Les Baer 1911

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I am considering purchasing a new 1911 in .45 ACP. I want a 5" in blue. I would welcome any opinions of the Les Baer line, specifically the 'custom carry' model and the 'Thunder Ranch special' model.

Also, can you give me an expected retail price range on each of the above models.

Thanks for any input you might be able to offer.
 
Don't know the going price but I have a Thunder Ranch that I carry everyday. I have owned several "production customs" and I like it the best, by far.
 
Baer is my preference for a "semi production" pistol. I currently own four. Call Sporting Arms and speak with Becky. They have the best prices I've found. You should be in the 1500-1800 dollar range, depending on what you want.
 
I just DROS'ed a LB Custom Carry today. I love Les Baer's, and this will be my 2nd.

Few subtle differences between the TRS and the Custom Carry

TRS:
- Solid trigger
- Thunder Ranch Special on the side of the slide
- Checkered MSH

Custom Carry
- 3 hole trigger
- plain "regular" rollmarks of Baer Custom like the rest of their line
- Serrated MSH


Both features that are shared.
- Checkered frontstrap 30 LPI
- match Kart barrel
- Fixed night sights
- light dehorn


Great gun though. Around $1600 each from Sporting Arms, which is where I purchased mine from. GET THEM NOW though since they just received their shipment from Les Baer a few days ago. I had to wait 6 months for my Custom Carry. Felt so good to hold it when it came in the shop :D

Good luck! :)
 
I second, third, and fourth the opinions on the LB Thunder Ranch 1911~!
These guns ares solid as a rock, keep'em a bit wet and they will eat any
type ammo that you feed 'em. In some locale's you can come away with
a Thunder Ranch for right 'round $1500 + tax. Enjoy~!:cool: :D
 
Both models are exceptional. They're also very similar. Biggest functional difference is the TRS has a single sided the CC a ambi thumb safety. The TRS has a checkered MSH the CC is serrated, the TRS has a solid trigger the CC a three hole, the TRS has thin grips the CC std. grips.

Otherwise they are the same gun. My CC has the 1.5" group option and shades the TRS by whisker when shooting for groups.

TRS_esmeralda_left_small.jpg


Baer_Cust_Carry.jpg
 
I love my 3 Baer's.

That said, a bit of advice:

1) Get the 1.5" option. Even if you don't need it today, it is sure nice to have down the road.
2) The tactical rounding is very nice option. All of mine have it and when I handle non-rounded Baer's they seem very sharp.
3) Prepare for a bit of a break in period. Just commit to having a few failures in the first few boxes and then all is good.
4) Don't expect some fancy case or manual. Baer puts the money in the gun, nothing else.
5) Learn to deal with a lot of "Baer envy". Trust me, you will know what I mean after you start posting you like a Baer's.
6) and final. Don't expect to ever like another makers 1911 ever again. After owning Baer's I find any other 1911 I pick up just feels loose, sloppy or poorly fit. Not sure if it matters, but it is distinctly noticeable.
 
3) Prepare for a bit of a break in period. Just commit to having a few failures in the first few boxes and then all is good.
Click to expand...

+1! I had to go through a break in period also. Now I shoot my PII in USPSA without any problems. My new Custom Carry is looking to be quite a reliable shooter also!

4) Don't expect some fancy case or manual. Baer puts the money in the gun, nothing else.
Click to expand...

+1, I hate keeping those plastic boxes like other manufacturers, so I like the cardboard boxes they come in. Great target practice. :)

5) Learn to deal with a lot of "Baer envy". Trust me, you will know what I mean after you start posting you like a Baer's.
Click to expand...

Hmm...maybe...... :evil:

6) and final. Don't expect to ever like another makers 1911 ever again. After owning Baer's I find any other 1911 I pick up just feels loose, sloppy or poorly fit. Not sure if it matters, but it is distinctly noticeable.
Click to expand...

Definitely +1!

Only my Baers come out to the range now. Nothing feels as good as a tight Baer. No movement at all in any parts. My other 1911s now get dedicated .22 duty! ;)



Woot!

LesBaerPIICustomCarry7-28-06.jpg
 
I was shooting the other day, testing the new lighter hammer spring in my .38 snub (it was too light, the gunsmith put the next stronger spring in and it was fine) while a guy to my left was shooting some 1911. He stopped shooting, and was tinkering with it for a while. Then he started shooting again. Then he stopped again. I asked him what's up (I had never met him before) and he said the extractor on his Les Baer had broken, so he replaced it with the spare that he keeps in his range box. Then the spare broke.

