Which 1911

Which 1911

  • Kimber TLE/RLII

    Votes: 15 14.6%

  • Springfield LW Operator

    Votes: 44 42.7%

  • S&W E-Series Tactical

    Votes: 25 24.3%

  • Sig Sauer Extreme

    Votes: 19 18.4%
  • Total voters
    103
  • Poll closed .
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Infidel4life11

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I'm in the market for a nice 1911 for around $1200. I want a full size with a light rail, night sights, I'll add VZ grips and a mag well.

I probably won't carry it much but I will shoot it a lot.
I've narrowed it down to:
Kimber TLE/RLII
Springfield LW Operator
S&W E-Series Tactical
Sig Sauer Extreme
Other

So if you have one of these or have shot one of these I would like you opinion.

tle.jpg
LWoperator.png
SampWEseries.jpg
1911-Extreme-detail-hero.jpg
 
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Adding a couple hundred dollars of parts to a $1200 1911 gets you really close to the cost of a much finer 1911 that already has those parts and so much more. Poll should have included "OTHER".

http://cz-usa.com/product/dw-specialist-45-acp-black-tactical-2-dot-tritium-sights-8-rd-mags/

The DW specialist come with far superior sights to the 1911's you mentioned. (Heinie Straight 8) and VZ grips and a good Magwell. And no cheap parts anywhere. (even though I'd rather have the standard thumb safety)

Dan%20Wesson%20Specialist%2020.jpg

review: http://forums.1911forum.com/showthread.php?t=363890

My Kimbers, and IMO the other guns you posted, are nowhere near the quality of the DW Valor I also own.
 
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Zerodefect said:
Adding a couple hundred dollars of parts to a $1200 1911 gets you really close to the cost of a much finer 1911 that already has those parts and so much more. Poll should have included "OTHER".

http://cz-usa.com/product/dw-specialist-45-acp-black-tactical-2-dot-tritium-sights-8-rd-mags/

The DW specialist come with far superior sights to the 1911's you mentioned. (Heinie Straight 8) and VZ grips and a good Magwell. And no cheap parts anywhere. (even though I'd rather have the standard thumb safety)

Dan%20Wesson%20Specialist%2020.jpg

review: http://forums.1911forum.com/showthread.php?t=363890

My Kimbers, and IMO the other guns you posted, are nowhere near the quality of the DW Valor I also own.
Click to expand...
I didn't include DW/CZ because of the price. I shot one last year and enjoyed it. I'll check my distributors on Monday.
 
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Other...I would look at the STI 1911s if I were going to spend 1200 dollars. Better built with better parts than the ones you mentioned and proven in USPSA competition where guns get shot...a lot.

Just my .02,
LeonCarr
 
I do not have the Extreme but the traditional slide Sig Scorpion and the only 1911 I like better is my TRP
 
I was in a similar situation a month or two ago.

I ended up saving another couple hundred and grabbed a vbob. Couldn't be happier.

If I was to do it again, I think the I'd again save a bit more than 1200 and look at sti, another Dan Wesson or a Les Baer.
 
Except I just looked at bud's site and the price has increased to over $800. Sorry man.
 
I would get a Dan Wesson. I have one. I voted for the Springfield based on price and CUSTOMER SERVICE. I like Sigs also.
 
I've got an e series and its a good gun. If I was buying again, I'd look at DW personally.

I'd really like a Wilson Combat, but I also enjoy paying my bills and eating food.
 
LeonCarr said:
Other...I would look at the STI 1911s if I were going to spend 1200 dollars. Better built with better parts than the ones you mentioned and proven in USPSA competition where guns get shot...a lot.

Just my .02,
LeonCarr
Click to expand...
+1

I have a lot of 1911's, Including Wilsons and Baer.

The quality, workmanship, and performance really stand out on both of my STIs.
A lot of gun for the money.
 
I happen to have a Black Duty-coat Dan Wesson Valor that I bought used for around $1,200.00. I also have an STI Trojan 9mm that I bought new for less than that. I can certainly vouch for either gun.
 
For a gun that will be shot a lot and rarely carried, I wouldn't bother with the lightweight frame of the SA. The benefit of the light weight is easier carry, with the tradeoff of more recoil.
For a gun where you'd be minimizing the benefit and maximizing the built-in detriment, it just makes very little sense to me.
As for the others, I don't know that you'd go wrong with any of them.
 
Just based on brands you listed (not individual models) I would get the SA. It is the best gun for the money and customer service. They have been making them for a while.;)

SW is good for service also. Their gun like the Sig has a external extractor so if you are a purist that may mater.

SIGS I love their regular P series guns but they can be pricy.

It's best I not say anything about Kimber

The best 1911 (IMHO) is a Dan Wesson. They are still had fitted, use good parts (like Wilson or Brown) They are nice people and treat customers well. my Pointman 7 is an older version and makes even me a better than average shot!!

You did not mention the Ruger. It is everything needed and works and shoots great. The price can't be beat!
 
I would go Other and say maybe take a look at Colt's Rail Gun. Priced at under $1200 and seems to have most of the features you're looking for.
 
STI. Made a visit to their facility in Texas over the summer. Good people. Heck they opened the safe for me to fondle whatever I wanted. Sold a Sig Tac-Ops Traditional to fund the purchase of a STI Duty One 5.0. The Sig was a fine pistol but the STI is much more better!!
 
I owned the Sig Extreme and it was a very accurate shooter. The Sig mags it came with gave me problems, but after i bought a Chip McCormick Shooting Star mag and it functioned perfectly. It had rather tight tolerances compared to a Springfield Loaded i previously owned and shooting reloads required alot of tweaking.
 
A few points:

While I respect the suggestion of the Ruger they do not offer a gun with a light rail, which is what the OP is asking about.

Now my opinion for what it's worth, on the specific models the OP asked about:

Not a fan of the Smith, I don't like outside ejector 1911's I like guns that use the standard 1911 operating system so upgradable parts are available.

The Sig does the non-standard thing too, they have a less rounded slide profile that effects their holster fit. I have heard they are reliable. But they aren't as tight or fitted as well as either the Kimber.

The Springfield is a nice gun and if it was the TRP operator, I wouldn't hesitate to recommend it. But the LW operator is an alloy frame (and from Brazil), great for carry, but a bit more punishing on recoil, and the frame itself. Also for all the complaining about Kimbers MIM parts, the Springfield is using as many or more and they are not as well finished.

The Kimber would be my choice, I've owned three, they are reliable quality guns. They are tight and require break in (but so does Wilson) None of the other guns mentioned challenge them for fit and finish (check the slide frame fit-Kimber approaches custom quality). And Kimber has been doing MIM longer than the other companies (ALL of them are using lots of MIM small parts) and seems to have the process down.

I agree with a few of the posters here that the Dan Wesson would be a nice step up, but it's almost 75% more (street price). The Springfield TRP operator would actually be a cheaper step up at around $1500 but it's still significantly more.
 
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