I hate 1911s

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Mike Irwin

Staff
If I'm going to go rocking into a social situation, the 1911 is probably one of the last handguns I'd choose...

Not because I hate it, but because I just don't love it.

My first choice for a social situation would be my S&W 19 4", followed by my Model 19 2.5". I'm intimately familiar with both of those handguns, having put thousands of rounds through them and having carried both on more than a few occasions.

Also on the list would be my Model 57 in .41 Mag. or my Model 25-5 in .45 Colt. But, those would be way down on the list simply because I don't have any decent social situation ammo for them. Still, can't disagree with a chunk of lead that huge.

If I were limited to semi-autos, I'd likely pick either my Hi Power or my P7 PSP first. I'm not crazy about the Hi Power being single action only, but you gotta love that magazine capacity, and I especially love the way it fits my hand.

I wouldn't feel badly armed with either my S&W 410 in .40 S&W or my 4506 in .45 ACP, either.

I'd give an honorable mention to my Wather CCP, as well. I've never had a gun fit my hand so naturally as that one.
 
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gwpercle

New member
Buy a 1911 from Clark Custom Guns ...

Better Yet ... Have them build a 1911 to your specifications !

Everything they have done for me ... has put a smile on my face and a song in my heart . How much is happiness worth ?

You just been buying 1911's from the wrong places ... try Clark Custom Guns !
Louisiana Proud ,
Gary
 
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jmr40

New member
I don't hate them, actually like them a bit, but think they are over rated. I've had a bunch over the years and have a pretty good idea what they will and won't do. I no longer own one, but feel it is one of those guns that everybody should own for at least a while.

The 1911 was a great pistol in its day but was surpassed by better designs and was no longer a practical combat pistol by the end of WW-2.

I consider the 1911, the SAA revolver and all lever actions nostalgic pieces of history that everyone needs to try. But for practical use all 3 are no longer a top choice.
 
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44 AMP

Staff
The 1911 was a great pistol in its day but was surpassed by better designs and was no longer a practical combat pistol by the end of WW-2.
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Considering that we didn't replace the 1911A1 until almost 40 years after the end of WW II, and its variants are still one of the more widely produced handguns, I'd say not everyone shares that opinion. :D

Absolutely there are more modern designs that do many things the 1911A1 doesn't, some of them are better personal defense arms than the 1911 type pistols.

To me the amazing thing is that while there are improved pistols designs today, the guns designed 50, 70, or 90 years after the 1911 aren't all that much better. Compare the design advances in cars and aircraft, from 1911 till now, and the design advances in pistols.

If you hate the 1911 simply use something else (that someone else hates :rolleyes:), and be happy with it.
 
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bigboredad

New member
I love 1911's especially Dan Wesson 1911's. They fit me well they look good to me conceal good for me and for easy to shoot and shoot well. If you hate 1911's that's ok I just hope you like shoot and carry something. I'll have all your leftover 1911's

Sent from my 9048S using Tapatalk
 
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Mike38

New member
I must be blessed.... blessed by the M1911 gods. I own 4 of them, 3 Colts and a Norinco. Yes, a Norinco, that works flawlessly once I found mags that it likes. I would trust my life with any one of them.
 
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GeauxTide

New member
Have a TISAS and a Springfield. Love them for home use. Too heavy for carry. Have Glock 19, 43 for carry and 34 for target.
 
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5whiskey

New member
I've had a Springfield and 2 RIAs. Never any major issues other than a mag or two here and there that is problematic on occasion. I've been able to shoot 230gn HP (speer GD) reliably from them. They are quite accurate. Though not mine, I've a friend/coworker who has a colt 70 series he picked up used for $500. It needed some cleaning and TLC... but it's right as rain today.

I believe the early 2000's Kimbers were sometimes problematic. I believe this was largely fixed by 2010. Oh the Ruger's are pretty good too.

Sometimes, the looser and more seemingly ill-fitted machines have enough play to run pretty darn good. They may not reach optimal accuracy and performance with looser tolerances, but they'll run all day and be more accurate than most humans can shoot. It's making a machine with tight tolerances for top level optimal performance that one or two machining burrs or a barrel bushing (or barrel) that's out of round by .002" can throw a wrench into things, and reliability suffers.
 
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Mike Irwin

Staff
"Considering that we didn't replace the 1911A1 until almost 40 years after the end of WW II, and its variants are still one of the more widely produced handguns, I'd say not everyone shares that opinion."

Tradition is a very powerful thing...

And it's really not best to consider the military as a bulwark for active forward thinking.

Sure, the military that gave you the 1911 is also the military that, against all evidence, gave you the M14 and .308 cartridge.
 
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44 AMP

Staff
Sure, the military that gave you the 1911 is also the military that, against all evidence, gave you the M14 and .308 cartridge.
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And it was "forward thinking" political appointees that took away the M14 and replaced it with the M16 and the .223 cartridge, while keeping the .308 as the machine gun round.

