Single stack 1911s - poohie!

[Krag]

Many of you might wonder why I don't like most 1911 pistols. The fact is that I have found the single stack 1911 to be the worst handling pistol I have ever fired. I used them for years for USPSA shooting and did lousy. That was the major reason why I switched to hicap guns like the Glock, Beretta, etc. - I just plain shot them better.

In the last few years I have begun using hicap Paras (16.40, 18.9 LDA) with great success. While I don't have large hands, for some reason the wide body Para with their high cut under the trigger guard and an arched mainspring housing (which I add) is ergonomic perfection for me. But then again, so is the Glock (G17, 35, 21) and Beretta M96 Elite.

I will just have to differ with those who feel JMB's original design is "ergonomic perfection." For me it's a nightmare.

 

[Zak Smith]

FWIW, I find very little difference in grip or "point" between my SS 1911's and my double-stack SV "2011".

 

[Ian]

What can I say? There's just no accounting for taste.

 

[mattw]

A single stack 1911 or 1911A1 with flat mainspring housing... doesn't get much better than that for me!

btw, i remember you saying that you wrote for gun magazines in another thread, Krag, What is your name (or pen name) so i'll know if i ever read anything by you

 

[Krag]

Ian - not "taste" but "fit." I refuse to be a partisan of a firearm just because of what others (mostly "traditionalists") tell me is best. I use what is best for me!

matt - send me a P.M. and I'll tell you.

 

[DorGunR]

That was the major reason why I switched to hicap guns like the Glock


Yeah.......my wife likes tupperware also.

 

[PCRCCW]

Well the angle/diameter of the grip of the 1911 is much different than the Glock.
Its close to the Beretta.......why you shoot a 1911 wide body and a Glock well and a single stack 1911 poorly sounds like you didnt have your single stack set up right. .........Shoot well.

 

[Mute]

Sorry. Can't help the fact that you are a genetic mutation.

 

[Krag]

PCR - when I owned single stack 1911s (which I thankfully don't any more) my 'smith and I tried ever trick in the book to make them fit and handle better: flat & arched mainspring housings, removed metal under the trigger guard, long & short triggers, checkered front strap and mainspring housing, umpteen different styles of grips. All to no avail. :banghead: The first time I picked up a Glock it felt like a natural extension of my arm. My M96 Elite and Paras fit me just as well. I tried an STI for a while but, despite it being a hicap 1911, it handled poorly. Hey, what I can say? I use what works for me.

Mute - you might find it hard to visualize, but perhaps I am not a "mutation" but a more highly evolved specimen of our species?

 

[ChuckB]

You might like butter pecan, I like double chocolate chip. Actually, I like a lot of flavors! Seriously, you can shoot a double stack better, while I sold my Beretta 92 because the combination of grip size and trigger reach didn't work for me. A single stack is comfy for me. What ever floats our respective boats, no?

Chuck, who likes the feel of a revolver in hand over any autoloader.

 

[Ankeny]

FWIW, I find very little difference in grip or "point" between my SS 1911's and my double-stack SV "2011".

Same here. Seems to me like one of (if not the) major factor contributing to ergonomics is the grip angle. For me Glocks point way to high. That's why I have had partial grip reductions done on my Glocks, to lower the point of impact. I also find the CZ 75/85 guns to have great ergonomics.

Looks to me like someone is just out trolling.

 

[El Tejon]

I say, I say, this heresy, suhr, heresy.

Well, that's why that make different kinds of tools, clothes, computers, cars, girlfriends, inter alia. What works for one may not work for the other.

 

[Newton]

All I can say is that I've handled a 1911 and it certainly does feel like a 100 year old design.

I'm sure the British think that Webleys are the cats meeow - hint, hint

 

[LeonCarr]

I understand Krag.

The first time I shot a Glock it just felt perfect. I too tried shooting the 1911 for years in USPSA, and the poor fit along with poor reliability drove me away from the design pretty much forever.

