Battle of the cheap 1911s

yep sights. remember young eyes ain't young forever. I never had an issue until I got old. now I got lots of mil type sight guns i cant shoot well anymore. cant see the sights unless perfect lighting and angle etc. I used to chuckle at old timers when i was young telling me this. boy how right they were. avoid mil type sights if ya plan on using til you're old.

Got a Springfield 1911-A1 "MilSpec" for $500 delivered.

Put on $7 Trigger-Happy USGI brown nylon grips.


Couldn't be happier.




GR

There's only one option. Buy you a Colt. Buy you a base line Colt and it will digest any ammo you put into it. I wouldn't buy a Rock Island Arsenal or a Springfield. The latter being just like the former, an old shut down actual armory that some business bought the name of and now manufactures guns in that name. I wouldn't buy one of those uppity Kimbers either. They don't install enough clearance on relative motion parts. They are Cadillac's until you shoot the first 50 rounds that day. Trust me, go with Colt...
Second to a Colt, I might go with the Ruger. At least you will have world class customer service if something isn't right.

larryh1108 said:

Personally, I like front grip checkering.

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Wilson Combat makes $10 front checkered strap you can add to 1911s without them - https://www.brownells.com/handgun-p...aps/1911-checkered-front-strap-prod16409.aspx

Yes, I love the checkering on my Sig 1911 front strap for more consistent grip.

bdickens said:

A lot of people have good things to say about the Taurus 1911s. +/- $500, fully tricked out from the factory & reliable.

I have one & haven't had any issues. My EDC is a Glock 19, but I have on occasion gotten a wild hair & packed the PT1911 without feeling uncomfortable about it.
The finish is so-so, but I buy guns to shoot, not to sit in a room & look at how pretty they are.

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If it works, it works (and it doesn't matter if it's a Taurus). If it doesn't (it doesn't matter if it's a Glock).

Antihero said:

I'm leaning towards this right now

https://www.sportsmansguide.com/pro...automatic-45-acp-5-barrel-81-rounds?a=1902569

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You could do a lot worse than RIA in the low-end stuff. They have a petty good rep for Customer Service if you were to have any issues.

Antihero said:

I'm leaning towards this right now

https://www.sportsmansguide.com/pro...automatic-45-acp-5-barrel-81-rounds?a=1902569

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I'm sure you would be very happy w/ it, especially if it was a carry pistol.

But for the same price, you could also get the:


Which has some very nice features, like stainless match grade Bbl/bushing, as well.




GR

LiveLife said:

Wilson Combat makes $10 front checkered strap you can add to 1911s without them - https://www.brownells.com/handgun-p...aps/1911-checkered-front-strap-prod16409.aspx

Yes, I love the checkering on my Sig 1911 front strap for more consistent grip.

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That looks like a great and cheap addition to a 1911. Worth the few bucks to see if it makes a difference.

94045 said:

If it works, it works (and it doesn't matter if it's a Taurus). If it doesn't (it doesn't matter if it's a Glock).

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Well, if it's a Glock and it doesn't work, the 22 year old at the local gun shop can probably swap out the offending part and have it working for you in a 15 minutes for about $50 including parts and labor.

If your 1911 isn't working, the kid at the gun shop probably isn't fixing it. Heck, he probably doesn't know how to field strip it.

Roamin_Wade said:

I wouldn't buy one of those uppity Kimbers either. They don't install enough clearance on relative motion parts. They are Cadillac's until you shoot the first 50 rounds that day.

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I have had six of them. I rarely shoot less than 200 rounds and when having longer shooting sessions add a couple drops of lube at 250 rounds. I have yet to experience that stoppage. Not saying it doesn't happen but I doubt it's as common as you believe. Will they go as long as a Glock without cleaning? I doubt it but I don't generally do 1500+ rounds between cleanings so I can't really say.

JTQ said:

If your 1911 isn't working, the kid at the gun shop probably isn't fixing it.

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Actually the kid at the gun shop is the first one I ask. He is doing fitting on another 1911 ever time I come in. I have no idea how many he has built now.

JTQ said:

Well, if it's a Glock and it doesn't work, the 22 year old at the local gun shop can probably swap out the offending part and have it working for you in a 15 minutes for about $50 including parts and labor.

If your 1911 isn't working, the kid at the gun shop probably isn't fixing it. Heck, he probably doesn't know how to field strip it.

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Springfield - has a lifetime warranty.




GR

Garandimal said:

Springfield - has a lifetime warranty.

GR

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Yes they do, and a good point. However, unless you live in Geneseo, IL, you're not going to have your gun for some period of time longer than 15 min.

Hey, I'm a 1911 guy who's never owned a Glock, and probably never will, but you have to get people to realize what they're getting into. A lot of folks that have grown up in the Glock era just don't really understand everything isn't as plug and play as the Glock and AR15.

JTQ said:

Yes they do, and a good point. However, unless you live in Geneseo, IL, you're not going to have your gun for some period of time longer than 15 min.

Hey, I'm a 1911 guy who's never owned a Glock, and probably never will, but you have to get people to realize what they're getting into. A lot of folks that have grown up in the Glock era just don't really understand everything isn't as plug and play as the Glock and AR15.

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Today's SA 1911-A1 "Mil Spec" pistols are actually about that.

