My wife is so cool....

[David904]

Right now, I am an account manager for an industrial custodial firm and my duties have me on the jobsite at late hours of the night at times. We have a big account with a major juice manufacturer; but it is unfortunately in a really really bad part of town. Deep in the hood, so to speak. Funny thing is, from the campus, you wouldn't know that you are on an island in the middle of a nasty area.

My wife has said that she doesn't feel safe with me walking around unprotected so she told me to go out and get a carry piece. I've narrowed it down to Springfield Armory and Kimber. (I don't like Glocks for CCW... GREAT guns, but just too boxy for my tastes and don't really fit my hands well.) And I currently own an HK USP .40 full sized frame that I don't want to carry for the same reason as a Glock.

I really like .45s and I am debating whether to go for a compact model or a full sized model, blued versus SS, that sort of thing. I live in Florida and I've an average build. I'm 6ft, 175 lbs, athletic, like long walks on beaches... Oops. Sorry. In all seriousness though, I am 6ft, 175lbs, just to give you an idea of what I am going to be carrying a gun on.

Any suggestions? Fire away! Thanks!

David

Oh one other thing... If I went with a compact .45, would I be silly to contemplate using it in IDPA? I've never done that stuff, but I'm very interested.

 

[hillbilly]

Good for you having such a cool wife.

I find, sadly, that with my wife it's sort of the opposite..........


I buy MYSELF a neat carry piece, and within a few months SHE'S the one who claims ownership of it.....And it happens with other guns, too.

Thus far, I've lost a pair of .45s, an M-1 Carbine, a shotgun, and .22 in exactly the same way.

hillbilly

 

[toocool]

If you like the .45, take a look at the Taurus Millennium Pro PT145. This is a compact pistol, yet still holds 10+1 rounds of .45ACP. I've put a little over 200 rounds through mine so far with no malfunctions of any kind, and that includes 20 rounds of Gold Dot 200-gr +P. The +P's were no picnic to shoot, but by no means uncontrollable or painful.

I swear by mine. It's my current bedside gun loaded with Federal Hydra Shock 230-gr. HP.

 

[MICHAEL T]

Colt Defender best of the compacts .Use a lighter round CorBon new 160gr DPX is made for compacts performace at non+P pressure.

 

[GunGoBoom]

so she told me to go out and get a carry piece.

"No, wife, I have to draw the line. Be financially responsible. The guns I have are plenty. Or really, pepper spray is all I need." Yeah, right.

Suggestions that I like:

Kahr MK9 (9x19mm)
Sig 245 (.45 acp)
Sig 228 (9x19mm)
Sig 229 (9x19mm)
CZ PCR (9x19mm)
CZ P01 (9x9mm)
Kimber/Springfield/Colt/Para/Etc. 1911 commander length slide on officer's (compact) frame (.45 acp or 10mm auto).

In a Kimber, the "Compact CDP II":
http://www.kimberamerica.com/cdp.php (second from bottom)

In a Springfield, maybe the "Ultra Compact":
http://www.springfield-armory.com/prod-pstl-1911-uc.shtml

But I think one of these Para would be better than either, due to their completely snag-free design - they are known simply as the "CCO" and the "CCW":
http://www.paraord.com/product/product.html?id=34
http://www.paraord.com/product/product.html?id=35
But they're LDA, which you may or may not like.

 

[Black Majik]

Well, congrats to you for getting a 1911. A great platform, especially to shoot. Whether it'd be defensive or offensive, training with the 1911 can make you quite lethal.

Ok, enough of the intro, so... 1911 platform huh? Do you own any other types of 1911s? I honestly think a Colt would be better than the SA or Kimber. Better parts, and the finish is in Colts advantage. But between the SA and the Kimber, they're quite close. My personal bias is to the Kimber.

Whats great about these manufacturers now is that all 1911s seem to come with all the bells and whistles, whether it'd be ext, thumb safeties, beavertail grip safeties, ext. magazine wells, lowered and flared ejection ports, novak sights, night sights, this extractor, that extracter, power extractor, this doodad, that doodad etc...

