Higher End 1911s

[SG29736]

Many well made guns are made with cast frames and a lot use forged frames. I'm not sure that any good metal framed guns are made with MIM. RUGER does high level casting for themselves and others. Mark

[skyscraper]

Correct me if I'm wrong, but didn't Wilson Combat submit a firearm for the FBI testing and it failed? Hence the reason the SA Pro got chosen?

http://www.sightm1911.com/lib/history/fbi_1911.htm

In no way does this mean the 1911's from the other manufacturers are not great guns. As noted numerous times in this thread, people choose springfield pros because they are proven to be workhorses, and also for the history of usage in federal law enforcement. There have even been pros used overseas in the military. Its just a great all around 1911 and a steal for the price.

[farmerjoe]

http://www.jardinescustom.com

[skyscraper]

Many well made guns are made with cast frames and a lot use forged frames. I'm not sure that any good metal framed guns are made with MIM. RUGER does high level casting for themselves and others. Mark

MIM is used in the manufacturing of small parts, not entire frames.

[CaliforniaLiberal]

My Dad wants a nice traditional 1911 and wanted to know which companies to look at other than Baer. Roster isn't an issue.

He likes traditional, meaning no FS and no rail.

What other companies should I look at? I know Colt has its following, but is the quality there as compared to others?

So far, I can think of LB, EB, and DW. Any others?

I appreciate the help in advance.

Cabot was mentioned once already.

They are pretty high end. From $3000 to $10,000

It's worth it just to check out their web site for the gun porn. Manufacturing videos are something to watch too.

http://cabotgun.com/better-than-custom-1911-pistols/jones-1911-precision-pistol/

[Rhyyke]

As noted numerous times in this thread, people choose springfield pros because they are proven to be workhorses, and also for the history of usage in federal law enforcement. There have even been pros used overseas in the military. Its just a great all around 1911 and a steal for the price.

I will add onto this with something Hilton Yam wrote about the Pro. I'm on mobile now so I can't find the article, but he mentions in his assessment of duty 1911s that because of the FBI contract, the Pro is probably the single most widley and thoroughly deployed model of 1911 outside of the original A1 spec. This means that the all the quirks and issues are thoroughly documented, and its track record is proven and tested.

Doesn't necessarily make it the best, but suffice to say its a really really solid option.

[skyscraper]

I will add onto this with something Hilton Yam wrote about the Pro. I'm on mobile now so I can't find the article, but he mentions in his assessment of duty 1911s that because of the FBI contract, the Pro is probably the single most widley and thoroughly deployed model of 1911 outside of the original A1 spec. This means that the all the quirks and issues are thoroughly documented, and its track record is proven and tested.

Doesn't necessarily make it the best, but suffice to say its a really really solid option.

I took a 1911 class with Hilton Yam and Tim Lau. Great guys and an awesome class.

[Schultz28]

http://carolinaarmsgroup.com

[offrdmania]

If funds were no object, I would pick up a Valtro which was smithed by John Jardine. Ive met him a few times at his office, great guy. I bought a Valtro shotgun from him.

[SG29736]

Yes. They do use mim for smaller parts, although a S&W hammer isn't that small. They can make acceptable, good quality small parts. Apparently, the mim process does not hold up on bigger parts, at a cheaper cost, or I'm sure they would use min in them too. Mark

[Mr310]

I have to take the time to read through a lot of this in order to get a better picture of what I'm dealing with. From what I can tell though, he seems to like LB the most. I think it has something to do with the car aspect.

[xSlapshotx]

One downside of a SA Pro is about a 2 year wait.

[Litespeeds]

Just buy a Wilson Combat and be done with it. That is what I did and I am no longer lusting after any other 1911's. There is something about owning a Wilson Combat that can't be explained. If I had bought a Baer, Brown or SA Pro, I'd probably be still lusting after a WC.

I'm not saying WC is the best but for a semi-custom gun, it is very hard to beat for fit, finish, performance and pride of ownership.

[kamagong]

There is something about owning a Wilson Combat that can't be explained. If I had bought a Baer, Brown or SA Pro, I'd probably be still lusting after a WC.

Maybe, but there's a subjective element at play that can't be denied. People are drawn to specific makers, many times without being to articulate their reasons. It's often just a matter of feel. I myself am partial to the Springfield Custom Shop, finding them to offer the best balance between quality and value. Then there's the broad range of options they offer. Want a carbon steel Kart barrel on your gun? Not a problem. That's a non-starter with Wilson.

There's also a very vocal fanboy element with Wilson owners that I find very off putting. I remember reading a thread a couple of years ago by someone asking if owning a Wilson somehow conferred on him "elite" status. What's even funnier are those threads where a prospective owner asks which options he should choose for his new order. This on a $3500+ gun! You'd think that a person would know what he wants when dropping this kind of coin on a pistol.

[bountyhunter]

Many well made guns are made with cast frames and a lot use forged frames. I'm not sure that any good metal framed guns are made with MIM. RUGER does high level casting for themselves and others. Mark

It's true that there are some high quality frames made using the cast process but the frame itself doesn't suffer any significant problems from the reduced density (and associated strength) that comes using cast compared to tool steel. The frame by it's size has enough inherent strength.

In the case of small machined parts, especially ones that have thin sections under stress like extractors, disconnectors, safety levers, etc.... it is a legitimate issue and you do see these parts fail sometimes so the added strength is worth it in many people's opinion.