It's time...1911 first time buyer advice needed

[Mosinguy]

Hey guys, been interested in a 1911 for a while and I am now seriously thinking about one. What should I look for? I want a no frills 1911 "Government" sized model to start with, preferably a GI model. I want a deep parkerized finish and I only have about $500 to spend. I've been looking at Springfield GI Mil-Spec 1911s and have sorta looked at RIA 1911 Mil-Specs. Any other brands that will fit my budget and my short list of requirements?

What do you guys think I should get? Any pros or cons with 1911s in general? Anything to look out for? Ask me any questions that I may have left out. I know nearly absolutely nothing about 1911s and all I do know is that they are cool

 

[the1kidd03]

I really like Springfields....you get a lot of bang for you buck and they are of great quality..........on the other hand I honestly have heard no real bad of the Rock Islands though I've not owned one yet......Springfield is American made whereas RIA is made in...the Phillipenes I believe?....I don't remember exactly

 

[mtgasten]

springfield is what i would choose...to me they are better quality

 

[snowrs]

I really like Springfields....you get a lot of bang for you buck and they are of great quality..........on the other hand I honestly have heard no real bad of the Rock Islands though I've not owned one yet......Springfield is American made whereas RIA is made in...the Phillipenes I believe?....I don't remember exactly

The Springfields in his price range will be Brazilian, but they are a good starting 1911

 

[singlesix]

.

 

[halfmileharry]

The Springfields in his price range will be Brazilian, but they are a good starting 1911

I've got a Brazilian SA and honestly my milspec RIA outperforms it all the way around.
Ordinarilly I'd say go with the SA but I'll have to give the vote to the full size RIA on this one. Just my experience with each.

 

[snowrs]

I've got a Brazilian SA and honestly my milspec RIA outperforms it all the way around.
Ordinarilly I'd say go with the SA but I'll have to give the vote to the full size RIA on this one. Just my experience with each.

Honestly my vote would be to save the extra money and buy an RO but I am biased, the extra 200 is worth the extras you get and are probably things you will want to add anyway.

 

[halfmileharry]

Honestly my vote would be to save the extra money and buy an RO but I am biased, the extra 200 is worth the extras you get and are probably things you will want to add anyway.

I fully agree. Find the extra $ and you'll be happier.

 

[birdslayer]

Ive owned other 1911's but I now all I own is springfields.. start with a goverment, see if you like it quirks, its pro's and cons and go from there. seems like you can get a nice milspec for around 500.00 or less for a used one from "back in the day" before they went brazilian..

 

[Classic]

My son has a RIA and has had nothing but good times with it. Eats everything and goes off every time. Accuracy is more that adequate. I can speak from personal experience that Ruger, SA and Kimber all stand by their products lifetime, (unlike Colt but that's another story), so any of those products seem like a good bet. I favor Kimber in stainless myself but I don't think you can go wrong with a 1911 from any of the above brands.

 

[Goober135]

I bought a SA 1911 GI model the day i turned 21. First handgun i ever owned, and essentially the first handgun i'd ever shot. Never looked back! I have always loved 1911's, and although it wasn't necessarily in my price range, i HAD to have it. You won't be disappointed with a SA!

*EDIT* - Only issue i've had with my SA is a weak extractor which i've heard is a -somewhat- common issue. Other than that, my SA has been rock solid with the thousands of round i've put through it!

 

[Classic]

What a great lookin 45!

 

[AllenM]

Honestly my vote would be to save the extra money and buy an RO but I am biased, the extra 200 is worth the extras you get and are probably things you will want to add anyway.

Couldn't agree more

 

[Jay]

Drive an hour north, and you can shoot quite a variety of 1911's, before you spend your money. I'm retired, so your schedule will very likely work, if you're interested.

 

[AverageMidwest]

Honestly my vote would be to save the extra money and buy an RO but I am biased, the extra 200 is worth the extras you get and are probably things you will want to add anyway.

+1....make sure you get everything you want on it when you buy, unless you want to customize it's a lot cheaper to get bigger sights, for example, up front than it is to add them later. Both brands are okay for entry level 1911 clones; any high production manufacturer (yup, Kimber too) will have a manufacturing error creep through every so often.

 

[Mosinguy]

I do know Springfields will replace the GI sights for larger GI style sights and put three white dots on em for $15 if you send in the slide. I don't want a 1911 with the greatest and latest of accessories. I just want a nice, plain 1911 similar to ones our military had. Maybe along the road I'll buy a 1911 and customize it but this one is going to be bare bones.

 

[Tandor]

I just bought a Remington R1, very accurate, very well built, so says the Gun smith at a local gun store BUT. I'm having alot of trouble getting more than 2 shots off in a row. Smiths saying its the tight tolerances. My buddy just got the Springfield A1 and no prblems out of the box. I only have 120 rounds thru it but with the ammo being pricey I stopped firing it until I get it checked out by Remington. I love the look and feel but the reliabilty is not there, but others swear by the Rem. If I had to do it again, I'd go with the Springfield.

 

[Fullmag]

Member of XDforum site and what I've read is the Springfield warranty and service is outstanding. Sorry don't own one but someday that will change.

 

[88E30M50]

My first 1911 was a Springfield pre-Mil Spec. It's like a mil spec in some ways, but like a GI in others. My second 1911 was a RIA Compact. To be honest, the RIA has been more reliable but that could be due to tired springs on the SA as bought used. Once I did a complete spring change, it's been good ever since. I cannot really point to anything that's better on the Springfield than on the RIA. Both are more difficult to swap sights on than 1911s with a dovetail front sight. Both are accurate. The SA has a slightly better trigger, but I've stoned the sear a tad to clean it up a bit. The RIA came with a beavertail grip safety, 11 degree crown and full length guide rod, but can be bought without in the GI model.

The SA will have higher resale value than the RIA, but both are excellent guns. AvgMidwest is right about deciding what you want up front. When I decided I wanted night sights on my 1911, nobody could get the front sight for the SA. The RIA would have required machine work, so I punted and just bought a Kimber and had night sights put on it.

I know some love the Springfields, but for me, it's a wash. I have the Springfield, the RIA and two Kimbers and the RIA is by far, the best bang for the buck. The Springfield has the best trigger and the Kimbers are the lightest (both are aluminum framed). All go bang when I pull the trigger every time and all are more accurate than I am. All of them are an absolute hoot to shoot.

If you are looking for a good GI style 1911, a used Springer and a new RIA will fit your budget. If you get a used 1911, you might need to invest $20 or so in new springs to restore it to what it should be. Also, budget a bit for a couple of good mags. The RIA comes with ACT mags which are not the greatest (but, better than Kimber stock mags) and a pair of Wilson Combat 8 rounders will work much better. A used SA could have almost anything in terms of mags, but count on them needing replacement. Unless someone is getting out of 1911s altogether, they will not be too prone to selling their best mags with the gun they sell. They'll probably cull the herd a bit and get rid of any marginal mags.

Good luck with the search. 1911s are like Mosins. Simple and made in so many different styles that it's tempting to start a collection. A good GI style is a great place to start.

 

[bigred_dean@yahoo.com]

What do you guy and girls think of a Springfield 1911 a1 I found were I can buy one new for 569.99 also is that a good price.