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-First off Thanks Hoops for pointing me towards this group!

I'm looking to buy a 1911 in .45 ACP here pretty soon.  I've shot a few (2 Paras and a Colt).  If I remember right, the one out of the two Paras I liked better was an LDA but it was nearly 10 years ago and don't remember for sure.  I'm looking for a really good quality 1911 that doesn't need 6 months with a gunsmith/$500.00 of work on top of the initial investment.  The most I want to do is find a nice pair of grips to slap on if I don't like the stock grips.  I hear Kimber and Wilson are right up there. -Any suggestions? 

For a full or compact size, the Kimbers all look good, just pricey.

For just a compact, the Colt Agent that I've read about in Gun World looks good too. It is very old school looking and functioning. Feels good in the hand as well.

Ya I guess I should have been more specific... looking for a fullsize .45 w/ a price no higher than the $1,200 range.  I found one that looks good... but that's usually the problem with firearms -You don't get to shoot it before you buy it.

http://www.kimberamerica.com/pistols/eclipse/eclipse_custom_II/

I have a Kimber Gold Match I and a Springfield MC Operator..  Both are great pistols..

The Springfield is a little less expensive, however, shoots just as good as my Kimber.

I just purchased my Christmas gift and it will be here Tuesday. I bought the Taurus 1911B. All I have read about this gun has been positive with the exception of a few Springfield and Kimber Diehards. Don't worry I'm not bashing those guns. I love em. I just thought for the money,  you can get the T1911B out of the box with all bells and whistles for around $ 500.00. I have shot the others but I am on a limited budget. My wife won't let me spend the money on guns unless it is for the kids. You see, I got these 3 kids and it is not about me, That's what I keep hearing. They come first. That's a great idea but these 3 eat more groceries than you can believe. We never have any food here. I never dreamed that kids could consume so much food. So with that said, all the extra money goes into the food bucket. I have 2 boys who have been raised in a gun loving home and for the last 3 years they have gotten guns for Bday's and Christmas but as long as Dad wants a new gun that always goes to the bottom of the list. I will say that I have used my power of mind control over my sons to pick the guns that Dad recomends and it has worked up until this year. Now these boys have stated what they want and I have to stick by them. Now my 8 year old daughter gets a new 22 rifle this year but it has to have a pink stock...........EEEEk. Any who I would recommend the T1911B because of the price.

My best shooter in the 1911 category is my Kimber Pro Carry II.  The only change from stock was adding a rubber grip with palm swell and finger grooves. 

Hi, I own a SW 1911 Pd and love to shoot and carry it on duty occasionally ( waiting on nightsights). My 11 year old likes it so much he asked me to buy him one to have. ( In due time son).

njmike says ...

Howdy,

I have a Vietnam era Colt 1911.  This beauty was given to my half brother by Uncle Sam in 1968 and he used it regulary.  When he returned to the States to get cursed at and spit upon, he had his trusty .45 colt sidearm with him.  I know that there are many companies that can turn this little ole peashooter into a deadly acurate weapon for personal defense or target practice.  I'm turning to you guys, whom I consider the experts.  Is this pistol worth keeping since so many improvements have been made by various vendors, or if I am not going to engage in any formal competition, is it an adequete weapon to protect my family in the event of a breakin?  Should the mechanism be modified so that the gun cycles more smoothly, or just let it be.  There are two issues I want to bring up.  One:  My eyesight is not as good as it used to be, if I fire a round inside the house, with a .45, I think that I have a high chance of having a wayward round going through the wall into another room.  The other question is that if I incapacitate this scumbag, using the.45 given to me by my brother, am I looking at a world of hurt for using one of Unc Sammy's favorite weapons against the street scum of New Jersey.  If anyone knows, please hit me back.  Logic tells me that all should be cool but I know that life doesn't always follow that line.

