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Who makes the Highest Quality 1911 Pistol?

38K views 44 replies 34 participants last post by  OneJaggedHole 
#1 ·
I am looking for the best consensus that we can arrive at based on the following criteria: The pistol must be above all reliable. It must be composed of the finest quality materials. It must be accurate. The quality must be repeatable from one production piece to the next. Workmanship must be good. Form and function of the 1911 tradition must be retained. Customer service should be some consideration.

What we are not looking for is which 1911 is the tightest or has the most bells and whistles. Try not to let your personal bias shadow your response. Good luck on that one.:rolleyes:

If you can think of criteria I missed feel free to add on and let's have some fun with this thread.:rofl:
 
#2 ·
inyati13 said:
I am looking for the best consensus that we can arrive at based on the following criteria: The pistol must be above all reliable. It must be composed of the finest quality materials. It must be accurate. The quality must be repeatable from one production piece to the next. Workmanship must be good. Form and function of the 1911 tradition must be retained. Customer service should be some consideration.

What we are not looking for is which 1911 is the tightest or has the most bells and whistles. Try not to let your personal bias shadow your response. Good luck on that one.:rolleyes:

If you can think of criteria I missed feel free to add on and let's have some fun with this thread.:rofl:

i think most shppers now adays go by name instead of quality all pistols have their freaks and whos not to say the price diffrence in a 350 gun and a 700 gun is just comp parts and what not witch is bells and whistles

me im just happy to own a 1911

as for who makes the best i honestly think the springfield has the best quality manufactured parts and if you can find an older colt from 40's to 60's o say thoose are some danm nice guns
 
#4 ·
I've heard that Colt has the highest quality parts, followed by Springfield, and I've heard good things about both their customer service depts. People seem to either love their Kimbers or diss them for their use of MIM parts (though Colt seems to have a similarly polarizing effect on shooters). I think MIM is here to stay, and for most shooters it won't ever be an issue. If we don't make an undue issue about MIM parts, then we need to consider Taurus, too, IMO. You can make a case for any of them being 'best', so here's my argument for each:
Colt: Best quality in reasonably priced production, made in America. Hand down to your grandkids quality
Springfield: Absolutely best value, good quality, more steel than anyone but Colt (I think)
Kimber: Tight, accurate, good value for extras (MIM parts gives us extras at a good price point). Huge selection; Kimber probably has exactly the features you want right out of the box
Taurus: From what I've seen of their revolvers, this new one will be a wonderful shooter; Kimber's features at Springfield's Mil-Spec price.

V
 
#7 ·
The problem here is how you define "best." The tightest, most accurate pistols aren't going to be the most reliable as a defense gun. As far as bells and whistles, you need to determine how important cost is. A pistol with all the bells and whistles and uncomprimising build quality is bound to be out of reach financially for a good majority of us. The best pistol for me isn't going to be the best pistol for the next guy. Personally, my "best" pistol is my Springfield Milspec parkerized. Rock bottom price at $500, solid reputation, no frills that I don't care about, and a lifetime warrantee with great customer service. I rented some $1800 Kimber custom job at my local range, and not only did I not shoot any better with it, but I actually preferred the stock sights on my milspec over the high-end sights on the Kimber. It's all a preference game, and what role the pistol is going to take.
 
#9 ·
With something like 60 current 1911 manufacturers, it's gonna be pretty hard to arrive at a consensus as to which one is the "best" or "highest quality".
 
#13 ·
I can't help letting my experience cloud my judgement. My wife has a stainless Mil-spec and a loaded parkerized that are excellent. I like the lifetime warrenty, but don't expect to use it. I have a Wilson CQB which I shoot better than the springers, but my wife prefers her's. I think we live in an age where all products are expected to perform flawlessly. I think I must research this question further by buying and shooting many more 1911's. When I have 50,000 rounds through all of them, I'm sure I'll have a favorite, but I won't know the answer.:biglaugh:
regards
Bill
 
#14 ·
My personal experience is based on............

owning a number of 1911 pistols including those made by Wilson, Kimber, Baer, SA, SIG GSR, and last, but far from least, Smith and Wesson. Based on owning and firing these 1911's over the years by my choice would be the pistols by Smith and Wesson. FWIW
 
#15 ·
Quote ******..."The problem here is how you define "best." The tightest, most accurate pistols aren't going to be the most reliable as a defense gun."

