Bought a S.A.M. Commodore today

[rblack]

I had bought one of these several years ago and ended up getting rid of it for being out of spec on the frame holes. The one I picked up today at the gun show is of much higher quality than the first one. Overall fit and finish is very good. I did a complete detail strip and clean of the gun and found all the internals to be done very nicely. After cleaning and lubing all the parts I took it out back to my range for a break in. Shot Winchester ball without a hitch, but when I loaded some Winchester HP's it did a nose dive and wouldn't feed. Took it back inside and got the dremel polishing with some polishing compound and did the frame ramp and the barrel, which is already throated, but both areas were blued. After I polished and reassembled, I took it back outside and put several mags of HP's thru it without a bobble of any kind. The gun is accurate, the beavertail is fit better than most high dollar 1911's I have and the trigger pull straight from the box has almost no creep at all and breaks very cleanly.

One thing I was very happy about on this gun is it now has grip bushings, and you can use standard grip screws. The first one I bought several years ago had no bushings, you just put the grip screws right into the frame. I did add a nice set of double diamond checkered cocobolo grips in place of the cheap plastic grips that came on it.

Here is a pic of the commodore

[davidenorth]

Hey, looks great! How much did you spend on it. I have been looking at commanders and was curious about the SAMS.

[vicg1]

I have a Commodore and a Raven (double stack that uses P14 mags)... $250 each OTD! BEAUTIFUL guns for the $$$$

[rblack]

Thanks, You did better on price than me. I paid $300 out the door. I believe these are the sleepers of the 1911 industry...........

[hitman joe]

Originally Posted by vicg1

I have a Commodore and a Raven (double stack that uses P14 mags)... $250 each OTD! BEAUTIFUL guns for the $$$$

hi vic your a lucky, guy getting a raven in $250. it is much more cheaper there than here in the Phils. raven is about $375 & commodore is about $279 a piece. they have also a new oven baked teflon coating finish in olive or drab green. this cost an additional of $71 for the whole unit(slide & frame) or $36 for a 2-tone look(matte black w/ olive green). i talked to the in-charge in the factory of SAM and he mentioned to me that before doing the teflon coating finish, the firearm unit will be parkerized first for finish durability. SAM surely making their units better & better every year. i cheap unit for a 1911 flatform pistol? SAM surely fits in your budget!!

[vicg1]

I could have had them for $200 each OTD but the dealer was a friend and I wanted him to make some $$$... afterall, that's how he makes his living. Century had a closeout 2 hour sale on these a few months back and they were $169-189 each depending on model. They all went very fast... shame Century won't be selling any more (unless someone else does at the same super-bargain price).

[vicg1]

Originally Posted by rblack

Thanks, You did better on price than me. I paid $300 out the door. I believe these are the sleepers of the 1911 industry...........

still a good deal when you compare it to everything else out there... I had a Colt Officers ACP in SS, bought it new in 1996 I think and paid about $650 for it... unreliable (but pretty). That one was sold off about a year ago for the same $650 and now I have 2 SAMs that work well for less $

[rblack]

Well I like the Commodore so much I went back to the show today and found the full size ( Elite ) from another dealer for $250. Brought it home and did the same detail strip and clean and put about 50 rounds of JHP's thru it this afternoon without any problems except the extended slide stop got bumped up a couple of times locking the slide. Accuracy is very good and it feeds HP's like butter. I did put some smooth Ahrends gaboon ebony grips on it to make it look nicer. I'm very impressed with these guns and think they have been very underated. Very few tooling marks on the inside and the outside of the guns are done nicely. Here is a pic

[ironbow37]

I just picked up a SAM Chief model 45 today in a trade.....shoots great, but I do not know what if any aftermarket sights or full length guide rods will fit it I sure could use so imput.

[domzilla9]

How compatible are the S.A.M.'s with parts of other 1911 clones? Are they a good alternative for a "low budget/fishing 1911" to the Firestorm?

[vicg1]

Originally Posted by domzilla9

How compatible are the S.A.M.'s with parts of other 1911 clones? Are they a good alternative for a "low budget/fishing 1911" to the Firestorm?

they are THE BEST value in 1911 pistols out there IMO. Put my factory enhanced Colt Officers ACP to shame in performance (sad...) GI parts are said to interchange 100% but I haven't swapped anything out yet myself.

[Sunburnt627]

domzilla9, I own a Firestorm .45 Gov't and it shoots GREAT. Never had a jam, never a misfire, never a problem except that the plunger screws continually came loose during firing.(which I easily fixed with some locktight) Other than that, I have never had a problem and would strongly recommend this gun. I don't know about the S.A.M. Commodore, you might want to try it. Sounds like a great gun.

[gsis shooter]

Hi guys! My first 1911 pistol was SAM Commodore which I bought here in the Philippines for about $200 at that time (year 2000 exchange rate of pesos to dollars). I encountered problem with the ejector and sear but instead of having it repaired, I sold it. I bought another 1911 pistol, a SAM Government model, this time it has no feeding problem and functions perfectly well. Again, have it sold as I want to have a high capacity 1911. I bought SAM Falcon 1911, factory customized to fit my shooting needs. The slide is hard-chromed, top bridge with fiber optics. Trigger-pull is about 2.5 lbs, very nice to shoot. Uses para p14.45 mags or mecgar 14.45 mags. Competes very well side by side with high ends 1911 like STI, Para-Ordnance, Colt, etc. I love this gun, bought it for about $400 last year. Im planning to purchase a SAM 1911 Officer model this coming gun show, Nov. 25-29, 2004. However the price is getting higher and higher. I envy you there in the states, the prices of SAM pistols there are very much cheaper as compared here.

