Your favorite 1911

[charlessummers]

I'm wanting a full size 1911, in .45 acp and there are MANY choices!

If you were in the marlet to buy one, what would you choose and why? I'm personally leaning toward either the Ruger or the Remington. Ruger, because I like Ruger for their reliability, and Remington because I've actually held it and, well... that's all it took. I know I need to go out there are see which one I like and hold and shoot as many as I can, but like I said... there are many choices. I'd just like to get a concensus as to what you like so I can narrow them down a little.

Uses would be of course, shooting outside, in the range, and whatever. I'm not planning on carrying it right now, as I've got more than a few carry weapons.

Thanks

Charles

[dlmeadows]

I have never had the chance to shoot the Ruger or Remington, although the Ruger would be my pick of the two. If I was going to buy another 45 it would either be another Kimber stainless target II, that's what I carry and shoot IDPA with, or the cheaper route would be a STI Spartan

[AU_88]

I have a friend with an SR1911 and it is great. Feels great and shoots great. As far as Remington, I'm not a big fan of the brand anymore. A few years ago I had a couple bad guns, sent one back and it was still not functioning properly when it returned. I lost my faith in them...

[DaveTN]

If you were in the marlet to buy one, what would you choose and why?

First and foremost it must be American Made.

Since its main application will be a target pistol that I will rarely carry, it needs to be extremely accurate.

Must be .45ACP

Must be 5â€

It needs to be stainless steel or steel, no plastic, aluminum, scandium, or unknownium. (Stainless for me)

It needs to be well made (fit & finish) and be reliable, no MIM.

Must be a standard 1911 or (although I hate to use the term), Mil-Spec. No odd ball stuff, double stacks, odd ball frames, etc.

I have owned many 1911’s. I always was partial to Kimber; they are great weapons. But when Smith & Wesson came out with the SW1911 line; I had to give them a try. After I bought my SW1911 Target I sold my Kimber. I could not tell any real difference in the quality or accuracy, both are great, but since I only keep one 1911 around anymore, I kept the Smith & Wesson. It was stainless and I didn’t like the finish on the Kimber TLE Custom II.

In the spirit of full discloser, in over 40 years of shooting and carrying duty weapons I have owned more Smith & Wesson’s than I can count. I have had some problems and S&W has promptly taken care of them. My 1911 was the first gun I had to send in to the factory; the thumb safety failed and the weapon fired while I was showing my BIL how 1911 safety’s work. I was at the range and the round went down range with no problem, but it was a catastrophic failure and the gun would no longer work. I called S&W and they sent me a shipping label and it was fixed. They said they replaced the thumb safety.

I am a Toolmaker familiar with MIM and I am not a fan of it in guns for this very reason. The thumb safety is MIM and that is the way they retuned it. I wrote to them and told them I did not feel comfortable carrying this gun the way it is and requested they put a stainless thumb safety in. They told me the safety did not break; that it failed because it was not fitted properly. They told me they don’t have stainless safeties and that I would need to take the gun to a gunsmith for an aftermarket safety. First time S&W told me "no" or let me down in 40 years. I still think they make the best guns on earth and I know that all manufacturers are cutting costs in any way they can, and I know many of the top manufactures and using MIM, but I hope they fix this problem; it’s a safety issue. It’s a $1000 gun they don’t need to use MIM.

I can get by without carrying it, so I really haven’t wanted to spend the money to have it fixed.

So what would I buy now? Kimber, if they don’t use MIM, but I think they do. Or I would buy another S&W and see if I can buy a stainless safety and have the factory fit it.

Edited September 26, 2012 by DaveTN

[McAllyn]

I've had Springfield Armory, Colt, Kimber, and STI. My STI's are the only ones who've made the cut. Not that any of the others were bad, I just like the fit on my STI's better. Trojan if you want an all steel gun made in the US for right at $1000, or Spartan if you want an economical entry level pistol for right at $700.

Mac

[nightrunner]

Must have an internal extractor. Basically that means no smith and wesson or sig 1911s

[Motasyco]

Dan Wesson

[mikegideon]

A 1911 is a weird bird. A lot of companies make them, but none actually designed the gun. So, the classic "Ruger reliability" may not apply. Ruger's great customer service certainly does. The design almost requires hand fitting of some parts, so it can come down to the <guy> that put them together. It's why you can spend a ridiculous amount of money on one.

I own a couple of cheapies. One of them rquired a significant amount a tuning by a local 1911 wizard.

If I was going to buy a moderately priced American 5" gun, and rely on their customer service, I would probably pick the Ruger. I'm sure the S&W is ok too, since their customer service is second to none. S&W doesn't use the standard extractor. I'm not sure how that impacts other parts on the gun.

[mikegideon]

Must have an internal extractor. Basically that means no smith and wesson or sig 1911s

I prefer that. It's also the area that requires hand fitting by somebody.

[hipower]

Not saying it's better than the other brands, because in most cases, what we like is so much an individual case of likes and dislikes; but have you tried shooting a Sig 1911? I have and RCS, a Platinum Elite, and a Tacops. All are extremely easy to shoot, accurate, and have run without problems for me. But...YMMV.

