Newton said:
I have tried really hard to get into 1911s, really, really hard. Roughly 75% of the experienced and competent pistol shooters I know carries a 1911, or shoots one in competition.
There seems to be an announcement every other day that yet another high profile police department or BlackOps unit has switched to a high end 1911.
Every gun magazine devotes at least 50% of its space to the next great 1911 on the market (which is usually just their old model sprayed in desert tan and fitted with new grips).
Having now owned 4 different models (Springfield, Colt, Dan Wesson, and now Kimber) I am reminded of the frequent feedway stoppages, the low magazine capacity, and the need to manipulate 2 separate mechanical devices to make it go bang. The guns just look, feel and shoot like museum pieces. I mean I love my .455 Webley, but would never even dream of choosing it over a Model 13 as a combat pistol.
So the only reason I could arrive at to determine the popularity of the 1911 is history, and maybe the fact it was invented here.
I guess I just don't get it, and likely never will. At the range, surrounded by all these tricked out Wilsons and Nighthawks, I sometimes feel like the kid who noticed the Emperor was naked.
Maybe I could get into some type of rehab
I've been looking at 1911's for a while, but I'm no expert, have little experience, and can't tell you the ins and outs of the pistol. I don't even own one. There are people here who can and do, so take what I say with two grains of salt, and if the old coons in here contradict me, listen to them. But I've been thinking about this question myself for a while (I’ve pretty much decided that the 1911 will be my first purchase), so here's how I justified that, given the array of weapons I could have potentially chosen.
“Why the 1911”
The 1911 pistol is a fighting gun, plain and simple. It was designed for combat in an age where quality, not money, did the talking. In the hands of dedicated personnel, it’s slim, but versatile, frame, smooth, sliding, single action trigger, grip angle, and other design features offer unparalleled accuracy with the least amount of training. There is a reason why many, experienced, pistol shooters carry and use the 1911- it’s easy to shoot well.
That said, it’s not a pistol designed for the casual shooter. If you want to bring out the full potential of the 1911, you need to know it. It’s strengths, it’s weaknesses, its parts and their functions, its wants and desires, its operation. Furthermore, you need to train with it. For most, this is too much work. And for them, the 1911 probably isn’t the right choice.
But for those who really count on their pistols and want to take the time to learn about them, the 1911 is the right choice. It’s easy to learn on. It’s easy to shoot well. And in the hands of dedicated personnel, its reputation for reliability and ability to deliver fight stopping hits accurately and quickly is probably without equal.
That said, today’s 1911 is not the 1911 that has proven so combat worthy in two World Wars and countless conflicts. Manufacturers, in an attempt to cut costs and deliver cheaper products, have cut corners in manufacturing and inspection. Built right, the 1911 is a reliable, trustworthy, life-saving tool. Built wrong, and it can get you killed. This is why it’s important to know this pistol moreso than most others. It needs to be built right, and oftentimes, experienced 1911 users will replace parts in stock guns with more reliable, aftermarket, parts. But once they do get it right, boy, can you count on it to go bang.
Some say you shouldn’t need to work on a stock pistol to make it go bang. And you shouldn’t. But the world is how it is, and they just don’t make them like they used to. But I say, whether it goes bang out of the box or not, you should know your gun. And for those who know and depend on their guns, the 1911 is the handgun of choice.
It ain’t for everyone, that’s for sure. It demands the tender loving care of a person who knows what he’s doing with his gun, and that’s something you have to learn with time. It demands training and practice. It demands high quality parts and attention to detail. But I know that if I do my job right, and I take care of it, the 1911 will take care of me, rain or shine, snow or sand, heaven or hell.
Before I started searching for the right gun, I decided that I want to know and learn about my pistol. I want to take the time to learn its history, its stories, its parts and operation, and its strength and weaknesses. I want to pop the books open, memorize the manual, and practice with it until my imaginary girlfriend kicks me out of the house for giving my pistol more attention than her. I want to tinker with it until I get a scar from the recoil spring hitting me in the head one too many times. I want a pistol to take care of, and a pistol that will take care of me.
I searched long and hard. There were so many choices. There were Sigs, CZ’s, XD’s, Glocks. Semi’s, revolvers. 9’s, 45’s. 4 inchers, 5 inchers. Double actions, single actions. But after all that searching, and reflecting upon my desires, I realized that there was really only one choice, one want, one desire. After looking deep down, only one package really fit the bill for me- the 1911 pistol.
Like I said, it ain’t for everyone. But it’s the right one for me. Now all I have to do is pick the right 1911 from all the different manufacturers and models! But that’s a story for another day.
