sorry bout double post

I wasn't saying I didn't believe you. I was just saying that's an anomaly for a Kimber and he should send it back.

I really like my Para-Ordnance P-14. .45 ACP Had it since '97. Kind of hard to carry concealed but I keep it in the console of the truck a lot.

I have owned many 1911's over the years. My current ones are a Ruger SR1911 Commander which I dearly love - can't beat it for the money. And one that was even cheaper - an ATI Titan Tactical lightweight compact. The Ruger is American the ATI is an import from the same company that makes RIA. Both are accurate, concealable, and reliable. Both will make a bad guy just as dead as a high dollar 1911.

I say pay attention to the length of the barrel too. While a 5" can't be beat as far as accuracy is concerned, it's a little much if you plan on concealing. I prefer the 4" or even the 3.5". Just a thought bud. Happy shopping!

I bought a Citadel compact in 9mm awhile back. Nice pistol, but the factory mag's suck.

Hopefully I can replace those with Wilson or Chip McCormick.

You should be able to. I use Wilson Combat Officer's mags in my compact ATI. Earl

I got friends that are Kimber snobs....I think they are overpriced....I don't want a pistol with "Yonkers NY" on it, Prescott Arizona looks better. maybe an STI in the future too.

Just for fun, look at SVI.

I don't care what name is on the side of the pistol. I have shot most of the $800-$1200 1911 brands (not every model from every brand). And Kimber seems to always be the one that I can shoot the best. I don't even own one, although I'd like to. Just can't bring myself to drop a grand on a pistol. My $350 Taurus 24/7 has never jammed, is very accurate, and holds twice as much ammo.

As you can tell you will get a 1000 different opinions. I highly recommended you shoot a Ruger 1911 before making your choice they are great guns at a low price. They have a titanium firing pin which is usually only found in high dollar guns. Again I will say Kimbers are overpriced junk.

Can't wait to try a few other 1911's
like I said my Essex frame Colt parts gun is a excellent shooter it's just not much to look at. I've seen some PURDY ones latly.

1000 ?

of all the 1911s I have

STI was the most precise; followed by
Wilson Combat Super Grade
Kimber Gold Match
S&W Performance Center
Springfield
COLT Gold Cup

stay away from the cheap Norinco

And you will also get replys that don't help you out at all with your question.

Colt for me

If I were looking at a couple of budgets, I'd expect to be just south of $1500 for a semi-custom pistol. I'd probably look at S&W performance, STI, and Springfield TRP, and I might even look at a Dan Wilson. Under $1000 and I'd probably look at Sig, Ruger, and maybe a Colt.

If I was on my Budget, I'd probably be looking for a used Rock Island, Taurus, or Turkish import.

I remember when the Norincos hit the market here in the early or mid-90s. I ended up with two of the 1911A1s at the hefty price of $212 apiece.

They weren't terribly accurate, but they were as reliable as stones. You could even load the mags with empty cases and cycle them through, racking the slide and turning it loose. Both of them would feed empties like that, mag after mag after mag. But attractively finished? Hardly. Nicely fitted? Nope---not even close!

One of mine got away from me in a swap, then I ended up swappping the remaining one for one of the Norinco Commander-sized 1911s. That was a mistake. The 4" Norinco was a jam-o-matic. It eventually got swapped too and I was out of Norinco 1911s, presumably forever.

I wish I still had the two original 5" 1911A1s, though. I'd have customized one and left the other dead stock.

They really weren't that bad a gun, if your expectations weren't too high. I'd say they were easily worth $212 in 1993. Not sure I'd give more than about $400 for one these days though.

Yep I wish I still had some of those Norinco's too...I had several back in the day when they were $225-250. Now days I rarely see one under $500-5550.

Good website to compare 1911's:

http://www.1911addicts.com/showthread.php?511-Buyer-s-guide-for-all-you-1911-addicts

Really enjoy my Springfield Operator. Yesterday it finally failed to eject Only took four years without a cleaning. Guess I'll clean it now.


Oh, and Grandad's Remington Rand, circa 1943, still runs fine.

My Range Officer is a sweet shooter, but I'll tell you it HAD to have a trigger job. Thankfully, I have the jig for it and now it's finer than frog's hair.

STI Shadow.... By the same mile as the guy up there^^^!
However, I have yet to shoot a Wilson, Baer, or Brown.

If the wallet would let me if have Wilson, les bear, nighthawk, Ed brown. Until then I'll stick with kimber colt or Sti

STI Shadow.... By the same mile as the guy up there^^^!
However, I have yet to shoot a Wilson, Baer, or Brown.