Best 1911...

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I had never owned a 1911 until recently. I was sold on the Taurus PT-1911-AR. I love it. I've seen and fired plenty of friends' 1911s, most of which cost more, and were not as nice as this Taurus.

I was not an easy sell either. I hated the triggers on the Taurus Revolvers I had shot. I was very skeptical. But after playing with a co-workers' PT-1911, I couldn't find better for the money.

I also read a fair amount of "The Taurus PT-1911 is the sux" on-line. Can't say I know why. I'm glad I passed over the Springfield for it.

The advertising for the gun is a little over the top, but it IS a sweet weapon for the price. It's my new favorite.

While I'm no proponent of "gun locks,' the one built into the hammer of the PT-1911 is just such a cool invention I decided to like it. I have a slight problem with a Juvenile Delinquent in the house, and conventional key-locks mean nothing to this person. But that's another story... Suffice it to say that this one foils the bugger where others have failed.

Prior to this, the closest to a 1911 I have owned is my stainless Llama MicroMax in .380. Basically a shrunken 1911. Still have it.

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I have the Taurus PT1911B. I've put a couple hunnerd round thru her so far and have had no issues so far. I paid under $600 OTD and have been very pleased with it. The lettering is a bit large but is not as bright as the advertisememt pictures show, they are a bit subdued in reality.
The fit and finish is excellent and is comparable if not slightly better than a Kimber Custom II. Taurus hand fits and tunes each pistol at the factory and the sights are damn near dead on out of the box. After a 100 round break in, I was getting sick groups at 30 feet and was getting tighter when I ran out of ammo. Recoil is smooth and fun! I love the thud a .45 gives.
I found it actually slightly lighter than the PT99AF when both are fully loaded and not to mention slimmer.
Taurus also has a lifetime warantee which is a big deal in my book.
As far as the finish wear, yeah, it does occur, but the sidearm is a tool, not a diamond encrusted Rolex. I could care less about finish wear as long as it remains functional and does what it is designed to do.
The steel is Brazilian which can be translated to German steel since they are using German steel manufacturing techniques.
My gripe is with the grips. The earlier models had firm rubber checkered grips, but the new ones are hard plastic. I'll be swapping those out when funds allow. Don't get me wrong, it fits my hand great and doesn't feel like I'm holding a wet bar of soap, but I'm looking for a little more grippier (if thats a word).

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Just an update for those of you who were following this topic.

I have placed a 1911 on layaway at Handgunners of Topton. The gentlemen was so very nice that I decided he will be my new go to guy for guns. I may not be able to drop thousands every month but I still want to be treated as such. And my last gunshop didn't offer me that.

At this time however I am not going to disclose my purchase because... I am afraid you will make fun of me.

No really, I can hear the name calling already. So I am going to wait until I bring her home, then I will post pictures and disclose and just except the name calling.

I will however encourage everyone who is looking for a new 1911 to look at the S&W's. They start at $750 and go up but all are well worth the money and in my opinion maybe the best 1911 in the range.

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I used to own a Para Ordanance P12-45. It was great but I got tire of dealing with the double stack grip. The gun shot great though. I now own a Kimber Ultra Carry II it has a 7 round mag and a 3 inch barrel. Once I broke it in as they recommend it has worke reliably and acurate.

I love mine and would not trade it for anything.

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WhiteFeather wrote:

No really, I can hear the name calling already. So I am going to wait until I bring her home, then I will post pictures and disclose and just except the name calling.

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Rock Island? [giggles]

Not the cleanest or prettiest, but a functional, cheap gun. But for a whole $100 more I get a PT-1911.... Whole different category of toy, er, gun... Kind of a no-brainer for me. It seems like I got a Kimber for half price.

Just suggesting to anyone else who may be contemplating the same thing, the Rock Island isn't so bad. "The cheapest" often means you assume it's lousy. Not the case. It lacks in looks, fit, and finish. But if you just want an affordable 1911 weapon that works, The Phillipines delivered just enough to be that.

I'm thinking of getting one as a 'convert to 10mm' project, just to have the only 10mm 1911 that costs (a LOT) less than $1000.

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I have the RIA 1911, and I'm not terribly fond of the trigger.

Not the trigger PULL, the trigger. It's uncomfortable when the gun recoils. I think I might get it replaced.

