I'm on the market for a new commander or "medium" size 1911. In no particular order of preference, my options are narrowed to:
1. Colt commander ($950)
2. Colt commander elite ($1,400)
3. Kimber master carry pro ($1,350)
4. Kimber eclipse pro (1,250)
Kimbers are really beautiful guns. Colts are tried and true. Which one would you choose and why ???
Thanks
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1. Colt commander ($950)
https://colt.com/detail-page/col-combat-commander-45acp
2. Colt commander elite ($1,400)
https://colt.com/detail-page/combat-elite-cmndr-45acp-ssbk
3. Kimber master carry pro ($1,350)
https://www.kimberamerica.com/master-carry-pro
4. Kimber eclipse pro (1,250)
https://www.kimberamerica.com/eclipse-pro-ii-ca
I added weblinks just in case I was looking at the wrong specific handguns and to possibly help others who want to read this thread (and post their opinions).
For the Colts, 1 & 2, I'm not a fan of having a firing pin safety on 1911s. I find the extra parts annoying when I detail strip and when reassembling during a field strip.
Also, my luck with my last two Colts, both the same model of Commander, but now discontinued, was bad. The first one was replaced with the 2nd one due to the frame cracking. On the 2nd one, Colt went to a dual recoil spring system which I further annoyed me. Both had the old-school staked on front sights which fell off while shooting.
I believe both of these newer Colts have front sights in dovetails, and hopefully, won't be a problem. I don't hear much about Colt Commander frames cracking other than during the batch where mine was from.
The #2 Colt also has night sights. These could be nice to have, but a pain when they dim-out in 12 years, as they'd no longer glow bright enough (if that will be a bother or not is a personal preference).
The #3 Kimber has a laser grip and a bobbed frame. These are also two things which I have no need/interest to own.
The #4 Kimber has its Swartz firing pin safety which annoys me more than Colt's Series 80 system. If Kimber's safety system needs tuning, I find it more difficult to tune the parts, whereas I haven't had a Colt fps system needing any tuning.
As I recall, Kimber's recommended recoil spring replacement was only every 800 rounds on the Pro models. Wolff had a special spring for the 4" Kimbers which has a bit heavier weight which folks recommended on the Kimber forums.
If I had to choose, with my tastes/preferences, I'd choose Item 1, the regular Colt Commander. I'd likely buy a regular Commander guide rod and spare regular single recoil springs. But do get whichever of the four guns suits your styling preferences, if you cannot afford all four.
What would I get?
At this point of my life, I shoot a lot and know some guns will break. I just don't want to spend time debugging and tuning up a 1911 to work for my needs/wants. While I don't own one, I'd likely just spend the big bucks and go with a Wilson Combat. Here's one of its line of Commander-sized 1911s:
https://www.wilsoncombat.com/x-tac-commander/
My main carry 1911 is a discontinued 5" Kimber SIS (no fps).