Opinions on the American Classic (Metro Arms) 1911?
- Thread starter Ally
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Mine has fired over 200 rounds now and it is superb. 100% reliable and very accurate. I replaced the long stock trigger with a medium length and installed some cheap rubber grips. I love it. Hopefully I can get an amigo for warmer weather before next summer.
MICHAEL T
Member
Mine just keep rolling along Dependable as the day is long .
DanTheFarmer
Member
Hi All,
I've got the factory twin, the Firestorm DLX. It is identical to the American Classic II except for the rollmark on the slide. It has been great and the fit and finish are top notch (o.k., aside from the giant rollmark reading "FireStorm" which is big enough for the bad guy to read at 15' and think to himself, "Uh-oh, I'm up against a value oriented consumer who values function over prestige. Perhaps I should rob another, more ostentatious, home!")
If you like the American Classic II and see a Firestorm DLX, check it out. If it says made by Metro Arms, you are all set. Older Firestorm 1911's were made by Llama and have a poor reputation (and they aren't true 1911's. Their external extractors are a dead giveaway.)
Anyway, I've had nothing but positve experiences with my Metro Arms 1911.
Good Luck to all.
Dan
I've got the factory twin, the Firestorm DLX. It is identical to the American Classic II except for the rollmark on the slide. It has been great and the fit and finish are top notch (o.k., aside from the giant rollmark reading "FireStorm" which is big enough for the bad guy to read at 15' and think to himself, "Uh-oh, I'm up against a value oriented consumer who values function over prestige. Perhaps I should rob another, more ostentatious, home!")
If you like the American Classic II and see a Firestorm DLX, check it out. If it says made by Metro Arms, you are all set. Older Firestorm 1911's were made by Llama and have a poor reputation (and they aren't true 1911's. Their external extractors are a dead giveaway.)
Anyway, I've had nothing but positve experiences with my Metro Arms 1911.
Good Luck to all.
Dan
Dr_B
member
I've posted several comments about this pistol here:
http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=563967&highlight=metro+arms+1911:
I bought one earlier this year and the feed ramp had not been polished. Not knowing much about 1911's at the time (since I'm kind of a revolver guy), I didn't realize that was why it wouldn't feed ammo so I sent it back for repairs through my local dealer.
While waiting on it to come back, the dealer offered me another one he had in the case. It had a crooked front sight. The sight leaned to the left because it had been set into the dovetail improperly. I took it to the range anyway and it cycled just fine, and was accurate, but the sight bothered me. So I took that one back and we sent the slide off for repairs.
I waited two months. No pistol, no slide. In the meantime the FIRST ONE came back. The dealer offered to let me have that one. It had a list of repairs made by some gunsmith in Arizona. New barrel, new magazine catch, polished this, replaced that, the list went on and on to the tune of $250.
So, by this point the gun had spent more time gone for repairs than it had spent at my house. I was thinking about selling it because I just didn't care any more. But I hadn't spent anything on shipping or repairs, so I figured why not take this one to the range and have some fun before selling it.
Now it works perfectly. I can hit almost anything with it. I can hit my 3-inch steel spinners at 30 feet. The recoil is manageable and its a good size for concealed carry, although I only use it as a range toy for now. So it will stick around for a while.
Bottom line is these are not bad pistols for the price. But there are definitely quality control issues.
http://www.thehighroad.org/showthread.php?t=563967&highlight=metro+arms+1911:
I bought one earlier this year and the feed ramp had not been polished. Not knowing much about 1911's at the time (since I'm kind of a revolver guy), I didn't realize that was why it wouldn't feed ammo so I sent it back for repairs through my local dealer.
While waiting on it to come back, the dealer offered me another one he had in the case. It had a crooked front sight. The sight leaned to the left because it had been set into the dovetail improperly. I took it to the range anyway and it cycled just fine, and was accurate, but the sight bothered me. So I took that one back and we sent the slide off for repairs.
I waited two months. No pistol, no slide. In the meantime the FIRST ONE came back. The dealer offered to let me have that one. It had a list of repairs made by some gunsmith in Arizona. New barrel, new magazine catch, polished this, replaced that, the list went on and on to the tune of $250.
So, by this point the gun had spent more time gone for repairs than it had spent at my house. I was thinking about selling it because I just didn't care any more. But I hadn't spent anything on shipping or repairs, so I figured why not take this one to the range and have some fun before selling it.