They are precision CNC machined, not hand fitted.

Except for replacing the OEM recoil spring with an 18.5 lb Wolff, and the grips, it is stock.
(and dressing down the elector-pencil serial number on the under side of the slide)

...and tighter than a Mermaid's petunia.

Expect Tens of Thousands of rounds before failure.

And, as it is one of many pistols...? Not in my lifetime.




GR

94045 said:

Will they go as long as a Glock without cleaning? I doubt it but I don't generally do 1500+ rounds between cleanings so I can't really say.

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When I shot USPSA, I put my Glocks through a lot of rounds and using FMJ/JHP reloads, longest I was able to go without cleaning my Glock was around 4000 rounds when chambering became less reliable.

Friend's RIA 1911 Tactical with slightly generous chamber and flared chamber mouth, 500+ lead SWC reloads did not slow down the reliable feeding from Chip McCormick PM/Wilson Combat 47D magazines (We usually ran out of ammo before RIA slowed down).

My railed Sig 1911 XO with tightest chamber I have seen will reliably feed 300-400 lead SWC reloads before feeding/chambering became less reliable and needed a little push on the slide.

With FMJ/JHP reloads, I am sure both 1911s would have gone further but probably not as far as the Glock.

In this video, Todd Jarrett shoots 1000 rounds through 1911 in record setting 10 minutes without stoppage

I have two RIAs, one being in .45acp with the other in 10mm. Both have proven to be excellent performers overall.

The GI model will feed all my personally cast SWC reloads while my Kimber Classic Custom often lifts an eyebrow and says "huh, dream on".

Ratshooter said:

How many rounds do you have through your Taurus? I looked real hard at those when they first came out but then started reading reports about problems with them and long waits for Taurus to correct the malfunction. But if they work and hold up they should have been very popular guns. And I have owned several Taurus revolvers and now own a TCP 380 and have had no problems with any of them so I am not bashing Taurus.

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If I may, I traded into mine at a pawn shop. It was 4 years old when I took it home more than a year ago.

I’ve got maybe 1000 rounds through mine without a failure of any kind, using the stock magazine. Mine is very well put together with an excellent frame/slide fit (those are forged and matched, BTW) and a decent trigger. I don’t believe any of the parts have been replaced except for a pair of aluminum grip panels, so I’m sure there’s some MIM in it, but I don’t care. Mine’s been nothing but excellent for me. The only gripe I have about it is the sight dovetails are proprietary (mine has Novaks on it, which helps a bit). If you can find one for $400 or so then you should get into it.

In reply to the original question, I bought a full size ATI at Rural King for $299. It has never had a malfunction and just as accurate as my others.

I also bought a ATI compact for $359 at Gander Mtn going out of business sale, also has never malfunctioned.

They are the two in the picture bottom row. The others are Springfield Milspec, and two Colts.

94045 said:

I have had six of them. I rarely shoot less than 200 rounds and when having longer shooting sessions add a couple drops of lube at 250 rounds. I have yet to experience that stoppage. Not saying it doesn't happen but I doubt it's as common as you believe. Will they go as long as a Glock without cleaning? I doubt it but I don't generally do 1500+ rounds between cleanings so I can't really say.

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The Kimbers are surely well made, reliable guns but they aren't better than the Colt brand. I know Colt/Kimber fans are half a dozen of one and 6 of the other but I do think the Colt's deserve to be on the top shelf again.

Can you tell me a bit about the Hi-Point remark means in your quotes section. I'm intrigued.

^^ I think he is just saying that the Hi-Point guns are far more affordable "to the masses" than (Sam) Colt's product line has historically been, allowing for even more men to become "equal."

I'm no authority on 1911's. The only one I own is a Ruger SR 1911. Not the nicest or the worst from what I've read but I like it. It makes me look like I know how to shoot.
I wont comment for or against any maker as I don't believe myself qualified to do so. I would suggest though that usually one is better off to get what they want to start with if possible. I believe it is better to do that than buy something that isn't what you want. Of course if you are like me with guns I get one thing then I decide I might like something else better, then I get something else, and so on, and so forth.

I have a Colt, Some Springfields and a Citadel.
For a budget 1911 I feel the Citadel is an excellent value.
Is it as nice as my Springfield "loaded models" no,
Is it a good gun for 1/2 the price of the Springfields, yes.

Buy you a base line Colt and it will digest any ammo you put into it

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Wow, I wish my 1964 Commander could read, but I guess at over 50 it is getting old and blind like me.
If it could only read then it would know it should not be picky trying to run SWCs.

I guess my Citadel can't read as well because if it could it would know it was not a Colt and was not supposed to work as well as it does

I bought an SDS which is imported from Turkey I think. I bought it just becasue it was made to resemble the one I was issued in RVN MANY YEARS AGO. It was parkerized, had ALL the same stuff on it the military has. It even said 'US GOVERNMENT PROPERTY' on it.. It is advertised as being made from the original 1911A1 drawings, totally Mil Spec. WELL the good new is that it shot better, more accurate, than two of my friends Springfield and Kimber that cost more than THREE times as much, but not as good as the Colt match gun I have. COST, I am a dealer, $310. Retail is less than $400. IT IS A KEEPER!