But that made me wonder, why was he carrying a spare in the first place? The only reason I can think of is that it's happened before. If I need to carry around spare parts for my gun, it's not worth buying.

That's my only experience with Les Baer pistols - I've never seen another one in my life. Apparently it's not common, so take it for what it's worth.
 
My Premier II

makes me look a whole lot better than I really am. I've put about 2000 rounds through the pistol without any problem whatsoever. Baer's come very tight from the "factory." Some very knowledgeable folks, e.g. Old Fuff, have criticized this as unnecessary.

I am not able to comment usefully to this point, but now that my LB PII is broken in, it stands head and shoulders above the other guns in my (small) collection for accuracy and reliability. The closest competitors, an FN Highpower and a carefully modified CZ85C are just as sweet to shoot (but in different ways), are as reliable, but lack the impressive accuracy of the LB.

Hope this may help you.
 
Baer's come very tight from the "factory." Some very knowledgeable folks, e.g. Old Fuff, have criticized this as unnecessary.
Click to expand...



I'm not sure if the tightness is necessary or not but Baer builds one of the more accurate 1911s you can buy. Some people could care less and if their pistol shoots 3" or 4" groups at 25 yards they are happy. My TRS is very tight but I knew it would be before I bought it. It has also been 100% reliable so tight is fine with me. The one thing I plan on doing next time I have it stripped is to put the slide in a padded vise (without the barrel) and working the bushing back and forth some. The fitting is not as tight as some other Baers or RRAs I've heard of but it still is just a little tighter than I like.
 
If the money were mine I would buy a PII with the 1.5" guarantee. If it was an order gun I would have a fiber optic front sight thinned to .080" or so, if it was a stock gun I would have the front sight modified/changed soon after delivery.

My thoughts are 100% aimed at USPSA single stack competition. That is why I would spend the money on a Baer. YMMV.
 
Only my Baers come out to the range now. Nothing feels as good as a tight Baer. No movement at all in any parts. My other 1911s now get dedicated .22 duty!



Woot!
Click to expand...

You Baer whore! I knew I'd find you in this thread! :D

Seriously, BM's two Baers are tight as a drum and accurate as all heck. After handling those, other 1911's do feel kinda subpar and loosey-goosey. A Premier II would be a lot of money spent on a gun, but it's a lot of money well spent. And, if you ever have to sell it to pay for your kid's braces, you'll get resale value you just wont find with your typical Springers or Kimbers.

One note: If this gun's gonna be holstered at all, go with the Baercoat, not blue. Trust me. ;)
 
If I spent $1600 on a pistol, and was told i had to break it in to be reliable, I would be burnt twice. That is exactly what Kimber said about thier POS eclipse that never worked right- 800 rounds of agony.
 
Tokugawa said:
If I spent $1600 on a pistol, and was told i had to break it in to be reliable, I would be burnt twice. That is exactly what Kimber said about thier POS eclipse that never worked right- 800 rounds of agony.
Click to expand...

Baers aren't Kimbers, they are hard fit guns, build by hand. The feel of the gun alone, not to mention the fit of the components and you'll understand why people pay so much, they're actually "too tight" for some peoples tastes, but 50k rounds down the road you'll know what you paid for... so I'm told.

I'm looking at the; Baer 1911 National Match Hardball Pistol, .45 ACP $1689.00

I added it up, to build my Mil-Spec to these standards would cost about $2200... wish I'd just spent the $1689 as I'm already $735 into it with several things left to do.

BTW: if you're haveing problems with you Kimber, send it back, as long as some hack of a gun smith hasn't gotten in there, they'll warranty it for life ;)
 
the naked prophet said:
...he said the extractor on his Les Baer had broken, so he replaced it with the spare that he keeps in his range box. Then the spare broke.

But that made me wonder, why was he carrying a spare in the first place? The only reason I can think of is that it's happened before. If I need to carry around spare parts for my gun, it's not worth buying.
Click to expand...

i would bet money that guy has a habit of dropping the slide on a loaded chamber. the 1911 extractor is not designed to flex around the rim of a cartridge. cant fault the gun when user error is the problem.

