Topic: Looking into a 1911

[BobbyR]

Kimber is a few blocks away from where I work. Intersting place. They do all of the work except the barrels.

I had a 1911 in the service, it was reliable as made, not accurate. Great part of the old 1911's is the vast array of parts available to make serious improvements.

Personally I like my Glock with it's double action and integral safeties. Having said that I still carry my Colt Detective Special.   

[pdxPope]

Ooooooooh, now you are speaking my language.

My CZ85 is the most comfortable, accurate, reliable center-fire pistol I have ever had the pleasure to shoot. I will never sell it.

As far as 1911s go I have shot a couple of them. One is a very tired and sloppy WWI GI issue that somehow got 'misplaced' in my Grandfather's duffel bag when he was shipped home from Okinawa. It doesn't get out much, but still goes 'bang' when it's supposed to.
The other one is a Dan Wesson I got 3rd hand from someone who wanted to get into 1911's and did a bunch of research. After the 1911 bug wore off and he was into other interests I was able to pick it up cheap. It's a good shooter,but took a little love to make it run with crappy ammo.

Word on the 'net is that Kimber quality has fallen off considerably in the last couple of years. Take it with a grain of salt.

-JP

[KRONUS0100]

Taurus...only company i know of with a rock solid warranty for life of gun to original purchaser.
that being said, the Sig-Sauer 1911 is awesome.

[gnarlycharlie4u]

Kimber is at the top of my list but they're out of my price range. Springfield makes one hell of a 1911 and for the price, you can't beat it.

HOWEVER, the Glock 36 is a simply amazing gun for personal carry. I don't forsee myself carrying a large gun everywhere I need to go and the 1911 does not lend itself to concealed carry very well. The new slimline glock feels SOO good though. I'm considering getting one to replace my .40 S&W Glock 27.

[Artf0rm]

So I have always loved the look and feel of a model 1911.  I was looking into getting one and I was wonder if anyone had a brand recommendation.  I was looking to stay under a thousand but get the best gun I can for the money.

Same here   
 
We were trained on and issued the USGI 1911A1 back when I was in the service. Lot’s of choices in the 1911 market nowadays, think I’ll stick with my standard (bone stock) military issue 1943 Colt that I’ve owned for 44+ years. It’s accurate enough for recreational shooting and has never malfunctioned using Mil-Spec hardball ammo. Over the years I’ve had to replace the original WWII magazine springs and slide stop, but I’m not certainly not complaining about that.

Perhaps a USGI spec 1911 is in your future? 

 

I have a friend that had one of these that sort of "fell off a truck" and was not registered to anyone.  Can you even buy one of those guns as a civie?

[Cheffish]

This thread has forced me to start looking at 1911s!

[70CB750]

Sure you can buy one, once you approved for purchase it is nobody's business what you buying.
Hmmm, take that back- depends on the state.

[Hinomaru]

Well, I do know that the USGI 1911’s can be legally owned by civilian's as they were once sold to the general public by DCM (now CMP) during the 1960’s. Much like the M1 Garand rifles are being sold to the public nowadays. The USGI 1911’s haven’t been made since 1945 and some are now collector grade commanding high prices. However, they do seem to show up at local guns shows, pawn shops, online auction sites and gun stores. Loosely compared to hunting for old Honda’s.

Good reference books are suggested. I have the books below and found the information invaluable to have for USGI ownership.



 

[Cheffish]

My beretta shoots where I point it. I just want something a little more nostalgic.

[scottly]

One 45 ACP I haven't seen mentioned here is the Llama Omni. Double action, rolling block safety. I had to tweek the magazine feed lips when I got it, but other than that it has worked fine. Think it cost about $250, but that was about 25 years ago. Made in Spain; decent gun for the price, IMHO.

[gnarlycharlie4u]

Ruger 1911 goes on gunbroker for $900 or so.  For USA made gun, hard to beat. 

Shameless plug - have you ever shot CZ?  We make pretty good guns for years and years - and we supplied them  to every third world  bastard who pretended to be marxist.

I have a CZ-82.  Excellent surplus weapon.  Every CZ I've laid my hands on has been very well built.

