Starter build 1911

[aye_dre]

Just jailed a Taurus PT 1911 (.45) from a fellow calgunner yesterday and got it for pretty cheap. I know the majority of people out there hate on Taurus, but based on the reviews I read of the PT 1911 a lot of people like them.

So my question is, would it be worth with it to use this as a base build? This is my first 1911 in .45 (owned two 9mm 1911 in the past). If not, I could use it as a truck gun.

[gaberaynes]

Little bit of knowledge and some fine tuning any gun can be an exceptional shooter.

[buffybuster]

Not sure what you mean by a starter 1911 build? If the Taurus is a complete/functioning gun, then it's already built. Are you thinking of just keeping the slide and frame?

[MosinVirus]

What do you want to do with it?

I get you are thinking of customizing, but the question is how?

[aye_dre]

Not sure what you mean by a starter 1911 build? If the Taurus is a complete/functioning gun, then it's already built. Are you thinking of just keeping the slide and frame?

It's a complete gun, but my question was more would it be worth it to customize to the point where it won't be stock anymore. I know some guys says the lowest they would go in regards to building a custom 1911 is a Springfield, just wanted to see what the general opinion was on doing so on a Taurus.

[Z ME FLY]

I personally wouldn't spend the money on customizing the Taurus too much

[morrcarr67]

https://www.taurusarmed.net

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[rm1911]

[aye_dre]

It looks like the Taurus 1911 comes with all the essential upgrades over a GI model. It’s got the extended beaver tail and commander hammer and low pro Novak style sights. Honestly, a 1911 isn’t a complex piece of machinery. I have a few rock islands and they run great. No reason to do any upgrades. Anything I’d do would be to throw a lot of money in and get little improvement out. I also have a Springfield loaded and I love it. But for twice the price of a rock it isn’t twice the gun. A lot of the extra expense is fit and finish. But functioning and reliability, they’re neck and neck.

The one issue with 1911’s is feeding, and that’s usually magazine related. I wouldn’t spend any money on upgrades other than quality mags. Use the money on ammo.


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Thanks for the advice. Yeah I had some feeding problems with my 9mm 1911 and getting some Wilson combat mags resolved the issue(along with the ammo I was using). But your absolutely right it does come with a lot of the extra features already. I'll run it until I find anything I don't like and possibly make change from there.

[mtenenhaus]

I guess it's a matter of priorities, perspective, value and price.

If you're committed to the platform, i would make it work for you. For myself it would be making sure i've optimized sights, trigger, grip and reliability.

Were i hoping to optimize aesthetics and overall fit and finish, I'd likely choose a different platform. Many custom pistolsmiths seem to prefer Colt and Springfield for this application. I would imagine that would be as a result of dimensional accuracy and overall product quality.

[Lead Waster]

If you don’t like the sights, then change them. Otherwise forget about any “mods” and go shoot it. Oh put punisher grips on it if you must, but just shoot it and revisit your desire for mods later after you gets some rounds down the pipe. I mean ... what mods were you planning to make? It’s a gun and it shoots.

[aye_dre]

I guess it's a matter of priorities, perspective, value and price.

If you're committed to the platform, i would make it work for you. For myself it would be making sure i've optimized sights, trigger, grip and reliability.

Were i hoping to optimize aesthetics and overall fit and finish, I'd likely choose a different platform. Many custom pistolsmiths seem to prefer Colt and Springfield for this application. I would imagine that would be as a result of dimensional accuracy and overall product quality.

Good point, I can't say I would be committed to the platform. The PT 1911 was a great deal and is the reason I pulled the trigger. My logic about possibly upgrading the stock parts is I am already ahead in terms of the cash I saved. I couldn't find any threads of people upgrading this model so was curious if it was even worth it

Oh put punisher grips on it if you must,

[IVC]

You won't know until you get the gun.

The "hate" you talk about is not because of Taurus guns being in some way fundamentally flawed, but because Taurus has had quite a few issues with QC and producing sub-par guns.

It comes down to the specific gun you get. If it's "close enough" in tolerances, you can build upon it. Otherwise, you'll have a gunsmith have to re-fit the parts, which is the most expensive part of custom work.

[slixx1320]

I have a RIA TAC ultra and I know if I was to ask your question, I'd get the same response. I MOD my gun because it's mine and I could, to me, it doesn't matter if no one else likes it, at the end of the day, all it matters is if I like it.

In the near future, I plan to get a RIA A2 and mod that into a 6" then get it hard chromed. Might even convert it to a 9mm, not sure of caliber yet.

Honestly, it's your gun, mod it however you like it. Most will tell you not to spend the $$$ on upgrades and to spend on ammo and range time. Best of luck OP.

[IVC]

Honestly, it's your gun, mod it however you like it. Most will tell you not to spend the $$$ on upgrades and to spend on ammo and range time.

Clearly you can mod it any way you want. The question is whether it will cost much more than if you used a different starting point.