Second 1911?

[The brew guy 22]

I think I've been bitten by the 1911 bug. My first is a Springfield Loaded Stainless (PX9151LP) and I'm enjoying the heck out of it, every chance I get. I have a permit with about a month left on it and I'm thinking it might be a good time to add another 1911.

I'd like something different this time, different size, different color, different gadgets, different feel. I like the idea of a commander or officer size and I'm sure I'll have both eventually. I've always liked the "old school" look of the earlier 1911s and I have a fondness for blued guns.

The budget isn't huge by 1911 standards. I'd started off looking at the low end of the range, ATI and RIA, but decided I could come up a little from there. Currently, the leaders are:

 

Springfield Range Officer Compact, I love my current Springer and this is different enough to be interesting.

-OR-

Colt Commander, I like the old style thumb safety and blue finish, but is that full size grip and 4.25" barrel enough of a difference?

 

Both of these can be found for $700-750 plus FFL and NICS fees, That's going to be my limit, otherwise the Kimber Ultra Carry might have made the list. I'm open to suggestions other than these, and would love to hear the thoughts of those more experienced in 1911s than I am.

[bhunted 887]

I guess you know Kimbers are not in the fore mentioned price range, but I love the hell out of my Kimber Ultra Covert II... It's an excellent shooter, has style and gadgets...

 

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[amish869 6]

Kimber are a good company. I went with a relatively unknown that was out of NY also, called Fusion firearms. They have since moved to FL to escape the crazy "safe act" Como passed. I have had mine for ten years now and I always get compliments on it. It has the tightest slide to frame lock up i have ever seen! Highly recommended. 

[The brew guy 22]

I like the Kimbers that I've seen so far, especially the Compact. Unfortunately, the Compact CDP II is a few hundred above the price point I am looking for. The Compact Stainless is a little closer but I wasn't looking for another Stainless 1911. The Ultra Carry is closer still but I'm not sure about a 3" barrel and it's still $100+ above where I want to be. The Kimbers seem to be very well made, but I'm not convinced they are worth a significant premium above the Colt or SA.

I hadn't heard of Fusion so I checked out the website. $2600 and up just ain't gonna happen right now.

Thanks for the input though.

[T Bill 649]

While I like the Colt Commander, I am also a Ruger fan and Talo has several special runs of the Ruger version of the Commander.  Worth a look and within your budget.

[SLOPE5623 5]

Springfield Range Officer Champion

[bhunted 887]

I wouldn't worry about the short barrel. For a compact, it's very accurate and does the job..

 

1911's pretty much are the same size for the most part and are considered right for each job they do.. There are 3 basic sizes..

 

Govt.-5" barrel

Commander-4" barrel

Compact-3" barrel

 

As I said, I love my Covert. It is of the compact size and does it's job very well. I couldn't be happier with it.

 

 

 

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[tony357 386]

I purchased the Remington commander last month i actually pick it up tomorrow my 30 days will be up.. I think retail was around 1200..

[SLOPE5623 5]

If you were not aware, Remington has $75 cash back rebate for r1 purchases ongoing.

 

 

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[BullzeyeNJ 104]

Get a 9mm full size range officer by Springfield.

[The brew guy 22]

While I like the Colt Commander, I am also a Ruger fan and Talo has several special runs of the Ruger version of the Commander.  Worth a look and within your budget.

I am quite happy with my 22/45 and my wife's SR-22 eats any cheap ammo that it's offered, so I'd consider a Ruger. The Night Watchman might be an option. 

 

Springfield Range Officer Champion

I'd considered it, and it's not off the list, but I'm leaning toward the Compact if I go with another Springfield. Any particular reason for the Champion over the Compact? I have to admit that it would be way too easy to become a multiple SA owner, my Loaded has about 500 rounds through it and has been flawless except for 1 FTF (Blazer brass, nice strike mark and it fired the second time, I suspect a sketchy primer). 

 

I wouldn't worry about the short barrel. For a compact, it's very accurate and does the job..