I have to respectfully disagree . I know that tight , accurate custom guns aren't supposed to be reliable , and sloppy old milspec .45s are , but in my 40+ years of gun collecting my Les Baers are the tightest, most accurate, and MOST reliable pistols I've owned to date . The parts are all tool steel , made in the USA , and the small premium you pay is well worth it . I DO ADMIT that customer service has room for improvement, but all in all they're a "BEST BUY" IMHO...Tom
 
#17 ·
I own a Wilson, a Nighthawk, and a Les Baer. I would say the LB is probably the best followed by a tie for second between the other two. I see a few mentions for Springfield, which seems hard to believe. I do not own an Ed Brown, but I would put his in the top running also due to fantastic fit and finish and general quality. Let the commotion begin.:D
 
#18 ·
When I first realized I wanted a 1911 style pistol afteroning primarily wheel guns, I tried out everything and could have chosen Wilson, Kimber, L Bauer or a number of other brands after careful consideration and thought.

I chose a Springfield over anything else.

:rock:
 
#19 ·
humor, so no whining

Colt = "Where do we wanna put the holes today?" "Don't bother me, it's break time."

Springfield Armory = "They'll never know we got Brazilian kids glueing in ejectors,"

Kimber = "MIM is 99.9% as dense as real metal."

SIG = "Screw Caspian."

Taurus = I'll believe THAT one when I handle one.

Baer / Brown / Clark = "WE try to make the best."

Wilson = "I try to charge the most."

STI / Infinity / etc = "Will no one ever know we make guns?"

S&W = very recently convinced a friend to buy one; nice gun, ESPECIALLY for the money.


Me? I gotta Caspian, and two SA's, one in 45, one in 9x19.

If I had ALL the money I'd buy a Caspian frame-n-slide all custom-serial-numbered and stuff, then it'd go right to the folks at EGW.
 
#22 · (Edited)
I am not going to consider the "boutique" manufacturers, as they are not really a choice I would recommend to a new shooter for their first 1911. This eliminates Baer, Wilson, Nighthawk, &, Valtro etc. My one criteria I am going to use to give my answer/opinion is "Will / Would I have any regrets in the future if I purchase this particular model?" & "Would I have wanted to get something different, something that was not a "fad", if I had to do it over?" Nobody knows just what they are going to want to do later down the road. For me, I will give my first choice which is a NRM Colt 01991A, and my second choice is a Springfield "Loaded" parkerized model. The first choice is a more traditional configuration (if you are old school like some ;) ) The second choice, is a more contemporary set-up, which seems to have most of the modern adaptations many shooters look for. I am not going to get into the MIM vs. tool steel debate, as both of these platforms are Excellent starting points for future custom work. You can have fitted tool steel small parts, hand-fit match barrels and bushings, conamyds, serrations, and checkering done to your heart's and wallet's delight with either model. Swapping non-tradtional parts like the ILS system in the springer, is a piece of cake, and not too pricey either.
So there you have it, the correct answer!
 
#24 ·
I don't know the answer to your question. Based on my experience with out of the box products:
Best Value- The Wessons... Smith and Dan.
Most Accurate- Baer
Best Fit and Finish- Baer, RRA
Most reliable- Baer
Ed Browns & Nighthawks aren't bad. Based on my example, I think Wilsons are overrated.
So, what do I carry?
A custom Colt NRM 1991. If I had to pick something out of the box, it would be the LB TRS.
 
#25 ·
Perhaps this is like comparing Ford vs Chevy or, since we are talking about high-end guns here maybe Porsche vs Ferrari. In any case there is going to be alot of differing opinions. Baer, Brown, Wilson, Nighthawk, all top notch guns and you could conceivably encounter problems with any one of those too I suppose, or not. I would take any one of those, as they are all great 1911's.
 
#26 ·
Taking the question as I read it and trying not to read into it, my answer: Brown

Taking the question as I read it and trying not to read into it, my answer: Brown.

That is I'd say Brown is the epitome of the classic 1911 -"1911 Tradition" - blue not stainless, not paint.

I can imagine putting a Brown on the same table as the very best of Colt inter-war production and folks thinking it belonged there.

I'd expect a Wilson 2 tone or even a Thunder Ranch Special to stand out in that group - good pistols though they be. It may well be that other brands are better for a specific purpose - I think so, I don't own a Brown - and even a semi-custom a less than full house build up from a smith would be my own choice - time and money permitting.

Among affordable pistols to answer this question - if I were buying one mail order sight unseen no 3 day inspection I'd go with the new Colts - presumably a new Series 70. More likely I'd buy based on a much more specialized choice and hands on examination so it might be anything from a base Springfield up including Kimber and all the rest. But that's not how I'd answer the question.

Reaching for the absurd within the bounds of the question: Yost-Bonitz is doing a short run that I'd strain to call production at just over $4000 each. Don't think anybody will match them for customer service or quality or workmanship or reliability. I'd disqualify some other short runs of equal quality as non-traditional.
 
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