Customize or Buy Another New?

You can certainly customize if desired, but beware of expecting to get your money back if you were ever to sell it. But some less expensive mods could make it a more enjoyable gun for you. I'd conservatively customize, I guess.

I've yet to customize any gun I own. However, if I do I'd consider the "customization" to be very "personal"...which makes sense, because the modifications would be on things I would like, not what someone else would like.

To that end, there would be more value to the customization to me than just the dollar amount. It would be MY custom job, and would really be a part of me as a result. What value does one assign to a work of art or an expression of one's self?

What it's worth to you depends on what YOUR point of view is. If you're purely practical about it, then perhaps it makes no sense to you when you could find another gun which already meets your practical standards more economically. Or maybe the loving care involved in upgrading your "baby" is more important to you.

There is a balance in there which only YOU can figure out.

As for me, I may decide to customize a gun at some point in the future. Which one it will be, or what those modifications will be, when the time comes I have no idea. But if I do, there will be a personal investment that will not be covered by the dollar value...which means cost will be secondary to me (within my budget, of course).

If just for fun,id buy new one.If for competion send to Wilson Combat.Have it done right!

Wilson gets a lot of money for their work. I am sure you could get a nice gun for a lot less. If I were buying a wilson, I would buy the entire gun, including their frame. You're looking at 3-5 thousand for a middle of the road gun, their supergarde guns run 5 and up.

Tankless, one way to get your 1911 set up the way you want it (economically) is to just get one thing at a time done.

I customize most every firearm I own from big things (new stocks or finish) to small things like sights or grip screws.

As for your 1911, this guy should be fairly close to you:

http://apwcogan.com/

Tankless;

For a lot less money you can investigate the idea of doing your own modification. Buy one of the several videos out there, that's not at all expensive. If what you see in the video whets your interest, make a list of the tools you're going to need and the cost of obtaining them. Even if you're in a small apartment the space requirements are next to nothing. The 1911 is not some hideously complicated shootin' iron. Which is not to say that you can't get it wrong, but with the video and a couple of books, given patience & careful study, you'd have to work at completely messin' up.

I venture to say that when you are done, the gun will mean more to you than it did before you accomplished your own work.

900F

Over the years I've had maybe a dozen 1911's, from an original 1918 Colt to a tricked-out custom with all the bells and whistles. I've only got one left, a bone stock SA MilSpec. Tiny sights, park finish and ugly brown plastic G.I. grips. It's more accurate than the Colt Combat Elite that I carried on duty for 5 years, and just as reliable as that old 1918. I'm not messin' with mine.

I have had full house customs and right out of the box factory 1911 shoot very close but I have to say the overall best shooting are the custom's

The gun is only going to shoot as good as the shooter is able to shoot it. It's like me trying to play, Eric Claptons Guitar. It isn't going to sound any better than the cheapest store bought model.
The amount of accuracy picked up by customizing a pistol to the maximum tolerances possible, is going to be lost on the average shooter.
It may feel better and even shoot a little better than a stock gun, but only in the hands of a champion will it perform the way it was intended to.
It's like spending 50 or a hundred thousand on a sound system, the 1 or 2% difference over a 5 thousand dollar system, is really only going to be heard by a dog. Very few humans have hearing past 40 that will pick up the difference. The same is true with guns, after a certain age you will start to loose the reflexes and speed that you once possesed.
I am not suggesting that old guys can't shoot well, as they forgot more than their younger counterpart learned. But aside from age, it's also the built in ability and eye hand coordination that professionals have that "most folks" never possesed, no matter how hard they practice. But by all means strive for that perfect shooting iron.

It depends on what your intended use is.

If you want a very good (but not the best) setup, get the Springfield Range Officer and drop a Kart barrel and bushing in it. You'll get a very fun gun that will do 1.5" groups at 25 yards all day long. When you're done, you'll have about $1K in it, and you'll still have your milspec, plus a spare barrel.

The RO has a very nice trigger, and the slide is snugly fit to the frame. From the factory, they seem to do about 2.5" groups at 25 yards.

Im also a fan of Rugers SR1911.Id love to get one from their performance shop,just dont know how to go about it.Stock they are about $850.They Taurus PT1911 is nice & cheaper too.But prefer the Ruger

Look into Pistol Dynamics
Send them your milspec and Paul Liebenberg does his magic to it
XO or XE for the govt size

"Customizing" means different thing to folks. Case in point is two S.A. 1922's I have;

Gun #1 is a stainless steel 1911. I have added better sights, extended thumb and grip safeties and a action job. The action job included replacing the trigger, sear and hammer. I consider this gun as "enhanced" rather than customized as all of changes are intended to make it a more reliable, comfortable self defense weapon.

Gun #2 is a S.S. mil-spec 1911. I have had a lot of work done it...Novak adjustable sight, Bar-Sto custom barrel and bushing, action work, stippled front strap and other little details... It has been tuned for accuracy by a top gunsmith. It is a nice set-up for shooting IPSC and target work and easily fills the bill for self-defense although it is a little pricey.

Bottom line is I spent additional money for two different reasons but I doubt if I can recoup what I have invested in them if I was to try to sell them. This no way diminishes their value to me.

When it comes down to it, it is your personal choice.

If you have several 'enhanced" 1911's, but only one stock milspec, why not leave it alone just for the novelty?

I have an old and slighty abused millspec 1911, and other than putting Crimson Trace lasergrips on it, am quite happy with the gun.

I'm asking somewhat from my view, but is it better to customize a somewhat special gun or keep it the same and buy a new gun?

Click to expand...

If you mean customize as in a threaded barrel and a suppressor then yes.. by all means customize.

Having given some thought to this since my previous posting, I may indeed have one or more pistols that I own customized sometime in the future.

Why?

Because I find that as I grow older, my eyesights isn't as good as it used to be, for one. Some customization to enhance sight visibility for me would be in order. Also, I would consider some other modifications which make carrying concealed easier, such as replacing the spur hammer on my Colt 1991A1 with a commander version, and a safety modification that would be easier to thumb than the stock safety.

Like buying nearly anything else, it'd be easy to keep adding to the list of modifications...but these are the ones I'd consider, in a nutshell.

If I wanted an ubergun, I suppose I'd either buy one that way or make a special project of one. But all my guns, currently, are practical ones from a layman's perspective. Concealed carry/hunting/target shooting...not show pieces, competition pieces, or long-range snipers.