There is no doubt the military could have replaced the 1911A1 well before it did, but whether you call it tradition or inertia, they kept the 1911 as the primary service pistol for a long, long time.

The last major purchase of the 1911A1 was in 1945, and several of the contracts were cancelled when it became obvious that we had more than enough pistols to finish the war with. And then some,,,:D

And it's really not best to consider the military as a bulwark for active forward thinking.
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I consider the modern military to be pretty good at active forward thinking, for their own purposes and uses. However I do not consider military thinking to be the best or most applicable thinking for civilians. Private citizens are in a different place than servicemen and women. The military looks at mission over individual personal safety. And, the duty handgun is a fairly low priority in the ranking of military armaments.

The exact opposite is true for me, and most citizens, who view the handgun as the primary arm for self defense and put defense of self (and family) at the TOP of our priority list.

I was in the military. I've been a civilian for 45 years now. The job the military wants and needs a handgun to do and the job I want and need a handgun to do are vastly different things.

Since its my life (and my butt) on the line (potentially at least) its my standards I use to decide what is, and isn't right, for me. That the military chooses other things for other reasons doesn't matter to me, or really affect me in any significant way.
 
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Mike Irwin

Staff
"And it was "forward thinking" political appointees that took away the M14 and replaced it with the M16 and the .223 cartridge, while keeping the .308 as the machine gun round."

Yep, and overall it was the correct decision. The military structure fought it tooth and nail the entire way and did a lot of petty crap to try to sabotage the switch. Even early experience in Vietnam with the M14/.308 combination didn't make them see what a disastrous decision adoption of the combination had been.

But, that's off topic and I'm being a bad boy.
 
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bac1023

New member
The fun thing to remember about John M. Browning's iconic 1911 is that he made an improved version called the Browning/FN HiPower P-35. Fixed all the flaws of the 1911 and made for real people. I own 3.
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Pretty funny

Uh no. Not even CLOSE to the potential of the 1911. Fragile design, modest accuracy, horrendous trigger, hammer bite, slide bite, and they turn into rattle traps fairly quickly.

The front strap can’t even be checkered properly. That’s how weak and thin the frame is.

I have several for nostalgic collectibles, but as shooters they suck. Usually those that think they shoot well, have very little experience with good shooting pistols.

The 1911 and 2011 are going strong. The BHP was just completely redesigned by the original company producing them.
 
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Nick_C_S

New member
This is such an odd thread.

I'm a revolver guy, but no other gun feels more comfortable in my hand than a 1911. I have three. A Colt, a Kimber, and a Springfield. They're all fantastic guns - accurate, reliable, and seemingly durable.

I easily have 40k rounds through the Colt.

The Kimber is my range gun and I have ran a fair amount of considerably hot ammo (I load my own) and it handles them just fine.

The Springfield is a bottom-of-the-line model (a "Mil-Spec," I think it's called), has run fantastic from the first round, and is my nightstand gun.
 
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Mike Irwin

Staff
"Uh no. Not even CLOSE to the potential of the 1911. Fragile design, modest accuracy, horrendous trigger, hammer bite, slide bite, and they turn into rattle traps fairly quickly.

The front strap can’t even be checkered properly. That’s how weak and thin the frame is."

Fragile design? You've got to explain that. The High Power has an enviable record of reliable service in horrendous conditions and extremely hard military and civilian use.

Modest accuracy is a chimera. Comparing a stock 1911 design to a High Power, accuracy is generally similar from the box.

Hammer bite? I've never had a problem with hammer bite from either a 1911 or a High Power. Of course, the 1911 design is so impervious to hammer bite that there are no options for extended beavertail safeties for the 1911. Not a one can be found anywhere for sale, either as a drop in unit or a custom unit...

Yeah, the trigger on the stock P35 is generally pretty darned bad, compliments of the magazine safety. If, however, the magazine safety is pinned out (gunsmith task, generally) the trigger on the P35 can be quite nice.

Regarding checkering the front of the front strap, I've never understood the desire to checker the absolute crap out of every surface that might be touched.

The biggest reason the P35 doesn't need nilly willy checkering all over the place is because it, unlike the 1911, actually fits the average hand.

But, regarding fragility, I'll admit, you've got a point there. I've lost count of how many times I've crushed the frame on my High Power just picking it up off the shelf in the gun safe, or having it leave a chunk of slide behind when I pull it off the magnet when I use it as my living room gun.

I've had my P35 for close to 30 years. I've got probably 15,000 rounds through it, and it's as tight today as it was the day I bought it from my neighbor.

Sorry, I don't buy, in the very least, your arguments against the P35.
 
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Mike Irwin

Staff
"The Springfield is a bottom-of-the-line model (a "Mil-Spec," I think it's called), has run fantastic from the first round, and is my nightstand gun. "

That's what my 1911 is, a Springfield Mil Spec.
 
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