Help me pick my next 1911

S

Schnitzjr

New member
OK, I have it narrowed down to two models:
Remmington Carry Commander
SA LW Range Officer.

The Carry Commander is Remmington's top of the line series and is a lot of gun for the money. The thing is pretty beautiful, imo.

The LW Range Officer, not to be confused with their garden variety RO series, has an alloy frame (Hence the "LW").

Both are Commander Sized with 4.25" barrels, both have forged slides, etc.

Now, everyone is going to say "No brainer-get the Springfield" but I have a Remmington R1 and the thing is fantastic. Don't think for a second it's cheaply made.

What I like about the Remmington: it's finished like a much more expensive gun; everything is smooth, dehorned, etc. $100.00 rebate...
It has an actual barrel bushing. Checkered front strap-I like them.
PLus, I kinda like that it isn't a gun that everyone else has, you know?

What i'm afraid of: Remmington isn't doing well, what if I don't get my rebate? A lifetime warranty doesn't do much good if the company is out of business either.
It has a blacked out rear sight and a blank night sight on the front, not sure if I will like that.

What I like about the Springfield: You don't hear much bad about SA 1911's. They are known to be accurate and dependable.
I think I will like the fiber optic front sight and blacked out rear combo.
Basically, the SA purchase puts me at ease.

What I don't like about the Springfield: A 1911 with no barrel bushing? Yeah, yeah-alot of compact 1911's don't have 'em but that annoys me.
no checkering on the front strap.
Not exactly a pretty 1911 but I can change that with grips.
Doesn't everyone already own a Springfield 1911?

Remmington will give me a $100 rebate SA will give me 4 extra mags.
Pricewise, It's close actually so in this case, money isn't much of a factor.

Funny, typing out my thoughts reveals I would rather buy the Remmy but I'm too afraid of getting screwed in the long run.:D
 
I also like for 1911s to have barrel bushings. But it mainly depends.

I just picked up another Smith and Wesson scandium framed commander. The 1911SC E-Series. Which has the Series 70 trigger mechanism and all that jazz. Goes well with my 1911PD Commander


So out of the two you're looking at, I'd go with the Remington.


Other than that, I love Colt for the most part. But this S&W called to me.
 
Not a fan of Johnny-come-lately 1911 builders.

Springfield makes excellent products, and they have an excellent warranty.

When you say "LW Range Officer", you mean the Champion?
The Champion is a 4" gun, and I don't think a barrel bushing is compatible with barrels shorter than 4.25".

I had a full-size RO for a while, and it was a great gun.
 
What do you want to do with the gun? If you have any interest in carrying it whatsoever, the lighter weight of the SA will really appeal to you after awhile. I wouldn't let the possibility of Remington going out of business (can't see this happening) deter me from buying one if you really like it better. There are lots of people who know how to work on 1911s and parts availability is not an issue.
 
Gun will be a range toy for me; I have plenty of single stacks to carry.

Rick curious of your statement regarding Johnny-come-lately brands. Remington built hundreds of thousands 1911s for the US govt throughout WWI and WWII.
Granted, they were out of the game for many years.
Ruger, SA, S&W are all new to the game then.

Yup, it's a Champion and does indeed have a 4" barrel whereas the Remmington has a 4.25". Clears up the barrel bushing thing for me. ;)
 
Remington built hundreds of thousands 1911s for the US govt throughout WWI and WWII.
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Remington Rand 1911s and Remington 1911s are not the same company.

Personally I would choose the Springfield over the Remington
 
I too like a checkered front strap. I don't think you really need to worry about Remington going out of business, or not making good on the rebate. If they hit difficulty, someone would certainly keep that brand alive.

If you like the Remington better, and hold it, and it feels right, then get it.

Personally, based on the 2 choices you present, I would take the Remington.

Good luck with your decision

Rich
 
Doesn't have the checkered FS, but the Ruger SR1911 Commander might be another great option in that same price range.
 
Gun will be a range toy for me; I have plenty of single stacks to carry.

Rick curious of your statement regarding Johnny-come-lately brands. Remington built hundreds of thousands 1911s for the US govt throughout WWI and WWII.
Granted, they were out of the game for many years.
Ruger, SA, S&W are all new to the game then.
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First, if it's going to strictly be a range gun you might look at 5" steel 1911s. They're easier and more comfortable to shoot than lightweights and generally have a bit less muzzle rise than 4"-4.25" versions.

Second, Remington's experience building 1911s was limited to a little under 22,000 1911s under the Remington-UMC label in the last year of WWI.
Remington-Rand, a sewing machine company, was contracted by the government in WWII to build 1911s, they built almost 900,000 before the end of the war. Two completely different companies that had nothing to do with each other.

Third, Remington's modern pistol history hasn't exactly been stellar, with recalls, reissues, and other problems plaguing them. Plenty of reports on shoddy workmanship out there.


I have two Springfield LW Champions, one is an Alchemy Custom build, the other a stock Loaded version. Both are great guns, easy to carry, function perfectly, accurate. I have other 4.25" 1911s and don't find the Champion's lack of a barrel bushing to be an issue in comparison.

I do have one Remington 1911, a Turnbull/Remington-UMC WWI commemorative. Turnbull built 1000 guns for Remington a couple of years ago, they are nothing like Remington's regular production guns.

Personally, I'd go with the Springfield, they've been around plenty long, any bugs were worked out long ago and you know what you're getting. Remington's return to making pistols has been riddled with problems, and their 1911 line hasn't been all that popular compared to other manufacturers. In addition, and this is just an observation, I haven't seen any custom 1911 shops building Remingtons. To me, that says a lot about the base gun, if the frame and slide quality were there you'd see bunches of them getting built for carry, competition, etc., but that hasn't happened.
 
I wouldn't let the possibility of Remington going out of business (can't see this happening)
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That corporate liability business with their Model 700 rifle continues to cast a huge financial shadow over their survival in the future. They're not General Motors in terms of being big enough to overcome a multi-million dollar settlement nor is a government bailout very likely. They either win this case(s) or they're out of business in my view. I wish them well but from what I know of the case(s), Remington's future could well be a short one.
 
If I'm looking for a Commander (which I am casually looking for a Colt 9mm LW Commander) I want it to have a barrel bushing. That's just the way I roll, so, no SA shorties for me.
 
Springfield vote here. Do yourself a favor and buy an aftermarket mainspring housing and get rid of that stupid ILS feature they put int their guns. Your trigger pull will improve dramatically by doing so.
 
The ILS has been gone for a year or two.
Only a gun that's been sitting on a shelf somewhere for a long time will have it.
 
They either win this case(s) or they're out of business in my view. I wish them well but from what I know of the case(s), Remington's future could well be a short one.
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They almost assuredly have liability insurance. But even if they don't and a judgment is as financially crippling as you think it would be, that's what bankruptcy is for. They certainly don't have the type of endemic problems as Colt and would likely come out of it just fine. And, as I indicated before, there are lots of people who make 1911 parts and lots of people who work on them.
 
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