S&W 1911

[WINGEDSWORD]

Has anyone had extensive experience with Smith & Wesson's 1911? I will be recieving a Company longevity present, soon and Have been contemplating
another 1911 I have 4 Colts, at present and would like to try the Smith.
Smith is running a promotion, that gives a DeSantis holster and mag pouch, free, with the purchase of a new Smith 1911. I saw 2 on the website, that I really like, so now seems to be the tme to buy!

[eckerph]

I don't have extensive experience but a guy i use too BS with at the range had one and i didn't care too much for it, better off with a Kimber. Worst case scenario you don't like it you can sell it or trade it.

[rorschach]

I like it. I like it a lot. But I still like my Kimbers and Springers more.

I used to shoot IDPA matches with it, my only complaint was when I got it, the trigger stop adjustment screw was installed in the trigger backwards- I had to take the whole thing apart and remove the trigger to get the screw out and put it in the right way. Dont know if the new batches are like this or not-mine is an older stainless model with a high 3 digit serial.

Some don't like the external extractor, after 3500 or so rounds, I havent had any problems. I wasnt too big on the supplied Hogue grips, which were promptly replaced with Hogue finger groove rubber grips.

[c good]

I don't think you can go wrong with the S&W 1911 in any of it's models. It's been on my short list for years now but I get to shoot one everytime I go to the range as my shooting buddy has one. He like to shoot my revolvers, I like his 1911 so we trade off. I can tell you it's been 100% reliable. It's super accurate, makes me look like I know how to shoot. HTH c good

[stevie]

I've got about 700 rounds through a commander, no problems.

[captain91]

To me the S&W has a tighter action than a Kimber but then thats just me I prefer the Smith

[WINGEDSWORD]

S&W 1911

Thank you for the replies. They did help. As to the one person who suggested
that I get a Kimber, I don't want a Kimber! For reliability, my Colts have never
hung up on me And that is still my defense option. The Smith will just be for fun,though I've never had a problem with any Smith I've owned. Also your knowlege was second hand. Not what I requested. The one I think I'll be going after, Is either polished stainless or Nickel, full size, no forward serrations, with blue accents. Looks great. Black pearl grips.

[supersonic]

2000 rds. / ZERO malfunctions / UNbelievable price / model in picture comes stock as you see it in image (!) / deadly accurate / my favorite handgun (besides my G20) / go get one if you have the opportunity:

http://www.smith-wesson.com/wcsstore/SmWesson/upload/images/dealer/pistol/MSW1911_SW108295%20(A).jpg

[oghl888]

I have 4 SW1911's

I have 4 and they've all performed very well for me.

The stainless base model has a S&W factory trigger job on it. I can shoot it better than the Baer TRS I've compared it against. The TRS was well used, with 40-50k rounds, and was very smooth compared to new Baers. But the S&W still performed better in rapid fire for me.

The Scandium commander model also has the factory trigger job done, but it's still noticeably heavier, probably 5.5 lbs or so. It also shoots very well.

The performance center models I have are simply superb. I can usually put 4-5 rounds in a single hole that's only slightly larger than a single shot hole. Once I put all 8 rounds from a mag into a hole so small, that the guy next lane thought I missed 7 out of 8 shots.


I shoot the stainless base model the most, and generally treat it roughly to see how far I can push it. The frame/slide rails are starting to gall a little bit, as could happen with stainless steel. Using grease or moly seems to have stopped the galling. Putting in more oil every 200 rounds would probably have prevented it in the first place. There are also specific lube out there for this purpose (Golden is one of them, specifically says on the package "stops stainless galling"). Not a big concern for me because I can't see it becoming an issue besides cosmetic.


I would also recommend checking the 1911 forum and the S&W forum. There are a lot of people sharing their experiences on S&W 1911s there.

[BillCA]

I don't have "extensive" experience with one, but I do have an S&W 1911Sc - an alloy Commander sized specimen. With ball ammo and Federal 230-gr Hydrashoks it's 100% dead nuts reliable and accurate. This particular pistol does not like to feed the Speer Gold Dots but finds the Remington Golden Sabers acceptable.

The light weight does result in a noticeable recoil increase, but it isn't overwhelming. It's a joy to carry due to the reduced weight and it will run all day long on ammo it likes.

[1911 in 916]

This post interests me. I have two Smiths. A government and a commander, both has been sent back to Smith for extractor issues. Fixed under warranty but I still lost out on shipping both times. I tried to break in both guns to 1000 rounds but kept getting stove pipes and FTFs. After sending then back, they work fine now. Maybe they got a bad batch of extractors. It seemed like a very common problem on the 1911forum.

[oghl888]

This post interests me. I have two Smiths. A government and a commander, both has been sent back to Smith for extractor issues. Fixed under warranty but I still lost out on shipping both times. I tried to break in both guns to 1000 rounds but kept getting stove pipes and FTFs. After sending then back, they work fine now. Maybe they got a bad batch of extractors. It seemed like a very common problem on the 1911forum.

S&W typically pays for shipping, both ways, if the gun has any problems at all.