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I WANT A 1911 AS RELIABLE AS GLOCK! WHICH BRAND?


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Had a Glock 17 at one time,

Now have a Springfield Mil Spec.

The glock served well, but needed quite a few parts, during the five years I used it.

The Springfield hasn't required a single one, so far.

About the same amount of rounds through them both, 20K or so.

And the 1911 is far less picky about ammunition.

More accurate at distances past 10 yds, too.

I have owned several Glock 17's over the years all flawless. Also responsible for the department Glocks they run. Only seen one malfunction in the last 8 years and that was due to an out of spec round not wanting to go in the chamber. No parts needing replaced other than magazine springs once in a while. The guys with 1911's on qualification days are generally the ones with issues. Not always but a 1911 is not the gun for someone who wants to put minimal time in to maintaining their weapons and most cops fit that catagory.

Pat

Edited by Alaskapopo
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I collected Glock problems seen at matches for awhile, until I got bored with it. Most were probably ammo-related, but I have 2 favorites:

1. A local Glock-ophile who is vocal & contemptuous of "those swingin' link pistols" had his slide come off in his hand during L&MR. The retainer part broke. I helpfully offered to let him use my spare "swingin' link", but he ungracefully declined and went home. A separate time he had a trigger spring break, which I've seen a few times.

2. A cop who's reportedly been in a few fights in his career was using his duty G23 pistol with duty HP ammo at an Area match & had multiple light strikes and feed problems during the match. He was bewildered & I never heard what the problem was.

One more came from my brother-in-law, who is a cop. He intervened in a domestic call with an idiot armed with a butcher knife chasing his wife around the crappy apartment complex. After idiot kept ignoring my bro-in-law's commands to cease & desist, bro-in-law "shot" the guy. Except that the Glock pistol went "click", and he tap/racked, at which point a helpful onlooker started hooting "He just shot that guy", which encouraged the enraged idiot-husband to take the matter more seriously and stop. Bro-in-law affirms that a round was ejected at tap/rack, and department sent the round with the gun to Glock, who claimed nothing was wrong with the pistol but sent a replacement just in case. No one got hurt, so I guess that counts as a positive outcome.

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I collected Glock problems seen at matches for awhile, until I got bored with it. Most were probably ammo-related, but I have 2 favorites:

1. A local Glock-ophile who is vocal & contemptuous of "those swingin' link pistols" had his slide come off in his hand during L&MR. The retainer part broke. I helpfully offered to let him use my spare "swingin' link", but he ungracefully declined and went home. A separate time he had a trigger spring break, which I've seen a few times.

2. A cop who's reportedly been in a few fights in his career was using his duty G23 pistol with duty HP ammo at an Area match & had multiple light strikes and feed problems during the match. He was bewildered & I never heard what the problem was.

One more came from my brother-in-law, who is a cop. He intervened in a domestic call with an idiot armed with a butcher knife chasing his wife around the crappy apartment complex. After idiot kept ignoring my bro-in-law's commands to cease & desist, bro-in-law "shot" the guy. Except that the Glock pistol went "click", and he tap/racked, at which point a helpful onlooker started hooting "He just shot that guy", which encouraged the enraged idiot-husband to take the matter more seriously and stop. Bro-in-law affirms that a round was ejected at tap/rack, and department sent the round with the gun to Glock, who claimed nothing was wrong with the pistol but sent a replacement just in case. No one got hurt, so I guess that counts as a positive outcome.

I have lost count of 1911 problems seen at matches and in training. Glock problems are rare.

Pat

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I would say to get any of the higher end 1911 and shoot it a lot and learn to maintain it my 1950's national match had over 30,000 on first bbl. Gun finally gave up after over 100,000. I now have Kimbers and Colts both good guns.

Edited by gunnut315
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I carry a Springfield Milspec .45 in the door pocket of my truck. I take it out and shoot a local match with it every couple of months. I drop a bit of oil on it occasionally and when it gets nasty, I clean it. I've had it 6-7 years and it never hiccups. Doesn't mean it won't dump on me the next time I use it....its mechanical. But it has been reliable.

The only work I had done on it was minor polishing of internal parts for reliability maintaining factory trigger pull and stuff for liability sake.

FWIW

dj

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Budget vs intended use

Those 2 are the key to answering any question regarding of the OP's original question.

What is the budget? That will be the determining factor, above all else. I currently have 45's in STI (2011 and 1911's), another STI Spartan in at 2011 in 9mm, DW, a Taurus PT1911, Smith and Wesson, and SA. All of them run, but it takes maintenance as well as familiarity with the individual gun. Of all of these, there are only 2 that have run everything I have thrown at them and did not care about magazines or springs; S&W E series stainless and the PT 1911. I contribute it this way:

There are 2 guns in my nightstand safe- a glock 19 as well as the S&W E series. I trust both of these without question, and have put them thru a nightmare regimine of weekly firing for years now. The Taurus is a sloppy gun with great lock up, much like the GI it was designed after. That stays on my second floor in a safe in case it is needed. You can insert Glock reference here as well as I own and carry both daily depending on dress and location. They are both designed to run in shitty conditions and when you need them most with the minimum amount of maintenance a soldier can perform in the field.

