Shopping for a 1911...

A

aridan

CGN frequent flyer
Rating - 100%
6   0   0
Location
Toronto, ON
I was visiting my buddy near Detroit this past weekend, and we went to a nearby range to try out his handguns.

This was the 1st time for me to shoot the 1911s. I fired about 3-4 mags from each of:
1. Kimber SIS
2. Kimber Custom CDP2
3. Nighthawk Predator
4. Others: HK P2000 9mm, Springfield XDM-9, and HK USP45C.

I was surprised to learn that none of those 1911s had any trigger 'slack' - would that be true of any 1911? It is probably a good thing - making the SRT concept kind of redundant, since there's NO travel whatsoever - but would take some getting used to, especially for rapid-fire.

The biggest surprise was the accuracy. My buddy says the Nighthawk would make any shooter look good, and I have to agree. But the CDP2 gave me groups almost as tight as the Nighthawk.

None of those guns are in the inexpensive category, and the Kimbers seem to be hard to find in Canada. Since I never shot a cheaper 1911, I have to ask: would a CDP2 be that much more accurate than a STI Trojan or a Kimber Custom II? Ideally, I'd like to spend in the $1,200-1,500 range.

I see a lot of comments about how great a gun the STI Spartan is - still, there must be reasons why people buy high-end Kimbers, Nighthawks, and Wilson CQBs... ;)

TIA.
 
bravo-05 said:
i can only speak for the p2000....been to the range a couple of times with it and like it a lot.
Click to expand...
I agree. It was lightweight & accurate, I enjoyed it as much as the SP-01 Shadow that I shoot regularly. Maybe later, since I already have a 9mm pistol, but I want a 1911 now, and I want it pretty badly...
 
Learn differences between series 70 and 80 of 1911s and then make a decision which one you wanna go with. Pick caliber and barrel lenth. Single stack or double. Then start your shopping over. Pay attention to how much of 'custom' the guns are, some 1911s are not within 'standard' specs.
 
CeeZer said:
Learn differences between series 70 and 80 of 1911s and then make a decision which one you wanna go with. Pick caliber and barrel lenth. Single stack or double. Then start your shopping over. Pay attention to how much of 'custom' the guns are, some 1911s are not within 'standard' specs.
Click to expand...
.45ACP, 5" barrell, single stack. The point being, I like the guns I shot, just wondering how much difference is there if shooting a cheaper $1,200 gun compared to a $1,700 one.
The custom aspect of the 1911 will be too much for me to grasp I'm afraid. I'd rather start with something & worry about customizing once I have some experience and understanding.
 
I have owned $1900(COLT), $1000(STI, PARA, KIMBER) & $350 (Norinco) 1911's, single and double stack models..... To be completly honest, the $350 one with a $150 trigger job from Armco shot better than the more expensive ones..... Granted the more expensive ones were bone stock (no tweaking or trigger work).

I sold off the higher priced (read more valuable) models and kept the ones worth less.... I still have a STI Spartan in .45 and a couple of Norincos in .45 & 9mm.

The Nork out of the box is a brick, it just needs some TLC. If you don't feel you have the skills to polish & tweak where nesisary there are many g-smiths out there who do this work (Personally I prefer Gunnar @ Armco).

If this is your first 1911, I reccomend droping an email to Gunnar, chances are he has what you are looking for. If he doesn't he can easily tweak a Nork or a Spartan to your specs for under $1K.

Cheers!
 
+1 for Gunnar, great guy to deal with, and does amazing trigger work and tightening for the price. The Norc needs better sights to get the best out of it, but they are capable of being tuned to a very high level of accuracy and reliability. If I was shopping for a general purpose 1911 today, I'd get Gunnar to do an STI Spartan for me, really all I'd get done is a trigger job, a mag well and a GI spring guide, and most of that is just preference. You'll need any leftover cash for ammo. As far as the 1911 trigger goes it's as good as it is because it only does one thing - it's a bang switch. On most pistols the trigger, is part safety, part cocking device, part bang switch. On the 1911 the slide cocks the hammer, the thumb safety is the applied safety and the grip safety is a drop safety. Each part does one job, extremely well, with a positive feel.
 
I've shot a Trojan and you will NOT be dissapointed. STI produces a nice product that is tuned well for a factory gun right out of the box. It may not have as light and crisp a trigger as a smith performed job but it'll be sweet enough to keep you smiling.
 
Sti

+1

STI makes a nice job of their 1911's.

2007-10-27_091302_1aCoffee.gif

NAA.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom