1911, purchasingI’m in the market for an entry level 1911 and I’m wondering what characteristics I should be looking for.
Where can I skimp?
What should I look for to know that it will be a firearm that I can upgrade in the future?
It’s difficult to discern between:
There are certain things you don’t want to skimp on, or that if you do, you’ll probably want to upgrade sooner than others. My list of these are:
Decent sights. The dots on my Springfield Armory Mil-Spec sights are devilish hard to see under all but ideal lighting conditions. Also, in most cases, upgrading your sights will require either a gunsmith or some specialized tools and know-how.
A decent barrel. There’s somewhat of a lowest-common-denominator effect here in that a lot of barrels are more accurate than a lot of shooters, but upgrading your barrel properly requires some gunsmith work.
Safety. This is something that isn’t terribly hard in most cases to upgrade, but a secure, easy-to-manipulate safety is extremely important.
Trigger. Try the trigger on any gun before you buy it. A smooth, reliable trigger is key to safety and accuracy.
Beyond these, things like match-grade components are more than most shooters need. If you yourself are a proficient, match-grade shooter then you’ll probably want to think about them, but otherwise you can save the money.
As far as 1911s that meet these criteria, the entry level Taurus 1911s have quite good sights, a good (ambidextrous) safety, and reasonable smooth but crisp triggers. I’m well-pleased with everything but the sights on my Springfield Mil-Spec. I have no experience with STI or Rock Island.
For a good basic weapon, there are not a lot of “have to have” parts for the 1911. It’s fairly decent even bone stock. It’s also a very easy weapon to work on, and most aftermarket parts are not extremely expensive. If you’re looking for something easy to change/upgrade with good guts, get the full sized model from a reputable manufacturer that has a dovetailed front sight, otherwise you’ll need a staking tool should you decide to change the sights. Pretty much everything else can be changed by hand or with basic tools and a brass punch.
Entry Level 1911 for what purpose? Competition, Carry/Self Defense, Range Plinking, Safe Queen?
If you are looking at an entry level gun with the intent of upgrading, ask some gunsmiths what they recommend. I know a few that will work on base Colts and Springfields, while others will not work on Kimbers or customer-supplied stripped frames.
I have a few off-the-shelf 1911s that were upgraded and one has nothing left other than the frame, plunger tube, ejector, slide and main spring housing pin as original with everything else being replaced in one session.
You asked a very loaded question to what can be upgraded and what is fluff? You will get answers all over the map with none of the answers being wrong or right. The joys of 1911 ownership is the absolute personalization that one can do to the gun for their personal tastes and uses.
Good quality (match grade) parts are not cheap, but are worth the premium over their MIM counterparts (IMHO), especially in a high round count gun. Learning or locating a good gun smith to install these parts is the trick. You could have the highest quality hammer, sear and disconnecter and if they are fitted wrong, you just wasted time, money and potentially made your gun unsafe.
One shooter’s fluff is another shooter’s necessity.
With that being said, if I had an entry level gun that needed upgrading, I would start in this logical progression:
What causes (or fixes) malfunctions and what breaks? Get a good set of magazines, a quality fitted extractor (get two), make sure the feed ramp is the proper angle and polished. Make sure the plunger tube is properly staked as is the ejector.
To make the gun more comfortable to shoot, I would start with good quality trigger and fire control bits. Bar stock sear, disconnecter, hammer with a good trigger fitted to your hand and acceptable, reliable, safe trigger weight for the use of the gun.
To compliment the trigger, look at the controls – safety, slide stop, grip safety and sights. Do you need a larger safety? Single side or ambi? Does your manual of arms use the slide stop as a slide release and can you use a higher profile stop? High beaver tail grip safety with memory bump? What kind of sights? Higher and narrower with more light around the front sight? Lo-mount sights? Black/black or night sights? Adjustable?
We have made the gun more comfortable to shoot and a bit more personalized to the shooter, let’s futz around on the accuracy department. Is the original barrel serviceable? Would simply exchanging the barrel bushing and inspecting the points of lock-up improve the accuracy to a level we expect, or do we need to go the route of an oversized barrel, link and bushing set?
Now, let’s cut up the frame… Do you want an undercut trigger guard to help your hands get higher on the gun? Checkering on the front strap and main spring housing – 20, 25 or 30lpi? Checkering under the trigger guard, back of the slide and/or flat top the slide with serrations? Finish it off with a set of grips… G10, wood, rubber? What level of aggressiveness on the grips? Rough Gunners or smooth wood?
Time for the finish. What color do you want it and what do you want to protect it from? Nicks and scratches or holster wear? Humidity or sweaty hands? Do you want it pretty in pink or coyote tan to match your khaki pants? Black goes with everything, unless you want it blued.
There is no definitive answer to this question. If your hands are just right a Springfield GI might be just the ticket for you. For others, the original GI style grip safety may be difficult to operate with a normal firing grip. The difference will be with the user.
As long as you get a reasonably quality pistol, you can take it to about any level you want. A primary advantage of the 1911 platform is the trigger, so it makes sense to get a trigger of a length appropriate for you and adjust the trigger pull to something you’re comfortable with.
Good sights are next - but don’t bother until you have a trigger that works for you. Good sights provide a front sight you can get a visual focus on, and nothing more. Dots, bars, and dancing girls are all unnecessary features - you may like them, but they aren’t strictly necessary.
Finally, customize the stock (“grip”) to suit your hand. The 1911 has a relatively small grip circumference so you can shape it, beef it up, or slim it down to fit your anatomy. Doing so will make the pistol a great deal more pleasant to shoot.
Don’t skimp, and get an STI Spartan, perhaps even the Springfield Range Officer. Both great guns that are very affordable.
The benefits of the 1911 platform is that everything can be upgraded. There’s a huge after market industry for the platform so you’re well served by choosing the 1911 versus other guns.
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