Best 1000-1300$ 1911? Opinions please

[PCRCCW]

Ok....Ive been pondering a thought. (or a hundred) In a couple of months if things go as planned, Ill be getting a good 1911.
Ive shot SA, Kimbers, Wilsons, Bears etc etc.

There is a level of gun that for just over a grand $, where you get A VERY NICE GUN!

Im considering these and similar styled/priced guns........

SA TRP 1911
Kimber Tactical 2 1911
Valtro 1998/1911
STI Trojan 2011/1911
OR A
Used Ed Brown, Wilson, Les Baer

Who has had high(er) end 1911's and how do you like them.

What is the average price for each gun Ive listed...very curious about the STI and Valtro...my two top picks but who knows........

Thanks for any and all replies.

Shoot well

 

[Sean Smith]

Just my opinion at work here...

Brown - The best off the shelf there is, but the MSRP is about double your price range. If you can find a used Brown in your range, jump on it with both feet.
Valtro - Really, it is going to be a couple hundred bucks above your limit, and your odds of getting a used one are nil.
Wilson - Skip the KZ-45 and find one of his used single-stacks.
Baer - A used TR Special should be do-able in this range.
STI Trojan - Best value in a new high-end 1911 in terms of bang per buck.
SA TRP - Pretty nice, but really just a tarted up factory gun.
Kimber Tactical - See above, but at least the TRP has real Novaks.

 

[45auto]

I haven't shot enough of the examples mentioned above to accurately say which might be a better buy, but if I were making the same decision today, I would probably go for the Springfield.

Might consider the STI if I could get over the appearance and having "Trojan" on the slide.

When I reach the $1300 mark, looks are important to me, because I can buy more than functional guns for a lot less-IMHO.

If you can wait, I would buy either the Springfield mil-spec/ loaded or a Colt goverment and have it gunsmithed with the spare $700- 850.
I think you could end up with a better gun than many.
I see some very reasonable prices and "packages" from known pistolsmiths.

 

[lunde]

I voted for the Valtro.

 

[Shmackey]

If you can get a new Valtro or a used Brown in that range, do it.

Me, I went with a new-rollmark Colt and it's at the gunsmith for custom work (Brown safety, bobtail, full reliability package, dehorn, refinish; soon a trigger job and new sights, and that's everything). That's in your price range, it's truly a custom gun, and it has everything you'd want, to your specs.

Now, assuming you don't want to go custom, and you can't get a used Brown or a Valtro in your range, I think the Trojan plus a bunch of high-quality ammo is the way to go.

 

[PCRCCW]

Well...Ive seen Browns/Baers/Wilsons used but WAY CLEAN in the price range Im talking about.....not often but they are out there.

The Valtro retails for 1300$ and can get one for less than that...dealer in the family.

The STI with Trojan" on the side is at the current top of the list.....and just for your info. I was a "Trojan of the Month" during Jr. High School....like a monthly honor/academic award. So be easy on the trojan jokes.....

The TRP's and Tac Kimbers are very nice and clean used ones or dealer on them is well within the price given. Im not a HUGE SA fan but Ive shot a couple nicer ones...inc. a TRP.

Lets see what the rest of the hooligans have to say????????????????????

Shoot well

 

[John Forsyth]

Forget about Kimbers and SA's in this price range. I think Baers are a little too tight. A used WC or Brown (oh yea) would do.

What I did was get a Kimber Classic Stainless, screw the Series II crap, and sent to a smith for the final touches needed.

Or go with the STI.

I voted the STI.

 

[PCRCCW]

Ive got a Series 1 Kimber on layaway for a while..........very very nice gun. Its had an easy life......That may be the way to go. I know a good smith locally who does checkering that would make you blush.....hmmmmmmm.

Food for thought...........Shoot well

 

[happyguy]

Two Colt 1991A1's. One to shoot the snot out of for training and a fresh one to carry.

