Robust 1911s?

Which 1911 manufacturer produces the most robust frames and slides?

  • Smith & Wesson

    Votes: 4 3.6%

  • Sig Sauer

    Votes: 11 10.0%

  • Ruger

    Votes: 9 8.2%

  • Remington

    Votes: 1 0.9%

  • SAM

    Votes: 1 0.9%

  • Colt

    Votes: 27 24.5%

  • Norinco

    Votes: 33 30.0%

  • Kimber

    Votes: 4 3.6%

  • RIA

    Votes: 1 0.9%

  • SVI

    Votes: 19 17.3%
  • Total voters
    110
Standingtall said:
They are not saying the Norc's are "better quality" than the big name brands. Its the tool grade steel frames and slides they are saying are better, other than that they are a budget pistol to tinker with. Wilson combat had a list of 4 frames they would do custom work on years ago....#1 was Colt, #2 was Norinco, #3 was Caspian, and the last was Springfield I think. Its wonderful to be able to buy a $1500 pistol, but if I am going to tinker and do a build its not going to be on a kimber, or a colt, or an STI....Its going to be on a cheap Norc, S.A.M, or R.I.A so I get a good base and I can upgrade pretty much everything else to what I want....its fun to tinker.
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Another internet legend - exactly like the one about the american rail road steel that was used to make the Norinco pistols.
Wilson decided to accept Norinco back in the days before SA was considered reliable and before Kimber really changed the 1911 world.
The thing that really drives the myths about the Norks in the USA is that they are no longer imported (for many years actually).
The thing that really drives the myths about the Norks in Canada is that they are the cheapest pistols around.
Wilson will work on any 1911 pistol (including Armscor and Taurus), so there is nothing special about them accepting Norinco.
 
Nestor said:
Another internet legend - exactly like the one about the american rail road steel that was used to make the Norinco pistols.
Wilson decided to accept Norinco back in the days before SA was considered reliable and before Kimber really changed the 1911 world.
The thing that really drives the myths about the Norks in the USA is that they are no longer imported (for many years actually).
The thing that really drives the myths about the Norks in Canada is that they are the cheapest pistols around.
Wilson will work on any 1911 pistol (including Armscor and Taurus), so there is nothing special about them accepting Norinco.
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Testing was done by CGN Claven2 and posted on M1911.org - as it turns out Claven2 is an engineer, with a good knowledge of metallurgy.

We will work on the following pistols: Springfield Armory, Colt, Wilson 1996 A2, Kimber or Smith & Wesson.* This is Wilson Combat's current list of new pistols they will work on, from their custom order sheet.
 
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prevost12 said:
Im wondering how many people who voted for norinco actually owned any other brands of 1911...
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I have owned both Colt and Springfield Armory (my last Colt was bought new in 1989 and was a complete clunker until worked over) the Springfield was a pre- Imbel cast frame gun and was very good - but then both of those cost $900+ 1990's dollars.
 
...and what kind of "testing" was that exactly?
One needs to own a few, different 1911 to see that Norinco has very little to offer actually, but that takes time, experience and money.
To turn one into quality pistol You need good luck to get a good slide and frame that are within the specs and were properly heat treated.
Now You need to dispose the whole rest, buy replacement parts...and You are already into the financial territory of much better quality pistols.
Simple as that.
 
Tengoo said:
I'm curious to know why you want to shoot +P ammo?
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Because the max loads I've worked up so far have shown no sign of overpressure and my 1911s have barely noticed the increased charge (A Sig and an S&W). That got me thinking about how much into +P territory can I safely go (if at all) with any of these, which led to me to wonder if there were other platforms stronger or more able to handle increased power loads safely and without damage that I might be able to experiment with. I naturally put the question up here for discussion and insight.

That......and just like when I was racing....you have to know the limit of any piece of equipment so that you don't cross that line. Or something like that.....
 
enefgee said:
Testing was done by CGN Claven2 and posted on M1911.org - as it turns out Claven2 is an engineer, with a good knowledge of metallurgy.

We will work on the following pistols: Springfield Armory, Colt, Wilson 1996 A2, Kimber or Smith & Wesson.* This is Wilson Combat's current list of new pistols they will work on, from their custom order sheet.
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Thanks for the information. Again, call them if You want, but I'm nearly sure, they are willing to work on any pistol actually.
If I'm wrong than it seems that Norinco didn't make it to that list anyway...
 
I realised loooong ago cgn is the worst place to get reviews of firearms. Way too many clueless fanboys trying to justify their purchases with limited knowledge of the firearm or firearms in general.
 
Clearly some Norc owners need to justify their babies. I see it with parents that have ugly kids all the time. "we're thinking of putting her in tv commercials", "I'm sorry mam but that child is butt ugly".
 
The thing with the Norcs is people are buying them and shooting one or two thousands rounds out of them almost immediately because of the deals being had right now so they are definitely being tested I wonder how many people buy a 2000 dollar Kimber and shoot the crap out of it? kinda reminds me of a story, I was looking for a carb for my old ford with a 300 -6 and went to the wrecking yard, I found two, one was almost new looking and the other covered in crud, I grabbed the new one went home installed it and it hardly worked at all I returned to the wrecker grabbed the piece o #### looking one and slammed it in and it ran like a dream, go figure hey!!!
 
Nestor said:
Springfield GI is not cast. Frame and slide are forged and of good quality, I'm not sure about the barrel though, but I'm pretty much sure it's a two piece design. It's much better choice for custom build than any Norinco out there.
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I apologize for this comment...I was going from memory on the springfield and didn't check prior to posting. They are forged. I had thought their cheap stuff was cast for some reason.

But is it better for a custom build? Not necessarily. The Norinco steel I have cut is very, very tough, and frame geometry has been good - better than most S2 Kimbers I have seen.
 
Melnibonean said:
And what were his finding?
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The steel used is, from it's characteristics, virtually identical to 5100 series steel. There were other findings about martensitic (?) state, but that's way too techy for me. Remember too that a complete Norc actually costs less than a frame and slide kit from Caspian, which is why some pretty knowledgeable 1911 guys buy Norcs - higher quality steel, lower price than a frame and slide kit.
 
stevey3737 said:
The thing with the Norcs is people are buying them and shooting one or two thousands rounds out of them almost immediately because of the deals being had right now so they are definitely being tested I wonder how many people buy a 2000 dollar Kimber and shoot the crap out of it? kinda reminds me of a story, I was looking for a carb for my old ford with a 300 -6 and went to the wrecking yard, I found two, one was almost new looking and the other covered in crud, I grabbed the new one went home installed it and it hardly worked at all I returned to the wrecker grabbed the piece o #### looking one and slammed it in and it ran like a dream, go figure hey!!!
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What the heck is your point? It sounds like you're trying to say that something that looks cruddy is usually better than something that looks good? Err, not my experience, but I guess new handguns and carbs from the wreckers are the same thing in your world. As an example to illustrate what we're talking about: huh? And I can assure you that the ISPC or IDPA shooters who spend thousands of dollars on a competition 1911 put thousands and thousands of rounds through them each year and demand the highest level of reliability from their guns. Nothing ruins your match experience like a malfunction. I suspect those guns are tested more critically than your average Norinco plinker blasting through a thousand rounds of cheap Chinese hardball. No sale on your argument to me, sorry.
 
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