Are 1911s more finiky than regular semis

1911 models and clones do need some TLC.

I recently bought a used Star PD clonish .45 acp. This is a small concealable with a 4" barrel. And, like the boards said, it could be finicky feeding especially lead bullets.

Then I replaced the plastic recoil buffer and upgraded the recoil spring to 14#. (Wolff's has good prices on the springs.) Whole new gun: plesant recoil and feeds anything I put in it.

Food for thought if you have a cranky older gun that has had some ammo run through it. Those springs and buffers do not last forever and replacement in a cheap and easy job.

Tom

rbernie - Nice reasonable explanation. Does seem unfortunate that some customers have to be on the short end of the stick because some bean counter decided it was better not to do the job right. Gotta love math.

wbwanzer,

Get the XDm - no issues, no make/model arguments. You don't have to know anything about it except how to put the bullets in it. Pull the trigger and it will shoot, every time and LOTS of times.

I just bought a STI Trojan in 9mm from Brazos Custom Gun Works. It was about 1300 bucks. So far, the gun has never jammed with the weak China Sports Ammo and seems to be fairly accurate on the beer cans I've shot in the yard. In fact, I found a bullet in one of the cans I was shooting at. I haven't put it to the test on paper yet but I'm satisfied on reliability.

krs said:

wbwanzer,

Get the XDm - no issues, no make/model arguments. You don't have to know anything about it except how to put the bullets in it. Pull the trigger and it will shoot, every time and LOTS of times.

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+1

The 1911s are great for what they are, but between those two, I would go XDm if maintainence is of any concern. The only real work to do is remove the slide, drop the barrel and guiderod assembly, and clean it all from there.

Other pluses for the XDm are 20 round capacity in 9mm, as well as the match-grade barrel. They are insanely accurate right out of the box.

The biggest decision in my mind between the two would be between polymer or metal.

I don't have any first hand knowledge

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kegcommando,
this is the problem. People who post problems, oftentimes do not have personal experience, but they sure like to share hear-say opinions.

I've been shooting pistols and mostly M1911s for going-on 25 years , and I've seen my share of other firearms during this time. I have found that M1911s don't have problems based on the design. Typical problems are from bad magazines and from people trying to "hotrod" a gun that they have no knowledge about.

If you scan just this Forum, you will notice that up to 1/5 of the "1911" postings are by gun newbies asking "what should I replace on my new 1911?"

I agree with those who state that magazines are the big problem with 1911's. Basically, unless you have the home gunsmithing skills that enable you to play a lot of games with magazine lips, just go out and buy mags in the 25-30 dollar range. I use the Wilsons in my early model Springfield GI with good success.

CWL said:

kegcommando,
this is the problem. People who post problems, oftentimes do not have personal experience, but they sure like to share hear-say opinions.

I've been shooting pistols and mostly M1911s for going-on 25 years , and I've seen my share of other firearms during this time. I have found that M1911s don't have problems based on the design. Typical problems are from bad magazines and from people trying to "hotrod" a gun that they have no knowledge about.

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CWL,

I wasn't trying to spread hear-say, which is exactly why I gave up front disclosure that I didn't know.

As a prospective purchaser I'm seeking as much info as I can, which is why I was actually inquiring. I think rbernie's, the end of your latest post as well as others are helping with my understanding before I take the plunge.

I have more than 20 1911 pistols and from that it ought to be clear that I like the darned things. But I will advise any relatively new to handgun question asker not to start with one of them. It's because I believe that to own and shoot them a person has got to understand them thoroughly and like them a lot.

We get too many new owners wanting to know what they're doing wrong (sometimes) or wanting to know whatever could be wrong with their pistol (frequently).

I think of the guns as being like a car with a carburated engine, and most anyone who owned cars before they all were fuel injected will know what I mean.

On a carburated engine there was the need to know which technique worked best to get it started. Some were easy - a quick jab of the gas to set the auto choke and vrmmmm. That was usually restricted to when the car was new.
Others needed from one to five pumps of the gas pedal before turning the key.
Some needed a manual choke and with those it might be to pull it out all the way but push it back in as soon as the engine showed signs of life. Others needed choking all the way down the street. This all varied by time of the year. It was seasonally variable. Time of day mattered and so did the heat or cold of the day. And all of this assumes that the carburator worked right because if it didn't then you might have to choke it to run at all, all the way to work. Chrysler products with auto transes would not stay running when put the car into gear unless they were given a little time to warm up, and these are only a little part of how it could be living with carburated cars.

1911 pistols can be like that and when they act up you'll be at a loss until you've learned to live with their quirks. It's part of why many owners are so fond of them, for sure, but they can be nothing but frustrating to a new guy.

You'll know when. There's definitely a fascination with 1911's, and they have a place in all of our heritage. But I get the feeling that there's also some sort of pressure, like a peer pressure, for everyone to own one. That may be the case but there's no reason that everyone has to own one NOW.

These new pistols are really marvels of technological excellence. So is electronic fuel injection. It wasn't so long ago that neither technology was available to us and change is not always felt or seen as a good thing by many of us older dogs. So we cling to, even fight for what we know, forgetting sometimes what pains we've endured in developing such fondness.

Sort of like the father of a grown child thinking fondly of the days when he changed that child's diaper.

KegCommando, sorry if it seems like I'm "riding" you, it's not my place to tell you how to think.

As a follow-up to my last post, i would like to point out this observation: As I am typing right now, there are 15 other topics posted above this one. Out of these, there are exactly 4 regarding M1911 style pistols. Of these 4 postings, ALL of them are asking questions about how to modify a new M1911, or how to modify the platform itself.

Nobody is spending time to understand the gun before they want to change it.

Rock Island Armory 1911 drop-in beavertail safety
http://thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=464663

1911 Match barrel/bushing/link
http://thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=464627

1911 Slide Releases
http://thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=464101

Why doesn't anyone make a high capacity lightweight 1911?
http://thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=464252

I have a decent bit of EXP with the Springer Loaded in 9mm, its honestly my favorite handgun! reliable, accurate almost 0 kick.

As to starting with M1911s, I and several generations of recruits started with them. Many a man never held a pistol in his hand until the Army handed him John M. Browning's creation.

My take...

First, let me preface this by saying that I am still a fairly new gun owner so I will defer to older, more experienced people!

HOWEVER, when I was looking for my first I heard just the opposite. I always heard that 1911s were VERY dependable and reliable which is why I wanted my first to be a 1911.

My 1911 has only hundreds of rounds through it but I have NEVER had a jam or a mis-feed! I've heard that semis are more finicky than revolvers but that's just because they have so many more moving parts and metal to metal touching.

Take Care & Be Safe!!!

NJGunOwner81

CWL said:

KegCommando, sorry if it seems like I'm "riding" you, it's not my place to tell you how to think.

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Can you at least buy me dinner first?

One problem with online postings is one can't tell tone, and I believe I was misunderstood.

My original post was not meant snidely as: "Oh Yeah! If they are so dang reliable, then why is it then that so many mfg's say that won't even talk to you about issues with your pistol until you have fired 500-1000 rounds thru it?" !

It was just a general inquiry.

Nobody is spending time to understand the gun before they want to change it.

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Which is exactly what I'm trying to do before I make my first dive into the 1911 realm this December. I don't spend over $1K without knowing what I'm getting into. And it sounds like as long as I don't use cheapo mags, and take a dremel tool I should be good to go.

Can we shake hands now?