About the only 1911 that fits my hand perfect would be a full size Para hicap LDA. A buddy has one and it has a pretty sweet action, about like a PPC tuned Smith & Wesson revolver.

Just my .02,
LeonCarr

 

[Krag]

I may be throwing gasoline on the coals, but can I shoot my 18.9 LDA more accurately than my single action 16.40. I can also shoot it faster but I'm going to attribute part of that to firing the 9mm round out of a 40 oz. pistol (pure bliss! ).

Chuck - 10-4 on revolvers, good buddy. There is no handgun in this quadrant of the galaxy that is more ergonomically perfect than my 6" Model 686 with Hogue Monogrips. Well, for me that is?

 

[akanotken]

LDA vs SA triggers

IIRC, Jarret said that he shoots them about the same speed, but the lda more accurately.

OTOH, I see no use for the LDA in my collection, I'm too in love with the 1911 style trigger (short reset, crisp reset, tunable to perfection).

 

[atblis]

1911s Don't fit me too well either

Guns are archaic (and people like them that way). The biggest advances in firearm technology have been in the area of ease to manufacture (read as cheaper).

Glocks have polymer frames because they are incredibly easy to manufacture (and cheap). The other benefits make nice marketing points.

I don't buy Glocks because they should cost a couple hundred bucks less than they do.

 

[Technosavant]

Oooo! Oooo! A Glock vs. 1911 thread!

It shouldn't be a surprise to anybody that some prefer the Glock and some the 1911 (I fall in the latter camp), while there are plenty of other fans- CZ, HK, nad more. Is this exactly news to people? If you don't like a particular gun, well, that's why there are others also on the market.

 

[The Drew]

Personally, the CZ 75 is about perfect when it comes to ergonomics... For me My springfield XD 40 fits very nice too... My only problem with single stack 1911's is being able to reach the slide stop... other than that, they too are very good...

Glocks, and Lugers, and Ruger 22's are just wrong for me...

 

[lunde]

I was mainly into Glocks and HK P7s, then rediscovered the 1911. My favorite among those that I own is an Ed Brown Kobra Carry. I own two, configured the same. Both are the California-certified version, but I had Ed Brown install a single-sided safety (to replace the ambidextrous one) and slimline grip screw bushings (that I supplied), and I changed the California-certified firing pin and firing pin spring with standard versions. This pistol is my favorite among those that I own, because it does everything that I want/need a pistol to do, and does it better than anything else I own. I am glad that I own two of them. I take one of these with me every time I go to the range. The last time I shot it was just last night.

 

[Onmilo]

Well, this little thread of doom made me decide to take a couple or three 1911s with me this weekend just for the heck of it,,,,,,,,,

 

[Frandy]

Oh my!

Oh my, oh my, oh my, those sure are beautiful Ken. I can't afford those high-priced 1911s, but I sure like my relatively modest Patriot and am in the process of selling a few items to fund another 1911 with a cost of $700 or so. Once the dough is in hand, I will have to see which of the choices jumps out at me. S&W, Colt, Springy, Kimber...hmmmm.

Oh, Glocks? I'm one who never denigrates 'em but also one who does not like them in the hand. Yes, I've had an XD and prefer that, but the only polymer pistol I now own is an HK. Whatever.

 

[21H40]

Wait a minute... I thought part of the 2ndA was "...well regulated militia using arms designed by J. M. Browning ... " Ain't it unAmerican to dislike a 1911??!!

Keep your Glocks... more 1911's for me.

 

[middy]

Personally, I've never shot a handgun that wasn't acceptable ergonomically... I shoot them all poorly.

The only handgun I've ever held that didn't feel right was a KelTec P32, but I think that's to be expected in a such a tiny gun.

 

[AirForceShooter]

Had a Taurus PT-945 SA/DA .45
I couldn't shoot the thing to save my life.
It just didn't fit my hand even after changing grips.
Traded it for a Springer Loaded and I can shoot again.
The 945 was a sweet weapon. Never jammed, no ftf's or fte's.
It just didn't fit me.

AFS