested as “safe” by a California Department of Justice-approved laboratory. The law applies to any pistol, revolver, or other firearm capable of being concealed upon the person. If the firearm passes the test, it will make it to the “Handguns Certified for Sale” list. Law enforcement officers are exempt from this law and may buy handguns that are not listed on the roster.

Through the years, the UHA has been amended with tighter restrictions, requiring handguns to include a loaded chamber indicator and a magazine disconnect. In 2007, then-­Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger signed the microstamping law that required the handgun to microstamp the cartridge with the gun make, model, and serial number. Despite microstamping being an unviable technology, the law took effect in 2013. This created a de facto ban on newer handgun models being introduced to the California market. In March 2023, the microstamping component of the law was suspended. As a result, we have seen new handgun models from Ruger, SIG Sauer, and Springfield Armory added. In September 2023, Governor Gavin Newsom amended the law to require microstamping once again. If the technology is found to be viable, the law commences in January 2028.

Express Gunsmithing Initiative (EGI)

Nighthawk Custom has eight models on California’s compliant list: GRP, GRP Recon, Predator, Predator II, Predator III, T3, Talon, and Talon II. The EGI program offers Californians the option to customize a California-­compliant model with features similar to other Nighthawk Custom products. EGI is limited to a few models, though: GRP, Talon, and T3, and only on new pistol orders. The customizations are also limited, but too numerous to list here. Visit nighthawkcustom.com for details. The cost of the service is $599 plus the cost of the parts you are upgrading to.

EGI is not skirting the UHA because the pistol you are buying and receiving is a California-­compliant model. Once you fill out ATF Form 4473 and wait the obligatory 10 days to pick it up, send the California-compliant model to Nighthawk Custom for customization. Nighthawk Custom provides a return shipping label and has a five-­day in-­house turnaround for the upgrades.

The model used to evaluate this process was ordered with concealed carry in mind. After this, an ambidextrous safety, Integrated Optic System (IOS), and an IOS RMR plate were added. Once the T3 was received, it was immediately shipped to Nighthawk Custom. Nine days later, the Treasurer-­like T3 was ready for evaluation.

The Treasurer’s Upgrades

The custom work swapped out the T3 Commander slide chambered in .45 ACP for a tri-­cut Officer slide with a gold titanium-nitride (TiN) 3.8-­inch crowned barrel chambered in 9mm. The slide serrations are widely spaced, and there are a few lightening cuts on the front of the slide that further reveal the gold-looking barrel. A complement to that “bling,” the front bead sight is made of 14-karat gold. Other welcomed usability features are the one-­piece flared mainspring housing and Railscales Ascend G10 grips.

The Treasurer’s frame and slide are steel, giving it a nice heft that benefits handling and recoil. Other features include a beavertail grip with raised pad, 25 lines-per-inch checkering, and honeycombed-­dimpled grips. The frame’s weight and grip texture keep the handgun firmly planted in the hands. The flared magwell helps to make mag changes snappier, and its rounded rear doesn’t dig into the user’s side when carried on the hip.

Sitting atop the slide is a Heinie Ledge solid-­black serrated sight mounted to the IOS plate. The IOS plate slides onto the unique dovetail-milled slide. It is held in place by a retainer pin and set screw, which is easy to replace with a standard sight arrangement while still retaining zero if you decide to go back to the optic. On our test sample, the rear iron sight was swapped with a Trijicon RMR mounted on Nighthawk Custom’s RMR-compatible IOS plate. The RMR plate has a rear sight at the front of the plate, giving the shooter a back-­up sight option should the optic quit.

The upgrade included two, stainless-­steel, 8-­round 9mm magazines with a base plate. The magazines are designed with an integrated feed lip. The lip angles the bullet nose close to the barrel’s feed ramp, improving the pistol’s reliability.

