Battle of the cheap 1911s

I contemplated a entry level 1911 for years and years. Studied the articles on improving it and finally decided I wanted one target ready right out of the box. I finally,10 years ago bit the bullet ( AND IT HURT ) and bought a match ready Springfield Loaded Target 1911 and I never looked back. hdbiker

I remember when you could buy a Colt National Match 1911 in a walnut presentation case for 500 bucks. THOSE WERE THE DAYS LOL hdbiker

Dudedog said:

I have a Colt, Some Springfields and a Citadel.
For a budget 1911 I feel the Citadel is an excellent value.
Is it as nice as my Springfield "loaded models" no,
Is it a good gun for 1/2 the price of the Springfields, yes.




Wow, I wish my 1964 Commander could read, but I guess at over 50 it is getting old and blind like me.
If it could only read then it would know it should not be picky trying to run SWCs.

I guess my Citadel can't read as well because if it could it would know it was not a Colt and was not supposed to work as well as it does

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I think he is talking current production. My S70 Commander bought during the S80 transition had to have the extractor tuned and be throated to handle the 200 gr Speer Flying Ashtrays reliably.

I have a RIA, ATI, stainless SA and 2 Colts, I have not had a problem with them, when I go to the range I usually grab the RIA or ATI and usually carry the SA. I've shot both 200gr and 230gr rn, the RIA recently has been fed some +p I loaded but seems to prefer standard loads.

There is nothing wrong with the Remington R1 1911. Bought mine new for $399 after a $75 cash rebate two years ago.

Kimber Custom II GFO .45 ACP Shot Show Special (Black Finish, Fiber Optic Front Sight, Kimber/Wilson/Pierce Double Diamond Rubber Grips & 8-Round KimPro Tac-Mag) $567 w/shipping.

Dan Wesson Valor "Duty Coat" .45 ACP
$1209 w/shipping.

Those were the most recent new 1911's I purchased (and don't include transfer fees). I believe I got more than I paid for in both. The Kimber is a very good pistol at that price point and the DW is a great pistol period.

My suggestion would be to move your budget from $350-500 to $500-800 and find the most gun you can get in that price range. You can certainly get a serviceable pistol for $400 but $200 more dollars at that level can buy a lot.

JMO That and a buck can buy you a cheap cup.

So I bought one of the Taurus 1911 back in 08. Had to have the two tone one when I saw it, I put it away in the safe and never shot it till a couple of years ago. It is one of the most accurate 1911's I have. Came with a lot of upgrades straight from the factory, Commander type hammer, beaver tail grip, Novack sights, recoil spring guide rod and so on. Just this year I have put right at 1000 round (all reloads) through it. In that time I have not cleaned it once. I put some oil on the barrel and the rails when it starts to get sluggish and it takes right back off. The only issue it has ever given me was it failed to lock back the slide one time using a Wilson Combat mag (go figure). Mag issue not the gun. It might just be I got the rare good one. But I would have no issue with recommending one.

I think there is a lot of Taurus hate out there that is undue. I have one of their older PT92's and its a solid gun also. Not saying they haven't put out a lemon or two but I think it may be blown out of proportion a bit.

Just my .02 on it, your mileage may vary.
WB

I purchased the Springfield Defender series 1911 yesterday for $499+tax from my lgs. I'm completely satisfied with the fit and finish, its beyond what I expected. A second mag would have been nice, but I knew it only can with one ahead of time.

Very nice.
It should serve you well.

I think that's the best of the basic $500 pistols. If you don't need the frill's it's a good place to start.

5 Check-Mate Mags from Joe's 1911 Mag Mania (Day Job is at Check-Mate) will cost you $65-83 depending on blued, stainless, welded base plate, removable 1/4" baseplate, GI 7-Round Follower, Bullnose 8-Round Follower etc.

I like the basic $65 Blued, 7-Round GI Follower w/ Welded Base Plate but everyone has their own experience and ideas when it comes to magazines.

Antihero said:

I knew that about the sights but not the grip safety, thanks for the info.

I was planning on something with a beaver tail, the GI models don't super interest me usually anyway.

I was actually considering a 9mm a bit too, I own quite a few 9mm and always have the ammo laying around anyway, but 45 seem much more right if I'm gonna get into 1911s

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That's why I got a High Power clone. I wanted a single action nine. I need a 1911 yet. You can't be an American shooter without owning one! When I do get one, it will be .45 the way it was intended.

Well in a 1911 you can start as low as a Tisas Regent for $366 and go up from there in price and features (all prices courtesy of Bud's Gun Shop):

ATI-$378
RIA-$393
Taurus-$416
Iver Jonson-$442
Metro Arms-$489
American Classic-$496
Springfield Armory-$506
Auto Ordnance-$507
Remington-$541
Charles Daly-$626
Cimarron-$637
Magnum Research-$665
Ruger-$711
Kimber-$717
Colt-$765

I think you can get a pretty decent quality 1911 for your money, depending a lot on what it is you want on your gun. You can get one nicely equipped for not all that much more money and go from very basic to some of the better upgrades like high visibility sights, triggers, and finishes.

holl said:

I purchased the Springfield Defender series 1911 yesterday for $499+tax from my lgs. I'm completely satisfied with the fit and finish, its beyond what I expected. A second mag would have been nice, but I knew it only can with one ahead of time.View attachment 880926 View attachment 880927

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The SA OEM 7-round Stainless mags are considerably heavier and better built.


$16 at MidwayUSA, and maybe less at OpticsPlanet or CDNN.

All I use in my SA 1911-A1 "MilSpec."




GR

Whatever one chooses, it's great that there are so many options available that don't cost a fortune.

