The Magical 1911
In general I spent a long time being convinced that technology had produced a better handgun than those that were available to say my grandfather.
Well in some ways I suppose they might have. I'd propose rather that they've made them different. They've made them lighter. They've made them hold more rounds. But they haven't made a finer or more reliable handgun than the 1911.
I've yet to determine where the reputation of always having feed issues and what not comes from. My 1911's all run flawlessly. The design is so simple that you can break the entire pistol down and rebuild it with new springs and put it back in service within 15 minutes with only a couple of tools.
The 1911 is a natural pointer driven largely by the grip angle. While I certainly can't say anything "bad" about Glocks. I don't personally like them. I don't like the grip angle one bit. By the way it's not a hatred of plastic pistols either. There are some plastic or "composite" pistols I like just fine. The FNP-40 is one. The Walther P99 is another. There are certainly worse things to be lost in the woods with than a Glock. One will just never be my first choice.
Here's a couple of my favorites. First a Kimber Custom II that I decided to rework. That was an adventure and something I think everyone should do at least once.
Second is a 32 year old Colt Combat Commander that I rescued in horrid shape. Someone had abused this poor pistol to near destruction. I brought it back from the dead and would trust my life to it in an instant.
Next project which I've just started is reworking a Rock Island Armory pistol. These aren't the fanciest 1911 out there, but they are a reliable and good shooter which can be picked up new for $350. We'll see how it turns out.
I suppose the point of all this is, if like me you've made a circuit of the handgun world looking for the "ultimate" handgun but you haven't spent some time with a 1911 in awhile. You might want to circle back and spend some time in a camp that nears 100 years old. You just might be surprised.
Well in some ways I suppose they might have. I'd propose rather that they've made them different. They've made them lighter. They've made them hold more rounds. But they haven't made a finer or more reliable handgun than the 1911.
I've yet to determine where the reputation of always having feed issues and what not comes from. My 1911's all run flawlessly. The design is so simple that you can break the entire pistol down and rebuild it with new springs and put it back in service within 15 minutes with only a couple of tools.
The 1911 is a natural pointer driven largely by the grip angle. While I certainly can't say anything "bad" about Glocks. I don't personally like them. I don't like the grip angle one bit. By the way it's not a hatred of plastic pistols either. There are some plastic or "composite" pistols I like just fine. The FNP-40 is one. The Walther P99 is another. There are certainly worse things to be lost in the woods with than a Glock. One will just never be my first choice.
Here's a couple of my favorites. First a Kimber Custom II that I decided to rework. That was an adventure and something I think everyone should do at least once.
Second is a 32 year old Colt Combat Commander that I rescued in horrid shape. Someone had abused this poor pistol to near destruction. I brought it back from the dead and would trust my life to it in an instant.
Next project which I've just started is reworking a Rock Island Armory pistol. These aren't the fanciest 1911 out there, but they are a reliable and good shooter which can be picked up new for $350. We'll see how it turns out.
I suppose the point of all this is, if like me you've made a circuit of the handgun world looking for the "ultimate" handgun but you haven't spent some time with a 1911 in awhile. You might want to circle back and spend some time in a camp that nears 100 years old. You just might be surprised.
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