Now it works perfectly. I can hit almost anything with it. I can hit my 3-inch steel spinners at 30 feet. The recoil is manageable and its a good size for concealed carry, although I only use it as a range toy for now. So it will stick around for a while.
Bottom line is these are not bad pistols for the price. But there are definitely quality control issues.
Olympus
Member
- Joined
- Jul 14, 2008
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- 4,212
Mine had massive failures right out of the box. The factory mag would only hold two rounds and then the follower would bind up. I tried other mags and when the mag was locked in place, it would cant the mag forward causing the rounds to sit perfectly horizontal and jam headfirst into the bottom of the feed ramp rather than pointing slightly up to the chamber. The gun immediately went back to a warranty center. They did a full page worth of work on it and sent it back with two new Mec Gar mags instead of the factory mag. Not taking any other chances, I sent it to a gunsmith friend who gutted it and completely rebuilt the internals and I had some customization to it. Runs good now, but was a dog from the factory. There are numerous posts from others that have feed issues like I did.
I also thought it was funny that Handguns mag did an article on it last month and they also had problems feeding with the stock mag loaded to full capacity. They didn't mention if they tried other mags, but it's 50/50 as to whether it was a mag problem or a mag catch problem. The AC Commanders are notorious for having both.
Here are some before and after photos of mine.
Sent by Brown's Custom Grips using Tapatalk!
I also thought it was funny that Handguns mag did an article on it last month and they also had problems feeding with the stock mag loaded to full capacity. They didn't mention if they tried other mags, but it's 50/50 as to whether it was a mag problem or a mag catch problem. The AC Commanders are notorious for having both.
Here are some before and after photos of mine.
Sent by Brown's Custom Grips using Tapatalk!
I bought the America Classic goverment model with fixed sights. It shot low so I replaced the rear sight with a higher one given to me by a friend. The front sight was slightly cocked to one side. I tapped it until it was staight up. In doing this, I think I weakened the stake on feature and sure enought, one day at the range, the front fell off, lost forever somewhere on the ground. I replaced the sight with a slightly different shape, which I love. It is a great shooter. It is accurate and the trigger is very good. I am very pleased with my purchase.
trickyasafox
Member
Mine has been great. best deal I have in my 1911s- including a colt commander, mil-spec, and the citadel in addition to the ACII
Hondo 60
Member
I decided I wanted a 1911 & I did about 6 months of research on this.
I looked at all the reviews I could find on Remington, Ruger, Metro Arms, Springfield, Taurus, etc, etc.
I wanted a Government model, or one slightly modified, but had to have a 5" barrel.
I wanted a blued one.
And it had to just plain look good!
In the end I decided on the American Classic II.
All the reviews I saw were very positive.
It had all the features I wanted (and some that I didn't know I wanted).
And it looks very cool, especially with the Altamont grips I added.
I took it to the range 3 days ago.
It was shooting a bit high & a bit left.
But at 25 yards all shots were still on the paper.
All in all I'm very happy with the purchase, I just need to work on the sights a bit.
(and I have to touch up the new grips, the extended slide stop is in the way.)
I looked at all the reviews I could find on Remington, Ruger, Metro Arms, Springfield, Taurus, etc, etc.
I wanted a Government model, or one slightly modified, but had to have a 5" barrel.
I wanted a blued one.
And it had to just plain look good!
In the end I decided on the American Classic II.
All the reviews I saw were very positive.
It had all the features I wanted (and some that I didn't know I wanted).
And it looks very cool, especially with the Altamont grips I added.
I took it to the range 3 days ago.
It was shooting a bit high & a bit left.
But at 25 yards all shots were still on the paper.
All in all I'm very happy with the purchase, I just need to work on the sights a bit.
(and I have to touch up the new grips, the extended slide stop is in the way.)
doc540
Member
inexpensive 1911 pool toe dip
shot fine
cycled fine
felt fine
sold it and bought a Colt, then another Colt, then.....
shot fine
cycled fine
felt fine
sold it and bought a Colt, then another Colt, then.....
empty hull
Member
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- Jul 12, 2011
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I now own 2 American Classics ll in 45 acp. It felt better than the Para I was looking at and was at a great price. Tim
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