School me on 1911's

[BRANDON7766]

So ive been wanting a new nightstand gun in .45 and that search has led me to 1911's. I know a good amount about handguns but 1911's seem like a completely different animal. I know the most about AR's and love them, I am thinking I would feel the same about 1911's once my knowledge is up to par. Using Nighthawk as an example, can someone explain to me a few of their models, their differences and which one they would choose?

https://Www.nighthawktactical.com

[Synergy]

Nighthawk is a top shelf custom 1911, one thing to find out is which models are on the roster, unless you want to do a SSE (single shot exemption).

I personally would recommend a RIA or Springfield to learn the 1911 platform on. Get familiar with parts and disassembly. Find out what you want or need in a 1911 and then spend the coin on a high end custom like Nighthawk, Wilson or Baer. Then I would not use it as a nightstand gun. If you have to ever use it, I would be worried about the police taking it as evidence after a shooting. I keep my $375 dollar RIA as my nightstand gun. I am more than accurate with it, for the distances inside my home.

Last thing you want to do to a 3K gun is mess up on the insertion of the slide stop and get an idiot mark!

[chiselchst]

Using Nighthawk as an example, can someone explain to me a few of their models, their differences and which one they would choose?

Personally, I would start with an entry level 1911. After many hundreds of rounds down the tube, and being more fimiliar with that platform, I FEEL you'd be in a MUCH better position to determine exactly what mods/features you'd desire. And what builder you might prefer...

Perhaps starting with a SA LOaded, or similiarly priced 1911 might prove beneficial?

I'd also toss out that you consider a Dan Wesson. A SS Valor can be had (via SSE) for less than $1,500, and is a great value.

My opinion, worth what , paid, blah blah...

[Buddhabelly]

[QUOTE=Synergy;7864648]Nighthawk is a top shelf custom 1911, one thing to find out is which models are on the roster, unless you want to do a SSE (single shot exemption).

I personally would recommend a RIA or Springfield to learn the 1911 platform on. Get familiar with parts and disassembly. Find out what you want or need in a 1911 and then spend the coin on a high end custom like Nighthawk, Wilson or Baer. Then I would not use it as a nightstand gun. If you have to ever use it, I would be worried about the police taking it as evidence after a shooting. I keep my $375 dollar RIA as my nightstand gun. I am more than accurate with it, for the distances inside my home.

Last thing you want to do is mess on the insertion of the slide stop and get an idiot mark on a $3k gun!


Actually NHC puts a notch into their slide stop to completely eliminate the potential of an idiot scratch.

One of the many finer points of a $3K gun.

[BoJackUSMC]

You should buy Springfield Armory Loaded, S&W 1911, or Sig 1911 because you can buy one for under $1000. Also, they all have lifetime warranty and reliable at the same time.
I am very happy with my Springfield 1911 Loaded 9mm and I am planning to buy another Loaded, but 45ACP this time.
However, if you can afford to buy $3000 1911 then go for it. As for me, I cannot afford to spend that much money on 1911 right now.

[puRe59]

My first handgun was a Springfield 1911 Loaded in 9mm. I decided on that because of the lifetime warranty and the cheaper cost in ammo (9mm vs. 45acp). It was a nice gun! I ended up keeping it for only a few months until I decided to start reloading my own ammo. Since then I've sold it and had a Dan Wesson Valor. At the very least, I suggest you shoot a few models for an extended period of time so you can figure out what you like or do not like. Or you could just go for a lower (relatively) end model like I did.

[louscamaro91]

If you have the bankroll, Buy once, cry once.
The Nighthawk is a fine choice.

[PRCABR4Christ]

Nighthawk is a top shelf custom 1911, one thing to find out is which models are on the roster, unless you want to do a SSE (single shot exemption).

NHC isn't actually a custom, they're great guns, but they're semi customs, full customs by good smiths (read: top notch guys) generally go for almost double the price of a new NHC.

IMO get a gun that appeals to you, if that's a NHC, then get one, if it's a Springfield, Colt, or Ed Brown, heck they're great as well. I carry a Colt Commander daily and it serves me well. The first 1911 I bought was a RIA, and it's a decent gun (I've had no probs with it whatsoever), but looking back, I would have done a Springfield Mil-Spec instead due to my personal preferences. Buy whatever feel right in your hand

[GW]

$3K is a lot to spend on a gun when you are unfamiliar with the platform. Crazy as it sounds, there are some folks out there who don't like the 1911.
If you haven't shot a lot of 1911's then I recommend you go with a more "entry level" 1911. The controls are all the same and if you decide the 1911 isn't for you, you will find it much easier to sell off that lower priced gun than you will that $3000 gun. Look at the classifieds here. Rock Islands just don't last very long, neither do the Springfield 1911's. High dollar ones do move but take a lot longer.
I strongly recommend you get either a Rock Island Tactical or a Springfield Loaded 1911. Both are excellent guns and 1/4 the price of that Nighthawk. That buys you a lot of ammo and/or training. THEN, if you decide the 1911 is the one for you, you can check out the high-end stuff like Nighthawk or Wilson or Baer or Guncrafters.
Just my 2 cents.
Good luck with whatever you choose.

