Advice on a Colt 1911 in 9mm or 38 super please

[Dvus]

I'm most likely going to get looks like I'm a two headed goat, but what the hey. Get the .38 Super and use 9mm at the range for practice. WHAT?!? It works, just better in some guns than others. It's no different than shooting .38 Specials in your .357 Magnum. Yes, you will be headspacing on the extractor instead of the case mouth, and sometimes it will slip past and fall into the chamber and you will have to hold it muzzle up to remove it from the chamber, but for informal plinking it works pretty good. Mine will run a whole box of 9mm with only a couple of missteps.

 

[Rodan]

I was looking pretty hard at the Gold Cup Trophy and Trophy Lite a few months ago. I was looking at .45ACP, but IIRC they are both available in 9mm. The quality of the guns I looked at in person seemed good, but every edge on the gun was razor sharp.

I ended up buying a Tisas Match in .45 instead. It may not have the prancing pony on the side, but the quality is just as good, and it didn't try to slice my hands every time I handled it. With the money I saved over the Gold Cup, I bought a 1967 Lightweight Commander...

I like the prancing pony as much as anyone, and I have several Colts, but for a shooter these days, I think you can get just as much gun and spend a lot less money doing it.

 

[Rock185]

Get a .45 like the real he-men Seriously though, I like the .45ACP, was issued one in the military, carried one for years in LE, etc. But the .38 Super and 9mm are still fine cartridges in 1911 type pistols. With factory Colts, utilizing the traditional unramped barrels, the Super is more reliable within my humble experience. With other manufacturer's 1911 type pistols utilizing integrally ramped barrels, the 9mm can be every bit as reliable as guns in the "proper" .45 ACP or .38 Super calibers. As is common with the Colt 9mms I've owned, my current 9mm Gold Cup can only be depended upon to function reliably with RN ball and one type of JHP ammo. Anything else, don't count on it. With an aftermarket .38 Super barrel installed in the 9mm Gold Cup, function with all the different .38S and .38 Super Comp factory and reloaded ammo I've used is reliable. My 9mms by other manufacturers function reliably with whatever type of ammo I'm using. Much as I like the 9mm, if you want a Colt that will likely function reliably with whatever type ammo you happen to be using, get the Super.

For several years, I have been shooting more 9mm and 38S in 1911 type pistols than .45 ACP. Even the hottest loads with the Super and 9mm have less recoil than common 230 grain .45 ACP ball. In my admitted geezerhood, I enjoy the lighter recoil...YMMV

 

[31FordA]

I have a Colt Competition and a Colt Classic in .38 Super. They are both outstanding pistols, I've put a couple of thousand rounds thru each in just a couple of years. They are some of my favorite Colt's to shoot. I even qualify with the Classic for work. Several guys who've shot the .38 Super have gotten their own, or tried to. They don't turn up in shops around here too often.

 

[JohnRippert]

I have two 1911's in .45 and one in 9mm. I would get the .38 Super

 

[Golddollar]

Around 30 years ago I acquired a Series 70 Government Model in 9mm that had been customized into what would probably now be a Gold Cup predecessor. It shoots better than I do and I still have it. I was amazed when in a IPSC match I was able to put a double tap into the "A" zone, which was about the size of a pop can. My recommendation is buy the 9mm Gold Cup, plus a Bar-Sto barrel, link, link pin, bushing and magazines in .38 Super.

 

[kev74]

I think I'm the oddball here.

I really like 1911s in 9mm. Availability of ammo and brass makes me like it more than 38 super.

 

[robvious]

I don't have a 38 super 1911... I do have a 9mm 1911... a Colt GC in 38 super would be old school gangster cool... and if I was going to do 9mm 1911 over again... it would be a double stack 1911/2011.

 

[DWalt]

I assume most here know that the 9mm and .38 Super 1911s are identical. All that is needed to switch from one to the other is to swap barrels and magazines so you can very easily have two caliber capability within about a minute. I fail to understand the back and forth here about which caliber is better when you can so easily use both for the price of another barrel and magazine. Or is this supposed to be a secret?

 

[SAFireman]

I bought my first Super 38 almost by accident not long ago. I quickly had a 9mm barrel fitted.

The Super is a sweet shooter and the ammo is easy to find either online or locally. The 9mm ammo is abundant and makes for cheap practice.

I got a Commander because I like the Commander size, it just fits me

My only complaint is that my Ciener conversion will not work with the Super 38 or 9mm ejector, only the 45 version. The 22 makes for really cheap practice.

I let me dad shoot it and he tried to swipe it when I wasn't looking. Yes, it's that good

 

[DWalt]

I bought my first Super 38 almost by accident not long ago. I quickly had a 9mm barrel fitted.

The Super is a sweet shooter and the ammo is easy to find either online or locally. The 9mm ammo is abundant and makes for cheap practice.

I got a Commander because I like the Commander size, it just fits me

My only complaint is that my Ciener conversion will not work with the Super 38 or 9mm ejector, only the 45 version. The 22 makes for really cheap practice.

I let me dad shoot it and he tried to swipe it when I wasn't looking. Yes, it's that good

No trick to swap ejectors. Have been doing it for many years.

