The perfect 1911

[glockster157]

http://www.ar15.com/archive/topic.html?b=5&f=49&t=69570

 

I remember this Jeff cooper article from some years back. I traded into a Springfield Mil Spec sometimes back ..I have not bobbled the hammer yet but I intend to soon. I am always reminded of this article when I see suoer tricked out 1911's.

[Guest TresOsos]

I remember reading that when it was published, still makes a lot of sense today.

 

As for tricked out, I think one of the best fighting 1911s made today is the Les Baer TRS.

Pretty much everything you need and nothing you don't. The only complaint I have with

them out of the box is the grips are pretty much useless. Put on a pair of VZ slim lines and the

pistol feels good in the hand, handles and balances well and is extremely accurate and reliable.

[QuietDan]

I've got a Springfield Armory parkerized "Loaded" that meets the Cooper Criteria and it is a pleasure to shoot.

[gregintenn]

 Mr. Cooper had his version of the perfect 1911, just as most everyone else who's tinkered with them does. After several years of buying, selling, shooting, adding, subtracting, and modifying parts, I've found my perfect 1911 is one of the least expensive I've owned. It is a Rock Island Armory with an officer sized grip frame, and a 4" barrel. I added an Colt ambi safety, three dot sights, and a pair of Grashorn Elk Stag grips. I can't find anything else to do to it. It shoots and feels great, good trigger, and is dead reliable. Sometimes you get more than what you pay for.

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Edited August 9, 2013 by gregintenn

[Moped]

 Mr. Cooper had his version of the perfect 1911, just as most everyone else who's tinkered with them does. After several years of buying, selling, shooting, adding, subtracting, and modifying parts, I've found my perfect 1911 is one of the least expensive I've owned. It is a Rock Island Armory with an officer sized grip frame, and a 4" barrel. I added an Colt ambi safety, three dot sights, and a pair of Grashorn Elk Stag grips. I can't find anything else to do to it. It shoots and feels great, good trigger, and is dead reliable. Sometimes you get more than what you pay for.

                                         

                                      

 

That's a nice looking pistol right there!  I like the size too.  I have a "Loaded" edition Springfield in Stainless.  It's a great pistol, but no way would it conceal as well as that one right there!

[Spiffy]

I need a magwell and vs grips on my Kimber TLE and it's about perfect as I'll get.

[glockster157]

You have to admit. John Moses Browning didn't miss perfection by much except sights! We can argue all day long about modern updates but who wouldn't stake their lives on a reliable 1911 with decent sights, positive ejection and total reliability???

[Mykltn]

I've loved 1911's since I shot my first one in boot camp almost 30 years ago. I've owned, in order, a Springfield GI mil spec, Rock Island Compact, Para warthog, ATI Fx45, Colt officer series 80, Springfield GI micro compact, and finally the best 1911 I've ever owned or shot. My Colt new agent. No mods, no extras, just pure 1911 zen. It is IMHO the best evolution of the 1911 for every day carry. JMB would be proud.

[leroy]

I tend to like what we would call "plane jayne" government models myself.  I think its a "older generation" thing for some of us who remember when 45ACP actually meant 45 Automatic COLT pistol.  As others have opined, i like the looks and handling of a 45 that has the "old timey" look ,,,, round dust cover, spur hammer, low sights.... . 

 

We recently re-did a light weight commander (...colt of course...).  Lowered and flaired the ejection port, low adjustable nite sights (...old eyes...), ambidextrous safety (...im a lefty...), long trigger and a bit of trigger touch up... .   

 

I really like it; but i cant bring myself to carry it.   I keep the glocks handy.  They are excellent pistols; but are like a hammer or a handsaw.  The re-done colt commander is like a valued member of the family.  So the little sayin: ...." i show my colt to my friends and my glock to the heathen"... .

 

Remember, the colt government model wuz the only fitting replacement for the great single action army.  It wuz issued to the calvary for delivering firepower and mayhem on the gallop.  That alone is reason enough for every finished pistol man or woman to own one.  I say "...collect em all....".   I'm thinkin about pickin up an STI spartan myself.   Maybe i could bear to part with it.  I simply cant stand the thought of loosin a colt to a police locker for several years.

