$2500 1911's?

How about a Springfield Range Officer. They can be found stickered new in the $700 range. (At least they could this past week end at a gun show in Atlanta).

While I have not yet shot mine, it apears to be an excellent made gun and has most of the bells and whistles you could want. If it shoots half as good as it looks I'll be happy. Fit and finish were excellent. Trigger break was right at 4.5 lbs with no pre or overtravel - it breaks clean.

Rob

SpringfieldRangeOfficerrightside.jpg
 
I have one 1911, an Ed Brown Special Forces that I paid around $1800 for with six magazines. Most 1911's I find these days have features I don't want, notably the forward cocking serrations and full-length guide rods. My SF had almost exactly what I was looking for when i got it: Commander-style hammer, beaver tail grip safety, lowered/flared ejection port, night sights, standard G.I. guide rod and no forward cocking serrations. All I changed was I replaced the long trigger with an EB short trigger, as I prefer the shorter trigger on the 1911. The first time I shot it, I couldn't believe the accuracy...it shoots better than I can. I mostly got it because it had the features I wanted in a 1911, and, I've been told, everybody has to have at least one 1911 :-)

A few days ago I was in a local gun shop and found an S&W 1911 that had basically the same features (except the short trigger) for $890. I didn't handle the S&W because at the time I was there picking up my Kahr CW45 and didn't have the scratch for another gun, and I'm afraid I might have been very tempted. Without handling and shooting the S&W, I think I might have done quite well with a sub-$1000 Smith and been better served spending the rest on .45 ammo. All in all, though, I am quite happy with my Ed Brown...
 
I like the old U.S. military 1911s and 1911A1s best so that's what I have, along with a Colt Gold Cup. The military models are dead reliable and surprisingly accurate. I've had them and used them for many years.

I particularly don't want a high dollar 1911 with "all the bells and whistles."

They amount to a senseless "gilding of the lily" in my view.
 
Suprised no mention of the other Wesson--Dan.

I'll mention Dan Wesson...
I had not been into 1911's,
but I recently decided it might be
a good idea to add one to the herd.

After doing some research, and having a spot
of luck, I ran across a very lightly used
DW PM7 45 at my local gun pusher.

After checking out a Kimber custom II and a
S&W 1911 I asked to see the DW, and when
I held it hand I was instantly swayed.

I didn't buy it then, but did more research on the
DW 1911's and the general feeling
I got is they are made in low numbers
and the build quality is excellent!
I could see that in the one I looked at and
eventually purchased.

The price I paid was way under $1000 and if you
check out the CZ-DW* website you will see
the PM7 is discontinued, but there is a still a list
of what comes standard on them.
The pricing is around $1200-1600 list
on their current offerings.

They also have a reputation for accuracy,
probably better than I can shoot!
Haven't had a chance to take it to
the range, but I plan on doing that soon.
 

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I know you're asking about 1911's, but I believe Massad Ayoob, put it best when he wrote (words to the effect), "To him, a $2500 .45 was a used VW with a Glock 21 in the glove box."
 
Hi-priced 45's


I know you're asking about 1911's, but I believe Massad Ayoob, put it best when he wrote (words to the effect), "To him, a $2500 .45 was a used VW with a Glock 21 in the glove box."



I have owned some pretty fine 45 pistols - Colt National match pre-Gold cup, 3 digit blue steel Commander, various others. (The unfired Day conversion unit I owned would probably buy a pretty decent 45 today :( )

Unfortunately, many years ago, certain conditions required that I sell them.

For past few months, I have been looking and researching with the idea of finding a decent all steel Commander sized 45 acp. BION, my mind is set on finding such in a Norinco.

YMMV, but after a long time of reading, searching and thinking, I feel that the Norinco most closely suits what I remember as a pistol 'I would never sell.' The minor comforts, i.e. beaver tail safety, feed ramp polishing is easily accomplished and all I would require regardless of price.

(Of course - a low profile adjustable MMC rear sight would be nice :) )

Personally, the bling one can put on a 45 reminds me of these 2-3 thousand $$$ wheels some people often put on their cars while paying little attention to how often they change their oil.

As soon as winter is over, I plan on haunting the pawn shops.
 
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I'm giving strong consideration to entering the high-end (Brown, Baer, Wilson, Nighthawk) market, but I'm under no illusion that one must pay that kind of cash to have a fully functioning 1911. To me it's somewhat like the luxury car market. The Honda works fine, but the Acura is nicer. Both will do the job, but one does it with more style and comfort. Is it worth it? Only if you care for more style and comfort. Some of the high-end 1911's are works of art as much as weapons. I'm sure some will point to increased reliability and accuracy. For example, Les Baer offers pistols that are guaranteed to shoot 1.5" at 50 yards. Certainly, the increased accuracy is nice, but it strikes me as being akin to driving a Ferrari on our highways. Lots of speed I can't use. Still, who doesn't want a Ferrari? On the other hand reliability is very important. The forums are full of threads with different posters touting the enhanced reliability of their favorite brand of 1911. Certainly one would hope that a high end 1911 is reliable, but I haven't the personal experience to say one way or the other. I just know I would like to have one, and see for myself what all the hype is about.
 
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How about a Springfield Range Officer. They can be found stickered new in the $700 range. (At least they could this past week end at a gun show in Atlanta).

While I have not yet shot mine, it apears to be an excellent made gun and has most of the bells and whistles you could want. If it shoots half as good as it looks I'll be happy. Fit and finish were excellent. Trigger break was right at 4.5 lbs with no pre or overtravel - it breaks clean.

