I almost love my Colt

Is it me or the Colt?

  • Colt can do no wrong. It’s you dude.

    Votes: 7 25.9%

  • Get that gun checked out!

    Votes: 20 74.1%

  • Try different ammo

    Votes: 0 0.0%
  • Total voters
    27
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SRSTAdam21

SRSTAdam21

Member
Joined
Jan 9, 2019
Messages
239
Location
Corryton, Tennessee
There is no other design I love more than the 1911 “style”. I own many brands and many variants. My best shooter is a Kimber Aegis Elite Custom. It eats anything and has a phenomenal trigger.

I am not the greatest shot in the world after wrist surgeries but I’m not a slouch with a 1911.

HbSllYH.jpg

I bought a gorgeous Colt LW Commander in 45 some time back and have been carrying it in a Crossbreed Supertuck. It feels solid. It’s a true blued gun. And it has a lore about it being a Colt. It is currently my only Colt.

Unfortunately I just can’t get groups like the above with this thing. The trigger isn’t nearly as good as even the above Remington R1, a gun which cost me about half. It’s not even close to my Kimber trigger. That said, it’s still a 1911 trigger and between 7-10 yards I feel like I still should be able to drill out the X ring on a man sized target. Instead shots are an inch or more spread out in all directions.

I’ve tried different ammo, target load ball ammo as well as several premium defensive brands, but all 230 gr. Switch to a different gun and I’m back to tight groups.

Is it me or is it my Colt?

hKifVUn.jpg
 
It depends. It's either the pistol or your trigger control. Borrow another 1911 with a lousy trigger and see if you shoot it like the Kimber or the Colt.

PS Did I just use 1911 and lousy trigger in the same sentence?
 
SRSTAdam21 said:
Instead shots are an inch or more spread out in all directions.
Click to expand...

That does not sound bad for a "rack grade" 1911. Back in the 1980's I called Colt and asked for their accuracy criteria. Now this is from memory, but I think they said the accuracy criteria for a standard 1911 was four inches at 25 yards and a Colt Cup was 3 inches.

How this is one of the least expensive 1911's on the market, and their acceptance criteria is four inches at 15 yards.


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Just out of curiosity, did you eat prior to going to the range on the occasions you fired the Colt? Had you been drinking a lot of coffee prior or had an energy drink? Did you shoot a few mags to warm up first before working on accuracy?

Have you shot the Colt during the same range sessions with the Ruger and the Kimber?

Not saying it's necessarily you and not the pistol.

So many factors can come into play. I do have a Colt LW Commander XSE in stainless (2014 vintage) that typically demonstrates only average accuracy, but the rest of my recent production Colts display accuracy on a level significantly better than any Ruger and most of my Kimbers.
 
Old Dog said:
Just out of curiosity, did you eat prior to going to the range on the occasions you fired the Colt? Had you been drinking a lot of coffee prior or had an energy drink? Did you shoot a few mags to warm up first before working on accuracy?

Have you shot the Colt during the same range sessions with the Ruger and the Kimber?

Not saying it's necessarily you and not the pistol.

So many factors can come into play. I do have a Colt LW Commander XSE in stainless (2014 vintage) that typically demonstrates only average accuracy, but the rest of my recent production Colts display accuracy on a level significantly better than any Ruger and most of my Kimbers.
Click to expand...


Definitely good commentary. I have shot them in the same session and definitely do not shoot the Colt as well in the same sessions. I’m about to take my R1, Sr1911, and Kimber with the Colt tomorrow. Will try again and report back.
 
I know 1911 parts don’t swap as easily as most others, especially when getting into triggers and other internal parts. I would very seriously consider swapping at least barrel and bushing from one of the other guns into the Colt and trying them out (assuming they fit) to try to isolate a problematic part. I would take some other weight ammo and try it as well just out of curiosity.
 
