Glock 27 kept nearby- not in love with it but it's there and if I'm paranoid Beretta .25 ACP in pockets.

Used to be 8045 Beretta, sadly missed - of which was a great gun, bulky but shot great.

rjp

In a 500 round sitting 1 malf is annoying but acceptable, 2 would make me question what is going on and a 3rd would having fixing the problem.

But the reality of that is every semi auto is going to malf at some point. If the gun shoots your mags and ammo with no problems it should in general always shoot you mags and ammo with a little attention to cleaning and springs.

If you are using it for self defense, knowing how to clear a malf is good.

another consideration in self defense sometimes presented by opposing counsel when a 1911 has been used in a shooting (defense) is
1) Some states have a duty to retreat [I know, I know, it sounds like BS but there are states that have it, mostly the east coast] Counsel may ask why you had time to cock your weapon (in the cae you leave the hammer on drop or half cock), but not retreat.
2) Some courts have taken the position that a condition 3, cocked, locked, loaded 1911 indicates you were anticipating shooting someone, and that a prudent reasonable person would not have a weapon in that condition in the household. (more bs, but it happens)
3) Modified 1911 present yet another chalenge in that modified trigger pulls can also be attributable to intent. IN at least one case, the owner was found guilty of negligent homicide as the trigger pull was less than "factory".

I pulled the above from old memory, so I would imagine it is worse now, rather than back in the day.

I rcommend for defense a revolver for carry, and a shotgun (pump) for the bedroom or household protection. Training is a must. A shooting is a serious life changing event, often entered into too lightly by many. Also, know your state law. Some states have some very peculiar laws that can work against the g/o. IMO, many folks spend too much time tricking up their weapon rather than knowing the law, and/or practicing.

I am considering selling a custom colt series 70. I had it built by Wayne Novak. He lives in my town. I am sure a custom isn't worth what an original is but can someone give me an idea where to start "asking" pricewise?? I can post a pic if needed. I have about 2,000 or higher invested in it. condition excellent. Just had it refinished and not fired since.

Ohhh BTW the day I bought my Cased Rigby with matching scope at auction ..which is a High Dollar Custom gun......the high dollar prewar Colt 1911's were brining more money.... as a matter of fact some pre 64 Winchester Model 70's were going for more...that day.......

Sorry that is sooooo full of BS....

Give me an actual case and court as reference to back up any statement you have made on use of the 1911, cocked and locked and liability Bruce? Civil or criminal?

You can't. There aren't.
I can cite dozens that address other issues on self defense and the guns used but you won't find any precedent by any court commenting on a 1911 in the context you have given, sorry.

Which is why FBI SWAT, LAPD SWAT and even lowly Tacoma Washington issue custom 1911s which are among the literally dozens of LE agencies that do iallow 1911s. A good many (most of them actually) in Arizona including Maricopa County, BTW.

Bad advice is bad advice. You were however spot on with the need for training and knowledge of the laws that apply.

Bottom line to any self defense shooting is, "was it justified", if so you can use a LAWS rocket, Porsche 911 or a jack hammer if you legally own it (not required but advisable depending on regulations and how you gained possesssion) and no one else is injured by it's use.

Wayne Novak is one of the premier smiths in the nation. His work is worth a good deal more than any current stock gun. A stock Series 70 in good condition is going for $1000 these days. Novak's work depending on what was done will top that easily. Check out www.pistolsmith.com under the custom smith section.

A freind of mine says to use Caspian Parts if I wana build a custom 1911.......If I am correct that is what Unertle is using for their custom 1911 series...

After looking at the market place which seems to have blosomed with semi custom 1911's....it seems that it would be cheaper to buy one off the shelf with the tricks you want on it than it is to buy a custom from a custom maker....

To date the more recognizable names are Springfield, Kimber, Unertle, Les Baer, Colt, Smith and Wesson and even Sig Sauer all have a 1911 of some kind either in production or nearing it..

Best base gun for a full house custom 1911 is a current re-issue of the 70 series Colts.

The Caspian stuff is nice. If you add up the 50 something parts that are in a 1911 you can easily end up with $1500 of parts before paying anyone to make any of them work together. Start off with a good base gun so you dont have to worry about all the little ancilliary parts. Besides, the Caspain stuff doesnt have the horsey on the slide :)

When it comes to the Custom 1911 stuff or the modern variations I don't know squat...What I do know are the older curio and relic stuff...

