best quality, fit and finish 1911 under $1000 ??????

From my experience, if you already have 2 norcs don't bother buying 1911s below $1000. Sure if i didn't have any 1911, buying a para, sam, canuck, etc will represent good value. But as you said you have 2 norcs. The next logical step in my opinion is to go dan wesson, les baer, ed brown, and up. I would skip springfield, sig, s&w, ruger, remington, ria. While 1911s from these brands have a better fit and finish than norcs, i personally feel the value is not there when factoring fit and finish into the equation. Again buying them as a first 1911 is very good.

I would keep the norc and spend the money on ammo. Or save the money and buy something closer to high-end and skip the middle.
 
As a heavy 1911 shooter.
The point of diminishing returns is around 13-1500.

There are a few things you need to settle on, and a few things you can avoid worrying about.

Rule 1: buy quality metal.
Sam, kimber, ria are jokes and will not last the life of the barrel.
You will see this in the slide stop notch as it peens from slide locks.

Norc, springfield, sti, remmy, colt are all good.

2: buy a quality to spec frame.
Kimber, norc, para, ria, sam will All require fitment of the most common parts.
Again, it comes down sacrificing one thing for another during manufacturing.

3: barrel, sights, slide profile are all major considerations.
EVERYTHING else can be replaced or modified easily.
To turn down a sale because it lacks ambi safies or a high beavertail is a joke. If your frame is in spec, these parts swap in and out 95% of the time.

Personal prefrence.
I’ve ran springfield to the ground and back. They are solid. I’ve seen sti with no blueing left still lock up well.
Colts are great frames.


Lastly: the cost of the gun will be nothing but a drop in the bucket to the costs of ammo.
If 200$ is out of your price range, rethink your strategy and save up.
I’ve worked on a few cheap guns that need way more tuning then a properly built frame off the start.

If you have any skill. Definitely buy a norinco and build your own. Many norc frames are the bases of competition winning guns.
 
albertaman238 said:
I already have 2 norc 1911's....one commander and one full size....I am looking at getting something nicer and so far the best deal i have found is the para expert 2 tone with stainless slide, match barrel and trigger and steel frame. I have purchased used pistols before that were advertised "new in the box" or "un-fired" and for the most part i have been pleased with what i bought. BUT I have also been not so happy with a few used purchases. I have been thinking about this and know i want a new full size 1911 in stainless or at least stainless slide. I will polish it up and it will be my only "bling" pistol.

I have watched/read as many reviews as i can find on different 1911 pistols and while the norcs are fun they are not at the level of pretty much any other brand. (one exception is the np sig clone of the p226...damn nice pistol)....but there is something about 1911 style that just calls to me. I love working on them more than other pistols...I have done work on the 2 norcs as i am not afraid of screwing something up on a cheaper pistol and they are great for learning on.


Most of the information i get is from the internet hence my asking for your input.
Some reviews can be taken with a grain of salt but for the most part they are regular guys just trying to share info which is great.

My biggest problem is that i do not have access to look at or handle a lot of pistols in my town. I don't care about brand names but i would like better quality if i can find it. I will pretty much be buying sight unseen which is why i am asking for your input as many of you have or have had many different brands of 1911.

Others i am considering: All around 700 new.

para
canuck stainless
girsan stainless
taurus

I would LOVE a kimber or ruger or sti or sig but they are all 1k and more. Outside my price range/$ 700 ish. Must keep the wife happy.
Click to expand...

First of all, I'd like to say that I am sorry you have not had a good experience buying used firearms on the EE.

On the other hand, I've bought and sold more than a few firearms through the EE, with a feedback score of 89 (100%) and also have had repeat deals with several members. I have not met a bad seller or buyer yet. Lucky perhaps.

In my experience, if the Seller described it as "like new, only 100 rounds fired", it was evident in the firearm I received, often it was in better condition than described. As well, I've bought from "0" feedback sellers to sellers with hundreds of feedback. My rule is to deal only with sellers with 100% feedback, but I have also made an exception or two.

Perhaps I have been lucky, but I have never bought a firearm that was not "as described".

OP, your feedback score is "4" so I feel sorry that you've been very unlucky, because as few as your deals have been, it would seem most of your purchases have had issues. I don't know what to say except perhaps give the EE another chance. Read the FAQ on the EE. Communicate with the Seller. Ask for pictures, as many as will make you feel comfortable with your purchase. Any seller that will not give you the pics is not worthy of the risk.