For competition, the tighter the better, as well as more maintenance and trial and error with springs, ammo, mags, etc. This is an entirely different issue than personal protection or duty,and should be perceived as such.

Budget vs intended use, and determining these 2 factors will answer your question, or at least narrow it down significantly.

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Maybe the question should be restated as "where can I get a 1911 that runs as well as a glock for ~$500. I don't think that's possible, or rather that you have an even chance of buying a doorstop that will need another $500-1000 in gun smithing to get running well. I have a Colt Series 70 Gold Cup slide on a S70 SS frame that runs great, but it's hardly stock and well north of the price of a Glock. You're asking the equivalent of "find me a $600 AR-15 that is as reliable as an AK..."

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Sig. 1,000s of rounds, never a FTF, FTL, FTE. I have been very happy with it. My 9mm Glock used to be my favorite, but now that I reload, my 1911 Sig is my friend at the range.....

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What are the top 5------top 3 GUNS for reliability, reliability, RELIABILITY?

WHO ARE THE TOP 5 SMITHS?

This is too broad of a question. Are we talking factory? Custom? How custom?

As said earlier..it is NOT just the gun, rather the complete package of gun, ammo, and magazines. The best pistol smith in the world, with the best parts available can not build a gun that will cycle poorly loaded ammo fed from crappy magazines

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I asked the same thing when in the market for a 1911. I saw guns from Taurus to MC all malf one time or another. Except a Baer. So I bought a Premier II with the 1.5" guarantee. I had one malf in the first 300 rounds while shooting weak hand. I'm only at 1000 rounds, but I haven't had another problem. FWIW, I run Wilson ETMs.

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The original question, I want a 1911 that RUNS, like a GLOCK! By that, I mean it runs almost foolproof with factory ammo. How much to spend? I would say whatever the price of a Les Baer or thereabout. Maybe a Wilson CQB, but I do not want to wait and I don't think spending 3-4000 is necessary to get a reliable 1911. It is an all business gun with much practice. Whose would you buy?

Do the Colt's run? Dan Wessons? Is gunsmith work mandatory to get an expensive gun to work reliably?

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Maybe the question should be restated as "where can I get a 1911 that runs as well as a glock for ~$500. I don't think that's possible, or rather that you have an even chance of buying a doorstop that will need another $500-1000 in gun smithing to get running well. I have a Colt Series 70 Gold Cup slide on a S70 SS frame that runs great, but it's hardly stock and well north of the price of a Glock. You're asking the equivalent of "find me a $600 AR-15 that is as reliable as an AK..."

Maybe it should be. That said, I have 2 sti 5" spartans a 9mm and a 45. both run great

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That's the route I'm generally planning on taking for my first 1911 purchase for USPSA Single Stack. I run Glock for USPSA Production right now and I've been asking quite a bit of questions of my fellow shooters who have 1911 and 2011 pistols. The general consensus is that if you buy a known gun from a known and skilled gunsmith, you have a great chance at getting an excellent result.

I figure when have enough pennies saved to make the move to a proper 1911 for Single Stack, I'll call up a Jedi Master like Bod Londrigan, explain what my 1911 needs are, and then let him guide me through what I need to commission him to do to get a great result. I assume that will be buying a 1911 that he recommends and likes to work on, paying him to work his value added gun smithing magic on the pistol, and enjoying the result for a long time.

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That's the route I'm generally planning on taking for my first 1911 purchase for USPSA Single Stack. I run Glock for USPSA Production right now and I've been asking quite a bit of questions of my fellow shooters who have 1911 and 2011 pistols. The general consensus is that if you buy a known gun from a known and skilled gunsmith, you have a great chance at getting an excellent result.

I figure when have enough pennies saved to make the move to a proper 1911 for Single Stack, I'll call up a Jedi Master like Bod Londrigan, explain what my 1911 needs are, and then let him guide me through what I need to commission him to do to get a great result. I assume that will be buying a 1911 that he recommends and likes to work on, paying him to work his value added gun smithing magic on the pistol, and enjoying the result for a long time.

You are sure going to spend a whole lot more then 500 dollars. I saw a a grat deal on a les baer 1700 here on BEF

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Oh, gosh, yes. No way I will get a proper competitive 1911 for $500 dollars. I'm assuming it will be closer to the $2,000 dollar mark especially if you factor in things like magazines and the like. Everything I've learned so far about 1911s is that doing them on the cheap is the road to tears and frustration.

You can get a proper reliable mass production pistol for around the $500 dollar range. Easy enough if your requirement is reliability over anything else. 1911 is type of pistol rather than a particular brand which is why I don't think the comparison between Brand X and 1911 makes any real sense.

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Gee whiz. I have about $700 in my Springfield, without mags. It runs perfectly. Last time I had a malfxn was... I dunno. I think 3-4 yrs ago, when I loaded some some 230s too long.

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My STI is a .40 Edge, so it may not count in your search, but I have over 10k rounds through it and it has never had a FTF or jam of any kind. I know I may be putting a big voodoo hex on myself, but I just plain love that gun. I'd rather shoot it than my STI open gun. Love it!!

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