 

leroy

[Dolomite_supafly]

For my carry, yes everyday, gun I carry a full size 1911 that is all steel. It came with an extended thumb safety that I removed immediately and replaced with a standard small one. The reason is I have seen those extended ones get bumped off too easily without someone noticing. It has an extended slide release because my hands are smaller and I need to be able to reach it. I run a commander style hammer and a beavertail. I also have a fully adjustable trigger that has less than a 1/16th inch travel. The trigger pull is ~3.5 pounds and very crisp. I replaced the factory firing pin stop and the extractor with Ed Brown versions. The firing pin stop is square and not radiused. I do this on every single 1911 I buy, new or used even if they run fine. I run a 16 pound recoil spring and a 20 pound mainspring as well as a shockbuff. I replace the springs every 1,000-1,500 rounds ad the shockbuff if it looks worn. I also run a 4 finger sear spring rather than the traditional 3 finger, this helps tune individual parts within the gun without affecting others. And finally I added a Kart barrel bushing.

 

For sights they were 3 dot but I darkened the two rear dots and redrilled a center dot in the rear. I drilled out the white dot on the front. I then added a mixture of epoxy and glow in the dark powder to both the front and rear sights. The glow in the dark powder is brighter than any tritium sight. A 1 second blast from a flashlight will charge it and they remain brighter than any tritium for about 6 hours. And if it needs a recharge it just takes another 1 second blast of light. I used high quality glow in the dark powder, not the stuff you find in local stores. And when mixed in with two part epoxy it is impervious to any solvent you might use on your gun for cleaning. I have also used the same epoxy with titanium dioxide for white dots. Titanium dioxide is the whitest substance known to man. The cost of the glow in the dark powder and the epoxy is under $30 and you could probably do 100 guns with the amount you receive.

 

I have over 3,500 rounds through my 1911 so far and can't recall every having a single issue. I carry it every day and it looks like hell but it is reliable and accurate.

[SmokyBaer]

With a 16 pound recoil spring I bet that shokbuff does take a beating ever now and then.  I have one government model that I run a 16 pound spring on.  I really love how you can feel every movement of the firing cycle but I don't run the +P loads thru it.  Makes for a real snap on that light spring.  18s work for the others.  Oh, a 20 on the Commander. Perhaps I should try to lighten up on that one and see what she feels like with an 18. 

 

My Perfect 1911?

1. These fat hands and a high grip drive a beavertail safety as the "must-have" on my perfect 1911. 

2. A sweet 3.5-4 lb. trigger is also a major must for me.  The C&S trigger packs are drop-in and have all given great service. 

3. Mags... only Wilson, Baer and McCormick.  The others are maybes. 

 

Only took 35 years and a bunch of stupid tax to get those figured out.

[Fourtyfive]

I've loved 1911's since I shot my first one in boot camp almost 30 years ago. I've owned, in order, a Springfield GI mil spec, Rock Island Compact, Para warthog, ATI Fx45, Colt officer series 80, Springfield GI micro compact, and finally the best 1911 I've ever owned or shot. My Colt new agent. No mods, no extras, just pure 1911 zen. It is IMHO the best evolution of the 1911 for every day carry. JMB would be proud.

Is yours a trench sight version ? I love my Defender and Springer Micro but have not shot a trench sight pistol. Edited August 11, 2013 by Threeeighty

[Mykltn]

Is yours a trench sight version ? I love my Defender and Springer Micro but have not shot a trench sight pistol.

Mine is the trench sight. It draws easily from a super tuck or owb holster and is point and click. I tend to lean towards combat sights anyway and the trench is easy to a climate to. Edited August 26, 2013 by Mykltn

[willis68]

I have to say that my new SRP is the perfect 1911 for me, The Gold bead sight on the front I absolutely love.With the Gunners Grips it feels perfect in my hand and is more accurate than any hand gun I have ever shot.
I love the blacked out look and honestly I do not think I will ever part with this one, it is perfection to me

[tnhawk]

I prefer to keep my pistols simple, and similar from one model to another.

[jaysouth]

Here is my GSP that I bought at Gunsite in 2001. It is built on a Colt 1991.



Here is it is with the accessories. The mags were 8 round McCormacks with King followers. Interesting that they could have speced any magazine on the market and chose these and stamped the Gunsite logo on them.



This is the photo of the GSP in the GS catalog from 2002. The only difference that I can see between the catalog illustration and my gun is the shade of the grips.

Edited August 28, 2013 by jaysouth

[jaysouth]

Here is the 1911 that I carry on occasions when I carry a big gun. It is a Norenco done by a friend. The sights are Millette that appear to be speced by Col. Cooper. I had to stipple the front and rear strap. I used the AP core from a .50 cal. round. It took me several months. My friend tigged up the barrel lugs and then fitted them. He installed a new barrel bushing that is just barely finger tight.

The gun shoots far better than I can shoot it. It was parkerized and then Dura coated. The illumination for this photo was from a 400 watt work light. You can see how the finish ate the light.

Interesting how closely this gun resembles the one in the article by Cooper.