1911Forum banner

So how does the Sig 1911 Stack up?

9K views 36 replies 24 participants last post by  parkerdt 
#1 ·
My experience with 1911s is limited - a Remington Governmet issue my Dad brought back from WW II, and an early vintage Llama IX-A. The Llama actually shoots pretty well, and my wife and I are both within the 10-X ring at 10 yards with it. I shoot my Dad's Remington on occasion, but it is not an everyday gun.

We have a Sig P238 Rosewood which we LOVE, so we're interested in the 1911 Nitron Rail. This would likely end up being a bedside gun for me, if it all works out.

Why does Sig seemingly get so little love for these 1911s? I am not brand snobbish, (SW, Ruger, Glock, Llama, CZ, Remington, as well as Sig in our safe) but I do want a modern 1911 that has availble parts, etc.

Comments, please?

Dave
 
#3 ·
Well I'm not sure if I'm qualified to answer but I have owned quite a few 1911's over the years then got away from them for the more modern stuff! I even managed to ruin an M&P .45 in less then a month! Now I've come full circle and am back to 1911's In the last week I bought a Taurus PT1911 and a 1911 Scorpion which I must say is the best feeling 1911 I have ever owned! I personally have never heard anything bad about the Sig's so I don't know where the "no love for Sig 1911's" comes from but I have never seen it. As a matter of fact I like mine so much I ordered a carry Nightmare and a carry Scorpion today!
 
#4 ·
Have had a Sig1911 Stainless for over a year. Absolutely no problems and remains my current favorite. Very accurate shooter. Have two Springers and a Kimber each with their share of problems initially.
 
#5 · (Edited)
No love for Sig 1911s - just because all I seem to hear about are Kimber, Les Baer, S&W customs, etc.

I want a reliable gun that will hold up, and shoot well for the rest of my life and that I can pass down, as my Dad did his 1911. I just don't hear much talk about reliability, accuracy and longevity with Sig 1911s.

But we love our P238, and find its quality to be superior to the average polymer .380, for sure!

So, I'm just after some opinions, really :) I love the look of the Sig Nitron Rail, but plenty of other guns look similar.

thanks,
Dave
 
#7 ·
I really don't think you will be disappointed with a Sig and one of the brands you named I would never own under any circumstances!

1911's need tlc if you take care of it it will take care of you!!! For a long time!






No love for Sig 1911s - just because all I seem to hear about are Kimbers, Les Bauers, S&W customs, etc.

I want a reliable gun that will hold up, and shoot well for the rest of my life and that I can pass down, as my Dad did his 1911. I just don't hear much talk about reliability, accuracy and longevity with Sig 1911s.

But we love our P238, and find its quality to be superior to the average polymer .380, for sure!

So, I'm just after some opinions, really :) I love the look of the Sig Nitron Rail, but plenty of other guns look similar.

thanks,
Dave
 
#6 ·
That's Les Baer, 1911 padawan. ;)

Sig got a rough start with their 1911's. They were originally built on Caspian slides/frames with no MIM parts (mostly assembled with billet pieces from Greider Precision IIRC). The problem is (especially with 1911s), a gun is not necessarily the sum of it's parts. Even taking parts from the best manufacturers, you can't simply "assemble" a 1911 with off the shelf stuff and expect it to go bang without some careful, skilled fitting. There is some finesse required - which many of Sig's earlier 1911's didn't get. Many of them malfunctioned quite a bit, which tarnished Sig's reputation in the 1911 market.

As of late, production has been brought entirely in-house by Sig, a minimal amount of MIM is being used (with great success and very high quality, I might add), and fit/finish/quality/reliability has gone up exponentially. The result is that you get a gun with a quality level on par with Kimber and SA's $1200 guns, with even more features, for much less money. They are currently the most underrated 1911's on the market in my opinion.

Sig has always been great at building high quality mass-produced guns. Now that they have applied that ability to their 1911 line, they are cranking out some excellent guns.

The short of it? Get that Nitron Rail and shoot the snot out of it. You'll love it.
 
#11 · (Edited)
Thanks, all! Seems like I'm getting a Sig Nitron Rail when our next set of permits (or the CCHs!) come in in a few weeks. Hopefully pick it up in Exeter when I am on vacation, tho, obviously it has to be shipped to a FFL here at home.

I love shooting 1911s. The price of ammo, not so much! But at a distance where I'd have to defend myself? Heck, I'd even take my Llama over any 9mm I've ever owned. What a great, timeless design for a pistol. And beautiful, too.

As for sticking around, this will be my 3rd 1911. Why wouldn't I stick around? Just sad it took so long to get here!

thanks,
Dave
 
#14 ·
Thanks, I spent 3 years in Exeter in high school - '69 through '71; amazes me there is a Sig plant there now, so I tend to forget the Academy/Pro shop is in Epping. I'm already in touch with them, and if one is not available for my visit, I'm also in touch with my LGS who would be the FFL recipient of anything shipped, and is a SIGnificant dealer.

Just a matter of time and $ and permits, now, I think.
 
#15 ·
Many years ago, I purchased an Auto Ordnance Commander-sized 1911 through a friend. It was a POS. I sold it and I stayed away from 1911s until last year, when I purchased my SIG 1911 Target, based on the great performance I have gotten from my SIG P226 in .40, my SIG P220 in .45 and my SIG P239 in .40 S & W. This 1911 has proven 100% reliable with properly assembled reloads and any brand of factory ammo I've run through it. I liked it so much that I'm now saving my pennies to buy a SIG 1911 Carry Nitron. SIGs only dud handgun is the Mosquito. Mine turned out to be next to worthless.
 
