Thinking about a 1911

[church]

Springfield is a great way to go for your first 1911. They produce excellent firearms and have outstanding customer service, my first 1911 was a Springfield Loaded, It shot great, it was accurate and I never had a single issue from it. If you have the extra money, look at a Les Baer, Les baer custom is a complete custom pistol manufacturer, every part is fitted by hand. My second 1911 is a Baer and there is nothing about it i dont like. It is extremely accurate(Baer guarentees 3inch groups at 50yds), it functions well and I have never had any issues out of it. If the Les Baer is too much out of your price range, check out STI pistols. Sti makes semi custom pistols at a great price or a steep price. It just depends on what you like and can afford.

Check around, get a feel for some of the different manufacturers. At the end of the day, the firearm you're going to do the best shooting with is the one that you feel most confident with. If you're going for concealed carry, make sure you're comfortable carrying around the big hoss (government) of a 1911 frame. If its too much, look into a smaller (officer) sized frame. Consider all your options and do plenty of research before you buy. Make sure the 1911 you purchase is going to be able to perform against whatever you can throw at it. If you are stuck between a rock and hard place, ask us. I'm sure all the members here on ingo, myself included would be happy to lend whatever advice we can.

In the meantime, good hunting and be sure to take the time to drool at all the local gun shops.

 

[strokin7.3]

I've owned Rock island, Taurus, and Ruger 1911s and have been happy with all 3. There are so many choices of 1911s these days that its a hard decision to make. If I wasn't such a Ruger fan boy I probably would have spent the extra coin on a higher end model, but I love my Rugers and for the money they make a damn nice 1911

 

[rockhopper46038]

I have installed a couple and liked them very well. Still have one around here somewhere. I figured that since it's doesn't take any tuning it would be handy in case I had a problem on one of my 1911s. Install is a little tricky until you get the hang of it but I installed it and ran about 100 rounds through the pistol and it seemed very reliable.

[FONT=&quot]NRA Life member [/FONT][FONT=&quot]GSSF member[/FONT][FONT=&quot]
Gunsite graduate Certified Glock armorer[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]1911 Mechanic[/FONT]

Well if I decide to give one a go sometime, I may need to hit you up for some advice!

 

[mackwage]

I feel the need to add a few comments to narrow down this forum. I knew this thread would open a can of worms! :-P

1. I am NOT looking for a carry gun; I plan on keeping my Glock19 as my carry gun for now.

2. I agree with JetGirl's post that a lot of people are posting "you should get this" "go with this" without providing a lot of insight as to "why".

3. A lot of mentions of price.. alluding to my first post, please disregard price with the exception of the extremely high end 2-4k range.

I have referenced some of the links provided towards the beginning of the thread and am leaning towards Springfield, Sig or STI based on reviews and comments here. The only thing keeping me from STI at the moment is no shops anywhere around me deal in them and I have tried avoiding buying online and shipping to a dealer thus far. I am more of an instant gratification type person when it comes to guns.

So looking at Springfield and Sig. A lot of people seem to like Springfield and the name pops up a lot on other 1911 forums. Though the recommended 1911 by SA varies wildly. Sig seems to have a love it or hate it following.

So. More specific questions.

Why would I want to stick with an internal extractor as recommended by a poster?

Why should I get one that is unhorned?

Note that I am not particularly turned off by one that may be slightly more "complicated" to tune/maintain. That is how you learn and advance your gun skills anyhow!

 

[church]

Internal extractors can tuned to perfection and they are easy to clean. When field stripping a 1911 and you should every time you shoot one, the firing pin and extractor are both held in place by the firing pin stop. A dehorned pistol is a pistol that has had all of its sharp edges removed and depending on the smith or shop who does it the burs as well. It provides a rounded, smooth look.

 

[Corporal D]

Less maintenance and tuning for an internal extractor? That's funny.

External extractors require no tuning. Internals do. It's a skill to be able to properly tune an internal 1911 extractor for tension, proper firing pin stop/groover fitting to prevent clocking, and so on.

As a bit of a traditionalist, I like internal extractors myself, but there's a reason that every other semi-auto uses an external extractor with coil springs providing tension, instead of the extractor itself.

From Hilton Yam of 10-8

(read the whole thing)
10-8 Performance: External Extractors and 1911s

Guess I need to clarify... I didn't say external extractors required more tuning... the less tuning was the gun as a whole 5" vs 3". Either I said it wrong of you read it wrong. With timing needing to be more precise on a smaller stroke you have to make sure the entire gun is set to run correctly (extractor, recoil springs, ammo) whereas you get a liiiiittle more forgiveness on a full size.

BTW, Hilton and 10-8 have a lot of outstanding info. They sell a great armorers block as well, I'd highly suggest the OP spend some time on their site reading up.

Again, just my opinions... this is basically what I tell anyone that wants to dip their toes into the 1911 waters.

 

[Rob377]

Ahhh, now that makes more sense.

1911s should be 5" and that's that.

 

[mayor al]

I have currently , or have owned within this year the following 1911's
1. Colt Delta Elite 10mm
2. Dan Wesson Pointman Major
3. Kimber Custom
4. Springfield V-16 45 Super LongSlide
5. Springfield Loaded GI
6. Charles Daly
7. LLama I-X
8. Taurus 1911 SS
9. Regent 2000
10.Tilias 1000
11. Para Expert 45
12. Para 16-40 40c
13. Para 14-40 40c
14. Cimarron 1911 45
15. Colt/Walther 22LR-
16. Chipawa 1911-22

I have fired all of the above and found only one that did not function constantly to my satisfaction.
The ONE gun that jammed/ftf/fte/ and basically did not work for more than a couple of rounds without needing help was the LLAMA. It makes a nice decoration and will fire with care, but I would not rely on it for personal safety.