A trigger job can be reasonable, I recently had a cheap trigger job that saved me cash and got me where I wanted. I purchased a trigger, sear,hammer and disconnect for a 1911. The tuner changed a spring, tweaked my new trigger and stoned the sear polished this and that and for $70.00 transformed the gun. I sent the hammer, sear and disconnect back.
If you like the gun otherwise, it's worth a try IMO. My total upgrade of $100.00 was worth it for me. It's now a favorite 9mm. Every gun we buy involves risk if we can't shoot it first. The next one you get may need some love too. Good luck!
 
I would definitely consider getting a trigger job done (by a gunsmith well versed in the ways of the 1911), and also have them check the slide to frame and barrel to slide fit as well.
 
My vote would be " Colts are good, hence their rep, but their long-term public name recognition
makes them WAY over-rated."

Any custom builder has to EARN every dime of your money, but all Colt has to do is stamp the "Colt" logo on the side of the firearm,
and poof! Suddenly, for no tangible reason, except, perhaps, resale value, the gun is worth hundreds of dollars more.
IMO, three factors are at work here,
1. The shortened barrel is causing more muzzle flip than the longer barreled 1911s, Have you tried a set of Hogue grips?
2. Your expectations, given the cost and name brand of the firearm, has boosted your expectations to an unreasonable level.
3. It may need a tweak, at the trigger, I would save the original trigger components, and keep them in the case, in the event you ever want to sell the gun.
If you are going to have a trigger job done, use another set of trigger hardware. And yes, I have a 1911(oh, dare I say it) with a near horrid trigger.
 
Dibbs said:
My vote would be " Colts are good, hence their rep, but their long-term public name recognition
makes them WAY over-rated."

Any custom builder has to EARN every dime of your money, but all Colt has to do is stamp the "Colt" logo on the side of the firearm,
and poof! Suddenly, for no tangible reason, except, perhaps, resale value, the gun is worth hundreds of dollars more.
IMO, three factors are at work here,
1. The shortened barrel is causing more muzzle flip than the longer barreled 1911s, Have you tried a set of Hogue grips?
2. Your expectations, given the cost and name brand of the firearm, has boosted your expectations to an unreasonable level.
3. It may need a tweak, at the trigger, I would save the original trigger components, and keep them in the case, in the event you ever want to sell the gun.
If you are going to have a trigger job done, use another set of trigger hardware. And yes, I have a 1911(oh, dare I say it) with a near horrid trigger.
Click to expand...


I think the first part of your post is kind of what it going on. I have brand name expectations. I’m not upset or mad with it. It is a perfectly serviceable pistol for carry. Very reliable.

Muzzle flip isn’t really that bad with the dual spring. Very manageable.
 
That’s the beauty and allure of a 1911 you can have a great looking gun that shoots for crap until a real armorer or gun smith who knows how to tune it fixes it. Nothing like spending a few hundred to cure a high dollar gun of it’s awkward round tossing.
Slide fit, bushing, barrel link are all part of the game of getting a 1911 to run
 
Would you still own this gun if there were no pony on the slide? If the answer is no, then forget the rollmark and trade it against one of the many other lightweight commanders on the market.

Reasonable men may disagree, but I think we do ourselves a disservice when we allow companies to rest on the laurels of what they used to be.
 
Dibbs said:
Any custom builder has to EARN every dime of your money, but all Colt has to do is stamp the "Colt" logo on the side of the firearm,
and poof!
Click to expand...

Except we are not talking about their Custom Shop.. we are talking about a mass production/off the shelf. Where Colt is just as fallible as any other maker.
 
DairyVet said:
Would you still own this gun if there were no pony on the slide? If the answer is no, then forget the rollmark and trade it against one of the many other lightweight commanders on the market.

Reasonable men may disagree, but I think we do ourselves a disservice when we allow companies to rest on the laurels of what they used to be.
Click to expand...

In my experience vis a vi cost to feature and quality in the current market Colt does not do all that well, in my opinion you pay significantly extra to get that pony on the slide without a resultant quality increase.

Probably why I dont have any Colts anymore.

Still, for what it is worth, my most accurate 1911 is a RIA 10mm and one of the next best shooters I had was the basic Remington R1.
 
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