[socalbowhunter]

Buying a NHC to put in the nightstand seems like a waste of a really nice gun. I have a revolver in each of the two nightstands next to our bed. I never touch them and will only use it when there is a situation that demands it.
Having a nice guy that you want to be able to shoot alot can be a problem if it is also your nightstand gun. What happens the time you leave it in the garage because you didn't get a chance to clean it before bed. Then you need a firearm and it's not there.
Synergy has it right... At a RIA to start. It's a really nice entry level 1911 and you will learn a lot by owning it.
Safe shooting.

[glock22fs]

I would disagree with the guys saying don't buy an expensive one if you plan on using it. I carry a Les Baer custom carry at work and as a personal carry piece. If it gets taken away following a shooting which i survive and i don't get it back i will consider it money well spent. remember a gun is a tool. perhaps one which we love but at the end of the day it has a purpose other than aesthetic beauty.


to answer the OP's initial question about model differences, they are all basically the same in that they are all high quality 1911s. the differences ones will have will be in barrel length grip length, frame material, barrel style, ambidextrous safety or not, and other "custom" touches like a flattened serrated top of slide or a countersunk slide stop pin. almost none of those features are necessarily functional in terms of the positive functioning of the firearm but some people like them.

[TurboChrisB]

If it gets taken away following a shooting which i survive and i don't get it back i will consider it money well spent. remember a gun is a tool. perhaps one which we love but at the end of the day it has a purpose other than aesthetic beauty.

This

[Lead Waster]

You asked to be schooled on 1911s. Since I'm also in the learning process, I'll tell you what I know;

Trigger - one reason the 1911 is so popular is that, due to the design, even "reasonably priced" models have a very nice trigger. Some describe it as the breaking of a glass rod. What this means is that, while most other triggers feel like you are moving a lever, and then maybe some feel of something moving before the shot breaks, a 1911's trigger is not hinged and it FEELS like you are just pressing a on a immovable piece of material until suddenly ... boom, it fires. Like pressing a glass rod ... it doesn't move, you just add more pressure until it suddenly cracks. Other triggers can be more like you are bending something until it breaks. Very very crisp and a pleasure to shoot!

Break-in/reliability - it's a machine and it has a lot of bits in it. A gun with tight tolerances will require more break it so that all the parts mate together well. It seems that in guns, the more tolerance (slop) you have, the more reliable it seems to be as parts will move easily against each other.

Ergonomics - the grip is more "vertical" than say, a glock's grip. It points very naturally. You can close your eyes and hold the gun out to where you think the target is, then open your eyes and you'll see that the gun is probably pointing where you think it was pointing! Also, as a single stack gun, the grips are thinner then say a Glock21 with it's double stacked magazine and it's longer frame.

Aesthetics - perhaps because it's been around for so long, the 1911 almost defines what an automatic (sorry "self loading") pistol looks like. Rough and manly men, who would not be caught dead in an art gallery will find themselves buying "pretty grips" for their 1911 because they look nice. They also buy 1911s that are shiny and real purty. These men are Nancies.

Ammo - .45 acp, what can be said? Oh yeah, the 1911 was originally designed for FMJ rounds. Sometimes it doesn't like other ammo. The feed ramp of a 1911 is part of the frame, some people polish them up. A "throated barrel" (a barrel where a bevel is cut in the chamber opening) feeds non-fmj ammo better. Some barrels have a ramp attached to them to also ease non-fmj ammo.

Magazines - The magazine is very critical to a 1911's reliability. People say that the 7 rounders are most reliable, followed by 8 rounders, then far behind the blasphemous 10 rounders sit. Start with whatever comes in your gun (most likely an 8 rounder). By brand, people seem to trust Wilson Combat 47D, Chip McCormack (but only the 8 rounders, not the 10) the most. But you will hear everything about every brand here (Metal form, Tripp research, etc, etc). The bottom line is that they work differently for different 1911's so you gotta just try a bunch, but start with the WC and CMC ones, if they work, then just get them.

Beavertail - I like them, basically you need a ring hammer for these, but they help you not get the web of your hand bit by a spur hammer. The other "tail" is duck tail, it's shorter and usually comes on "GI" 1911's. It's more "bitey" than a beavertail.

Hammers - spur = looks like a spur. Ring or "commander" looks like a ring

Main Spring Housings - can be flat or arched...the bottom back of the grip, it holds the mainspring, but people may prefer one to the other.