Spats McGee

bannockburn's list is a pretty good example of how things open up at the $500 mark.

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I thought the same thing as I was writing down the prices. You can get a decent quality gun with a basic Springfield Armory 1911 starting at $506, a Ruger SR1911 at $711, or a Colt Government Series 70 at $765. Yeah it's a bit more money but I think you'll find the value there now and for quite some time down the road.

Garandimal said:

The SA OEM 7-round Stainless mags are considerably heavier and better built.

View attachment 880985​

$16 at MidwayUSA, and maybe less at OpticsPlanet or CDNN.

All I use in my SA 1911-A1 "MilSpec."




GR

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The Check-Mate Stainless with the same specs as the pictured mags I bought from Joe's are as heavy as any mags I own. As a matter of fact they appeared to be the same Mag when compared to the SA Mag. I don't know why but I thought SA used Metalform (Maybe their blued and stainless mags come from different suppliers).

Since 1958 I have had dozens of 1911, and 1911A1 pistols. Thumbs down on out of the box reliability to Taurus, Auto Ordinance, Fed Ord (parts). Thumbs up to Colt, Norinco, Springfield, Rock Island, and Kimber. For the high dollar guns, they are all pretty darn good. I now have a Kimber Pro Carry and am totally satisfied, even though it was used. A Rock Island GI I tried a year or so back outshot it for groups.
I tuned, accessorized and lightly modded the Norinco and won a bunch of pin and other shoots with it. It is #2 sons favorite now.
No experience with the "other" Phillipine guns. My next will be a Ruger in 10mm.

Just skimming through, one I haven't seen mentioned was an STI Spartan. ($677 on Bud's right now.)

I have moved through the lower end guns. I had a Thompson that had the front sight fall out. I had a Colt 1991 that was ok, nothing magical about it. Seemed to want a break-in more than other guns.

I have a commemorative Para-Ordnance SF-45A with a chamber so tight it won't run my reloads. It went back to the factory for a bad ambi-safety and magazines. I currently carry a RIA double-stack 9mm. I wanted a double-stack 1911 9mm, and it was the most economic option. It went back for a bad extractor, I put in a Wilson combat Bulletproof extractor, it's perfect.

The best handgun I have ever owned is my Kimber Custom II. Wilson 47Ds, no FLGR, Hogue finger grips. If it has ever malfunctioned in more than 15 years, I can't remember.

mljdeckard said:

Just skimming through, one I haven't seen mentioned was an STI Spartan. ($677 on Bud's right now.)

I have moved through the lower end guns. I had a Thompson that had the front sight fall out. I had a Colt 1991 that was ok, nothing magical about it. Seemed to want a break-in more than other guns.

I have a commemorative Para-Ordnance SF-45A with a chamber so tight it won't run my reloads. It went back to the factory for a bad ambi-safety and magazines. I currently carry a RIA double-stack 9mm. I wanted a double-stack 1911 9mm, and it was the most economic option. It went back for a bad extractor, I put in a Wilson combat Bulletproof extractor, it's perfect.

The best handgun I have ever owned is my Kimber Custom II. Wilson 47Ds, no FLGR, Hogue finger grips. If it has ever malfunctioned in more than 15 years, I can't remember.

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Haven't seen an STI Spartan for sale lately.
Didn't realize it was still available.

All STI has on their website now are the double stack 2011’s, the last time I looked. I don’t think the Spartan is available either outside of used examples

94045 said:

Haven't seen an STI Spartan for sale lately.
Didn't realize it was still available.

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I like the ( new to me) Rock island i have. No complaints at all and has shot everything without a hiccup.

I was looking at the Springfield Defender before the rock island happened and heard good things about it. I'm definitely not a 1911 expert. I just like guns that shoot reliably and the RIA has done that without a single issue.

I only own an RIA (it happens to be the Ultra HC in 10) but so far I've been quite happy with it. What I like is a) seems pretty 'standard', b) plain military-style finish--no frills, and c) fit and machining is IMO very good. I would think any 1911 produced after about 1920 should be able to shoot +P all day long...+P for 45 Auto isn't really all that 'plus'. 10% above almost nothing is still almost nothing.

I'm more attracted to a 'service pistol' look-and-feel in a 1911 than I am to a 'handcrafted surgical instrument' look-and-feel. I'm not a bullseye shooter, and most-definitely not a 'painstakingly caring' kinda guy, either. Although the RIA has no play or rattles and sounds about like a Wilson Combat when it slams shut, I'd prefer play and rattle to tolerances so tight it matters what oil I use to lube it. I plan to retire some day, too, so $500 or so for what I think is an excellent 1911 is very appealing.

Garandimal said:

The SA OEM 7-round Stainless mags are considerably heavier and better built.
GR

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94045 said:

The Check-Mate Stainless with the same specs as the pictured mags I bought from Joe's are as heavy as any mags I own. As a matter of fact they appeared to be the same Mag when compared to the SA Mag. I don't know why but I thought SA used Metalform (Maybe their blued and stainless mags come from different suppliers).

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Because Springfield doesn't make 1911 magazines, and contracts them out from a variety of suppliers, just like Colt and just about everybody else that makes 1911's, buying Springfield branded magazines means you could get just about any product.

If you like the CheckMate product, it's pretty easy to specify what features you like when you order a CheckMate mag.

JTQ said:

Because Springfield doesn't make 1911 magazines, and contracts them out from a variety of suppliers, just like Colt and just about everybody else that makes 1911's, buying Springfield branded magazines means you could get just about any product.

If you like the CheckMate product, it's pretty easy to specify what features you like when you order a CheckMate mag.

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If you know exactly which features they are.

...and then cost 50% more than the 100% reliable SA mags.




GR