Ted,

If you want a 1911 pattern pistol, how much do you want to spend?

$500 - $700 : Springfield Armory mil-spec or loaded models. Their slides and frames are heat treated correctly (I have built over a dozen custom 1911s on them).

$700 - $1100 : Kimber 1911, Smith and Wesson 1911, and Sig GSR 1911. They got all the modifications people usually pay to get their 1911s set up like.

$1100 - $2500 : Kimber Custom 1911s, Springfield Armory TRP and Custom models, Rock River Arms 1911, Wilson Combat 1911s, Les Baer 1911s (my favorite), and other custom makers.

If a person decides to get one of these, they will last a long time, but proper training is needed to maximize it's potential.

As far as Sigs go, they are great guns, but I had my share of problems too. On my 226 (purchased outside of my base of training, Ft. Benning) I have the alloy frame crack at the base of the frame rails (L and R) and the roll pin that holds the steel breach block shere off. This prevented me to field strip the weapon. I sent it back to Sig and they just gave me a new gun. Great service! Also, in the field (desert environment) I had several of my Sigs and fellow team members have problems with the guide rod rusting up and preventing full slide motion. Sometimes tight tolerances are great for accuracy, but bad for extreme conditions.

Hope this helps

 

HK USP .45
So far my favorite pistol. It's TOUGH as nails and BIG. I have big hands. It fits well. We're using Glocks right now, and I like them, but I like my own HK better. Just my personal preference.

I've always wanted a tactical Kimber .45. That's probably going to be my next pistol.

I say if you're going to buy a gun for home/personal defense, get a .45. and don't use plus P rounds. Less penetration if you miss your target. It would really suck if that +P 9mm round zipped through your house and your neighbors house and into your neighbors kids head. A slow moving .45 won't get as far. If you're worried about stopping power,...lol...don't be. Two to the chest and one to the head will stop just about anyting no matter what caliber you're using.

Of course if your new to guns you'll miss your target, hit something else, get sued, and lose your house. So get TONS of training in. As much as possible no matter what it costs. Keep up on training too (it's fun). Don't just take a week long class and tell yourself you're the best. Go back at least a few times a year (one on one tactical training). I do a LOT of shooting and if I've been away from the range for an extended period of time I notice a huge decrease in my skills. Especially during timed events where stress is a factor.

With great power comes great responsibility.

 

Thanks guys for all the great info. I am not totally new to guns and shooting, I have shot 9mm's, a 357 mag with federal rounds, .22 pistols, shotguns and a 30/06. But I have never owned one, and I really like the look and feel of the .45/1911....it has always been one of my favorites.

That said, I will def. be getting the proper training on shooting, safety, and mainenance of the weapon, I am not one to half *** ****, if I am gonna do something, I am gonna do it right the first time, no messing around. I'll probably mostly use it for target shooting, but I like the idea of having a bit of protection (for the suby, lol).

So, do I NEED to get a gun safe to satisfy CA Law? or will a lockable metal gun case be ok? Keep in mind, I live alone, dont have any kids, and dont have any room mates, and I highly doubt my cats will want to play with the gun.

Well, thanks again for all the info.....maybe one of these days we could get an I-club group together to go shooting somewhere. I wouldn't mind getting some pointers.

again, sorry for the hijack Gino

-Ted

 

all good man, the more info the better .

thank you, I cannot choose now..lol

 

that's why you should go with a sig sauer. it's like getting an STi. all the goodies are there and nothing to buy extra.


gun safe or a kalif DOJ approved gun lock.

http://ag.ca.gov/firearms/fsdcertlist.htm

i picked one up from wally-mart for $6. showed the receipt to my FFL and that satified the requirement.

now granted, what i bought and what the FFL receive was nothing but a 6" pipe with from grooves cut out of it. but to the gun laws, that piece of pipe is a firearm. it was really nothing but a lower receiver for my .50 cal rifle... lol...

 

the cracking is a known problem. was a certain batch with frames made in exeter, new hapshire; instead from germany.

as for the guide rod rusting, unless you forgot to give it a light coating of lubricant, it should never rust... mobil 1 works in a pinch...

 

I like sigs a lot... Especially the P220. It's a great pistol. I've probably shot about 500 rounds through it, and to be honest, it's had about 3 malfunctions in those 500 rounds. Not too shabby but not so great either. I do compare everything to a Glock however, so I might be a bit jaded. And yes I maintain my firearms like some **** **** gun cleaning guy.

 

I ever tell you guys I prefer glocks? lol


Seriously... one thing I require in a gun is for it to fire EVERY SINGLE DAMN TIME I PULL THE TRIGGER. No messing around, no extraction problems, no feeding problems, and no other sort of malfuctions. I've had more than my share of problems with various 1911s and it makes me weary to buy one... If I do, I'll get a Kimber.