That gun is a total winner! Cheap, tough, and easy to fire. I really like the makarov round too.

[BobbyR]

One 45 ACP I haven't seen mentioned here is the Llama Omni. Double action, rolling block safety. I had to tweek the magazine feed lips when I got it, but other than that it has worked fine. Think it cost about $250, but that was about 25 years ago. Made in Spain; decent gun for the price, IMHO.

I have a .380 Llama and it is a dog with fleas. I want to get it off my permit but no Gun Dealer will take it. The sucker jams all the time.

[CycleRanger]

I have a .380 Llama and it is a dog with fleas. I want to get it off my permit but no Gun Dealer will take it. The sucker jams all the time.

Really?  I have a .32 Llama that's the bees knees!
How old is your gun? Mine was made in ~1963.

Llama went through a time in the 70's and into the 80's where their quality was pretty poor, whereas their earlier stuff from the 50's & 60's was pretty good quality.
AFAIK, their quality improved greatly in the 90's and remains good today.

[Stormer]

Good quality 1911 with fair prices?
Try Springfield and Taurus.

[BobbyR]

I have a .380 Llama and it is a dog with fleas. I want to get it off my permit but no Gun Dealer will take it. The sucker jams all the time.

Really?  I have a .32 Llama that's the bees knees!
How old is your gun? Mine was made in ~1963.

Llama went through a time in the 70's and into the 80's where their quality was pretty poor, whereas their earlier stuff from the 50's & 60's was pretty good quality.
AFAIK, their quality improved greatly in the 90's and remains good today.

I bought it around 1974-75. I can;t even find someone qualified to tune it. I am sure the jamming can be fixed. It was sometimes a one shot pistol, sometimes 3 and once in a while I could empty the clip. Stovepipe jams. I trust my old off duty Det Special loaded with some very nasty rounds.

[scottly]

One 45 ACP I haven't seen mentioned here is the Llama Omni. Double action, rolling block safety. I had to tweek the magazine feed lips when I got it, but other than that it has worked fine. Think it cost about $250, but that was about 25 years ago. Made in Spain; decent gun for the price, IMHO.

I have a .380 Llama and it is a dog with fleas. I want to get it off my permit but no Gun Dealer will take it. The sucker jams all the time.

My .45 jammed the same way when I first got it. After doing every thing I could to tune it up, with no results, I borrowed a magazine and found that it worked flawlessly. I finally found that the feed lips on the Llama were too tight, actually digging marks into the brass. I spread out the lips very carefully, and never had another jam in over 400 rounds.
Try this: compress the spring in the mag, and hold it down with a drill bit or piece of stiff wire through the holes in the side. See if a cartridge can slide freely in and out of the mag without dragging; this was how I figured it out. 

[BobbyR]

One 45 ACP I haven't seen mentioned here is the Llama Omni. Double action, rolling block safety. I had to tweek the magazine feed lips when I got it, but other than that it has worked fine. Think it cost about $250, but that was about 25 years ago. Made in Spain; decent gun for the price, IMHO.

I have a .380 Llama and it is a dog with fleas. I want to get it off my permit but no Gun Dealer will take it. The sucker jams all the time.

My .45 jammed the same way when I first got it. After doing every thing I could to tune it up, with no results, I borrowed a magazine and found that it worked flawlessly. I finally found that the feed lips on the Llama were too tight, actually digging marks into the brass. I spread out the lips very carefully, and never had another jam in over 400 rounds.
Try this: compress the spring in the mag, and hold it down with a drill bit or piece of stiff wire through the holes in the side. See if a cartridge can slide freely in and out of the mag without dragging; this was how I figured it out.

Thanks for the tip. I will try that. I have nothing to lose.

[Frankencake]

One 45 ACP I haven't seen mentioned here is the Llama Omni. Double action, rolling block safety. I had to tweek the magazine feed lips when I got it, but other than that it has worked fine. Think it cost about $250, but that was about 25 years ago. Made in Spain; decent gun for the price, IMHO.

I have a .380 Llama and it is a dog with fleas. I want to get it off my permit but no Gun Dealer will take it. The sucker jams all the time.