ALL of the others worked very well in a wide variety of shooting situations.

 

[Corporal D]

I had a Llama IX also... was ugly as heck and not very accurate, but always functioned properly. Got rid of it years ago. It's the only 1911 I've ever sold.

 

[Big Ram]

Sig 1911 tac ops or nightmare

 

[mfd111]

I have had good luck with the springfield armory 1911s

 

[MordecuS]

I have only fired three 1911's in my life. A Colt New Agent, a Kimber Ultra Carry and my own Taurus. I have loved all three but as a life long Taurus fan, when I purchased my own, I chose their offering (didnt hurt that they were quite a bit cheaper than most other models).

Buy what your budget will allow but know that even the cheaper models will more than likely serve you will for a lifetime of use. I have put close to 800 rounds through my own 1911 and I have never had a single issue with it.

 

[Marine1]

You cant go wrong with a colt

 

[mattritchie238]

As long as Jetgirl doesn't mention MY Super Carry Pro waiting patiently in the case to be picked up, anything she suggests is valuable advice!

 

[JetGirl]

I wouldn't want to make you cry...

 

[nra4ever]

How about a Springfield light weight champion operator. It's in the $850 range. Also saw a sig Sparta in the $1200 range. Real cool finish look at pics online.


Did you get anything yet? If so post some pics and price.

 

[rockhopper46038]

I feel the need to add a few comments to narrow down this forum. I knew this thread would open a can of worms! :-P

1. I am NOT looking for a carry gun; I plan on keeping my Glock19 as my carry gun for now.

2. I agree with JetGirl's post that a lot of people are posting "you should get this" "go with this" without providing a lot of insight as to "why".

3. A lot of mentions of price.. alluding to my first post, please disregard price with the exception of the extremely high end 2-4k range.

I have referenced some of the links provided towards the beginning of the thread and am leaning towards Springfield, Sig or STI based on reviews and comments here. The only thing keeping me from STI at the moment is no shops anywhere around me deal in them and I have tried avoiding buying online and shipping to a dealer thus far. I am more of an instant gratification type person when it comes to guns.

So looking at Springfield and Sig. A lot of people seem to like Springfield and the name pops up a lot on other 1911 forums. Though the recommended 1911 by SA varies wildly. Sig seems to have a love it or hate it following.

So. More specific questions.

Why would I want to stick with an internal extractor as recommended by a poster?

Why should I get one that is unhorned?

Note that I am not particularly turned off by one that may be slightly more "complicated" to tune/maintain. That is how you learn and advance your gun skills anyhow!

You're going to get lots of opinions, so here's mine...

The internal extractor is the classic design. It works very well, given a high quality part that is properly tempered, until it doesn't. Hell, depending on how many rounds you put through your pistols, you may never need to replace it. But if you do experience problems with your 1911, the internal extractor is high on the list of potential causes. Why stick with it? Well, it is certainly proven. When it fails it usually fails gradually (although not always) as it looses tension, and even in the field it can be rebent such that it will function for a time. Replacing it is not that big of an issue, when the time comes. And it is part of the iconic style of the 1911.

The external extractor is also proven on many, many firearms. The early attempts to adapt it to the 1911 were apparently problematic. My understanding is that the S&W "E" series has pretty much worked those issues out, and JetGirl apparently is happy with Kimber's solution. I don't have experience with either version, and the internal extractors in my 1911s have not failed me, so I'm inclined to stick with them.

By "unhorned" I think you mean "dehorned". Dehorning makes a pistol more suitable (and comfortable) for carrying as it removes all the little edges and points that may snag on clothing or poke you in uncomfortable places. It can be done conservatively or radically. Some pistols are dehorned so extremely that the edges look like those on a bar of soap. Personal preference reigns here - some dehorning is advised on a carry pistol (although most pistols are at least moderately dehorned as they come from the factory), but the degree to which you can take it varies widely. Not really critical on a range pistol, but again most pistols at least have the edges broken prior to finishing by the factory.

I've shot Kimbers, STIs, Springfields, RIAs, Colts and my Wilsons and I think they are all fine weapons. I haven't shot a SIG 1911, but I own several other somewhat older SIGs and I like them quite a lot. BTW, SIG makes both a "traditionally" profiled 1911, and a 1911 that follows the design lines of their classic "P" series. By forewarned that holsters are less prevalent (although certainly available) for the SIG "P series" profiled design. You do seem to get an awful lot of features for your money in the SIG 1911s.

 

[JMWetzel89]

I have had amazing success with my Springfield

 

[mackwage]

An update for all.

I have NOT made my purchase yet but based on all of the ones I have handled in the stores, I am leaning towards ones in the $800-1200 price range. These seem to have the price for features in my opinion.

I have narrowed it down to:

Springfield Range Officer
Springfield LW Champion Operator
Sig Sparta
Sig Nitron

Not saying I will 100% go with one of these, but I am leaning towards these.

I take forever to buy a gun.. I spend an awful lot of time reading up on their handling, maintenance, accessories/attachments/, reliability as well as going to the stores and handling them plus talking to the workers there.

 

[mackwage]

Ok I think I have ruled out the Range Officer because I do not care for the target sights on it. I would prefer sights with some form of dots. Wouldn't mind night sights either. I would prefer to buy a 1911 with those already on them.

I was zero'ing in on the Sig Nitron but I stumbled across this review:

Gun Review: SIG SAUER 1911 Nitron | The Truth About GunsThe Truth About Guns

Does anyone know anyone who has a Nitron? Did they have similar issues?