1911 thoughts

[accel]

I recently bought Colt 1911 Commander 45, which looks like pretty basic mil spec gun. I liked it a lot compared to 9mm gun I also have, mostly because of how reliable it is.

So I got this feel that one 1911 is not enough. 1911 commander is the only colt on the roster right now, so choosing and buying it was a no brainer. But for the second one I'm in doubts, so will need your advice.

I do not care much about bells and whistles, like grips and most of other appearance, feel and shiny items. Mil Spec type of a gun is good enough for me. But I care about reliability, durability and accuracy.

My first thought was just to get Springfield Armory Mil Spec Full Size and call it a day, but unfortunately I got in internet gun reviews and all that staff and learned that there are different approaches to 1911 gun manufacturing like, for instance SA Professionals are custom built - meaning that their parts are manually designed and paired. SA TRP models also get a lot of attention and can be called custom built pistols. So, I'm not sure how SA Mil Spec guns are built... most likely no one tries to match their components and also their barrels are two piece...

But then I question myself - how important this custom built is? Obviously custom built gun would shoot accurately right out of the box compared to the Mil Spec. This is probably very important for a service type of a gun. Service gun should be good right from the start, last several years and then be replaced with the new one.

But for a home protection\shooting range type of a gun it might be less important. As time goes both guns would have some wear and tear including custom matched surfaces, which would make custom build gun a little more relaxed and approach the mil spec in terms of accuracy.

These are just my thoughts while I am on the fence between buying SA Mil Spec or spending more on some sort of a "custom built" firearm.

[bisonthecruiser]

Just get a kimber. Should be sufficient, and as far as I'm aware, they are entirely made domestically.

[wamphyri13]

Have no fear or doubts about the SA Mil-Spec. They are good to go right out of the box. If you should get one that isn't, Springfield's customer service is top notch. I have several Springfields, (as well as many other brands) and have never had any issue with any of them. I even used a Mil-Spec as a base gun to send to Chuck Rogers. Another plus is now all Springfield 1911s are finished here in the states. I would readily buy another SA without hesitation if I could find one that I don't/haven't have/had like a G.I. or a Range Officer, etc.
Ryan

[Seaweed02]

Springfield

I have a Springfield Armory 1911 and it is good to go. I love it, and so does my son. Very nice trigger, accurate and reliable. I also have Kimbers and they are good pistols as well. But the Rock Island Armory is a great gun for just plain mil spec, and it is also accurate, reliable, good trigger, and dirt cheap.

[davidreg12]

Get a Rock Island Armory 1911 Mil Spec or a Kimber.


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[Chapped Hide]

Springfield Mil-Spec, Loaded or TRP depending on how much you want to spend.

[skyungjae]

I'd get a Loaded at the very least. They come with modern sight cuts.

[utc]

Springfield Armory GTG. just base your purchase on budget, and enjoy. My brother has 2, a Loaded, and a MC Operator, and both have been flawless over several thousand rounds.

[trigger945]

Mil Spec is good to go out of the box. Its inherent accuracy will be good enough that maybe 95%+ of shooters will never be able to outshoot it.

One consideration is its features. If you are really fine with the GI beavertail safety, thumb safety and sights, and the arched MSH, then you're fine. Otherwise, those are parts that you may need to replce to suit your preference.

Good luck!

[BarrettM99]

Short term reliability is great. But if you're planning on taking a two or three day class at 8 hrs a day, you don't want the 1911. Very expensive custom 1911s maybe make it through. Personally, every firearm class I've taken, the guys with the 1911s end up with some kind of problem or another and end up shooting a different pistol on the subsequent days.

But if you're just going to the range, 1911s are g2g. For a good basic 1911 no-frills, go with the rock island GI. Fantastic trigger, loose tolerances so it's reliable, and a nice pistol overall. Mine came from the factory with a 4lb trigger. Very crisp too. The SA loaded model is great. There is an all American version with the NMxxxx serial number. NM means American made. The others are made outside the US. I lucked out and got one with the NM serial number. It has been reliable 100%. But I only use it for the range.

[j-shot]

+1 on kimber

consider the 10mm

Just get a kimber. Should be sufficient, and as far as I'm aware, they are entirely made domestically.

Get a Rock Island Armory 1911 Mil Spec or a Kimber.

[rdtompki]

Short term reliability is great. But if you're planning on taking a two or three day class at 8 hrs a day, you don't want the 1911. Very expensive custom 1911s maybe make it through. Personally, every firearm class I've taken, the guys with the 1911s end up with some kind of problem or another and end up shooting a different pistol on the subsequent days......

I don't doubt that this has been your experience, but these sound like poorly cared-for guns. Depending on ammo you might not be able to run 1000 rounds through a 1911 without seeing some drag on the slide: lube is your friend. Maybe these guns had seen some less than quality 'smithing? My wife and I shoot 9mm 1911s in competition. While 9mm isn't a "real" 1911, we've had 1 hardware failure in 50K rounds, a firing pin stop. Guns are basically stock SA with only the sights and thumb safety changed out (not counting the MSH to get rid of the ILS).

Extractors can get soft, recoil springs wear out, etc., but the main rotating and sliding parts can last a long, long time with just regular maintenance and sometimes the aforementioned squirt of lube during an especially long session.

[Lead Waster]

Springfield has (I'm told) excellent Customer Service.

So what I'd do is, buy a SA gun and some magazines of various brands. Find a good combo and buy more of those mags. Then go and shoot the crap out of it, IF something is wrong, call SA and tell them, they'll get it working if it's not a magazine issue. Then "prove" the gun with a crapton of rounds. Then it's up to you if that many rounds proves it's reliability.

[timbo399]

I own a SW1911, SA TRP and Wilson Combat CQB- love them all and none have ever given me one issue out of the box, no mods.

When my father decided to get a handgun and shotgun for HD after a number of burglaries in their neighborhood about 5 yrs ago, I told him to keep it simple and just get a Glock 17/19. Funny cause I don't shoot Glocks well (love my S&W M&Ps) but figured for one dedicated HD gun he should go with Glock-

He came home w a SA MilSpec because that's what he used in the Army 50 years ago. At first, even though none of my 1911's had ever given me one issue, I was a bit worried about HP's cycling, etc for him- well 15 range trips and 3 classes later that MilSpec has run flawless with all types of ammo and actually the trigger and the safety click are crisper than my SA TRP!!

Love his MilSpec and can't go wrong with SA customer service. If just looking for another 1911 and don't want to spend too much cash SA MilSpec is a great 1911.

[accel]

Short term reliability is great. But if you're planning on taking a two or three day class at 8 hrs a day, you don't want the 1911. Very expensive custom 1911s maybe make it through. Personally, every firearm class I've taken, the guys with the 1911s end up with some kind of problem or another and end up shooting a different pistol on the subsequent days.

My personal experience so far is that my 1911 Colt shot ~1000 rounds in about 3 range sessions so far with no single failure... My other non 1911 9mm gun that people generally prize on forums is on its second roundtrip to manufacturer fith FTFs that became annoyingly frequent... So, go figure...