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I purchased my Kimber Ultra Custom about 4 months ago. Without a doubt, the finest 1911 I have ever shot.

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P2 wrote:

If you are in the market for a 1911 this would be my recommendation. I use it as my CCW weapon. If you have a good belt and holster it makes carrying that hunk of iron better.

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Which model is this pistol? I am having difficulty finding one that looks like that off Springfield's web site. It seems to look like the Operator but it doesn't have a picatinny rail.Is it a custom handgun?

Very nice indeed.

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Flintlock wrote:

P2 wrote:

If you are in the market for a 1911 this would be my recommendation. I use it as my CCW weapon. If you have a good belt and holster it makes carrying that hunk of iron better.

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Which model is this pistol? I am having difficulty finding one that looks like that off Springfield's web site. It seems to look like the Operator but it doesn't have a picatinny rail.Is it a custom handgun?

Very nice indeed.

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It is the parkerized Loaded model, PX9109LP. I have the same gun except in stainless steel (PX9159LP); it is very nice and has been 100% reliable for me with good magazines.

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I have a Kimber Stainless II that I love to death. Just like the manual said, it needed about 3-400 rounds (ball) to break in properly. After the break-in I took it apart, cleaned every surface (and I do mean EVERY surface), lubed it and took it back to the range for HP functionality testing. Tried several types of ammo including Cor-bon DPX which have the widest mouths I've ever seen on a bullet. The Kimber ate every round fed to it with NO problems at all.

IMPORTANT: Regardless of which 1911 you buy, I always recommend throwing away the stock mags (well, don't "throw them away", use them on the range) and only use Wilson Combat magazines for carry. I use the Wilson 47D's. Even after the break-in period my stock mags will cause jams from time to time. NEVER had a jam using the Wilson's.

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Honestly, the only time I've had a jam using the stock mag that came with my Rock Island was some improperly sized hand loads.

I have about 400 .45 ACP rounds that won't feed at all.

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Maybe you can find someone who reloads to take one apart and verify it is properly loaded, and if so, can set the bullet to the correct depth for you so you can use them. That is a lot of ammo to just waste.

ETA: I'm assuming that it is a length issue but that is probably a bad assumption to make.

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AbNo wrote:

Mmm, I had to go budget model, and I picked up a Rock Island Armory 1911.

I like it a lot, but the trigger's a bit rough on your finger.

I might consider rubber-coating it or something.

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1911 trigger

1911 Trigger Job

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Oooh! Projects for the summer....

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In the $800 range I think the Springfield Loaded is going to be your best band for the buck, specialy if you can locate one with a NM ser # prefix.

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http://www.valtrousa.com/handguns.html

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nakedshoplifter wrote:

IMPORTANT: Regardless of which 1911 you buy, I always recommend throwing away the stock mags (well, don't "throw them away", use them on the range) and only use Wilson Combat magazines for carry. I use the Wilson 47D's. Even after the break-in period my stock mags will cause jams from time to time. NEVER had a jam using the Wilson's.

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I have a Taurus PT1911 and the factory mags don't drop free every time, so I don't use them at all, not even at the range. I got 5 Chip McCormick stainless steel mags that perform perfectly every time. I didn't try the Wilson Combat magazines but I'm sure they'd work well in this gun too.


As far as "break in" goes, I had absolutely NO problems with my Taurus. No FTFs, no FTEs, nothing but reliability and accuracy. I love this gun!

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Problems with the taurus mags not dropping? Mine drop great! I bought two Kimber mags today and those were ok, put another 100 thru the PT1911 with no issues. Every time I shoot now, the groups get tighter and tighter. Oh, and the Hogue grips ROCK!!!

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I rented a Taurus PT1911 in stainless steel at the range about two weeks back. I should note that this was the first 1911 I've ever handled, but I liked it a lot. I have a bit of a flinch firing my S&W M&P40 (resulting in my hits going in a few inches low), but no such problem with the Taurus; even firing one-handed with my off-hand, the hits went right were I wanted them. I had one FTE (half-stovepipe) out of 50 rounds, but I should mention that it didn't look like the range staff had properly cleaned the weapon anytime recently (or maybe it was just getting a lot of use that week), so that may have been a factor.

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Watcha gettin'???