1911's overrated?

1911's and me...

OK, so here goes my two cents worth. I've shot almost every kind of (commonly known and otherwise) pistol and revolver model out there in my 39 years on the planet. I grew up blessed with a grandparent's farm to shoot on, any day I wanted too, so I did... ALOT. I had a small pistolsmithing business for a few years while I still lived there, in my mid-twenties. No, I'm not Mr. awesome super tactical or Rob Leatham either. Experienced? Arguably. What have I ended up with? Three handguns right now that I'll say are worth mentioning. Springer XD 9mm, an old 1911-A1 .45 full size, and a Ruger 22/45 target model. Why? They're all reliable, and easy to get supplies for. The XD is simple and easy to train other shooters with. ***The 1911 is the most powerful pistol I would want if I knew that I had to go into Patriot or defender mode, if you know what I mean. This type of pistol, for me, makes me more of a force to be reckoned with if needed. We all have our reasons, but deep down all of us want at least one thing that gives us an edge if we have to have it. The 1911-A1 is the easiest for me to shoot at any distance, UNDER STRESS or not.*** Did I have to tune my 1911-A1 for reliability? Yes. ***I EXPECT to test ANY pistol that is intended for use in the woods, at a competition, or on the street BEFORE I trust it. No matter what the gun initially costs. Yeah, even if it's a Glock. You don't always get what you pay for.*** Do I still have to work on it? NO. Thousands of rounds and no problems. And yes, most of my ammo is reloads, so I can afford it to test it!

A tight and accurate 1911 type pistol does not mean unreliable and unsuitable for service use.

How about the Springfield Armory Professional Model being used right now by the FBI Hostage Rescue Team and FBI Regional SWAT teams?

The FBI issued a Request For Procurement and held Trials for a 5000 unit order.

The standard for the test trials:

The accuracy requirement stipulated that the pistol fire three consecutive 10-shot groups no larger than 1.5 inches at 25 yards from a Ransom Rest using Remington Golden Saber.

The pistol then had 20,000 rounds fired through it and was again tested for accuracy. No more than a 15% accuracy reduction was permitted.

(Colt protested the Ammunition Requirement because they thought that it would be too difficult to get that accuracy with the Golden Sabre round and it has been reported that the Professional Pistols can easily get 3/4" groups with match ammo)

A single stoppage over 2,500 rounds disqualified a pistol from the competition.

The pistol should have a guaranteed service life of 50,000 rounds.

The Springfield Professional Model is hand built starting with an over sized forged slide and frame. They are exclusively built in the Springfield Armory Custom Shop under the supervision of David Williams (The American Pistolsmith guild's choice for Pistol Smith of the year in 2006)

It has been estimated that only 40 are built a month. Any pistol not bought by the FBI are offered to the public for sale. The pistol smiths building the firearms do not know which ones will be used by the FBI and which ones will be offered for civilian use.

I happen to like accurate and reliable hand guns of all different types and enjoy shooting them.

I was Bitter toward the 1911 once.




Now I'm a Bitter American clinging to my S&W1911

I must be lucky. My Colt Series 80 is reliable and accurate and eats anything. I realize all 1911's are created equal, but I'm happy with the last few I've owned. I also own Glocks and others.

I don't know if "overrated" would be the right term, but I think there are better options out there for a combat weapon. They are certainly nice shooting guns though.

I don't know about over-rated.

I read at least as much that the 1911 is an antiquated, jamming, finicky gun that few really use anymore. It may be "under-rated" actually.

Today it is just old design that you must spend a LOT on cash to be semi-reliable.

Click to expand...

Mine required the cost of two boxes of 230gr. FMJ to be reliable. Of course it'd shoot the "flying ashtrays" 100% right out of the box. Hardball took a couple of boxes to break in. After that, as long as I had good magazines, it'd shoot any reasonable factory ammunition or properly assembled handload. It never took ANY work to get it to shoot with 200gr. LSWC handloads.

ME2

WOW , ur post sure seemed like an add that should be in a magazne!!!

Probably the most beautiful handgun ever made, certainly not an issue free gun IMO. Like most guns, get a good one out of the box you tend to brag on it, otherwise---well!!

Becuase the FBI unit or whatever is using them, to me is no criteria of either good or bad. they tend to be different than the norm people anyhow. FWIW IMO

I carried a 1911 in combat. Didn't have any problems but if I had to go into combat again with a .45acp pistol it would not be with a 1911. Better choices available IMO.

