1911

[churchmouse]

My vote is for the Smith E series

https://www.smith-wesson.com/firearms/sw1911-e-series-45-acp

Street price will be north of $700 but it will run out of the box. The mouse will make fun of the external extractor though.

 

[VERT]

See the respect I get? Make fun but I will go public with the E series SW1911 being the best sub $900 1911 on the market. My second choice being the Springfield RO or Loaded. Third place the Ruger SR1911.

OK I like all of those but I keep the SW1911 in the bag as my spare.

 

[churchmouse]

See the respect I get? Make fun but I will go public with the E series SW1911 being the best sub $900 1911 on the market. My second choice being the Springfield RO or Loaded. Third place the Ruger SR1911.

OK I like all of those but I keep the SW1911 in the bag as my spare.

The only real issue I have with the S&W beyond the external extractor (a 2 on a 10 scale...) is the blingy snake scale cut and series 80 internals.

 

[VERT]

The only real issue I have with the S&W beyond the external extractor (a 2 on a 10 scale...) is the blingy snake scale cut and series 80 internals.

E series and performance center guns don't have that firing pin safety garbage. Without the internal extractor to remove it is really straight forward pulling the firing pin.

Snake scale bling....OK I give you that. Not my first choice but it is grippy.

External Safety. Time will tell but out of the 4 that I have owned they have always worked very well. Extraction of spent brass is just not a problem. Someday when the darn thing break I will change my tune because it will be a big problem. Just make sure you get an E series, pro series, or PC gun with the large extractor.

 

[wtburnette]

Ruger SR1911 was my first 1911 and it was a very good gun. Not great, but decent for the price. I preferred the look and feel of it better than the SA RO or Loaded, but that's just me. I thought it ran just fine out of the box and was very accurate. Mine had a pretty sweet trigger and I had no issues with it. The SA RO or Loaded (possibly used for the price you're looking at) are both fine choices as well.

Another that churchmouse will not like hearing is a Sig 1911. If you can find a used one in your price range, they're nice guns. My Sig TacOps 1911 is very nice and I got it for right around your target price, but that was on sale around Christmas a couple years ago. They have plenty of different models, so there's something for pretty much every taste. They're usually around $1k, but if you can find one for a better price, I think it would make a great first 1911.

 

[churchmouse]

Ruger SR1911 was my first 1911 and it was a very good gun. Not great, but decent for the price. I preferred the look and feel of it better than the SA RO or Loaded, but that's just me. I thought it ran just fine out of the box and was very accurate. Mine had a pretty sweet trigger and I had no issues with it. The SA RO or Loaded (possibly used for the price you're looking at) are both fine choices as well.

Another that churchmouse will not like hearing is a Sig 1911. If you can find a used one in your price range, they're nice guns. My Sig TacOps 1911 is very nice and I got it for right around your target price, but that was on sale around Christmas a couple years ago. They have plenty of different models, so there's something for pretty much every taste. They're usually around $1k, but if you can find one for a better price, I think it would make a great first 1911.

You guys.......

 

[wtburnette]

You guys.......

Told ya...

 

[churchmouse]

Told ya...

Meh........if you like-em buy-em. Run-em.

What ever fits your hand and works well for you.

 

[wtburnette]

Meh........if you like-em buy-em. Run-em.

What ever fits your hand and works well for you.

 

[hps]

If it was me looking for a new first 1911 I'd look into the Springfield offerings or a Colt. Some knock Colts offerings as of late, NO WORRIES!!

Thinking about it,, I'd prolly go with the Springfield 1911 of some sort.

 

[Hopper]

Another S&W E-Series fan here, as well as the Ruger SR1911. I have the all-black SC E-Series round butt, and LOVE it. Great shooter, great looking (I know, looks are subjective, but I think it's beautiful, especially with the factory wood grips), and easy to clean, remove the firing pin, etc. The only thing I'm not totally crazy about is the full-length guide rod.

This summer, I picked up the new SR1911 lightweight commander in 9mm, and it's been nothing short of fantastic... definitely exceeded my expectations at the price point. If you haven't yet shot a 1911 in 9mm, you really should, it's a hoot! The only thing I didn't care for about the Ruger out of the box is the 10# recoil spring... it made the slide feel sort of "lazy" when cycling. I upgraded it to a more standard 14# spring, and it's been 100% reliable with an improved cycling experience.

I have WTB to thank for my SR1911 fondness. He let me shoot his full-length SR1911 a while back, and I thought it was fantastic.

 

[wtburnette]

Another S&W E-Series fan here, as well as the Ruger SR1911. I have the all-black SC E-Series round butt, and LOVE it. Great shooter, great looking (I know, looks are subjective, but I think it's beautiful, especially with the factory wood grips), and easy to clean, remove the firing pin, etc. The only thing I'm not totally crazy about is the full-length guide rod.

This summer, I picked up the new SR1911 lightweight commander in 9mm, and it's been nothing short of fantastic... definitely exceeded my expectations at the price point. If you haven't yet shot a 1911 in 9mm, you really should, it's a hoot! The only thing I didn't care for about the Ruger out of the box is the 10# recoil spring... it made the slide feel sort of "lazy" when cycling. I upgraded it to a more standard 14# spring, and it's been 100% reliable with an improved cycling experience.

I have WTB to thank for my SR1911 fondness. He let me shoot his full-length SR1911 a while back, and I thought it was fantastic.

You're quite welcome. Sometimes I wish I hadn't sold mine, but I have 2 other full sized 1911s that I like as well. That said, for the price point, the SR1911 was pretty nice

 

[woodstock]

As stated Ruger 1911s are nice I have the Commander size, they come from the factory set up the way I wanted my 1911 to be.

 

[Fordtough25]

Another Colt fan here, the blued 5" Government model is $799 down here, probably cheaper online and mine runs great! Springfields are of course great and pop up in the classifieds plenty. I liked everything about the Ruger 1911 besides the stainless, not for me!

 

[VERT]

Another S&W E-Series fan here, as well as the Ruger SR1911. I have the all-black SC E-Series round butt, and LOVE it. Great shooter, great looking (I know, looks are subjective, but I think it's beautiful, especially with the factory wood grips), and easy to clean, remove the firing pin, etc. The only thing I'm not totally crazy about is the full-length guide rod.

This summer, I picked up the new SR1911 lightweight commander in 9mm, and it's been nothing short of fantastic... definitely exceeded my expectations at the price point. If you haven't yet shot a 1911 in 9mm, you really should, it's a hoot! The only thing I didn't care for about the Ruger out of the box is the 10# recoil spring... it made the slide feel sort of "lazy" when cycling. I upgraded it to a more standard 14# spring, and it's been 100% reliable with an improved cycling experience.

I have WTB to thank for my SR1911 fondness. He let me shoot his full-length SR1911 a while back, and I thought it was fantastic.

Just replace the recoil spring print guide and plug on that SC commander if you don't like the full length guide rod. Drop in part. 20 lb spring should be the replacement.

 

[throttletony]

Trp. great carry features like low pro night sights and checkered front strap, super accurate, reliable, whole package!

THis is the SA TRP? Well, yeah, I could almost buy 2 for that $700 budget..