[mikegideon]

I've seen a Sig 1911. Very nice stuff. The modified extractor is probably more reliable too from a manufacturer's perspective. Me... I'm kind of a purist when it comes to replacing one of JMB's leaf springs.

[sigmtnman]

Dan Wesson

Second that.

[Mykltn]

I have owned a Colt commander, RIA compact, Para Warthog, ATI Titan, Springfield Micro GI and fullsize GI. The Springfields have been ther most reliable and accurate with the RIA coming in second. Based on my experiences the SA and RIA are the best bang for the buck. The money you save can then be spent on customizing them to fit your needs. Good luck.

[Lumber_Jack]

I've had Kimber and Springfield TRP. The TRP is an excellent pistol, but retails is $1300-1400. I you want to spend that much it's a great pistol.

I bought the Kimber used for $750. It was an Eclipse Pro II. It was a great shooter and if I was buying another Kimber that'd be the one.

Of your choices I'd choose the Ruger, because of customer service.

Some others to look at

Springfield Loaded or Range Officer

Kimber Stainless models

I like S&W and Sig 1911s but just can't get past the external extractor to buy one.

[Jonnin]

I think the whole MIM thing is blown out of perspective. Almost every 1911 manufacturer will send you a new part if something breaks, which can happen but is also rare enough to not worry about it. The internet 1911 people spend way too much time worrying about how a part was made and not enough time shooting.

Let me say this: I think kimbers are overpriced and that you are paying for their external look (which is very attractive) and brand name recognition. I also think they are fine guns; I have shot 5 or 6 of them and they all felt good, and they have the BEST out of the box trigger in the price range that I know of. They seem to also be quite accurate out of the box, but that is subjective and I only tested them at close ranges (under 25 yards).

That said, I did not buy a kimber. I have a para ssp and my wife has a colt gold trophy or gold cup or something like that with a lightweight frame. Both have been excellent. The para mags had to be thrown away, they were horrible but the gun is good. I broke the para's unbreakable extra thick and probably MIM extractor, and they mailed me a new one overnight, which has lasted so far (over 1k rounds).

I have shot the ruger and it is very nice, with a reasonable price tag. It went bang every time, felt great, was ruger made (felt well made, but again, this is subjective). It was accurate, again at close ranges. Trigger was typical, not bad but not outstanding either.

[mikegideon]

Not near as much question about who makes the best mags. Wilson Combat 47 series for me.

[Lumber_Jack]

Not near as much question about who makes the best mags. Wilson Combat 47 series for me.

Without a doubt

[hipower]

Another vote for Wilson 47D mags!

[Caster]

My favorite 1911 was the last one I sold. I loved seeing it go.

[quietguy]

I have had a number of 1911s over the years, in a number of different variants. Personally, the Smith & Wesson SW1911PD and Springfield Range Officer are my favorites, when I look at all factors. Both are extremely well put together and utterly reliable, and relatively inexpensive.

Not near as much question about who makes the best mags. Wilson Combat 47 series for me.

Can't go wrong here. I have also had good luck with Chip McCormick mags, but WC is tops.

[quietguy]

My favorite 1911 was the last one I sold. I loved seeing it go.

I do consider your aversion to the 1911 a character flaw.

[Guest twpayne75]

I have one 1911. A Springfield TRP. It's a great gun, although I never shoot it.

There are many good 1911s. Selection is dictated buy price. Only basic gun I know that the price range runs from $500 to many thousands.

My advise is whatever you buy, be sure the frontstrap is checkered. If you never felt one that way then you will not miss it. Once you try it, everything else sucks. I bought a Colt defender awhile back. Changed out the Hogues with some hardwood. As soon as I did I hated it. I checked on getting it checkered. Believe me, it's a lot cheaper to buy one with it already done.

I have owned STI, Colt, Kimber, Springfield, and Wilson Combat. All of them worked. I'm just not a 1911 guy. I like my handguns to carry more than 8 rounds and weigh less than 3 lbs. I felt the TRP was a step above them all except the Wilson, but didn't feel it was enough better to justify the cost. I think the TRP is the biggest bargain in it's class. I think STI makes a great 1911, but they are sometimes hard to get.

Having said all that I think if I were to buy another 1911 now, it would be a Dan Wesson. I think they are a good looking, clean 1911.

[Caster]

I do consider your aversion to the 1911 a character flaw.

Yeah but it's down on the list. I got worse than that, we've met, you should know that

[TGO David]

My Wilson Combat Professional Bobtail (Commander size) is by far my favorite which is why I still have it. The one I sold that I wish I hadn't is my Kimber Warrior that I had Jeff Meister @ Hero Gear work over for me. MacGyver owns it now and if he's not careful I'll steal it away from him again some day.

I'm thinking about building a new one off of a Springfield soon. Probably start with the Marine Corps Operator and go from there.

[quietguy]

Yeah but it's down on the list. I got worse than that, we've met, you should know that

Would that be jacked-up AR uppers?