Educate Me On 1911's Which to buy

[Grelber]

Which of the available guns in that price range would be a great shooting gun? Can we assume that all of the guns in that price range would be a good selection?

Just as examples; a mil-spec Springfield would be a great choice in my opinion, or for just a tick over the price range ($755 on the shelf a couple weeks ago) you get an adjustable site range officer that has been extremely well reviewed.
Have also heard nothing but good things about the lowest priced STI (don't remember the model designation). I also suspect that the person above who is recommending RIA knows whereof he speaks.

I don't think you can assume that all of the guns in any price range would be a good selection, particularly when you add in personal preference as a wild card, you've got to do the research or just be fortunate. I'm sure there are some low to mid priced disappointments and some high priced ones as well.

Just my opinion.

 

[AllenM]

I'm looking into 1911's but there are so many i cant decide which are good and which are trash. Can you all please help me out?

Springfield TRP would fit nicely into your budget and you would have a real nice 1911

 

[gregkl]

Would I be money ahead to buy one that has some upgrades either from the factory (or if used already added by the previous owner) vs. buying a basic pistol and then upgrading it?

 

[davedolli]

With so many choices of custom 1911s, I would find one with all the options you want, in your price range. Buying a basic pistol, and upgrading will cost a lot. In the 70s and 80s we didn't have all the options with 1911 pistols as we do now, so back then people did a lot of upgrading.

Dave

 

[gregkl]

With so many choices of custom 1911s, I would find one with all the options you want, in your price range. Buying a basic pistol, and upgrading will cost a lot. In the 70s and 80s we didn't have all the options with 1911 pistols as we do now, so back then people did a lot of upgrading.

Dave

That's kinda what I was thinking. Thanks.

 

[04DarkShadowGT]

Would I be money ahead to buy one that has some upgrades either from the factory (or if used already added by the previous owner) vs. buying a basic pistol and then upgrading it?

I would say in your situation you would most likely be better off buying it with whatever you want on it. Some upgrades require special tools, or at least its much easier if you have them. So you are buying parts, tools, etc. That or paying a smith to do it for you can get expensive either way.

With your budget of $1800, I am not sure what you would want that you cant get factory.

I would suggest going to as many shops as you can, get your hands on as many guns as you can. If you have friends with 1911s, shoot theirs, etc.

Buying a gun is such a subjective thing, its whatever you find cool really.

 

[gregkl]

I would say in your situation you would most likely be better off buying it with whatever you want on it. Some upgrades require special tools, or at least its much easier if you have them. So you are buying parts, tools, etc. That or paying a smith to do it for you can get expensive either way.

With your budget of $1800, I am not sure what you would want that you cant get factory.

I would suggest going to as many shops as you can, get your hands on as many guns as you can. If you have friends with 1911s, shoot theirs, etc.

Buying a gun is such a subjective thing, its whatever you find cool really.

That was Infidels budget. Mine is $1000.

 

[Grelber]

Would I be money ahead to buy one that has some upgrades either from the factory (or if used already added by the previous owner) vs. buying a basic pistol and then upgrading it?

Might depend a little bit on what you want and how you plan to use the gun, one persons upgrade (target sight, 2 piece guide rod, ambidexterous safety,magwell, for example) is something the next person may see as a downgrade.

 

[melensdad]

Might depend a little bit on what you want and how you plan to use the gun, one persons upgrade (target sight, 2 piece guide rod, ambidexterous safety,magwell, for example) is something the next person may see as a downgrade.

Exactly. I'd never put a 2 piece guide rod in one of my 1911s but I have 1 piece rods in almost all of them! For a carry gun big target sights are a pain in the side (literally they can cut into your side if your holster doesn't shield your side) but target sights are great on a range/target/competition gun.

 

[gregkl]

So if I was to get one with the mindset of CC with minimal sights, shorter barrel would I still be able to shoot competitions for fun? Do I "run what I brung" and see if I get caught by the shooting bug, then get a competition specific gun? I probably won't CC much, but I am not sure at this point.

 

[figley]

So if I was to get one with the mindset of CC with minimal sights, shorter barrel would I still be able to shoot competitions for fun? Do I "run what I brung" and see if I get caught by the shooting bug, then get a competition specific gun? I probably won't CC much, but I am not sure at this point.

Most competitive shooting I've looked into, has either no divisions, or does make provisions for a "stock" class. It's good to get trigger time with a carry gun, as long as you don't get so conditioned that you're waiting for a BG to go "ding", and fall over, with one hit. That's one cool thing about bowling pins, you have to keep shooting until the target goes down.

If you, "won't CC much", when will you? If you CC only when you're going someplace you think you'll need it, then you probably should re-evaluate your reason for going to that place. If you get caught in an ugly situation during one of the opportunities you chose not to carry, you'll have to live with that.

On the upside, due to its slim profile, it's not too difficult to CC a commander, or even a full size 1911. There are also sights available that are better than GI sights, but not so big as to be prohibitive to CC. Be sure and factor sights, and aftermarket availability, into your buying decision. Different 1911 slide manufacturers cut the slides differently for sights.

 

[itsgreg]

you can't go wrong with a Kimber. I would look around and find one that feels right to you. Find a shop that carries a bunch of different types and put them in your hand. narrow the list to just a few, then see if you can shoot the ones you like. My buddy went to the range to shot his gun and saw a guy with 2 different guns he was thinking about buying. The guy was more then happy to let him try them out. He bought his Kimber that week.

 

[gregkl]

Good advice. Thanks. It gives me something to think about as far as carrying. In the past I have just stuck the gun out of view in my car so the permit made me legal that way. Like a video someone posted here showing a white guy getting robbed, then de-pants in what appeared to be in an area with predominately different races and late at night, I wonder why he was there in the first place. I would not have been there. I still live by the adage that nothing good happens after midnight!

 

[mrp010]

Wow that Detonics MTX is a sexy gun.

Have you looked at the Sig line up of 1911's. Good quality gun at about half the cost of those "better" guns.

 

[gregkl]

Wow that Detonics MTX is a sexy gun.

Have you looked at the Sig line up of 1911's. Good quality gun at about half the cost of those "better" guns.

I kinda like the Sigs. Not at first, but they are growing on me. I like the Carry Nitron, Carry SS, and Carry Nightmare. But can you find one at a decent price? And does anyone know how well they shoot?

 

[JBI812]

I second the motion. If you're a new buyer and don't know the difference then save yourself some grief and buy a 1911 in the 600 to 1000.00 range. Have fun using it until you decide to go pro ........Then you can get one of the fancy name brand handgun and shoot fleas at 7000 yards.

 

[JBI812]

duplicate sorry about that

 

[mrp010]

I kinda like the Sigs. Not at first, but they are growing on me. I like the Carry Nitron, Carry SS, and Carry Nightmare. But can you find one at a decent price? And does anyone know how well they shoot?

Got My Sig 1911 C3 with CT grips for $777 on buds a few months ago. I see them marked down occasionally. Those grips retail about 300, so I think thats a sweet deal. Most of the time they run that without the grips. They are $999 at my LGS.

 

[Patriot3]

ruger or springfield

 

[gregkl]

Ended up with a SA "loaded".