Chapter 2 review
This is a workhorse card, giving players a +2 +1 damage weapon at the reasonably low price of 3 resources. While the level 0 version already offers a +1 +1 damage boost, any additional combat boost you can get (on a card you want to be playing already) is worth consideration. Investigators with a stat of 4 and Guardian access can be transformed into 7 test value fighter by running this with Logan Hastings, and on standard difficulty that's usually enough to pass vs. 3 fight value enemies (-4 is typically the worst thing in the bag). Ignoring Retaliate is a little bit of icing on the cake - if you miss vs. a Retaliate enemy (usually things like bosses) then you aren't punished for it.
To understand where this fits in Chapter 2 a bit more then you need to look more into the context. The Machete - as the other main one-handed Guardian weapon - is no longer the powerhouse it was in Chapter 1, instead only allowing extra damage once per round and also being situational (you need to be engaged with just one enemy for the extra damage effect). All other Guardian weapons typically require two hands (Sledgehammer, Winchester Model 12, Thompson Submachine Gun), so while you can get more damage out of all of these they are more of a commitment. Notably, with both Sledgehammer and the Thompson Submachine Gun, some of their attacks do not receive a combat boost (the fight ability on the former, the fight ability on the latter).
In terms of where going one-handed is useful, you can play Machete to compliment you M1911 and so better conserve ammo. Additionally you can play an investigate asset, with even the humble Hand-Crank Flashlight appropriately serving this purpose on someone like Tommy. If you're talking about Joe, he has things like Magnifying Glass or Fingerprint Kit that you could be playing instead.
For firearm support in Chapter 2, the new Stock Ammo Reload is very valuable - with you potentially needing to only reload once over a scenario. There's also Right Tool for the Job and Protective Vest, both of which can tutor guns out of your deck and so make finding your upgraded M1911 more reliable. It's worth saying if taking both Stock Ammo Reload and upgraded M1911 that's 8 XP, certainly a good chunk of what a campaign would provide. Extended Barrel can also provide additional boosts (while providing comical mental images...).
Conclusions: Upgraded M1911 excels at transforming investigators into competent fighters, particularly if pairing to a further +1 boost like Logan Hastings. Most Guardians are likely to want to have a larger weapon in their hands however (Sledgehammer, Winchester Model 12) so perhaps the best use of the upgraded M1911 is to turn off-class investigators with Guardian access into damage dealers. Joe is one of the best examples of this, and can find assets like the upgraded M1911 more readily with his innate card draw.
