New tool: Springfield 1911-A1

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Good basic 1911, keep as is as a fun gun, or if you like to tinker, turn it into a real shooter. I have two SAs that are better than some of my more expensive 1911s. Good Luck

PS: Most of the time it takes more than a $100 to get rid of one of those pesky Glocks.
 
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Good pistol. I have one that's even earlier than that one. It has the old GI-style thumb safety with the small pad, and is all machined steel. Yours is a little later model, and very likely has a milled, one-piece trigger...cut from one solid block of barstock.

It may be the lighting, but the contour of the front strap appears to be the mid-production "blocky" type. Back in the day that Springfield was supplying slide and frame sets to custom builders, that contour was easier to checker. They switched back not long after the GI Mil Specs appeared, with some of the early ones have the more squarish shape. Mine has the original-spec contour. Some like the blocky frame, and others don't. I prefer the original.
 
Here's mine. The plastic box isn't OEM to the gun, and neither are the stocks.

The pistol is now sporting a different hammer. When I bought it, the hammer would follow and it would occasionally double. The hammer hooks were all Bubba-ed up, so I retrofitted one out of a Sistema.

Springer-R.jpg
 
Nice, love those grips. I'm looking at eventually upgrading my grips, and at some point in the future getting the trigger worked on (extremely heavy trigger, my Star .45 has a nicer trigger than this thing).
 
That was a good deal for you. You ended up with a good 1911 and got rid of a Glock at the same time. That's about as good as it gets.;) Congrats!
 
I think I picked up my SA M1911A1 sometime in 1989, the biggest difference being that the rear slide serrations were slanted instead of straight up and down. Build quality and the fit and finish on it are outstanding and the gun still has one of the nicest triggers on it right out of the box.
 
So... after two days of shooting this gun, I gotta say... I'm not sure if I like it or not (1911s in general, maybe even .45s in general). Kinda makes me sad because the ergonomics of the 1911 rock, but I find that I prefer 9mm and perhaps even .40 S&W better...

In terms of this specific gun, the trigger is horrible (which means $$$ to fix), it shoots to the left (not really an issue, I just don't have the tools to drift the sight), the sights suck (though a little nail polish should fix that) and the recoil is much more harsh compared to my Star .45 ACP 1911-pattern pistol.

In terms of the .45 ACP cartridge, I'm not particularly fond of the low magazine capacity, but more than that the recoil causes the gun, in my hands, to not fall back on target as well as the 9mm. I know that aspect is just from my lack of experience with the .45 ACP, of course, but I'm just so much more comfortable with the 9mm that I'm wondering if I should even bother with the .45.
 
Golly!! Next you are gonna tell you don`t like apple pie :uhoh:
Well, if you are going to shoot, you might as well get something you are more comfortable with. They make 1911s in 9mm, just saying.
 
The .45 is a little more difficult to shoot well. But it's very rewarding when you learn how.
 
and the recoil is much more harsh compared to my Star .45 ACP 1911-pattern pistol.
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Not sure what model Star you own, but I wonder if your able to get higher up on the grip with the Star with its lack of a grip safety, helping with the recoil.

45acp isnt for everyone. The good news is 1911's come in a wide assortment of calibers.
 
My first centerfire pistol that I bought for myself was a 9MM Browning Hi Power MK III, which I still have. I got very used to shooting 9MM. When I bought my first 1911 (a stainless Springfield .45 ACP I bought in 1993) I started reloading, and would download my .45's so I could gradually get used to the stronger recoil impulse. I gradually worked up my reloads to full power, and continued to get excellent groups with it, and developed proficiency.

Practice with it, and maybe reload like I do, and make lighter target loads to gain proficiency.
 
It has the old GI-style thumb safety with the small pad, and is all machined steel
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That's the way mine is. I don't have a pic of the left side though. It was before they moved the Springfield log to the front part of the slide. It has been extremely dependable, as in never failed to work. It will feed empty brass from the factory mag and three old Chip McCormick "Shooting Star" mags I bought for it... It just plain works.
 
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Haha, call me crazy but I'm actually trading this 1911 for an XDM 40. I always regretted selling my previous XD 40, and it will be nice to only have to stock one size of pistol primer (SPP for 9mm and .40 S&W).
 
i would make that trade any day nothing like the feel of a 1911 in your hand. you cant go wrong with a plane jane springfield either. simple and it works. lucky for the guy with the xd haha
 
primalmu said:
So... after two days of shooting this gun, I gotta say... I'm not sure if I like it or not (1911s in general, maybe even .45s in general). Kinda makes me sad because the ergonomics of the 1911 rock, but I find that I prefer 9mm and perhaps even .40 S&W better...

In terms of this specific gun, the trigger is horrible (which means $$$ to fix), it shoots to the left (not really an issue, I just don't have the tools to drift the sight), the sights suck (though a little nail polish should fix that) and the recoil is much more harsh compared to my Star .45 ACP 1911-pattern pistol.
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Sorry to hear it didn't live up to how you thought it would be.

What about the trigger is "horrible", and why do you automatically assume that it will be a high-dollar fix?

Regardless, I would not let one pistol "ruin" an entire pistol design for you. Go take your Springer to @1911Tuner's place, buy him some coffee, and let his skilled eye see what can be done to make it better.

I did exactly that with my Springfield GI -- one I bought used and had some reliability issues initially, but after a visit to Mr Travis it has barely even sneezed in going on 8 years of considerable use.
 
I did exactly that with my Springfield GI -- one I bought used and had some reliability issues initially, but after a visit to Mr Travis it has barely even sneezed in going on 8 years of considerable use
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Barely? It shouldn'ta sneezed NONE!

I 'preciate the good words, Hacker, but Mississippi to North Cackalackey ain't exactly a Sunday drive.
 
I just traded off a stainless version of this gun, I tried to like 1911's I truly did, but I just cant get on the 1911 ban wagon. I love the look, but I cant shoot them for crap. I don't have a problem with the 45, one of my favorite guns is a m&p 45C, its just the 1911 platform that doesn't work for me.
 
I just traded my 1911 off for an XDM 40 and I have to say I MUCH prefer the ergonomics on this gun! I had one 3 years ago that I stupidly got rid of, but its nice to have one again. I've got a CZ75 which, for me, has a superior design than the 1911, plus it fills my need to have a 100% steel handgun. ;)
 
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