#16 ·
I bought one of the very early SIGs and had numerous problems with it, to the point that SIG replaced it with another GSR that was absolutely perfect from day one. SIG customer service was excellent. It got away from me last year, so I have bought a 5" Nightmare. I have also got into Dan Wessons and have three.

As far as functionality, the SIG gives nothing away to the Dan Wessons. The DW's are naturally better in fit and finish, as should be the case given the higher prices. My first SIG was fully as accurate as the Dan Wessons. I haven't fired the Nightmare enough to say yet.

SIG makes a fine 1911. If I had to chose between Colt and SIG, the Colt would not get a second look.
 
#17 ·
Why does Sig seemingly get so little love for these 1911s? I am not brand snobbish, (SW, Ruger, Glock, Llama, CZ, Remington, as well as Sig in our safe) but I do want a modern 1911 that has availble parts, etc.

Comments, please?

Dave
IMO, (and this is only from just recently learning about the SIG 1911 (GSR) history), they have been sorting out their sourcing and assembly problems.

Their 1911 platform has a blanket referral term of GSR, which I believe the
4th generation is now being produced.(Somebody will correct my recollection errors.) The second gen actually has some REALLY great pistols in it that were/are exrtemely undervalued. These current 4th gen. pistols are incredible, as they stack up to the competition, and are undervalued as well.

The "competition" in my safe is an STI TargetMaster and a Caspian Custom, painstakingly hand-crafted by PO to a benchmark for 1911s.

My other 1911s do not have a light rail for Duty, so I started shopping those 1911s and found: higher prices on comparative pistols that were not made in U.S.A.. (Made in USA is a deal breaker for me, I like to support great American jobs.)

Available parts that you'd probably swap out eventually, anyway, can be had from www.10-8.com ; slide stop, disconnector, trigger swap, whatever your personal tastes are in triggers. If you're on the brink of buyin one just shoot me a PM about a great gunbroker dealer for SIGs.
 
#18 ·
I love my Extreme. It was a great shooter out of the box, but I am a tinkerer. It is now sporting full Wilson Combat bullet proof firing controls, an Infinity trigger, and is about to get fitted with Trijicon HD sights. I love the fact it already has a good set of grips on it with a magwell, front strap checkering, and the fit/finish of a $2k gun. I looked at a Colt rail gun and was not impressed with the fit/finish. It was also $600 ($1400) more and still would have been tinkered with.
 
#20 ·
Sig Respect

I think Sig's are starting to get the respect that the 1911's deserve. Each model is a fine weapon that are as accurate as the Kimber's or other custom .45's. I know some of the models have custom barrels and triggers. I own the Sig Ultra compact. And it is just as much a tack driver as my P226 is. And I can't believe that I paid $500 less than I would have had to pay to have a comparable Kimber model. I think my pistol is totally awesome and I'd put it's reliability and quality up against .45's costing $500 more. And when it comes time to buy another .45, I'll be buying another Sig Sauer 1911.
 
#23 · (Edited)
My wife and I both shoot our late 60's vintage Llama IX-A .45 ACP which is not really a 1911 clone (but some interchangeable parts). We shoot this pistol more on target at 10 yards than our Glock 34 or our SW M&P 9c or our Sig P238. 10 yards is as far as we go at this point with these handguns, so beyond that I don't know. But we both like 1911s for sure.

At 59, my eyes and muscle tone are not what they once were, for sure, and it is refreshing to find a 1911 is still the most accurate option for me. Iron sights and all.

Dave
 
#25 ·
I'd say my 5'' Scorpion can stack up against my Springfield TRP Operator in accuracy at the range. With any shooting ability, the Scorpion can hold some very tight groups like the TRP. Although if both 1911's were locked in a pistol shooting device, the TRP may edge it out. This thread reminds me of the day when I picked-up my Scorpion at my LGS when I was talking with the owner. I mentioned to him about how the Scorpion will be vs the TRP and he was real interested in hearing my opinon on the range report of the two. He guessed it would be about the same and he was pretty much correct. The Sig 1911's can stack up.
 
#29 ·
Thanks for the reply, and interesting - list price is almost $150 different. I'm right handed, so ambi doesn't mean much to me, and I am not sure what the magwell even does, functionally. And I really like the look of the grips on the Nitron. Reminds me much more of my Dad's Remington GI issue.

Dave
 
#30 ·
The magwell "funnels" the magazine into the gun. Helpful under the stress of competition, and, I hope to never prove, under real fire. :eek:

If you don't need night sights I've seen railed TacPacs, which are basically railed XOs around $600 on Gun Broker. Same gun, different sights and grips. Comes with a holster and a "laser" for your rail. Holster is just okay, haven't seen one of the lasers up close.
 
#32 ·
Sig Sauer

I am new to this forum and to 1911s. My local gun dealer has known me though for about 30 years. One day early in the summer of 2011 he showed me a Sig C3 and said it would appeal to me. I handled it and tried the trigger.....smooth, very smooth. The C3 was only a few months old with about 200 rds through it when I took it to a four day course at Frontsight in Pahrump, NV. I put about 500 rds through it in those four days without a single malfunction. The accuracy was everything anyone could ask for. It has continued to function without problems since then (about six months now). The Frontsight course was in Feb 2012. I am sold on the 1911 models. In my limited opinion based on this one piece, the Sigs are really good stuff.
 
#33 ·
I have six 1911s, one being a 5" Sig XO (Nitron finish).
The tolerances are super tight, and the result of that is outstanding accuracy.
It's the best shooter by far (the Springfield and Kimber tie for second place)...
I love to shoot it, but I'd never carry it because I don't want to buy a "Sig-Specific holster" to accommodate that funky squared-top slide.
 
This is an older thread, you may not receive a response, and could be reviving an old thread. Please consider creating a new thread.
Top