commanders

Brutus

New member
Which one. Leaning towards a Colt stainless, would love a bobtail but it's out of my budget, What's the best bang for the buck forum members?
 
I have two: A Colt Lightweight Commander in .45ACP and the new Ruger Lghtweight in 9mm. The Colt is blued; the Ruger is stainless. Both are fine pistols. Best bang for the buck? IMO, the Ruger is. Sorry, but it is just a damn fine 1911 and has everything you need and little that you don't.


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I honestly believe the Ruger's are the best bang for your buck. I have a Colt but it was bought from a friend and was my birth year gun so it was in a different category for me as to why I bought it. If I were to purchase a commander today it would be the Ruger or Springfield depending on price and new VS used.

I know you said you were interested in a stainless Colt but what is the use going to be CC, range, home use? I know I prefer my Kimber Pro CarryII (Alu frame) for carry, the others are used for home/range use.
 
Ruger Commanders are excellent.

What I like about Ruger 1911s, besides the excellent guns and customer service, is that you can shop from them for just about any component of the 1911---triggers, sears, thumb safeties, even down to such little items as
the pin for the barrel link.

True, you can go to Wilson Combat, for instance, and also buy the components, but what the hey, Ruger is there for you.

I own a trigger gauge and the Ruger 1911 trigger weights are consistently
under 5 pounds, more like 4 to 4.5 pounds right out of the box.
 
All my Commanders are Colt except for my Dan Wesson Bobtail.

Buy what you want .A good gunsmith always make it a bobtail.
 
Kimbers are out, I own two of them, both have been problematic and had to be sent back to the factory. They have the worst customer service and I will never buy another. That is a strong point for the Ruger but does anyone have any feedback on Colts customer service. I've owned a series 70 Gold cup for thirty years, never had a problem with it so I'm unfamiliar with their reputation.
 
The Ruger is an excellent choice for a very modest price. Colt would be a notch in price and quality. Dan Wesson much nicer, better quality, quite a bit more expensive. I own at least one of all three and all are very good guns.
 
I'd go with the lt weight model myself and save the weight. It's a big difference if you intend to carry it.

Ruger makes a great Commander length, in both full stainless and alloy frame models. I own the CMD model with its SS frame, and it's a great gun, but heavy. BTW, it's parts in the example I own, are 100% interchangeable with those of 70's vintage Colt Combat Commander.

I've owned both the Combat Commander and Lt weight models that Colt makes, and while they were good guns, today's models seem to be relying on the Colt name and the cache it brings to the price point. Rod
 
I personally never had the desires for anything but the Colts.

Bought my first one in 1973, and have three others to go with it.

Over all that time, not one has ever needed anything.

I have had other makes of 1911, but they were purchased a good prices for the times, then after exercising them a little, they were either sold or traded.

But I kept the Colts.
 
Gunbuyer has the Ruger commander length 1911 for $599 at the moment. I can't afford one or I would seriously consider that. I do have a Colt Combat Commander that I picked up a couple of years ago. Got to love the Pony.
 
I have a 70 series LWC Colt .45 that I carried for years. It was my first 1911 and it never gave me a bit of trouble. It is a safe queen now for some piece that is a tad lighter.
 
Comments given that Colt is a notch above Ruger.

I own both LW Commanders in 9 mm.

If Colt is a notch above Ruger, it is a very tiny notch and one that
I can't really see.

But that little pony certainly has a certain aura about it and that's why
I own it. And it was $200 more than the one with the black hawk on it.
 
You're in luck, there're lots of good choices out there. So I'll just generalize.

For a 45ACP I'd go with a steel frame if you plant to shoot it a lot. (Recoil and durability) For 9mm I'd go lightweight. My own selections were the Remington R1 Commander 45ACP (A basic Colt Combat Commander form factor with a very reasonable price with the $75 mail in rebate) and the Springfield Range Officer Compact 9mm (Small and lightweight) Both are blue but there are similar models by various brand names in stainless for more money.
 
Kimbers are out, I own two of them, both have been problematic and had to be sent back to the factory.

I own 3 Kimbers, one of which is a lightweight commander sized Pro Carry II. All have been flawless. The lightweight gets the most abuse, as it's my service pistol (plainclothes LEO) and it has upwards of 5k rounds through it. Never a hiccup. I have heard stories like yours, but my experience has been great with all (the aforementioned Pro Carry, a Stainless Target in 10mm, and a TLE II) of them I have owned.

I would buy another Kimber in a heartbeat.
 
Wait till you have to deal with their customer service because you will quickly discover your an idiot and whatever the problem is it's your fault.:(
 
I'm fortunate enough to have 2 custom 1911 plumbers within 45 minutes of me. No 1911 of mine will be going anywhere but one of those 2 places.
 
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