Regards,
Happyguy

 

[45Badger]

RRA Elite Commando is another option if you're patient. I got mine used, so avoided the wait. Seriously accurate, tight as a tick, and smoooooooottttthhhh. And reliable.

Or get a basic model and Colt/Kimber/Springfield and have whatever bells and whistles you like added on.

 

[Preacherman]

Two options here. If you want a standard 1911-type pistol, the Valtro is far and away the best quality in your price range. However, if you're willing to consider a slightly different 1911, the Wilson KZ-45 is a 10+1 polymer-frame 1911 design that is really, really good. I've handled several and shot two, and if I were in the market for a good 1911 for defensive purposes, that's what I'd choose today. It's also well within your price range. Take a look at it here.

 

[antediluvianist]

how much do you guys spend on ammo?

You guys must enjoy those expensive guns, and good for you. How much do you guys spend on ammo in a year? Just wondering.

In my experience, and from what I see among friends, one or two or more trips to the range per month at a couple of hundred .45 rounds per trip does tend to add up in cost.

You spend say, $600 - $2000 a year on ammo?

 

[John Forsyth]

I reload. On hand I have 1000 rds 9mm, 1000 rds .40 S&W, 500 rds 10mm, and 1000 rds. of .45 ACP. I have already gone though 2500 rds of .45 and 1000 rds of 10mm since Jan. I like custom guns and I like to compete.

Approx. $3 to $4 a box of 50 for .45 and 10mm. 40 S&W and 9mm are real cheap as the brass is in essence free(people give it away).

 

[10-Ring]

Of the guns you've mentioned, the TRP is the only one I have experience using. The one I shot was very well made & shot very well. The other guns on your list I have only had an opportunity to fondle.
Really I doubt you can go wrong w/ any of the guns on your list & truth be told, you'll prolly end up w/ all or most of the guns on that list anyway Just get the one you can get the best deal on now!

 

[J Scott]

Wilson KZ-45.

 

[PCRCCW]

how much do you guys spend on ammo? ......................

Good question. Ill answer as a "non reloader"......or future reloader.

Any gun you get whether its a CZ50 that cost 75$ at a gun show or a
2500$ Wilson will get fed the same. Ill shoot them the same as any other gun when it comes to the amount of ammo.

The biggest difference in the spendy vs cheaper guns are:

The spendy guns have to have less done to them to make it "mine" or to personalize it......
I probably wont carry the spendy gun as often as the cheaper gun, as if it gets hurt...ILL CRY! And if I have to use it in a defensive situation..the cops take it for evidence for a LLLOOONGGG time.

But regarding ammo......the gun has nothing to do with the qty of bullets that go through it......but the caliber does. 9mm's get shot more than the others simply because its cheap to shoot.

Reloading may be in my future. Especially if I start shooting competition.

Shoot well

 

[MoNsTeR]

I handled an expensive Kimber the other day, and you could feel the poor fit of the Series II parts as you racked the slide, it was awful.

BTW, I typically spend about $30 per range session, and I try to go every week, so that's about $1500 a year. If I didn't handload, and shot the same amount, it'd be over $50 per session, or $2500 a year.

 

[Tamara]

The best $1300 1911 I ever saw was my Pro, which had barely been shot.

Careful shopping can net you some pretty sweet guns in the $1k-$1.5k range if you're patient.

 

[cowpuncher/pi]

www.nowlinguns.com Base 1911 is 1395.00

 

[1goodshot]

Wilson CQB if I wanted a gun ready to go out of the box. I think I would start with a 1991 colt and have it built the way I wanted. You should be able to make a nice gun for $1300.

 

[asiparks]

I would go for the Valtro at $1299, but they're a real bugger to find.
mine

 

[Ian11]

If I was in your shoes I would have picked the Valtro. I have no experience with them. But everything I've read and seen seem to point them as been the best value in that $1500 range. And maybe equal to or better than some Wilson's and Les Baers.