thinking about getting an Edbrown type of custom 1911...

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lionken07

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I have no experience dealing with high end 1911. The only 1911 I have is a Colt Commander Xse. Let's just say I can't trust my life with it. Its an awesome gun at the range but it fails to feed randomly (at the range that is not an issue but for a carry piece that is not acceptable). Now...I'm thinking about getting a high end 1911 for fun at the range AND another carry piece (my main carry piece being the uspc). Can a such high price 1911 be as reliable as my uspc? :uhoh:
 
In my research, not experience...sometimes. I've heard good and bad about Nighthawk, Wilson, Les Baer, Brown et al..

I think that what it comes down to is that it's an antiquated design, but with looks and great sentimental value. If you really want reliability get a Glock or XD.

Personally, I can't stand plastic on a pistol.

It's all a give and take.
 
I understand that Ed Brown guns are top of the line but I have no experience with them.

I just recently purchased a Les Baer Custom Carry. What a gun! It is everything I ever expected in a semi-custom gun. I really wish I had not spent so many years and so much money buying lesser firearms. I think I would have been a better shooter had I started out with this one and learned to shoot it well.

I don't think you will be sorry you bought yourself a really fine firearm. Good luck! Enjoy!
 
I've had a couple Kimbers and a Les Baer. The Les was one incredible gun! As far as I'm concerned - and there's legions out there who agree - the 1911 is one of the finest handgun designs out there. Antique? Hardly! Ask those in the service forced to shoot the 9mm if they'd rather have the .45. Hell, ask those shot by a 9mm whether they'd have rather been shot by a .45!
Shot an Ed Brown and replaced some parts of my Kimbers with EB parts. Supposed to be the best on the planet. Go to 1911.org and check out the posts.
 
Ed Brown

If I could ever spend $2000 plus on a 1911 it would be an Ed Brown. I don't know if they are better than Wilson, Les Baer, etc. but that is what I lust for. I think. I'm pretty sure. Gee, that's a lot of money for just one Pistola! :)
 
I've got a Brown and it's worth every pennny...2,744 of 'em to be exact.

Range gun? Oh yeah....the thing is incredibly accurate. Like a laser beam it just puts 'em into one hole.
IDPA....Yes, although I'm already wearing the finish off of mine.
Carry? I would, but mine is specifically a competition gun (magwell, adj. sights, etc)

For CCW, I'd buy a Colt or Springfield and send it to a custom guy and get it tuned up how you want..

When I purchased my Brown, I asked a few buddies to compare high end 1911s at the SHOT show. They said the Brown is head and shoulders above even the Baers (Wilson and Nighthawk, IMO, are overpriced and weren't even in the running.)

The Brown that I own is the only high end 1911 that I've ever had the pleasure of shooting extensively. Slide to frame fit is phenomenal. The pistol feels like it's riding on greased glass. It just has to be felt to be believed. I've fondled Baer and Wilson pistols and you can see who I gave my money to.

I'd do it again too.;)

Ed
 
All companies can produce lemons, certainly production 1911 companies can produce lemons also. As you get into the semi-custom 1911s, they're all hand fitted, so the chances that you end up with a lemon is very slim. Keep in mind though that it can still happen.

I use a Les Baer for competition with great success. It's been so reliable that I feel confident with it.

Ed Browns are awesome semi-custom 1911s. Their attention to detail is very much so quite amazing. So well put together, and very smooth out of the box. If I could get one, I certainly would. But then again, I'd probably end up babying the gun.
 
Firstly, just send your Colt XSE in to someone like Ted Yost to make it reliable. Probably just needs a new extractor and a tune to make it 100%.

Secondly, if you do get an Ed Brown, or anything in that class of semi custom, be advised that it is no more or less likely to be reliable out of the box, and often these guys will just tell you there's nothing wrong with your gun, even though it jams on you too often. Then you have to hire someone to make it right after you've spent $2,000 plus on it to start with.

If you do go that route, though, buy from a local dealer who will back you up if the custom maker gives you a hard time. If you buy direct from the maker, he can screw around with you much easier, as it's no skin off his back if you don't buy from him again. If a dealer calls him up, though, and says a customer is having problems, he will do everything he can to fix it, because that's the kind of business rep he wants among dealers.
 
I have shot a couple of Les Baer and Ed Brown pistols(can't afford one myself) they are excellent. The Baer was brand new and was fitted so tight that you could hardly rack the slide, my buddy put a few hundred rounds through it and it had run like a clock ever since. Les Baer and Ed Brown pistols are both great. Personally I have never had a problem with my series one Kimber it has run just fine for 8 years or so with no problems.
 
I carry a Kimber Custom II. I regard it as perfect, and I will probably be buried with it.