 

1911's pretty much are the same size for the most part and are considered right for each job they do.. There are 3 basic sizes..

 

Govt.-5" barrel

Commander-4" barrel

Compact-3" barrel

 

As I said, I love my Covert. It is of the compact size and does it's job very well. I couldn't be happier with it.

 

 

 

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I'd like to have all three sizes eventually, and it could easily become more than just three. My understanding is that the Commander is traditionally a 4.25" slide on a Govt frame, but there are a handful of 3 and 3,5" Commanders out now. The "Officer's size" was originally a Commander slide on a reduced frame, but it seems that you can find them with 3, 3.5, 4 and 4.25" slides now. Maybe it's time to break that last group in two.

 

I purchased the Remington commander last month i actually pick it up tomorrow my 30 days will be up.. I think retail was around 1200..

And

 

If you were not aware, Remington has $75 cash back rebate for r1 purchases ongoing.

 

 

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Hmmm. I'd forgotten about the rebate, I may have to take another look at the R1.

 

Get a 9mm full size range officer by Springfield.

.45acp only right  now. It's the only caliber I reload for now and I'd like to stick with it for this purchase. I may own a 9mm 1911 one day, but I suspect 38 super will come first. Being as that you're the second to mention it, any particular reason for suggesting the full size over the compact?

[bhunted 887]

Just to be clear. Those sizes I referenced are barrel lengths, not slides.

 

 

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[The brew guy 22]

Oops, I knew what you meant but screwed up in my reply. That's what I get for posting when I should have been asleep. Clearly, I was also referring to barrel length but used the word slide in error. In my defense, I had been looking at parts for custom builds and the slides were defined by the barrel length they were meant to use.

[sosa9999 5]

Rock Island Armory TAC Ultra FS HC - 45 ACP

 

[The brew guy 22]

A few months ago I got an email promoting the newly released Rock Island Ultra SE. It looked really nice for it's $399 intro price. That's what made me decide to get a couple more permits.

[tony357 386]

If you were not aware, Remington has $75 cash back rebate for r1 purchases ongoing.

 

 

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Thank's for the info..

 

I was not eligible for that discount, the pistol was already discounted through the USPSA discount program with Remington..

 

I picked up the Commander last night, fit and finish is excellent have not broken it down yet but 1st impression is very good.

 

Slide fit is very good sights are clean no sharp edges trigger is good, safety is clean.

 

Sunday ill break it down and also measure the trigger pull.

[The brew guy 22]

Well, after a handful of replies I started looking at Kimber again. I kept coming back to the Compact CDP and, specs wise, it's pretty similar to the RO Compact but with Trijicon sights (a plus), checkered front strap (never tried it, but I'll call it a plus) and ambi safety (I don't really want it in this case. As pretty as it is, the price tag is 50% higher than the Springfield and it's simply out of my price range at this time.

I figure I can re-visit the "4" barrel/shortened grip" combination next time and maybe the budget will allow more options. In the mean time, the Colt covers the "4-4.25" barrel/ full size grip" combination that I was considering and it got the most votes. I ordered the Colt. 

[Dragline 11]

Congratulations. 

[T Bill 649]

Happy shooting with the Colt. 

[tony357 386]

Well, after a handful of replies I started looking at Kimber again. I kept coming back to the Compact CDP and, specs wise, it's pretty similar to the RO Compact but with Trijicon sights (a plus), checkered front strap (never tried it, but I'll call it a plus) and ambi safety (I don't really want it in this case. As pretty as it is, the price tag is 50% higher than the Springfield and it's simply out of my price range at this time.

I figure I can re-visit the "4" barrel/shortened grip" combination next time and maybe the budget will allow more options. In the mean time, the Colt covers the "4-4.25" barrel/ full size grip" combination that I was considering and it got the most votes. I ordered the Colt. 

Nice good choice,  That is a commander, full frame size with 4-1/4 barrel..  interested in quality when you get it.. Especially with colt just filing bankruptcy.

[mge_1 2]

Rock Island Armory TAC Ultra FS HC - 45 ACP

 

Oh yes!