I would much rather have a Rigby than a Winchester pre 64 Model 70....there is no comparison in quality...

What I am currently wanting to get is a Custom Rifle by David Henry Brown of Tacoma, Wa...he builds a copy of the George Gibbs 1000 yard muzzleloading target rifle....British circa 1857-1869. At $8000 his price is comparable to an orginal..but U gota find one....cased orginals can go for as high as 25K at auction...Browns work is impecable though...

Not to invite a bashing, but what is the functional advantage of a 1911 over, say, a Glock?

I appreciate that the 1911 has all that history, is more attractive and iconic, there are gorgeous custom gunsmithed ones, etc.

But if you are an individual, or an agency, looking for a rugged, reliable, accurate, lethal service weapon, would you choose the 1911 over the Glock?

(I own a Glock 19 but have never had a 1911, so I can't make the comparison on my own.)

Had Para P12-45. That pistol was sweet. Had to sell it when I lost my job. Now a plain old .38 is the weapon of choice for CC.
BTW a S&W 12gauge pump is in the house.

Throw the fking coin up in the air...Glock heads 1911 Tails....Thers something to be said about a slow moving 45 cal round though.

The Glock I would choose is the Model 23 in 40 S&W...ithe round has good penetration from it's Muzzle Velocity and good knock down power from the diameter of the bullet .40. Best of both worlds


The 45 Acp is a tried and true round that can not only be accurate but has absolute knock down power.

Agreed.....not like a 9mm hole puncher.

Another consideration that tipped the scale for me was the fact the ammo was readily available and relatively inexpensive.

You are asking which is better an apple or an orange. Then you are asking which is better for me and which will my family best be served with. Make sense?

Both are very good guns. Both have limitations on both ends of the spectrum.

Agencies choose by several factors, out right cost is typically the first. Glock has and still offers 1:1 trade ins so the Glocks come to the departments "free" on a trade in. Great business practice on Glock's part and good for many departments finances as well.

The second cost and much more of an item in any LE department budget is the training required. Glocks are easy to retrain on and have little maintance or service issues past them blowing up. (which is an on going issue in everything but 9mm)
Another budget requirement satisfied, cheap retraining.

Down side is Glocks don't everyone's hands and are difficult to shoot in comparison to some other handguns because of the size and trigger operation. Officier safety is an issue because there is no secondary safety that renders the gun inoperable. (Police Unions have been involved in both issues)

Plus and minues weighted and Glock "owns" more of the US LE community than any handgun brand.

1911?

The guns are fragile and take a lot of maintance. The guns are expensive. Maintance is required by very well trained armorers.
They have several external safeties and are in fact one of the easiest guns to actually hit with. Both big pluses that over come many of the down sides.

Training is even more important and time consuming with a 1911.

With all of that done correctly the end result is you have an officier that is less likely to be an liability issue to the department and is himself safer on the street.

For yourself?

Glock or 1911. First decide which fits your budget best. Then decide what amount of training you are willing to invest in.

For the same reason most departments drive Crown Vics they also shoot Glocks.

There are others in LE that drive much faster cars, spend more time training and shoot 1911s. Typically the cream of the LE and military communities. The 1911 is still the king of the hill in competition shooting of any flavor, bullseye or action pistol in any form. It is still what every other pistols is compared to all those reasons.

Sounds a lot like the WRXsti bragging about being faster than a '73 911rs doesn't it? But then they don't make that claim against a '73 RSR or a '79 935 :)

Glocks are a WRX. A modern 1911 is a 917. Depends on your training and skills if you can take advantage of the platform and a pocket book that can afford the buy in (which can be expensive by comparison) and maintenance (not a big deal).

A lot of 2 door coupes running around that their owners think are sports cars. Just like there are Glock owners that think they have the ultimate handgun. Most people sadly haven't a clue on the difference between a VW and Porsche or Timex and Rolex.

A smart man asks :)

I wish I said that....

Why the 1911 in 45cal?

Because it was designed to stop angry Moros tribesmen that had wet leather wrapped around there balls!