What do you want for it?

[BobbyR]

One 45 ACP I haven't seen mentioned here is the Llama Omni. Double action, rolling block safety. I had to tweek the magazine feed lips when I got it, but other than that it has worked fine. Think it cost about $250, but that was about 25 years ago. Made in Spain; decent gun for the price, IMHO.

I have a .380 Llama and it is a dog with fleas. I want to get it off my permit but no Gun Dealer will take it. The sucker jams all the time.

What do you want for it?

Not much but here in NY we have to transfer it to a dealer who then transfers it to another dealer each one taking a fee. The dealers here that will do that are pricks. In NY the pistol is licensed as much as I am. I can only carry or possess those pistols registered to me. In other States around NY any pistol that is not stolen or whatever is legal to carry.     

[Frankencake]

One 45 ACP I haven't seen mentioned here is the Llama Omni. Double action, rolling block safety. I had to tweek the magazine feed lips when I got it, but other than that it has worked fine. Think it cost about $250, but that was about 25 years ago. Made in Spain; decent gun for the price, IMHO.

I have a .380 Llama and it is a dog with fleas. I want to get it off my permit but no Gun Dealer will take it. The sucker jams all the time.

What do you want for it?

Not much but here in NY we have to transfer it to a dealer who then transfers it to another dealer each one taking a fee. The dealers here that will do that are pricks. In NY the pistol is licensed as much as I am. I can only carry or possess those pistols registered to me. In other States around NY any pistol that is not stolen or whatever is legal to carry.   

I lived in New York for 9 years.  I know the ritual for handguns and I believe it is total bull#$%*.  One of the best things about Vermont is the freedom from such laws.  IF I move back there, I'll sell or give away all of my handguns.  It just isn't worth it to me to be so deep down the rabbit hole with finger printing and all of that crap.  I'd rather just go with a long gun.

[70CB750]

Virginia's laws are pretty decent too.

[BobbyR]

NY is a mess. I have CC all through the State except NYC. I work about 4 miles from the NYC border. If I strayed across that Border and i don't have it in a locked container and unloaded I am a felon. The further upstate you go the more rational it becomes. Since my County borders NYC, they are a moe anal than the County just North of me. There are always bills at the State level to unify the licenses and they fail.

I am going to apply for a Pa out of State licesne since I travel up there a lot. Costs $30 for 3 years. There is a bill in Washington to have each State recognize each others Pistol Licenses, just like they do Driver Licenses.

I am sure the Europeans and others are shaking their heads at this.

[70CB750]

Europe is generally much harder.

In Czech it changed some, but I still think you have to have gun license and the gun has to have a license and both expire in 5 years.

To get gun license you have to pass a test and skill course and only if you have gun license a purchase permit can be issued to you.

Afaik UK is totally f$&@ed up in gun owning.

[bender01]

I have a brazilian Springfield Champion from 1997? Its a beautiful pistol two tone black slide stainless? frame.  BUT..... its an absolute POS! I have held on to it because I dont want(trust) to sell it to anyone I know!!! Ive polished the throat replaced the spring to a heavier one. I still get last round not loading. The end cap holding the spring was cracked after 5 years of minimal use!! I called Springfield and they sent me free a replacement that was for a full size 1911. ??They are the ones that told me when the pistol was manufactured.  I do love the Kimbers as they look on the back of American Rifleman but ive never shot one. I have a 1911 from 1918 that always fires (colt) but its old and i dont beat on it. The series 80 colt 380 is my favorite carry. Its a 1911 style and I can hit with it well. I think Kahr has a 1911 380 out now. If hiding one is key its better to have something you can actually hide on you always than something you cant hide. No one is going to stick around and see how hard your 22 feels or test your marksmanship!
 Oh and dont buy a Springfield Pistol!

[bender01]

 Heres my oldie! BITD I guess they worried about where it came from not ser#s. Someone tried to rub out the us property and armorer stamps rendering this poor on the collectibility scale. But this one always fires anyting ive ever put in it! It has the lanyard hoop on the clip and pistol to keep it on you while riding your horse I believe.
 Get a 1911 when 911 is to slow!