I've shot thousands of rounds through my glocks, particularly the G21 and G17 (Probably like 3-4k each). I even go without cleaning them sometimes (Like 500-700 rounds without cleaning... cuz I can, cuz they are glocks), and guess what? Never had a single problem, ever. Food for thought.

 

Me and you have the exact same taste in firearms. The Kimber is a pretty good gun and very accurate but if I had to have one handgun for the rest of my life it'd be a Glock because I know it'd last.

 

I've put about 3000 rounds through my G23 since I got it in January and haven't had a single issue. I've probably only cleaned it about 4 times though. Glocks are just plain reliable.

 

The DOE had to return a batch of glock 22's. Something like 200 of them. I'm no gun smith so I can't really explain what was wrong (I just shoot the hell of 'em). But it was some plastic piece on the rear of the slide that kept breaking off on them. This happened about 4 years ago. My buddy just came back from some tactical training and the same thing happened to his Glock 23. I Think Glock officially addressed the issue though. I guess it just depends on how rough you get with it. These guns get treated like the red headed step child. I am impressed with them. The magazines are indestructible. After a million reload drills and mags flying through the air hitting concrete and dirt, not a single one has ever broken that I know of. I have on the other hand broken an HK mag.

 

Hmmmm, that is good to know....thanks for the input Dan. Just curious, what cal. are your glocks?

-Ted

 

Hey Guys,

I used to work at a Sportsmens Supply for about a year. I've seen so many people buy the wrong guns because of look or what they have heard. Your best bet is to go to either Target Masters or any other indoor shoting range and rent a few guns. This way you get a feel for what you are most comfortable with. Shooting is like trying on pants. You never get the right ones unless you try a whole bunch of them out.

If you are interested in buying a handgun for the first time, take the time to research the differences in the two. If it's for home defense, get a revolver. I'd go with a S&W or Ruger .357 mag or .38 SPL. The only reason why I'd recommend a rev. over an auto is for reliability. If you are not an avid shooter or lack the experience, that's the only way I'd go. Another option is a 12 gauge pump shotgun (mossberg or Remington) just for the sound. Anyone that's dumb enough to break into a house to begin with has been around or has heard somewhere down the road the sing of a pump action shotgun racking a round.

1911's are great guns. The only problem is you have to clean them very throughly and need to deal with changing recoil springs every few thousand rounds. "field stripping" is no where as easy as a Glock, SIG, or Springfield. But the accuracy between a 1911 and the other autos is no where close by any standards. I own a Sig P220 Sport and it's a great gun. The only problem is the more accurate the gun, the tighter the tolorences. These looser guns i.e. Glocks, Sigs, Rugers, Springfields are able to take more of a beating and less cleaning because they are not as accurate. These differences in accuracy would most likely not be very noticible for people that are just shooting for fun.

The requirements for a gun purchase are simple. For a handgun, you'll need to take the HSC (handgun safty cert.) test. IT's very basic, common sense type questions. There is a hang book you can download or pick up at your nearest gun store. Then you will need a proof of residency, (gov. issued utility bill to your home address on the drivers lic. under your name, vehicle reg. under your name to your home address, or rental agrrement), driver's lic., and money. For along gun (rifle/shotgun), you will need the proof of residency, and driver's license. There is a standard 240 hour waiting period. This exactly 10 days starting at the minute the paperwork is submitted. Once this is submitted, there is no turning back ont eh gun sale because that serial number is officially under your name.

If anyone else has any other questions, feel free to PM me, I'll be more than happy to answer them for you...

Jerry

 

Hey Ted,

Dan's Glocks are .45 ACP (21) and 9MM (17). I have a Glock 17 also and I have had about 15,000 rounds and never had a problem. I shoot sometimes 1000 rounds at a time, maybe have one or two jams because I limp wrist the gun after a while. It starts to hurt after a while, but well worth the fun... hahaha

Jerry

 

Well, for me I have been carrying a firearms as part of my job since 1988. I have had the privaledge to try out a ton of small arms and through a ton of training. Even though I love 1911's and I collect CZ pistols, the handgun that never let me down are my Glocks. My first Glock was a M17 that I bought outside Ft. Benning. I bought an M9 (Beretta 92F) and seen too many slide failures. I retired that gun and got a Sig 226. I love that gun, but when I shot about 2600 rounds, I had the breach block roll pin shear in half and the frame rails (R and L) crack. Sig sent me a new gun, but I then sold it. A friend of mine from the Seals told me about the Glock. I told him that it felt like a toy and would probably break. He told me "NO! Buy one, and if you don't like it, I'll buy it from you!" So, I bought a M17 for $369 and shot the S%*t out of it. Right now, it has approx: 206,223 rounds through it! I keep a round count through my guns that I use, so I know when to replace the springs.

Even though I have a ton on rounds through my M17, I can still hit a man size target in the chest at 100 yards consistantly. My Glock 35 (with a fitted Bar-Sto barrel: .40 and .357 SIG) recently replaced my M17.

To me GLocks are like Bic pens....not fancy....but they work!