[gsis shooter]

domzilla9,

I cannot categorically say that SAM 1911 is good alternative to Firestorm 1911 but you can try it. I can only say that SAM 1911 pistols are 100% parts interchangeability with other standard 1911's. I admire Firestorm for their fine craftmanship and affordable prices but their 1911's are not yet tested here in the PHILIPPINES. Firestorm pistols are anyway Bersa of Argentina, noted for fine carry pistols, caliber .40s&w, 9mm, and .380acp.

_______
SAM Falcon
Taurus PT92 SS
Elisco AR-15 "13.5
G-30, (Soon)
cOLT OFFICER
STI 2011 (dream pistol)
Steyr-Aug (dream assault rifle)

[hitman joe]

gsis shooter,

try to check sam's new toy's the DELTA & SIGMA models. both have a long dust cover frame with square shape trigger guard and squarish shape slide. it's like a mini S_I model's. they have also this .40 cal. hi-cap pistol the ALPHA model. if you like your FALCON, for sure you will love their ALPHA model pistol. it has the same frame as to your falcon but in long dust cover. the slide have a front and rear serrations. i dont know how to post pictures but you can visit their updated website at www.shootersarms.com.ph. the pictures are not really good to look at but i had spoken already to mr. rhone de leon and he said they can do oven bake teflon coated finish, hard chroming & parkerizing. just try to visit their booth in this coming gunshow so that you can ask them personally and check their new items also. have a good and wise hunting my friend

BTW, magkano mo na bili yung AR15 mo?

[gsis shooter]

hitman joe,

Yes, indeed new SAM products are becoming better, the style is unique especially the sigma. I'm planning to purchase also the alpha, parang STI nga ang dating. It will add to my collection tamang tama I dont have .40s&w pistol yet. I bought my AR-15 just for 30k, very old na. Had it refurbished, anodized, replaced it with new grip, new delta ring from pascual gunworks, and installed it wid tas red dot BK30RD optics. Total cost now around 50k, including the licensing fee at FED. Anyway, I was able to beat the deadline for loose firearm application for licensing last july 7, 2004. Had it installed pala a new muzzle break (two holes sideways) which i bought from starfire, fun to shoot, no felt recoil whatsoever even if its not pressed against your right chest, ok lang. However,the sound blast is very deafening especially when you dont have the earmuff. The ammo is littler bit expensive, at Php14 each for fmj at truweight, but if you have plenty of m16 shells, you can have it reloaded at the same store for only Php11 each. But what the heck, I love this sport and I have no vice, I dont gamble or womanize. To hear gunshots during competitions is just like music to my ears, hahaha!

[hitman joe]

gsis_shooter,

i am also thinking of getting a customized S.A.M ALPHA to have an extended ambi-safety, 2-tone finish & change the sights with any low profile snag free 3-dot night sights available on stock in any gunstore shelves in P.I.

thanks btw for the info about your AR-15. i am just curious with regards to AR-15/M16/M4 carbine & other semi-auto/full auto rifles.

i was into airgun before and not to brag about it, i am a good shooter either in practice or competitions. and i was thinking of going to rifle's just to see the difference between the two. and also to check if my magic in air rifles still works on it's big brother, those powder rifles.

[thomsonprof]

Hey guys, I went hog wild a couple of years ago, and fell in love with some .45 1911 model grips that were being sole out there by a guy on Ebay. I already owned about ten various government models, but there were way to many grips that I fell in love with, so I went out of my mind, and bought about 40 pistols, from Kimbers, to Rock Island, and a ton of the SAM pistols. I want to tell you, that after you break these bargain .45's in, the inexpensive ones are just as good as the most expensive Kimbers. I think I probably have one of the largest .45 collections around now, as I have just about every model made, from every manufacturer to the calibers out there. .38 Special, Super .38's, .45, 10mm, 9mm, .22, you name it, I have it. I still don't have as many guns as grips, but I'm getting closer. Keep shooting, and remember, with a little sandpaper, and a decent file set, you can make a Llama shoot just as nice as a 2,000 Kimber!!!

[murdoch]

Originally Posted by domzilla9

How compatible are the S.A.M.'s with parts of other 1911 clones? Are they a good alternative for a "low budget/fishing 1911" to the Firestorm?

Any aftermarket upgrade parts will fit your SAM. They're now made to exacting standards as I heard that the factory has invested in new CNC machines.

[Kodadek]

I really like how they did up the top strap on the model I saw at a local Gunshow (dealer wanted five hundred for it and I laughed in his face), a raised and flattened top strap? At first I was put off but then intrigued and I really and I mean really liked the finish on the one I saw. The gun so blue it was near black, the grips? MEH, I'm a Pachmayr or skateboard and VZ Operator kind of guy. Next gunshow I go to if that clown still has it I'll over him 350 straight up and out the door...funny with how he tried to overprice that but he had SS CMC Powermags for 22 bucks a pop for eight rounders and 26 for the ten rounders.

Wondering if the design of the slide makes it harder to fit into standard holsters?