So, when my local shop, (www.impactguns.com) started carrying Nighthawk, I looked at the price tag, and I was forced to wonder, "What do you get for $2000 in price difference?" In all fairness, those machined aluminum grips feel fantastic, BUT, you can get those for any 1911. (And for reality, I prefer Hogue wrap-arounds for traction when they're wet.) My Kimber is very close to 2" at 25 yards on a ransom rest. The Nighthawk is guaranteed 1" FOR THOSE OF YOU WHO CAN SHOOT WELL ENOUGH TO MAKE THAT DIFFERENCE IN REAL LIFE. When I shot the Nighthawk, I had two stovepipes in 50 rounds. NEVER HAD ONE WITH THE KIMBER. That may be because I was shooting a rental gun, but it happened nonetheless.

Some people have made a big deal out of MIM parts on lesser-priced guns. I am forced to ask, what the heck are you doing to make those parts fail that LAPD SWAT didn't do in their trials?

The parts list for both guns is exactly the same. The fit and assembly is up to the guy who put it together. If it's iffy either way, (and I'm not at all convinced it is,) I would prefer to spend $630 on a Kimber, instead of $2700 on the Nighthawk. If I'm going to carry it daily, hunting, and in the open whenever I'm outdoors, which one am I more likely to use correctly, the one I am afraid to scratch?

Is there a 1911 worth $2500 plus? I suppose any gun is worth what anyone is willing to pay for it. Shooting them both blind, not Mrs. Deckard's boy.
 
Not sure if the "antiquated" is a fair assesment, it is an old design, but it still seems to be holding its own. As I recall, the 1911 is gaining popularity with the troops, where reliability is not an option, it is life.

Lionken07, See my thread on Springfield GI, we covered a lot of the same ground that you are asking about.
 
I've only had the opportunity to drool on an Ed Brown 1911...they seem like very nice guns. If I had $2k to put inot a firearm, the Brown would be it in a heart beat.
I envy those that can ponder such a purchase! :neener:
 
I've got two Baers, a 5" for range/IDPA use, and a Stinger (Officer grip, Commander slide) for CCW, both are accurate and reliable pistols and exactly what I expected. I really enjoy shooting both of them and my Gold Cup gathers dust in the back of my safe.

I consider Baer's to be a great value in the semi custom's because you get a lot for your buck when compared to the Wilson's, Nighthawk's and Ed Brown's. One of my Baer's has about every option offered, and it still came out cheaper than a standard Brown.

If I had $2500 burning a hole in my pocket, I'd probably get a Brown. Not that it would shoot any better than my Baer's but because I think they are finished a little nicer. Whether that nicer finish is worth the extra cost is a personal choice.

Chuck
 
One shooter I know has an EB Kobra Karry. It cannot get through a magazine without a jam. A gunsmith looked at it and found that the barrel had not been installed properly.

EB's customer service is supposed to be terrible. You may want to research this a bit.

Personally, based on the experience, I'd go with a manufacturer with a that is known for good service and high quality guns.
 
I think that what it comes down to is that it's an antiquated design, but with looks and great sentimental value. If you really want reliability get a Glock or XD.


Oh Lord, here we go again. :banghead:
 
I have a full size Ed Brown Kobra and I have nothing but praise for this gun. I have owned it for 4+ years and it has been great, very reliable, very accurate and is still fitted so nice!

kobratarget.jpg
 
I have a nighthawk, ed brown and colt - I truly enjoy shooting all 3 for different reasons. The nighthawk probably has the best trigger, the fit and finish of the ed brown is superb and the colt, well it's nostalgic. All 3 are more accurate than me (not hard to do). I would carry the nighthawk or the ed brown without second thought. Having said that, having a smith go over your XSE would probably be the best return for the dollar (unless you want an early xmas present for yourself). :)

06010613.jpg
 
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Well my EB has never skipped a beat but that's only about 1000 rounds so far - it's my target/range gun. Reliability in a 1911 comes from matching the right parts to each other and fitting them well. Ed Brown and his folks do a bang up job of both.

Would I carry mine? Hell no - I wouldn't want to screw up the beautiful satin finish, but I'd trust it as far as the necessary reliability goes in an instant.

I don't carry any of my 1911s but now the DW has been cured of its FTE problems it would not be because of reliability problems in any of them - even the $300 RIA.

Worth it? Only you can say. It certainly isn't five times as accurate or five times as capable in my hands as a $500 S/W or SA. It even isn't five times as attractive - but it's one hell of a well made and beautifully crafted gun that will last more than a lifetime, so worth it to me.
 
esheato: I've got a Brown and it's worth every pennny...2,744 of 'em to be exact.
Click to expand...

HOLY CRAP, ESHEATO !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Where'd you snag an Ed Brown pistol for $27.44 ??????:what: :what:

Um, just PM me so I can get one at that price too before they run out.:D

Sam
 
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