Low cost, US made 1911?

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If you shoot less than 300 rds a year, the RIA tactical is the way to go. Forget about where its made, all of them work the same. Even the Norinco if you can find out is good to go and much sought after.
Also the Israeli company Desert Eagle 1911 is hard to beat for what it offers. If its more than $500 i d go for a Colt . If less, then a RIA Tac.
 
Written by me, JTQ
However, the Auto Ordnance 1911's are made in the US and relatively inexpensive.
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MachIVshooter wrote,
No, they're not. Armscor makes them (Phillipines)
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I believe you are incorrect. What is your source for that information? The Auto Ordnance 1911's are from Worcester, MA.

Skylerbone wrote,
Auto Ordnance is one I would love to recommend but they have forever been plagued with problems. Dimensions are off, they don't run correctly and customer service is abysmal.
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Just about every long term test I've read about an Auto Ordnance 1911 included something about the front sight coming unstaked. However, the Six Gun Journal review I linked above contradicts your assertion of the dimensions being off. If you also read the Six Gun Journal review of the Springfield GI, "Sarge" comments how far off the dimensions of the Springfield are.
 
Honestly I do not understand the obsession with low end 1911s. If you are buying a gun to shoot the initial cost of the gun will pale in comparison to the cost of ammo to actually shoot it.

I mean seriously 5000 rounds of factory 45 ACP will cost you $1600 if you reload and you don't account for your start up cost that 5000 rounds will cost you $800+.

So I really do not understand wanting to pay $400 to shoot $1600+ worth of ammo? LOL

If you get out of the bottom end of 1911s and get to the $800 to $1200 range you really open up your choices and you get a lot more value for your money if you buy smart IMHO. YMMV.
 
rellascout: The fact is that there are tons of good, durable, reliable pistols out there for about $500. Why should a 1911 that is any good cost twice as much?

Also, for some of us $300-$700 more for the gun is a big deal. Yes, ammunition is expensive and that sucks. But just because ammo is so expensive that doesn't mean we have more money to spend on the gun. Quite the opposite, in fact. And then you have to consider the fact that the ammunition will likely be purchased over time, not all at once right now/when purchasing the gun.

And you can get 5,000 rounds of factory .45ACP for less than $1,400. ;)
 
If you shoot less than 300 rds a year, the RIA tactical is the way to go. Forget about where its made, all of them work the same.
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Quoted for truth.... if this is the end goal then get an RIA it is the lowest price point where the good enough to get the job done mentality, 300 rounds a year, is properly executed.
 
rellascout: The fact is that there are tons of good, durable, reliable pistols out there for about $500. Why should a 1911 that is any good cost twice as much?
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Because when you get the $800+ range they are not built with a Pinto mentality. They have not cut every corner they can and still have the pistol function. They do not use things like extruded slides and MIM parts built to Pinto mentality.

Again if you are shooting 300 rounds a year it does not matter. Get the cheapest thing you can find that will run. For me RIA is the best bet at that price point and expectation but then again almost anything will do and meet that criteria. IMHO YMMV
 
rellascout said:
Because when you get the $800+ range they are not built with a Pinto mentality. They have not cut every corner they can and still have the pistol function. They do not use things like extruded slides and MIM parts built to Pinto mentality.
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I didn't realize $500 1911s were such garbage.

Or maybe I did know, which is why I haven't bought any 1911s.
 
Warp wrote,
rellascout: The fact is that there are tons of good, durable, reliable pistols out there for about $500. Why should a 1911 that is any good cost twice as much?
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I'm not rellascout, but I'll take a shot at this one. Most 1911's are made in the US. US labor costs are higher than those in most foreign countries. Nearly every 1911 is made of steel. Steel costs more than polymer. One comparison I like to make is between my Colt Combat Elite and my S&W 4506. Both were bought in the late '80's about a year apart and at the time cost roughly the same. S&W no longer makes their line of metal DA/SA pistols, but if they did they would cost basically the same as their 1911 equivalents. How much do new S&W N-Frame revolvers cost, $1,000? Why does the polymer M&P pistol cost $600? Because it's made of polymer.
 
I didn't realize $500 1911s were such garbage.

Or maybe I did know, which is why I haven't bought any 1911s.
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It is not that they are garbage it is that they are what they are. The 1911 was designed when hand labor was cheaper than machine labor. It was designed to have parts forged and then hand fitted to the pistol within a spec created by JMB.

The problem is that today machine labor is cheaper than skilled hand labor. Add to that the fact that most 1911 manufacturers treat JMB's spec as a suggestion not the blue print that it is. They stretch the spec in order to use faster cheaper manufacturing techniques to produce a 1911 like pistol. This is where they get into trouble....

No need to buy a 1911 if you are not moved by them. I also have not said that $500 1911s are garbage what I have said is that they are what they are. Nothing more nothing less.
 
JTQ said:
I'm not rellascout, but I'll take a shot at this one. Most 1911's are made in the US. US labor costs are higher than those in most foreign countries. Nearly every 1911 is made of steel. Steel costs more than polymer. One comparison I like to make is between my Colt Combat Elite and my S&W 4506. Both were bought in the late '80's about a year apart and at the time cost roughly the same. S&W no longer makes their line of metal DA/SA pistols, but if they did they would cost basically the same as their 1911 equivalents. How much do new S&W N-Frame revolvers cost, $1,000? Why does the polymer M&P pistol cost $600? Because it's made of polymer.
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Not sure why that revolver would cost $1,000, or how it compares to a 1911. My Ruger GP100 was $550...