The cost of the California Treasurer amounted to $5,917, not including sales tax or the optic. This price does include the cost of the T3, the cost of the Treasurer parts, the $599 EGI fee for the custom work and shipping, $120 for the ambidextrous safety, $350 IOS upgrade, and $149 for the RMR ISO plate. Although this package is pricey, it is on par with spec’ing similar custom 1911s. Since Nighthawk Custom performs custom work, the total cost only applies to the example reviewed by G&A. Call Nighthawk Custom for details on your build, and yours may be priced differently.

Worth it?

The quality of a Nighthawk Custom 1911 is more than superficial; it’s also about the feel of the fit. Nighthawk Custom starts by making all the parts in-house — with the exception of a few springs — and machining them oversized so they can be filed, blended and polished to fit with tight tolerances. One gunsmith does all the fitting, and his signature can be found on the build sheet, frame, slide, and barrel. The result is a handgun that feels like a steel extension of your hand, but the action works smoothly. There is no rattling, or play in the slide even as you retract and twist it. The slide even moves effortlessly when performing a two-­finger press check from the front of the slide. 

The Everlast Recoil System gets part credit here, too. Its resistance is consistent through the slide travel without ramping up heavily as its retracted. Barrel lock-up is secure, as evidenced when pressing the breech of the barrel through the ejection port; there was no wiggle, which aids precision. The fit of the grip safety was perfect, no side-­to-­side play in the slide, and the mainspring engaged immediately with slight pressure. Exterior sharp edges were eliminated, and the black nitride finish provides corrosion protection to the frame and slide.

At the Range

Spending three range days shooting 14 types of training and self-­defense ammo featuring a multitude of nose shapes, velocities, and bullet weights showed G&A’s staff that this handgun loves to run. It fired every load.

Muzzle rise was minimal, and follow-up shots were fast due to the guiderod and pistol weight helping the red dot settle quickly on target. The grips and frame checkering offered confident control without much effort. There were a couple of failure-­to-­feeds during testing, but caused by user error. Since the pistol was so easy to shoot, some staff started to relax their grip, failing to apply pressure to the grip safety. Once corrected, no issues were encountered for two more range days.

The Model 1911 trigger is often the standard for judging other handgun triggers. Nighthawk’s trigger work did not disappoint. Despite measuring 5 pounds, 3 ounces, it felt lighter due to how smoothly it released the hammer. By the end of G&A’s range tests, the pull weight was measured again and discovered to have improved to an average of 4 pounds, 11 ounces.

Five, five-­shot groups, featuring defensive ammunition, were shot at 25 yards while seated at a bench and resting on sandbags. The results were impressive: The average group size for most of the ammo measured 11/2-­inches or less. All but one load produced at least one group that measured less than 1 ­inch.

As a carry test, the Treasurer was holstered in BlackPoint’s Tactical Mini Wing IWB Holster on a Versacarry Classic Carry Belt. The belt is thick and holds heavy pistols without sagging. Carried for three days in California, this setup provided assured confidence. While there was some worry that the Railscales’ aggressive grips would feel rough against the skin, the handgun proved rather smooth and easy to carry. No one was uncomfortable.

Conclusion

Nighthawk Custom’s Treasurer performed even better than it looked. When compared to other California-compliant handguns, the pricey Treasurer is superior in accuracy, fit and finish. It’s more of an investment than an expense.

Nighthawk Custom Treasurer 9mm

• Type: Recoil operated, hammer fired, semiautomatic
• Cartridge: 9mm
• Capacity: 8+1 rds.
• Barrel: 3.8 in.
• Overall Length: 7.4 in.
• Height: 5.2 in.
• Width: 1.2 in.
• Weight: 2 lbs., 6 oz.
• Sights: 14K gold bead (front), Heinie Ledge, serrated notch (rear); IOS mounting system
• Finish: Nitride (slide, frame); TiN (barrel)
• Trigger: 4 lbs., 11 oz. (tested)
• Safety: Thumb lever, ambidextrous; grip lever
• MSRP: $5,917 (tested)
• Manufacturer: Nighthawk Custom, 870-268-4867, nighthawkcustom.com

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