which 1911 to buy

N

nearly

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I have recently become interested in getting a 1911, trying to read as much info on the net before taking the plunge and buying,
should i get a ww2 colt/remmington rand or go for a modern 1911, maybe a norinco 1911 and replace most of the parts.
What are realistic prices for the pistols metioned.
Thanks
 
Buy a Colt 1991A1

The prudent thing to do is to buy a Colt 1991A1 in mat blue. Price about $450-$525; then replace plastic trigger, plastic main spring housing with Wilson or equivalent steel parts. Then, you can purchase a Wilson "drop-in" beavertail grip safety which requires NO frame modifications. Lastly, a CMC hammer and sear, and a Dwyer group gripper with Brown drop-in barrel bushing. Final cost you ask??? Less than $200 for parts, and about $100 for a 'smith to install. You can figure out the final cost....:)
 
I can't see any point to buying something and then replacing all the parts unless you're trying to build up something special, and for your 1st 1911, I doubt it. Buy a Kimber Classic or equivalent basic Springfield and enjoy shooting it. Upgrade later once you understand the kinds of things you'd like changed, or at that point order up a Wilson/Baer/Brown to your liking.
 
Buying a 1911 pistol is like buying a car that you will eventually add some items . That to me is the reason the 1911 is something that almost everyone gets involved with at some time or other.It's a great add on pistol you can pretty up, and you can improve performance as well.Buy one, any one and have fun..You WILL CHANGE YOUR IDEAS as to what the 1911 should be for you, so go easy on the pocketbook on the first one.:)
 
What treeprof said.

I bought a blue Kimber Classic and it's my favorite piece out of the whole collection. If you plan on holstering it a lot, then get the stainless version. You'll be happy.
 
I bought one of the Colt Govertment Models with the *new* roll marks - no more "1991A1".

$500 - worked right out of the box. I put rosewood grips on it because I wanted too, but didn't "have" to do anything. Seems Colt is cleaning up their act a bit.

edit - Thought I should mention that after take-up, the trigger is pretty darn good.
 
This is exactly why many others, including myself, have not subscribed to 1911s. Look at all this talk of spending several hunders $$ on a gun that immediatly needs to go to the gunsmith to have it gutted. Several hundred dollars later you (may) have an accurate and reliabe wepon. If you want a no frills out of the box accurate reliable 45acp that does not need a gunsmith before you hit the range go by yourself a Glock, Sig, HK...
 
A basic Kimber or Springfield will work fine out of the box, for no more than a Beretta or Glock. You should save over a H&K.
That said, my favorite .45 ACP is the Beretta.
After using your first 1911 for a while, you can figure out if you want a custom gun and what you want on it.
 
I plan to get one of these after I get the single action revolver bug fixed. Basically I plan to go with a new colt, like the 1991 whatever. Colt offers a version without the plastic, but I figured I would go with box stock from the factory and use it. After I have run a couple thousand rounds through it and learned from the net I will change what I feel needs to be changed. I have glocks and believe if done right the plastic will be fine. I also want a colt, just cause they started the thing and seem to be doing better lately.

There are several posts on other firearms boards where some of the kimbers do not hold up to the value. I also think most of the others are ok, but I figure a stock colt will be fine.

I think the value of any 1911 or 1991 type gun is that you can change anything you want or need to change. They are different. I do not worry about people who put it down cause they have their wants and I have mine. For the first one I want a simple one to learn on and take apart and see what I think needs to be changed. But I have yet to change anything on my other firearms, they are just a little different than my other firearms.

Go to some other boards and do some searches, in my opinion colt is moving upward while others are getting a bit worse in working stock out of the box.
 
Well...there are many opinions about what should be "had", but the simple fact is that my "suggestion" of a Colt 1991A1 with upgrading of said parts still puts the Colt below $800. Many of the other "imitators" sell "loaded" or "custom" guns for more, and come no where near the performance AND mystique of a Colt. Compare value of all Colt competitor/imitators after about 5 years, and see which is worth more used.

P.S. If it doesn't have a pony, it's just another wannabe!!! :cool:
 
If you're a newbie and want to lower your risk get a Colt Sistema (I did). You'll have a basic GI 1911 to work with. Otherwise, from what I hear, Kimber's the way to go.
 
I just bought a Springfield Armory Stainless Loaded Full-Size. I think it looks great and have heard good things about it. I picked it up for $750 which I thought was a pretty fair price. I haven't been able to shoot it yet since I'm still waiting for it (MD 7-day waiting period), but I can't wait.
 
Nearly,

The best production line 1911 you can buy is the Kimber Gold Match. I---like you---did my homework, and my conclusion fell in with the general opinion that Kimbers are the way to go. The price, however, may seem prohibitive---unless you're willing to foot it ($950-$1300, depending on where you live).

If you're into USPSA/IPSC, a custom 1911 will be the norm; in which case STI is unquestionably the best every built ($1400-$3000).

My 2 cents.
 
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If you want a no frills out of the box accurate reliable 45acp that does not need a gunsmith before you hit the range go by yourself a .......

Kimber Custom Classic is just that
 
This is exactly why many others, including myself, have not subscribed to 1911s. Look at all this talk of spending several hunders $$ on a gun that immediatly needs to go to the gunsmith to have it gutted.
Click to expand...

Good quality 1911s don't "need" to go to the gunsmith anymore than Harley's need all that chrome, a custom paint job, and cute little tassles hanging from the grips. Owners do it because they want to. Not because they need to.

My favorite is a Kimber Compact that no one has ever touched. It functions flawlessly and the thing was a tack driver right out of the box. I'll match you against anything in your gun cabinet. Loser buys lunch.

RJ
 
Or, for $550-650, you can get a SIG P220 which will outshoot any sub-$1,000 M1911.

If you are looking for a historical piece, you can usually buy USGI "Government" models from Colt SA etc., but with small, fixed sights, they are not very entertaining to shoot.
 
Get the Colt 1991, I like the blue or parkerized ones better than the SS ones.Shoot it for a while then decide what you want to replace.
 
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