Models - GI/government, commander, officers. Basically the size of the gun, with Government being the full size one

Model 70, Model 80 - Colt models, but generically (and probably mistakenly) the most important difference is whether or not the gun has a firing pin block. I'm probably wrong about this

Full Length Guide Rod - The recoil spring in the original 1911 design was a stubby rod, the FLGR extends the length of the spring. When the slide is back, it will stick out the bottom of the slide, parrallel to the barrel. Most people say it's pointless and does nothing but make take-down difficult. My FLGR doesn't make take down any harder FOR ME. It's what came in the gun so I'm not spending any money to change it just "because".


Er, that's all the schooling I can give you because I'm also learning. However, a 1911 guru will be along shortly to correct my mistakes and add in more schooling!

[hkfooey]

Excellent sharing.

You asked to be schooled on 1911s. Since I'm also in the learning process, I'll tell you what I know;

Trigger - one reason the 1911 is so popular is that, due to the design, even "reasonably priced" models have a very nice trigger. Some describe it as the breaking of a glass rod. What this means is that, while most other triggers feel like you are moving a lever, and then maybe some feel of something moving before the shot breaks, a 1911's trigger is not hinged and it FEELS like you are just pressing a on a immovable piece of material until suddenly ... boom, it fires. Like pressing a glass rod ... it doesn't move, you just add more pressure until it suddenly cracks. Other triggers can be more like you are bending something until it breaks. Very very crisp and a pleasure to shoot!

Break-in/reliability - it's a machine and it has a lot of bits in it. A gun with tight tolerances will require more break it so that all the parts mate together well. It seems that in guns, the more tolerance (slop) you have, the more reliable it seems to be as parts will move easily against each other.

Ergonomics - the grip is more "vertical" than say, a glock's grip. It points very naturally. You can close your eyes and hold the gun out to where you think the target is, then open your eyes and you'll see that the gun is probably pointing where you think it was pointing! Also, as a single stack gun, the grips are thinner then say a Glock21 with it's double stacked magazine and it's longer frame.

Aesthetics - perhaps because it's been around for so long, the 1911 almost defines what an automatic (sorry "self loading") pistol looks like. Rough and manly men, who would not be caught dead in an art gallery will find themselves buying "pretty grips" for their 1911 because they look nice. They also buy 1911s that are shiny and real purty. These men are Nancies.

Ammo - .45 acp, what can be said? Oh yeah, the 1911 was originally designed for FMJ rounds. Sometimes it doesn't like other ammo. The feed ramp of a 1911 is part of the frame, some people polish them up. A "throated barrel" (a barrel where a bevel is cut in the chamber opening) feeds non-fmj ammo better. Some barrels have a ramp attached to them to also ease non-fmj ammo.

Magazines - The magazine is very critical to a 1911's reliability. People say that the 7 rounders are most reliable, followed by 8 rounders, then far behind the blasphemous 10 rounders sit. Start with whatever comes in your gun (most likely an 8 rounder). By brand, people seem to trust Wilson Combat 47D, Chip McCormack (but only the 8 rounders, not the 10) the most. But you will hear everything about every brand here (Metal form, Tripp research, etc, etc). The bottom line is that they work differently for different 1911's so you gotta just try a bunch, but start with the WC and CMC ones, if they work, then just get them.

Beavertail - I like them, basically you need a ring hammer for these, but they help you not get the web of your hand bit by a spur hammer. The other "tail" is duck tail, it's shorter and usually comes on "GI" 1911's. It's more "bitey" than a beavertail.

Hammers - spur = looks like a spur. Ring or "commander" looks like a ring

Main Spring Housings - can be flat or arched...the bottom back of the grip, it holds the mainspring, but people may prefer one to the other.

Models - GI/government, commander, officers. Basically the size of the gun, with Government being the full size one

Model 70, Model 80 - Colt models, but generically (and probably mistakenly) the most important difference is whether or not the gun has a firing pin block. I'm probably wrong about this

Full Length Guide Rod - The recoil spring in the original 1911 design was a stubby rod, the FLGR extends the length of the spring. When the slide is back, it will stick out the bottom of the slide, parrallel to the barrel. Most people say it's pointless and does nothing but make take-down difficult. My FLGR doesn't make take down any harder FOR ME. It's what came in the gun so I'm not spending any money to change it just "because".


Er, that's all the schooling I can give you because I'm also learning. However, a 1911 guru will be along shortly to correct my mistakes and add in more schooling!

[someR1]

All I know is, I love my RIA tactical. It was about $500 OTD, I've never had a problem with it, and many people like it as well. If you can afford a $2000 1911, go for it. If you can't afford it, I would highly recommend a RIA. They are cheap, and the warranty is good too.