Or you can go mil-spec, a plain Jane 1911 such as the NRM Colt Government or the SA Mil-spec & GI.

What you should find out and research is what you want on your specific pistol. To get into the bells and whistles gun, SA starts off with the "Loaded" model, Novak sights, ext thumb safety, beavertail grip safety etc. Same with the Kimber 1911s, everything as the Loaded except their sights are different. Best thing to do, is to handle both, and see which feels better in your hand.

If this is your first 1911, I'd advise you to stroll over to www.1911forum.com and read up on some 1911s. The 1911 market is HUGE! So, there might even be a gun that would better suite your needs other than a Kimber or SA 1911.

Also, let us know your price range. I can come up with a whole buncha recommendations once I find out your price range, and maybe the good folks at THR can better narrow down the pistol for you.

Good luck!

 

[realmswalker]

You might want to take a look at the para warthog, i dont carry but I love mine.

 

[Dienekes]

1911 Tuner is the local expert on these, but I shot my first 1911 in 1959 and have used them off and on (including for work) since then. I picked up an SA Mil-Spec (stainless) a couple of years ago and am impressed with it. I now have about 1000 rounds through it and it is turning into a good gun. Quality is good, trigger and sights were good, and what more do you need? I got the stainless one because it was fundamentally a toy. Blued is just fine and in some ways preferable for a serious piece.

I always prefer the stock, full sized gun. They just seem to run better.

 

[ArmyCop]

I "ditto" the Colt Defender suggestion. I recently aquired one and it's great for CC, fun to shoot, Easy to clean. Box of 100 .45's at Wmart was 19.00

 

[W Turner]

What length barrel to recommend depends on how you like to carry.

5"- great for the range, home defense, and for IWB carry. The long barrel doesn't affect concealability and although the grip is full-size, it hides easily.

4"- better than the 5" for OWB, works fine with IWB, can be had in lightweight or all-steel versions. A lightweight (alloy) 4" 1911 is considered by many to be the ideal carryin' pistol. With the FS grip it can be concealed pretty easily, but some people prefer the Officer's model grip (Colt CCO) for even less of a footprint

3.5"- Officer's model size, historically has been just as if not more finicky to get it running right as the 3" versions. Small size helps OWB carry, especially due to the much shorter grip. Can be had in alloy and steel framed versions

3"- as small as you can get in 1911's. Reliability is spotty even with NIB guns. When they need work, they are usually much harder to get running right due to the close timing needed by the short slide. Some are reliable right outta the box with the Colt Defenders generally held to be the best of the bunch althogh this is subjective.

Keep in mind that 1911's can be had in just about every configuration of barrel length and grip size. I have seen everything from Officer's model frames with 5" slides and barrels to the reverse a 'la Cold Defender+.

Personally I carry a Springfield Armory Lightweight Loaded 5" IWB. Great carry gun and you don't lose any of the sight radius or barrel length for velocity.

In IDPA, pretty much anything 4" and up with a full size grip can be competitive. Any smaller than that and you can run into issues with reliability and reduced sight radius.

For you the answer may be a Commander-sized (4" with FS grip) pistol in either alloy or steel depending on your preference. Concealability will be good and it will still work great for IDPA. My preference is Springfield Armory for a few reasons:
1- No odd safety systems like Kimber's version of the Schwartz safety. This has been problematic in some guns. Closest thing to a true 1911 being produced today.
2- Internal extractor
3- Better value than the Kimber, IMO
4- Excellent customer service

W

 

[DirksterG30]

If you may need to use the gun at night, you should consider night sights.