Mike

No expert but I'll give you my $.02  -Keep your half-brother's gun exactly as it is... it's now a piece of history.  If you look at my profile I have some pics of a WWII Walther PP that I inherited from my Granddad.  It's priceless to me and all the more fun to shoot because of that fact.  I could get the rough machining marks out and have it re-blued (although amazingly still about 95%) but it would take away from the gun it is.  Keep it in the family as an heirloom to be enjoyed once in a while by those who will appreciate the senitmentality of it for generations to come.

As far as home defense I am a firm believer of the old "BOOMSTICK".  Find a used Remington 870 (They take about a million rounds or so to really wear out) and put the shortest barrel/stock your state will allow on it.  You're concerned with pentrating walls so I'd say load it with bird shot... minimal, if any penetration through a wall.  What you will do is completely strip the skin and most of the muscle tissue you hit when firing it at a Burglar though!  Point blank it'll be catastrophic.  Just the sound of you racking a round in the chamber will have 'em spinning around back where they came from with soiled drawers.

Meantime use your brother's 1911 if it's reliable.  Just make sure the rounds you're using aren't full metal jackets.  If you can get your hands on Ranger XT's then I'd go with those.  They are basically black talons (copper colored) that star out on impact providing more damage to tissue but less penetration.  They will rip through a wall if you don't hit a stud square though! (1 in 30 or so chance of hitting a stud square enough to hold a round?)  Just about any handgun round will scream through two pieces of sheet rock- That's why I say birdshot from a shotgun is the way to go.  Just remember your backstop and what's behind it.  If your kid's bed is right behind the wall the dirtbag is standing in front of then don't take the shot (or at least take a solid head shot from a low position)... no matter what kind of gun it is.  Murphy is always there enforcing his law.

I love my Kimber Custom TLE II tac driver right out of the box.

A word of warning to all:  I have read here, and also in several other forums, mention of firearms that were war souvenirs, or issued by Uncle Sam and brought back from the service.   If these weapons have not been duly registered then the owner is in violation of the laws governing firearms.  In mentioning the fact of having them, someone is leaving themselves open for a warrant to be served, on your service provider, and your name and address, given to a federal or state agency.  With the advent of a new President, and his known stand on gun laws, I would expect a very draconian approach to be made to anyone making comments concerning "Uncle Henry's" old .45, which he brought home 50 years ago, and you found in a trunk in your attic.

Here's my favorite. But my agency won't allow me to carry off duty due to the single action. But it is the sweetest pistol I've shot!!

Beauray1 says ...

A word of warning to all:  I have read here, and also in several other forums, mention of firearms that were war souvenirs, or issued by Uncle Sam and brought back from the service.   If these weapons have not been duly registered then the owner is in violation of the laws governing firearms.  In mentioning the fact of having them, someone is leaving themselves open for a warrant to be served, on your service provider, and your name and address, given to a federal or state agency.  With the advent of a new President, and his known stand on gun laws, I would expect a very draconian approach to be made to anyone making comments concerning "Uncle Henry's" old .45, which he brought home 50 years ago, and you found in a trunk in your attic.

 

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Beauray1 says ...

OK, I'm from Mass.  This is the state that brags that it has the "worst gun laws in the country."  We also have the Kennedy/ Kerry people who push gun control, down our throats.  They are pushing to have the whole country follow our lead.  My thought is that when they make mandatory registration for all the "good old boy" states"  that any reference to a possible unregistered firearm, is going to bring a knock on the door. 

All I can say is "Good luck" Ted.

How come the're not banning cars in Mass? At least on Martha's Vineyard?

Ted Kennedy's car has killed more people than my gun.

There is no way that you can go wrong with a 1911 style pistol. There are several makers out there that make outstanding clones of the original Colt. Springfield, Kimber, S&W, and SIG all make awesome 1911 style pistols. They are not cheap but you do get what you pay for. I have a Colt Government model. It was made in 1976, and it will shoot circles around most anything I have ever shot before. I have done nothing to it but put on a different set of grips, and it will hang with most of the high priced race guns that some of my friends have.

As far as grips for 1911's Hogue makes a set of wrap around grips with the finger grooves that just seem to mold the gun into your hand.   With the price of ammo going up daily, several people I know have started to buy the .22 conversion kits for them.