Tokugawa said:
If I spent $1600 on a pistol, and was told i had to break it in to be reliable, I would be burnt twice...
Click to expand...

the 'break in period' that some manufacturers recommend is no less than i would give any gun of any make or design before i would trust it as a carry gun. imho, the manufacturers that suggest no break in period are not being honest to their customers and shooters that think they have a gun that does not need to be broken in are fooling themselves. i dont own a les baer product but mechanisms fitted with such close tolerances need time for the parts to 'settle'. once the 'settling' has occurred the device will run very efficiently. this applies to any mechanical device, not just guns. why do you think car manufactures recommend you keep engine speed under a certain rpm for x number of miles?

steve
 
I agree that some folks don't buy into the hard fit concept of Baer. If so, don't buy a Baer and get a Wilson/Springer/Kimber. I have no problems with the other makers, I just like my hard fit Baer's.

It was pointed out to me somewhere that over time all guns wear and get sloppier in general over time. If you start with a Wilson/Springer/Kimber/etc. that is looser, they will in general only get looser. If you start with a hard fit Baer/Custom maker 1911, then they also get looser but you have a longer period of time/shots until they are as loose as a conventional gun. Thus by buying Hard Fit, you are maximizing the usable accuracy life of the gun at the expense of a break in period.

To me this seems/seemed reasonable.

Besides there is nothing like picking up a Wilson/Springer/Kimber/etc. today and giving it a good shake and feeling it rattle. Do that with a Baer it is like shaking a brick.
 
Posted by: Tokugawa
If I spent $1600 on a pistol, and was told i had to break it in to be reliable, I would be burnt twice. That is exactly what Kimber said about thier POS eclipse that never worked right- 800 rounds of agony.
Click to expand...

Ya know, I used to think the same way. 1911 companies use the break-in period as an excuse for unreliable guns. Both of my Baers required break in periods (they were tight!) and now they're tickin', tickin' and keep on tickin'! Break-in period for my Bears were 300 rounds for my Custom Carry, about 200 rounds for my PII. Boy was I concerned with my Custom Carry in the beginning, but really, after shooting those 300 rounds, I've never gotten a malfunction again. They did need a break-in period, both of them did. I even did a poll in the Les Bear forum regarding break-in. And really, I've never gotten a failure since related to the gun.



And reliability wise? I took a 3 day practical shooting pistol course by Bruce Gray this weekend with my Les Baer PII without nary a hiccup. Shot around 1300 rounds, with just a wipe down of and lubing the internals. Not even a detailed one since I it was time I could have used shooting on the line! Around 1300+ rounds, and boy was the internals filthy! Gunked up on slide rails, feed ramp, disconnect rail, ejection port and near the hammer and firing pin.

These guns are meant to be shot extensively, and they perform exactly as required! :)

51.jpg
12.jpg
 
I have only had the opportunity to shoot one Les Baer. In a word...SWEET! Everything you look for in firearm and then some! Sure it might be a little pricey - but not out of line. Sure there might be a break in period...not unheard of in a gun w/ such tight tolerances.
Congrats to all those that have shared phtos of their Baers!
 
I went through the same break-in period as every other Baer owner when I bought mine last July. I had some initial problems (FTFs) in the 1st 1000 rounds, but after replacing my Wilson Mags with Tripps, my pistol is fast approaching the 9000 round mark without a bobble.

The gun is still “tight”, but now it’s smoooooooooth. Accuracy is superb. I’m so impressed with my Concept V, that I bought a Stinger to replace my SIG as my CCW pistol. It should be here next week, so let the “break-in” begin!

Chuck

PS: I second, or third, or fourth Sporting Arms. They're great folks to deal with.
 
Personally, I like a pistol with some rattle - I look for reliability first and foremost in a defensive pistol (seen too many high-end handguns grind to a halt on the range - and one or two do the same in combat); group-size is a distant second. That being said, I do admire the quality of a well-made high-end Wilson or Baer.
 
I've had 2 Baer's so far - a stainless Concept V and a hard chromed Premier II. Both are the best guns I have ever owned. They are as reliable as the popular mass marketed plastic guns and are farrrr more accurate. I have also owned custom built 2011's that cost twice as much and were totally unreliable.

Baer says break in takes 300-500 rounds and they recommend American Eagle for targets and Hydra-Shoks or Golden Sabres for defense.
 
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