As for your short list of new firearms wish list, I would not settle for any of those, just to be able to stay within your budget. Since you're preference is a stainless model, your options for a 1911 is pretty much a used SR1911, AFAIK. Most guns on the EE are slightly used to BNIB condition. IMO, a 500 rd quality 1911 is still lightly used. I shot that many in a day when I first got into the sport.

Keep lurking on the EE until the right deal comes along.
 
Hey Easyrider: Just to clarify...none of my experiences on cgn or the ee here have been bad. I was referring to used purchases from all sources in general. The people on cgn have been nothing short of fantastic to deal with.
 
albertaman238 said:
Hey Easyrider: Just to clarify...none of my experiences on cgn or the ee here have been bad. I was referring to used purchases from all sources in general. The people on cgn have been nothing short of fantastic to deal with.
Click to expand...

All good for me as well; both ways.
 
snooze98k said:
As a heavy 1911 shooter.
The point of diminishing returns is around 13-1500.

There are a few things you need to settle on, and a few things you can avoid worrying about.

Rule 1: buy quality metal.
Sam, kimber, ria are jokes and will not last the life of the barrel.
You will see this in the slide stop notch as it peens from slide locks.

Norc, springfield, sti, remmy, colt are all good.

2: buy a quality to spec frame.
Kimber, norc, para, ria, sam will All require fitment of the most common parts.
Again, it comes down sacrificing one thing for another during manufacturing.

3: barrel, sights, slide profile are all major considerations.
EVERYTHING else can be replaced or modified easily.
To turn down a sale because it lacks ambi safies or a high beavertail is a joke. If your frame is in spec, these parts swap in and out 95% of the time.

Personal prefrence.
I’ve ran springfield to the ground and back. They are solid. I’ve seen sti with no blueing left still lock up well.
Colts are great frames.


Lastly: the cost of the gun will be nothing but a drop in the bucket to the costs of ammo.
If 200$ is out of your price range, rethink your strategy and save up.
I’ve worked on a few cheap guns that need way more tuning then a properly built frame off the start.

If you have any skill. Definitely buy a norinco and build your own. Many norc frames are the bases of competition winning guns.
Click to expand...

when i see people saying stuff like "buy a quality to spec frame like SAM and RIA" that kinda makes me put anything else they say in a category of 'this fella might have hit his head too many times before helmets became mandatory' section.
and i say this as a person who has all of the 1911's you've listed above.
and i also say it with love and admiration.
one of those last 2 may not be entirely true.
 
wayupnorth said:
when i see people saying stuff like "buy a quality to spec frame like SAM and RIA" that kinda makes me put anything else they say in a category of 'this fella might have hit his head too many times before helmets became mandatory' section.
Click to expand...
He said that "Kimber, norc, para, ria, sam will All require fitment of the most common parts". As in, the frame is NOT to spec.

Perhaps you are the one who has hit his head too many times...
 
capp325 said:
He said that "Kimber, norc, para, ria, sam will All require fitment of the most common parts". As in, the frame is NOT to spec.

Perhaps you are the one who has hit his head too many times...
Click to expand...

could be.

its strange though, ive dropped all sorts of parts in to my Kimber of the years and have never had a problem with fit.
so either all the parts ive picked up are out of spec or..... the Kimber frame is IN spec.
SAM, yes, out of spec, had fit to all parts.

id be interested to see some of these Kimbers that are coming apart.
ive yet to see one my self.

at any rate, OP asked for a good sub $1000 1911, my suggestion stands.
Ruger and SAM are nice, Kimber is better if you can find one.
any of those 3 will fit the bill nicely.
 
I have a Remington R1 gov't and love it. I use it for wild bunch and have put a few thousand rounds thru it so far no problems at all. There have been a number of lightly used ones on the EE for $650ish. I've been tempted to pick another one up
 
Buy used of ee. Sr1911 and spingfield 1911 and R1 do go for around $650-725 with 100rds or less. Springfield is the harder one at above $700 used.

I bought a stainless R1 and sr1911 both for $680 with not a scratch on it. Deals like that do come up but you must be fast. They usually sell within an hour
 
I don't really think you can go wrong with the Ruger, Remington, Springfield armory or a lightly used Sig 1911. I wouldn't hesitate to buy a lightly used model from any of those manufacturers.
Specifically the Ruger comes with a lifetime warranty, even if you're not the original owner. I believe the Remington R1 is a 2 year warranty.
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top Bottom