Customize or Buy Another NEW Gun??

[Nalapombu]

Hey,

I wanted to ask and see what kind of advice I can get for this problem. I have a NRM Colt that I would like to get some light custom work done on it, maybe about $700. On one hand I am all ready to box it up and then I remember that for that same amount of money I can get a Hi Power that I have also wanted for a LONG time.
Now I know that I am not the first to face this quagmire and I darn sure won't be the last. How did you all make your decision when you came up against it? What factors did you weigh? Is having a slight custom 1911 and NO Hi Power better than having a stock Colt 1911 WITH a stock Hi Power?
Bear in mind that the Colt is NOT my only gun and it isn't my primary or CCW gun. If I had the work done to it, it would definately move up the list though.
So where would your cash go and why?

Thanks for the help.
Nala

 

[Standing Wolf]

I poured boat loads of money into Colt model 1911s years ago, and never ended up with one that was both accurate and reliable. I finally got rid of them and swore off both the gun and the cartridge.

Around 1999, I bought a Kimber. It's what those Colts ought to have been. My total investment to date has been a $65 action job and stocks. I'm not convinced the Series II Kimbers are as good as their predecessors, but am convinced there's never going to be room in my gun safe for a Colt model 1911.

 

[Amish_Bill]

I'm in a similar boat... do I throw some good parts and maybe a trip to the 1911 doc on a Norinco or do I try to sell it and get a Springfield TRP, a Kimber Tactical / TLE /CDP, etc?

The Norinco has been prefectly reliable so far. Maybe adding a good trigger/sear/hammer/safety to it is enough? Hmm... then I still have to have it cut for Tritiums...

 

[P95Carry]

Strikes me - that buying the package you want is probably way to go. Reason - as much as anything - is that so much cash can go into various stages of ''tricking out'' and yet rarely any guarantee that you'll get what you are after.

Even the search for the ''ideal'' version of the platform you want can be fraught with problems.

Research - is important .. plus, needless to say - getting the feel from opinions here, from those that have tried to go same route.

 

[Majic]

If your Colt is reliable and accurate I wouldn't customize it for it to be a carry piece. Why fix what aint broke and take the chance of losing it's reliability. I would spend the money on the BHP and hope it will be reliable like the Colt.
A basic 1911 with quality parts, put together by a competent builder is a combat pistol. When you go to customizing is when you can run into trouble with it's reliability.

 

[Soap]

Like Majic said, if it works reliably and accurately, I wouldn't do anything to it. I've had tricked out 1911s in the past and they were neato cool but they were not reliable or accurate. My stock NRM Colt is serving me very well thus far.

 

[Greg45]

I Sold my NRM SS Colt after purchasing a Les Baer Premier II used for $1100. It was like night and day. I don't think I would have beeen as happy with the Colt being customized. Also, I'm not a very patient person, so the thought of waiting a year or more wasn't very appealing either.

 

[Sean Smith]

Most people with bad experiences with custom guns hired local yokel morons to do the work, or otherwise went cheap on the work and then wondered why the results sucked. There are exceptions, but I suspect they are few and far between. You want good results, hire a pro, not the chump at the corner strip mall.

Funny how something mass-produced from cheap parts by Neanderthal skill level labor is suppsed to be more reliable than something hand fitted by a professional pistolsmith with top-quality parts. Compelling logic.

Custom guns aren't for everybody. They are expensive and you have to wait for them. Most people are just as well served by something off-the-shelf like a Wilson or Baer. If you have very specific wants, however, a pistolsmith custom job might be the best solution.

 

[Tamara]

I'm just not happy unless I have at least one 1911 project in the works...

 

[MoNsTeR]

One great gun beats two so-so guns.

When my 6" SV is done, I'll have probably $2800 in it including the mags. Obviously I could have bought a lot of guns with that money (not to mention ammo, gear, and other stuff), but I'm happier with one that's perfect than a few that are just OK.

Sean is right though, custom guns aren't for everybody. But the only way to find out if they're for you is to own one.

 

[Berg01]

I have a NRM Colt that I would like to get some light custom work done on it, maybe about $700.

Hey NALA;

Give us some feedback here...

WHAT are you using this gun for; What are you thinking about getting done?

WHO is doing the work?

I'd be inclined to buy a good BHP for @ $450.00, then trade the NRM Colt for a decent Kimber Series I Custom / Stainless Target, but thats just me trading your guns and spending your money.

 

[Brad Johnson]

Customize or Buy Another NEW Gun??

ummmm..... both?

Brad

 

[Nalapombu]

I am not going to have a FULL HOUSE gun built, I can't afford that. I am thinking about just having the sights replaced with Novaks or maybe Heinies, changing the extractor for a Wilson Bulletproof, having a trigger job done and then a dehorn and refinish. These aren't major fixes, just stuff to make it more "user" friendly I guess you could say. The gun is only used for informal shooting and maybe CCW use when I get comforable enough and enough knowledge in carrying a gun, but that won't be for a while.
When I go to look up prices for this stuff by reputable guys the cost goes up rather quick. Pretty soon the work I am thinking about gets to be about $600 or so, give or take $50. Then I think about what I could have for that money and how much I have always wanted a Hi Power and I get major second thoughts. The gun is no where near bad right now, I love it. That's why I am not going to do much to it, if anything. Something like the Ted Yost 1* package @ $795 is what I had in mind. So you can see where the dilemma comes into play.
Now what'cha think?

Nala

 

[Sunray]

"...Is having a slight custom 1911 and NO Hi Power better than having a stock Colt 1911 WITH a stock Hi Power?..." Don't be daft. It's best to have both. Mind you, spending any money on things that are easy to do with minimal tools and experience is truly daft. Doing the trigger on either is easy. As is changing rear sights, grips, springs etc.
There are lots of books and web sites that will tell you exactly what and how to do anything on either. The only thing I've ever sent out is a front sight installed on my .45 and the barrel fitted on my HP and machined on my .45. Everything else I do myself.
And 'wanting one for a long time' would decide which one to buy first for me. 'I want one' is a reason. Not an excuse.