[The brew guy 22]

Picked up the Colt a couple days ago. I haven't had a chance to try it out yet, but I did strip it down and give it a good cleaning. My initial thoughts on the Colt, as compared to my Springfield Loaded Stainless and my wife's Para Expert Stainless, are as follows.

The Colt comes packed in the standard blue case with egg crate foam interior. This is a little nicer than the molded interior of the Para case but a far cry from the cut foam Springfield case. Inside the case are the usual lock, paperwork and two 7 rd, blued mags. The mags appear to be made about the same quality as the Springfield's stainless mags, the Para came with two 8 round mags with rubber base plates that are of similar quality.

The gun itself, came out of it's plastic bag with a pretty good coating of oil. A quick wipe revealed a smooth, deep blue finish. The Commander is a fairly basic 1911 so it doesn't come with all the upgrades that the other two 1911s have. The hardwood grips are attractive and seem to be very well made, much nicer than the plastic grips that came on the Para but not as nice as the gorgeous grips on the Springfield. Oddly, the right grip is cut for an ambi safety.

Hopefully the gun will break in quickly, because it seems very stiff. The thumb safeties on the other 2 click back and forth smoothly with just a little nudge, I'm sure the extra leverage of their extended safeties (ambi on the Springer) is part of why they feel so good. The Colt is old school and it's early-style safety requires substantially more force to operate. The mag release is also pretty stiff, mags won't drop free unless it is held all the way in and some mags will not insert without depressing it while other mags go in, but with substantial resistance. The trigger aslo seems a little heavier than the other 1911s. It's a series 80, but so is the Para and that is not noticeably heavier than the Springfield. I'd guess that the Colt requires 20-25% more force than the other two.

Disassembly and cleaning allowed a good look at the workmanship and I was happy to find fit and finish equal to my Springfield. The Para is probably equal in quality but is built to a lower price point and the simple bead-blasted finish is, IMHO, not as attractive as the mix of polished, brushed and matte surfaces on the 2 more expensive firearms. The only negative for the Colt was the slide release, it was a bear to get out requiring a good smack with a plastic screwdriver handle to remove.

As I mentioned, I have not fired the Colt yet. The tight safety, mag release and slide release and the slightly heavier trigger may improve with use. The Springfield and Para have been trouble free so far with no failures after 700-800 rounds through the Springfield and about half as many through the Para. I'm not good enough to have uncovered any issues with accuracy with either of them.

For now, my opinion is that the Colt Commander is a well made, simple 1911. The price is not unreasonable but you are paying a bit of a premium for the Colt roll mark. For comparison, my Stainless Springfield cost me less than $40 more but included a number of upgrades, came in a better case and included a coupon for accessories at a big discount. This is a first impression only and is likely to change with a trip or two to the range.

[The brew guy 22]

Finally got a chance to try out the Colt, ran 50 rounds of Fiocchi 230 gn round nose through it. Also brought the Springfield with me for comparison. As one would expect, the 4 1/4 inch Colt kicks a little more than the 5 inch Springfield but other than that they feel pretty similar. No failures with either gun. The Springfield is a hair more accurate, probably attributable to it's longer sight radius and better sights. Both have great triggers and I'd be hard pressed to say one is better than the other.

The mag release on the Colt worked itself in a little and is now almost as smooth as the Springfield. Mag insertion is a little easier too, I suspect that the release will break in nicely. The thumb safety is still stiff but I'll give it time to break in.

I broke it down for cleaning when I got home and the slide release popped right out like it's supposed to. Everything looked good.

All in all I'm happy with it. It does what it's meant to do and is well built. I'd have to say that the Springfield is the nicer firearm though and, since it comes with a hand full of upgrades for just a few bucks more, it is the better value IMHO.

The one thing I definitely like better about the Colt is that it's easier to break down than the Springfield's full length guide rod (which requires an Allen wrench).

[PD2K 115]

Rock Island Armory TAC Ultra FS HC - 45 ACP

 

That looks pretty badass