1911 Overated

I think the 1911 can be overated sometimes. I Shoot pins on thursday nights and there are 2 really great shooters there. The almost always use there open guns and or STI edges. I can shoot my M&P and beat there times. This is all from holster. My quickest time with my 4" M&P .40 for 5 pins was 2.31 seconds. Now with my 9mm Comped STI edge. I have shot it from holster in 1.99 so a little bit of a difference but that was with a red-dot

Like I said 5 pages ago, I would carry a 1911 to war TOMORROW. And if one DID break in the field, I could cannibalize another one to fix it much more easily than any other pistol. If my command would permit it, I absolutely WOULD take my 1911 with me to war. I've shot them all, carried many, it's what I'm keeping.

my favorite, and least expensive 1911 is my taurus pt1911ss. accurate, reliable and feeds EVERYTHING. haven't tried a peanut shell yet lol.

yes, everyone should own a 1911. great piece of history and i'm happy they're still popular today. there's just something about a big fat .45 bullet! if that doesn't make you feel safe, (pistol wise) i don't know what will.

Yup the 1911 is overrated just like pizza, fast cars, big whitetails, football, the American flag....... oh wait those things are f****** great!

dito nelson

If you're looking at the gun from an accuracy standpoint, then yes, you're spending way more than needed. A Springfield XD is probably just as a accurate as a $1200 Kimber. Having owned many Glocks, Springfields, Rugers, etc, I still swear by my 1911's, there's just something about them no other gun has... cannot put a finger on it.

If I had to pick one handgun to have, and only one. It would be my Colt .45. This firearm has never failed to fire, ever.

1911's are great and will never stop being a great classic gun. They will just get better and better as new manufracturers step up to the plate.

As much as I love my custom 1911's, I have to say yes, its somewhat overrated on its original form. Custom touches is almost always mandatory. I haven't met an owner who can just let it be. Unless of course, they have a rare collector piece. Usually, its the sights, grip safety and hammer that gets swapped right away.

the perfect pistol would have the shell of a 1911 and the guts of a glock.

So basically the aesthetics and feel of a 1911 and the reliability of the glock.

hammerless.

Striker fired.

Polymer frame.

Maybe come out with it in 2011...

eh? eh?

Why on earth would you want a striker fired 1911? It would... I have no idea what it would be... If you take out the hammer, add a polymer frame, double stack mag, and make it striker fired you HAVE a glock... That is the point... If you take everything away from a 1911 that makes it a 1911 you have nothing but a normal polymer striker fired handgun that you see today... I think it is all those things that make a 1911 so great...

A 1911 does everything wrong by today's standards but it feels right. It is a piece of history, a classic design, flawless because our minds refuse to let us see them. It brings memories of a better time... a time of more honor... more dignity... It sort of looks... formal... Think of someone dressed in a tux with a gun strapped to their thigh... would you rather see a polymer framed handgun there or a nice elegant 1911 with pearl grips?

To me... personally... a 1911 IS what a handgun should be. It looks old and dated but elegant and new. It has a mix of what we see now and old school. It has a round that quite frankly scares the hell out of me because it looks like it could drop an elephant...

While I like polymer framed, striker fired, lego guns they just aren't pretty... I mean you can dress them up to make them all tacticool or whatever but in the end it is like putting a wig on a dude and calling him a supermodel.

there is a 2011 & i have one

For looks there is nothing more attractive than a nice 1911 NOTHING. that being said there are many guns out there better for carry than the 1911, IMO. No doubt the old "war" 1911 were made to shoot hardball ammo and did it well, accurate they were not, today's 1911's (the good ones) will shoot circles around any "war" 1911 but they are also finicky to. my 2cents. Next to the luger the 1911 is one of the prettiest guns ever made..

That'll be a good question to ask someone who's been shot with a .45. If you can find anybody.

The only semi-auto that feels better in my hand than a 1911 is a Browning Hi Power.I would love an old Hi- Power in .40 S&W.That would then be my house gun for life.

I don't think it's overrated, the two pics above state why... Many great men have trusted their lives in the 1911 and prevailed, that's why it has the reputation it does. The 1911 has probably seen just about as much combat as the ak-47 and put way more bad guys in the dirt than any glock, XD, sig, beretta or any other autoloader combined. I think if it was good enough for our boys in WWII then it's good enough for my night stand and waist band.

I snagged up these pics from arf.com's 1911 motivational poster thread, pretty convincing stuff and some funny ones too...
http://www.ar15.com/forums/topic.html?b=5&f=49&t=50421