I'm a big fan of Springfield 1911's - lifetime warranty. I have the Loaded Champion model - stainless, 4" barrel, ambi safety, Novak night sights. Mine had 1 stovepipe during break-in but that's it. I've shot about 600 rounds through it and it has been 100% reliable. I prefer the full-sized grip to an Officer's grip, and I have had no problems concealing it.

photo is from the Springfield website:



http://www.springfield-armory.com/prod-pstl-1911-ch.shtml

 

[David904]

Hi Guys,
I started this thread quite some time ago, and I'm sorry for being so rude and just dropping away. I truly appreciate all the advice you guys sent my way. I ended up purchasing a Colt Series 80 Gov't model (Blued) and 2 Blade-Tech holsters (IWB and on the belt.)

I have to tell you that I had a truly frightening experience with my gun. Seriously.

I purchased my pistol and immediately took it to the range. I pumped 300 rounds through it that day and it performed flawlessly. I couldn't have been happier. I then proceeded to modify the piece - Had Trijicon night sights put on, a Smith & Alexander magwell installed and a trigger job done. Now I had all this done by a VERY reputable gunsmith in the area. I also put some coyote brown ergogrips on in place of the beautiful wood panels (did that all by myself.)

I then proceeded to strap that piece on and go to work. I was about two months later that I was able to go to the range again. I set myself up and proceeded to take aim at my target... squeeeezed the trigger...

*click*

Ejected the round and tried again...

*click*

This time I ejected the round and examined the cap... NOT A MARK ON IT!

I went up to the desk and the folks there thought I had a broken firing pin and set up a work order for my piece. I told them that it was my personal defense piece and they very kindly took care of the situation that night.

They found that the firing pin had rusted inside its housing and wasn't coming out when the trigger was pulled. So they removed the pin, saw that it was not broken and cleaned it up and reinstalled it. They then did the pencil test and NOTHING HAPPENED!

At that point they stripped the entire weapon down and discovered that the person who had performed the trigger job had reassembled my gun incorrectly!

They called me in and informed me of what happened and were dumbfounded when I told them who had done the work.

They gave me a good brow beating/lecture about not immediately testing my piece after having it worked on before carrying it for personal defense. In their words, I could very easily ended up "on the wrong side of the grass" if something had happened and I drew for my life.

I learned some great lessons that day. I'll never make the same mistake again in blindly trusting the gunsmith to have my gun in proper working order. I'll immediately test it out if it gets any work done on it. I also learned how to strip my gun down a little farther and examine the firing pin and extractor. Good stuff to know. I had never had to do that with my H&K so I never thought I'd have to know how to do that for my Colt. Needless to say, every weekend they get a looking at and a wipe-down.

Anyway, I've got my pistol working again, have put 700 rounds through it and it performs flawlessly. It has never jammed or stovepiped on me at all. I'm happy with my choice and I feel secure carrying it. Thanks for all your advice and input. I just thought that I'd share this experience in the hope that it might prevent a fellow forumite from making the same mistake I did.

Thank God I found out that my gun didn't work at the range rather than on the street.

 

[possum]

congrats on snagging a cool wife, i am lucky in that department as well. i say like always go with the xd. in any caliber would be great, but since you like .45. i would say go with the xd .45acp in the service model size, and if you are gonna carry it iwb i would suggest the bi-tone, the xd will also give you a higher capacity than the kimber 1911. the xd will facilitate your needs perfectly i believe!

 

[hso]

I carry a Para P12 SA or a Colt Combat Commander so I obviously don't have a problem with 1911s, but I've got an odd question. If you've got a USP full size is the USP compact out of the question because of the shape? The advantages are the you've got the exact same manual of arms. Heck, you could even get it in .45.

Between Kimber and SA my gunsmith says SA.

 

[TX1911fan]

David, glad to hear that everything worked out in the end. That is truly scary.

 

[David904]

hso,

I like to shoot my H&K, but it has such a broad/bulky profile that I find I have a difficult time concealing it. Beautifully engineered gun... I do enjoy it. However I bought the Colt .45 because I shoot that frame better (for some reason) and the single stack magazine makes for a slimmer profile and easier concealment. I went with the full-sized Colt Gov't. Model and have no problems concealing it on my 6' 175lb frame.