1911's vs. other semi-automatics

[longhornmike]

hey fellas
i've noticed that a lot of you are really fond of 1911's. i've just been shooting for a couple of years now and really enjoy it , but i'm really only familiar with my two pistols.
my favorite is my springfield-armory xd.45 5" tactical. i also have a taurus millineum 9mm.

what is it about the 1911's that you guys like so much ?

thanks for all the great information shared here.

[marksiwel]

I like my Browning Hi Power, better!

John Browning designed the 1911, then he figured out what he did wrong and designed the Browning Hi Power

Why people like the 1911
Its all Metal no Plastic
Its an age old Design thats been PROVEN in Battle
It Fires a Good Sized Bullet, the 45
It easy to take down, its a classic look

The Cons
Its all metal and no plastic, its heavy and bulky
Its an old design and there are some better ways of doing what its doing
The 45 can be alittle too much for people, slow to get the gun back for follow up shots, also you can hold less ammo in the mag with a .45 than a 40 or 9mm
There are easier guns to take down and some see the look as "Out dated"

Compared to a Browning Hi Power
They are Both all Metal the Browning is lighter (most of the time)
The Browning has less of a Jamming Problem than the 1911, and has been a standard side Arm in Europe since ww2, it was used by the Brits and the Nazis!
It holds 13 9mm which in 1935 was ALOT OF ammo, you can also get 15 round magazines, and 20 round magazine. They even have the BHP in .40 S&w and its just a reliable as the 9mm
The Browning Hi power is SOOOOOO much easier to field strip than a 1911, and is almost painfully stupid.

I could go on, but I want to point out, I dont hate the 1911, hell I want one BAD, its just not the be all end alll. Its just a popular Pistol here in America because of the caliber and its history

[longhornmike]

thanks mark . sounds like it's kind of "old school" , which is cool at times.

[Zee]

I like mine to look more Sgt York than Buck Rogers.

[marksiwel]

thanks mark . sounds like it's kind of "old school" , which is cool at times.

My problem with the 1911, is...(Puts on flak jacket)
Unless you drop some serious Cash, alot of the guns out there are crap.
Kimber makes a fine 1911, but they can run for 2k! When you can buy a Glock for 350-500, heck you could probably get 6 glocks for the price of a Kimber if you haggle with your dealer.

You can also buy some old "Surplus" 1911, but unless you want to go through all the fuss cleaning them up, replacing parts ect to a point where you would put your LIFE on the line that it would work and not fail, you could have bought a glock or a XD. Of course some people see doing all that as fun, I personally dont.

If you have big hands (like me) the 1911 is great btw, if you are small of hand, it can be like handling a brick

[UpTheIrons]

If you have big hands (like me) the 1911 is great btw, if you are small of hand, it can be like handling a brick

Actually, I find the opposite to be true. It is a lot harder for me to be comfortable when shooting a Block (um, I mean Glock ) than my 1911, even with my gorilla paws. My wife (with her smallish hands) has the same issue. The 1911 just "fits" some hands better than many of the polymer pistols out there. Maybe it has to do with the double stack magazines, maybe it is the ergonomics as a whole. I didn't really care for the Taurus PT 145 either, it just didn't 'fit' right.

I don't think the 1911 is the be-all-end-all of handguns (the one that fits you best is), but the fact that it is still chugging happily along says something about it.

As always, your mileage may vary.


(Edited quote for clarity.)

[Pete92FS]

hey fellas
i've noticed that a lot of you are really fond of 1911's. i've just been shooting for a couple of years now and really enjoy it , but i'm really only familiar with my two pistols.
my favorite is my springfield-armory xd.45 5" tactical. i also have a taurus millineum 9mm.

what is it about the 1911's that you guys like so much ?

thanks for all the great information shared here.

The best thing to do is try one out and if you like it then maybe you too will come over to the "Dark Side".

I tried one and like it and got rid of my 92FS and PT145 and all I now have is 1911's.

[longhornmike]

pete
actually that's why i haven't tried one. i'm afraid you might be right !

[A-R]

Don't own a 1911, but have fired many. Years ago owned it's smaller cousin, the Colt Mustang .380.

One day I hope to own a 1911. For CCW/personal protection, I'll probably always rely on a Glock (or similar) or well-built revolver. Reliability is #1 concern for a CCW weapon for me (not knocking the 1911 here, but track records of all three point to slight edge in reliability for the Glocks and revolvers over a 1911).

What I like, no, LOVE about the 1911 is that short, sweet, crisp single-action trigger. Even my stock Mustang had a sweet little trigger. The Kimbers I fired are even better, almost "too good" in fact. Only NDs I've had in my 12 years of handgun ownership have been with my Mustang and a Kimber, both 1911 pattern firearms. So there is obviously a safety learning curve with these pistols ... don't flame me for this, I know why I had the ND and know it was my fault and not the gun's - just saying there is some retraining needed for someone who is used to a Glock/XD type set up. Also, if used for CCW, some muscle memory training is necessary to make deactivating the safety instinctual, because these are carried "cocked and locked" with the hammer back and the safety engaged.

The single stack magazine also makes the thinner grip a bit more pleasant for my hands to hold than my Glock.

[joe817]

Only NDs I've had in my 12 years of handgun ownership have been with my Mustang and a Kimber, both 1911 pattern firearms.

Austinrealtor, care to share the event of the ND on the Colt Mustang? I have its bigger brother, and I might be able to learn something from your experience, and perhaps avoid a similar occurrence.

[AEA]

I have lots of 1911's and one Browning Hi-Power. I love all of them the same!

[Embalmo]

'Cause most guns only go to 1910, this one goes to 19 ELEVEN!

Embalm oh!

[srothstein]

I think one point a lot of people have not mentioned is the ease of customizing the 1911. You can get a good quality pistol fairly cheaply (I love my Taurus 1911). You can get a basic military style model, like the Springfield, or you can get a fairly fancy expensive one like the Wilson versions. But no matter which one you choose, you can modify it to your hearts content. This lets you make it "my" pistol and there is no other just like it in the world. Do you want it just for shooting in one hand, partially ambidextrous, or fully ambidextrous? Do you want it accurrized and tightened, or as loosely made as the military ones (not a slam, by the way)? What kind of sights do you want on it? Do you want to shoot it for combat or for competition?

How much do you want to spend and when can be driving factors. I can by a $400 basic pistol now, and spread the cost of modifying it over several years, ending up with the same pistol that would have cost me $2500 now, but I got to shoot it along the way. This also let me see exactly what each modification did for accuracy and reliability and if I liked it or not.

I bought mine the way I liked it and have not modified it yet. I might play with the sights later on but I have not yet done so. I like the 1911 for the way it fits my hand and the way it naturally points for me.

[karl]

Two things: look and feel.

I haven't fired many handguns before but as soon as I picked up my S&W I knew it was right for me. The feel in my hand was fantastic, the weight was comfortable and the look is irresistible.

[A-R]

'Cause most guns only go to 1910, this one goes to 19 ELEVEN!

Embalm oh!

Nice Spinal Tap reference