Talo Colt Night Defender @ $1180 overpriced?

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bald1

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I've been looking for a lightweight commander sized 45acp for some time to no avail (I admit to being picky about what brands with some eliminated from consideration). I found a Talo Colt Defender today NIB for $1179.99. Online I see them for $100 to $150 less but none are available in stock.

So is this "premium" I'd be paying outrageous or just a sign of the times?

Addendum: They now say the best they can do is $1159.99 plus a box of ammo. Add the 6% sales tax and that's $1230 out the door. Seems overly steep to me.
 
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Gerald,

Talo is a Colt distributor that had a run of 400 customized Defenders made in the Feb-Mar timeframe. They sold well so another 400 were made in May. Talo specializes in customs and collectable runs of various Colt models.

They have night sights, special rollmarks, electroless nickel on the aluminum alloy frame and teflon on the carbon slide for a two tone appearance, custom grips, dehorned, and with 2 magzines.

NDF.jpg
 
Very nice. Thanks!

I have a Defender that I'd use for concealed carry, except I'm a lefty and I can't afford an ambi safety right now. :( They're sweet guns!
 
For that kind of money you can get a Kimber Ultra in many models. I recently purchased one and really like it. I have fed it ball,jhp, and swc ammo with no problems.
Jim
 
I own a Night Defender and love it. Think it is well worth $1200 out the door to have a unique sweet lookin' sweet shootin' Colt with two mags that nobody else in your neighborhood, city, or perhaps even state will own. Or go save yourself $50 and pick up a stock Kimber Ultra Carry that comes with one mag and that every impulse buying magazine reader has.

Depends on your personality I suppose :cool:
 
I'm no fan of the II Series Kimbers, so.... $1230 out the door gives me cause for pause.

My preference still is a lightweight commander sized pistol although I found the Defender to have a pleasing feel in the hand despite my pinky finger hanging out with nothing to grab. The Night Defender comes in at 22 oz unloaded but for a bit less than $400 I could have a S&W SW1911PD 4.25" at 28oz. Or $300 diff the Gunsite S&W 4.25". I really like Dan Wessons but none are lightweight.

Or for several hundred more, I could have a built-to-my-spec Fusion Firearms :)

So at $1230 I decided to pass on the Talo.
 
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I don't know,I don't get it, I guess it's personal preference but i can't understand why someone would pay all that money for a 1911 that has a reduced sight radius, leaves your pinky hanging in the breeze and every thousand rounds you have to start replacing recoil springs, not to mention you give up accuracy! just to reduce the weight!!!!Maybe conceal a little better.Granted the look rather sweet but for that kind of money I want reliability,accuracy,not like I'm in the service anymore and carrying the thing 24/7 anymore and it's not like even the full size 1911's are hard to conceal.Guess I just wish I had the money you guys seem to have!
 
Went to the Money pit this morning to pick up a new glock or sig and instead grabbed one of these up. Background Check system in VA was backed up so now sitting at home waiting to go pick this up and take care of a trade for a beretta 85 Nickel this afternoon. God I love the 1st of the month. Pay bills set aside cash for food and gas and then GUN TIME! Next month S&W Nightguard or 636.
 
FWIW the Defender is not Commander sized, it is quite a bit smaller. It is an Officer size frame with a 3" bull barrel. I don't believe Talo has changed those dimensions. The smaller a 1911-type gun gets the more problems they seem to have, IMO.
 
David,

I don't think anyone is mistaking the size of the Defender for that of a commander.

EchoOne,

Some, like me, find the extra length of a government slide over that of a commander's just enough to cause issues for CCW carry, especially when seated. I'm a hair under 5'8" and very long waisted (meaning long torso and very short legs e.g less than 28" inseam) so this problem seems especially pronounced for me. Bottom line is saying that govt sized 1911s are easy to conceal (comfortably) is not a universal truism :(
 
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ECHOONE said:
I don't know,I don't get it, I guess it's personal preference but i can't understand why someone would pay all that money for a 1911 that has a reduced sight radius, leaves your pinky hanging in the breeze and every thousand rounds you have to start replacing recoil springs, not to mention you give up accuracy! just to reduce the weight!!!!Maybe conceal a little better.Granted the look rather sweet but for that kind of money I want reliability,accuracy,not like I'm in the service anymore and carrying the thing 24/7 anymore and it's not like even the full size 1911's are hard to conceal.
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Well, for me it was important to be the smallest and lightest 1911 I could find. At that time it was the Kimber Ultra CDP. Mine is tiny, light, completely reliable, and the sweetest shooting small 1911 I've ever held. It's also the most accurate out of the box weapon I've yet purchased, so I gave up nothing for accuracy. And my pinkie doesn't "hang in the breeze," though I have fairly large hands. The 1911 for me just plain works, and the 3" 1911 is just plain perfect for carry. I hear you on the price; mine was $950 and it was pure pain to pay even that for a handgun. Now, though, everything in the Ultra CDP class looks like this, and I'm glad I'm not needing to pay upwards of 1200 bucks for my next carry.
 
Anyone with one of these Night Defenders have any suggestions for good practice ammo? I bought some Speer 230gr Gold Dots and 2 extra Colt mags so that I always have my SD ammo loaded and ready to go. If 14 rounds of 230gr HP wont do it, then I suppose it was just my time.
 
I have a ultra cdpII

and after buying a springfield ultra compact (3.5")...I traded it in on a Colt Night Defender...couldn't be happier with them both...my Kimber has more rounds thru it and a better trigger and better sights but the Colt is sweet.
Both guns are very accurate, easy to conceal and carry and a pleasure to shoot .Once I get an ambi safety the Colt will go into the carry rotation...If I can get off the Kimber Kool aide:D
All my 1911's are 3" :p
 
David,
I don't think anyone is mistaking the size of the Defender for that of a commander.
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I don't necessarily think they are. The OP did specify that he had been looking for a LW commander, and my point is that the Defender, being a much smaller gun, is subject to a number of issues that would not be present with an actual commander-sized gun. A number of folks don't realize how much difference there is in the design, reliability, etc.
 
Anyone with one of these Night Defenders have any suggestions for good practice ammo?
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Any that you can find right now. I have had no problems with CCI Blazer Brass from Wally. Finding the ammo is the problem :mad:
 
HenryTheNoodle,

Yeah I've seen details on that DW CCO but they've yet to hit the stores :(

David,

I'm the OP and believe me I do understand the trade offs in going smaller than a Commander sized 1911. That said it seems the Colt Defender/New Agent series has been the most reliable of the officer's sized currently available. Regardless, as stated earlier I passed.

I'm back to weighing lightweight commander sized pistols that are available... which in this current crazy marketplace isn't a lot at all :( Also waiting on a quote from Fusion for a forged 7075 alloy frame based commander to see if it breaks my bank or not.
 
Colt Night Defender

While shopping for a small compact .45 acp pistola in early April of 2010, I was shown a online picture of a Colt Defender model as a special 'night' edition by TALO. The price was $1100. plus tax. After chatting with the sales folks and the individual store owner he agreed to a out the door price of $1100. Seems like a good deal. Anyway, the following week I was still window shopping for ammo and stumbled upon a Kimber Ultra Carry II NIB for $840. Since nobody can ever have too many handguns or enough ammo, I opted to purchase the Kimber too. Now I have a couple of nice range guns that me and my son can enjoy shooting. When in doubt, buy BOTH.
 
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