Rob

SpringfieldRangeOfficerrightside.jpg
I agree this would be a good place to start.
 
Here's my $0.02. . .

It all depends what you want or need the pistol to do.

If you are shooting bullseye where 50-yard accuracy is critical to winning matches and where you need a pistol that will put 10 consecutive shots into a 2-inch circle at that distance, then you need a hand-built gun. To my knowledge, there are no production 1911s in .45 ACP that can do that. Actually, the best bullseye gunsmiths will build you a gun that will put 40 consecutive shots into a 2-inch circle at 50 yards.

It starts with the barrel. If the barrel won't hold a one-inch group at 50 yards, it is virtually impossible to build an entire pistol around that barrel that will hold 2 inches at that distance.

So, a good bullseye gunsmith will test a bunch of Bar-Sto or Kart barrels with a lot of ammo that produces known accuracy in a barrel fixture. The one(s) that will shoot an inch or less (10 shots) are then selected for the build. The others are either returned to the manufacturer or set aside for less demanding applications.

In the old days, improving the frame to slide fit was a function of peening the rails and squeezing the slide. But these days, the best guns are built from scratch using oversized Caspian frames and slides. These are machined for zero play, and the previously selected barrel fitted.

There's a lot more. The best bullseye gunsmiths touch every single part going into the gun, and often smooth, polish, fit, etc., every one of them, including the grip screws.

I could go on, but you get the picture: it takes a lot of experience, knowledge, and time to build a pistol that can do this, and do it every time, with reliable function. That's why the gun costs $2,000 or more.

Now, most people don't need that level of accuracy, and spending that kind of money if you don't is your business, but I wouldn't do it -- I'd spend the money on something else.

I've had bullseye 1911s built on Springfield and Colt assemblies, and they are both good. But nothing can, IMHO, beat a bullseye .45 built on a Caspian frame and slide by David Sams. Super accurate and reliable, and built so carefully that the gun will probably never shoot loose.

It has always amazed me, actually -- S&W produces a .22 and a .38 that can shoot this well (Models 41 and 52), but no one, it seems, have ever built a .45 that shoots this well as it comes from the factory.


Bullseye
 
I am returning to the 1911 market after some years away. Last time I was buying was when Colts rulled and you then sent it to Bill Wilson for some tweeks to get them to run reliably, improve the sights and get a good trigger. Now that I am blessed to be able to buy any gun I want I find the market populated with many high dollar guns. Whats up with that? Do you need to pay that much for a solid 5 inch enhanced 1911? What say you? Thanks...

Factory quality is great these days, and most of the 1911s now come with what you need. The S&W 1911 and the current Colt 1991 are just fine as they come. I mention those as I think they are also the best investment in terms of being able to shoot and still get your money back later. If you want a pistol with a custom feel, but not the custom price, get the Colt Gunsite Pistol. These are new, available for a very reasonable price, and Colt makes a batch each year only for the Pro Shop at Gunsite, which is the only place to buy a new one. They had both blue and stainless in stock before Christmas. You can buy two for the price of one of the Ed Brown Special Forces pistols.

In my opinion, stay with 5 inch barrel, stay AWAY from full length guide rods and use Wilson 47D or McCormick Power Mags and you should be fine. With the stainless S&W, you would have to replace the full length guide rod with the standard two piece type. Good parts are available from Brownells or Midway and the parts are drop-in.

Get half a dozen mags, a few cases of 230 grain ball ammo, a couple of good holsters and you will be set for a long time.
 
I own two bone stock S&W 1911's and a HEAVILY customized/accurized Colt Gold Cup National Match. ( Read: Near $3K invested) Can't say I can find a world of difference in the custom gun. Sure it's a little tighter, has a slightly better trigger but reliability and accuracy are a wash.

One of the reasons I bought the S&W 1911 is that they pretty much did all that "gotta have" improvements out of the box. lowered ports bevertail safeties, checkerign, upgraded trigger, hammer, mags, etc. They build the gun from scratch utilizing parts from McCormick, Wilson Combat, NovaK and other industry standards,....
i.e Most of what you'd send it out for , without sending it out or spending a fortune.

IMHO, times have changed.

Just picked up a Sig 1911 Target on a whim to add to the stable. Under $1000 and VERY tight. Nothing special to look at but it might be the finest fit /smoothest action 1911 I've ever layed hands on. My gunsmith/dealer was impressed as well. Trigger is SWEET too. Worth looking at if your 1911 shopping on a medium budget.

Products & Services
 
Don't look down your nose at a RIA (Rock Island Armory) built in the Philippines and marketed by Armscore. It's an all steel gun. I've had a compact model, Officers model size, for several years. I did add a beavertail grip safety and Millet sights, but that is all. It will shoot nearly as food as my Series 70 Gold Cup which has a Kart match barrel installed. I originally paid $300 for the RIA, and have maybe another $75 in parts in it. It has never failed to operate.
IMG_1224.jpg
 
I have a Smith 1911 Target that I paid $750 for it brand new 5 years ago. Last spring I sent it back to smith to have the barrel crown cleaned up, breach ledge removed and the sights adjusted (It was shooting way high). Then while it was there I had the Performance Center do an action job on it too. They only charged me $96 and no shipping since it was sent for warranty work. They did a great job! Couldn't be happier, the gun shoots great. So with current prices with the gun and action job you would have about $1150 in a new Smith & Wesson 108284? I don't think thats bad. But I bought a Les Baer Concept III this summer and that 1911 is just awesome! $1800 and worth every penny!
 

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