springfield's G.I.45

[rmanaseri]

my dad has been looking for a 1911 and came across springfields gi45. has anybody handled this sidearm? im curious as to the quality and reliability. im not too concerned as ive owned sa's xd40 and really liked it. he is looking for a replacement of what he was issued in the military. any opinions would be greatly appreciated.

[23 Blast]

I had one and sold it. I didn't like the utilitarian, parkerized finish, nor the nearly nonexistent sights. I'm also not a fan of arched mainspring housings and short triggers. I prefer flat MSH's and longer triggers. My particular gun also seemed to have feeding problems that my other 1911s never had.

Still, I liked it's bone-stock simplicity and that it was a faithful recreation of what the troops carried in the field. If that's what you're after for your dad, then by all means, it's a good choice. However, if I could do it over again, I would buy the Springfield Mil-Spec. I like how that gun still mostly adheres to the simple, no front serrations look of the original, but has minor improvements like the sights and a bigger ejection port. Just mi dos centavos.

[Cokebottle]

The GI is relatively faithful to the original 1911A1
In the low-end Springfields, personally, I'd move up to the MilSpec, if only for the enlarged and tapered ejection port and much improved sights, and it's probably more faithful to what he was issued depending on how long ago he served.

Also don't overlook Rock Island Armory.

[vta]

i have owned 2 SA GIs. Both were great shooting and reliable pistols. they are very faithful representations of the vietnam era pistols from what I have heard. short trigger, arch mainspring, low profile sights, etc. only thing new is the locking mechanism on the mainspring housing which you can easily swap out if you dont like it. I am on my third springfield 1911 and just took the new one out yesterday for the first time. 100 rounds of flawless performance so far on the new one.

[xbimmers]

These are made in Brazil.....I would just get a Rock Island that is made in the Philippines.....at least they were an allie during the WWII....

my dad has been looking for a 1911 and came across springfields gi45. has anybody handled this sidearm? im curious as to the quality and reliability. im not too concerned as ive owned sa's xd40 and really liked it. he is looking for a replacement of what he was issued in the military. any opinions would be greatly appreciated.

[NRAhighpowershooter]

at least they were an allie during the WWII....

what the heck does that got to do with this discussion???

[Cokebottle]

what the heck does that got to do with this discussion???

If he's a WWII vet, it might mean something to him.

[xibunkrlilkidsx]

I love my Rock Island Armory 1911.

[Harley]

springfield's G.I.45

Great gun IMHO, love my G.I. 45 stainless! The looks and feel of it is whats real appealing to me.

[cmaher55]

I have the bare bones mil spec SA GI 45 and I love it....! Absolutely works everytime with CCI blazer FMJ. I wanted a GI 45 for everday shooting and could not see shooting a real WW2 handgun all the time. If I buy one of those I'll buy it for mainly collector purposes. The GI SA 45 is a great everyday gun. If you run out of bullets you can just throw the thing at them and it will do some damage....! Regards

[Army GI]

what the heck does that got to do with this discussion???

I agree. If it matters to him that much, why not just go with an American made 1911?

Answer: because it doesn't matter.

[w55]

I love mine. Shoots whatever i feed it. The sights arent the best but its fine for just having fun at the range.

[L4D]

I love mine, its been out with me every time i hit up the range or BLM.
only 2 FTE's in its lifetime using some ****tie reloads. but it shoots everything else just fine including +P loads (i do have a 17# spring in it but it shot just fine with 16# too)

[rp55]

If he is looking to duplicate the "look and feel" of a GI M1911A1, as I was, both the SA and the RIA are great with little if any detectable difference between them save the grips. I bought the RIA solely because it was on sale for about $85 less than the SA. I also thought the park job on the RIA was closer to what I remembered but it was not a big difference and I bought on price. I am completely satisfied with it and the only change I made was to put on Pachmayr American Legend grips with the wood panel. They are a superb addition to a great gun.

[Cokebottle]

I made was to put on Pachmayr American Legend grips with the wood panel. They are a superb addition to a great gun.

Those are beautiful grips!

I've always liked Pachmayr grips, but a 1911, especially park'd, just screams for wood.
That is a GREAT compromise and looks fantastic.