 

[Kanewpadle]

If you're talking Dan Wesson, but the 9MM.

Dan Wesson quality is by far better than most 1911's currently produced. Bold statement I know. They one of very few gun makers that do not use MIM parts.

 

[AJ]

So have you decided yet? Inquiring minds want to know.

 

[AJ]

No trick to swap ejectors. Have been doing it for many years.

He does have a point there. It is real easy.

 

[Yendor357]

My Gunsmith speaks very highly of the new Colt 1911s. His opinion carries a lot of weight with me because he knows them inside and out. I don't have one.

To me, a 9M in a 1911 is the worst of both worlds. The old adage was: People but a 1911 for the caliber (45ACP), and buy the 9M for the pistol. I agree. Ballistically, there's not enough difference in the 38 Super and the 9 to mess with the 38 Super. I'm too much of a pragmatist.

I shot my 1911 ALOT years past. The recoil of my 45, which to me is fairly light with 200 G going 900 FPS doesn't bother me. I just don't shoot the 1911 since I bought my CZ Shadow 2 SA from Palmetto State Armory for $999 plus shipping and transfer. Recently I got a CZ Shadow 2 compact. Both those guns will consistent put 5 shots under 1.5 inches at 25 yards. They're just extremely accurate. They never malfunction.

The S2 Compact has become my favorite. It is a 9M size gun that will keep up with the best 9M 1911s. Plus it holds 15 +1. Great trigger for a box stock 9.

So…… buy the Colt 1911 in 45 ACP.

9M? CZ S2 Compact. Get em both!

 

[HOUSTON RICK]

Your money - your decision. The 1911 has been perfected by many manufacturers. For some the only 1911 is a 45ACP Colt. I own a number of "premium" 1911's but the 1911 I shoot the most is my ATI commander in 9mm. It is as accurate as the others and just a nice, quality pistol. My popular gunsmith bought one after deep-cleaning mine. The Colts are likely "superior" in "pride of ownership", but the ATI puts rounds down range as faithfully and I can get a lot of ammo with the money that I saved.

 

[LEO918]

My (CZ) Colt Gold Cup Trophy in 9mm has been flawless from day one. As far as Light Weight Commanders go, the (CZ) Dan Wesson Guardian in .38 Super are just about perfect.

 

[Warren Sear]

I'd go with the 38 Super just because it was JMB's original cartridge for the automatic pistol (his 1897 prototype).

The 1897 prototype and M1900 were chambered for the .38 ACP, NOT .38 Super. To fire .38 Super ammo in one of these old fossils would be foolhardy and dangerous.

The cartridges are the same size, but the .38 Super is loaded to much higher pressure.

 

[BLUEDOT37]

...please allow me to ask a few questions regarding CZ manufactured Colt 1911s.
I'm thinking about purchasing a Colt Gold Cup National Match in 9mm or 38 Super.
How good is the quality of the new Colts?

The CZ/Dan Wesson 1911's are of good quality. Can't speak for the CZ/Colts.

I originally wanted to buy a DW 1911 in 38 Super during COVID but they became hard to find so I bought a DW Pointman PM-9 in 9x19 & later bought a 38 Super barrel (that I fitted to it) along with some 38 Super mags & heavier recoil spring.

Now I can shoot either cartridge from the same pistol.

The 38 Super can be loaded hot or mild & is fun to handload for.

I prefer to use Starline's 38 SC (Super Comp) brass but I haven't had any issues with their 38 Super +P brass either.

Also I'd suggest getting a model that has a fully supported (integrated feeding ramp) barrel, as the DW does, especially for hot 38 Super loads. Do the Colts have that?

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[shawn mccarver]

I value members opinions here and I'm not a member of any other forums so please allow me to ask a few questions regarding CZ manufactured Colt 1911s. I'm thinking about purchasing a Colt Gold Cup National Match in 9mm or 38 Super. How good is the quality of the new Colts? A gun store in my area has a National Match 9mm in stock or should I hold out for a 38 Super? I know there is a big price difference in factory ammo but I am able to hand load for either. Thanks for your replies.

In about 50 years of shooting, it is my belief after examining a large number of Colt 1911s over those years, that Colt is building the best 1911s they ever have in their entire history. I would prefer the .45 or the 9mm over the Super, but that is more about ammo choices than the quality of the pistol.

EDIT: If you get a 9mm 1911, and if you have any feeding issues, you might look for the magazines designed by Rob Leatham, sold by Springfield Armory. They used to be in the Dillon catalog back in the day, but I have not looked for them recently. They differ in that there is an internal ridge inside along the rear spine of the magazine body which causes the 9mm cartridge to sit further forward than the cartridge would otherwise sit in a 1911 magazine without the feature. It was always my understanding that this magazine solved feeding issues by placing the cartridge in the same position relative to the feed ramp and pick up rail as other cartridges using longer cases. I have not researched it recently, nor have I seen it mentioned recently anywhere, but I know those Rob Leatham-designed 9mm magazines for the 1911 worked 100% in a 1911 9mm that I used to have.