The M&P isn't $600, either, last I checked. That would be a bit expensive.
 
rellascout: All of those comparisons to a Pinto sure make it sound like garbage. ;)

And Tula shoots just fine. Unless you are looking for brass to reload it is a great choice.
 
All of those comparisons to a Pinto sure make it sound like garbage.
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You have misread what I have posted. It is not that they are Pintos it is that they are built with the Pinto mentality. The Pinto was built to hit a price point. As a result they cut corners. They knew it was defective from the start but ran the #s and determined only a certain number will fail and that to pay the lawsuits would be more cost effective.

The same is true for the lower end 1911s. They know that a certain number will fail under normal use say 10,000 rounds but at the same time they know that the majority of them will never see 2,500 rounds. So they built them to that spec and deal with the rest under warranty.

It is not that they "suck" it is that they are what they are.
 
Warp wrote,
The M&P isn't $600, either, last I checked. That would be a bit expensive.
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Here is the list price for the M&P 40. The M&P 45 will cost more.
http://www.smith-wesson.com/webapp/...4_750001_750051_757955_-1_757781_757781_image

Warp wrote,
Not sure why that revolver would cost $1,000, or how it compares to a 1911.
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Because they are made of steel in the US and the S&W N-Frames are size equivalent to a 1911. $1,000 seems to be a representative price for an S&W N-Frame.

http://www.smith-wesson.com/webapp/...4_750001_750051_757770_-1_757767_757751_image
 
Here is what they actually go for:

http://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/p...ty/4.25/quot;/

That's more like $450 for an M&P

The only additional cost would be your FFL transfer fee...no tax for most people, either. Or you can get your local guy, often, to match that.
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That is a 40 S&W which is lower due to its economy of scale as the primary LEO caliber which is the target market for the S&W M&P. Add about $25 to $50 to get the same thing in 45 ACP.

None of that relates to the costs of a 1911. The M&P was designed & manufactured in the modern era of plastics and cheap machine labor. It is a poor comparison and has no place in a discussion about budget 1911s. IMHO
 
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They are not in stock ATM but their last price on an M&P45 was $506, free shipping. ;)

See, the thing is that to most people it is some kind of a comparison and is in the discussion because it is a .45 ACP caliber pistol. And it's reliable and durable, at that.

If people want to buy a 1911 just to buy a 1911 then I suppose they will (who am I kidding, they do) pay more money than what another gun that would do the same job costs. It seems there is certainly a market for that price premium.
 
If people want to buy a 1911 just to buy a 1911 then I suppose they will (who am I kidding, they do) pay more money than what another gun that would do the same job costs. It seems there is certainly a market for that price premium.
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Sorry but a M&P trigger even with an Apex kit is not a 1911 trigger. The trigger pull is the number one thing you are buying when you purchase a 1911. We can also have a discussion about ergonomics and shootablity of the 1911 but that would require a thread of its own. If you do not want to pay a premium for that we can understand that but your strawman arguments are weak and intellectually dishonest. IMHO
 
It doesn't matter what the street price vs retail price is, it's all relative. Buds will have S&W revolvers for less, and if they had them, Colt and S&W 1911's for less than retail. You live in the plastic age and your brain is stuck on plastic prices. A large steel gun will cost more than a plastic gun. US made steel guns of similar size, from similar makers, will be of similar costs.
 
rellascout said:
Sorry but a M&P trigger even with an Apex kit is not a 1911 trigger. The trigger pull is the number one thing you are buying when you purchase a 1911. If you do not want to pay a premium for that we can understand that but your strawman arguments are weak and intellectually dishonest. IMHO
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Strawman? I could have missed it, but where was the requirement for a '1911 trigger' part of this?

BTW: I guess I am bias because I don't want a 1911 trigger. I don't know for what purpose these $800-$1,200 1911s are being purchased, but I buy my handguns for defensive use...and for defensive use I don't want a single action trigger. Or a manual safety.

JTQ said:
It doesn't matter what the street price vs retail price is, it's all relative. Buds will have S&W revolvers for less, and if they had them, Colt and S&W 1911's for less than retail. You live in the plastic age and your brain is stuck on plastic prices. A large steel gun will cost more than a plastic gun. US made steel guns of similar size, from similar makers, will be of similar costs.
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My GP100 sure isn't polymer, nor is my 642, and they sure as heck weren't $800-$1,200. I guess that's a revolver vs semi auto thing there?
 
Strawman? I could have missed it, but where was the requirement for a '1911 trigger' part of this?
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Considering the OP is asking for a US made 1911 one can assume that a 1911 trigger pull is required in order to satisfy the OPs requirements. If you do not see the obvious strawman arguments and red herring attempts to derail this thread they you are fooling yourself.

Back the OP.

If you are looking for a low round count budget 1911 shooter so you can dip your toe into the 1911 world I would go with an RIA. At that point no need to pay more.
 
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