1911 vs. XD
 

OK, so I've kind of been half a$$edly(?) looking around for a 1911 here for a little while, and can't for the life of me come up with the right way to go. There's that crowd that says spend no less than 2 grand on the gun, before upgrades, the crowd that says buy a mid-range gun, and leave it alone, the crowd that says anything under $500 should be used as trotline weights, guys that say a $450 gun is fine, blah, blah, blah.

Then comes the 'break-in' period. some say 500 rounds of ball ammo and after a few FTE's or FTF's and your ready to go. But no, some guns are ready NIB.

With all this to consider, all the upgrades, parts that may or may not drop in, being picky when it comes to ammo, andspending up to a grand or even a lot more, what, if anything, is keeping me from buying an XD, sig, or ruger?? I'm not loyal enough to any one company, and although the 1911 is historical, famous, and whatnot, to me, right now i just dont feel like the hassle that could follow it. CCW is a big no-no here, so I don't need to discus that, but I'm just looking fora weapon to KEEP, that goes BANG, and will be fun/easy to shoot/practice with. I haven't heard anything negative about the XD. I kind of like the 4" Xd40 in OD green, which, by the way, is more inexpensive than most 1911's

Sorry about being long(the beer flowed early) Any Thoughts???

RE: 1911 vs. XD
 

dont know what your looking for EXZACTLY...carry gun...plinker....home protection to keep in the drawer beside the bed...just another toy to shoot ect.....and dont know your pistol shooting abilities.....some 1911s are known for jamming because of limp wristing....you dont handle it properly and its not going to function properly.....ive shot alot of pistols for only being 19...but never shot and XD....sigs and glocks are both pretty dang user friendly IMHO....both shoot good and go bang when you pull the trigger...but dad is on a Kimber 1911 kick right now.....and been shooting a full sized tactial now...he loves it..i ran a box through it and loved it....that thing shot GOOD...i used to shoot pistols every week with him and got pretty dang good for being a youngun..i havent got to shoot a pistol on over a year...picked the kimber up and was shooting GOOD.....we also have many Sigs and Glocks in the house....all shoot good.....just depends what your looking for....if you dont REALLY need a 45 id go with a 9mm...just becuase ammo is cheaper and it sounds like your looking for a plinker....and the recoil is less if your new to pistol shooting...i dont know..for a full sized 9mm i think its hard to beat a Sig 226....depends what you want to do with the pistol.......for a TRUE cheap easy to use plinker i LOVE my browning buckmark in 22cal!..

RE: 1911 vs. XD
 

The XD is an outstanding gun. A 1911 that is put together right is also. Springfield sells such a 1911 calledthe 'Milspec' for around $450.

RE: 1911 vs. XD
 

You might want to go and check out some Kimber's That could make up your mind for you.;)

RE: 1911 vs. XD
 

Well, for 38 years in the Army, I used a pre-Series 70 Colt Gold Cup (SN 10XXX NM) as my duty sidearm with total success! At one time, as a member of a pistol team, I fired over 500 rounds of GI hardball per week thru the thing for over a year, and all I ever had to do was to replace the brittle roll pin that the rear sight leaf pivoted on. It was too brittle for hardball and kept shattering. I finally replaced it with the shank of a Herter's fish-hook, and that never broke. I later put a Wolf 26# recoil spring in it when I was using hot handloads in it. I gave it to my daughter, and it was in as good shape as when I bought it in 1964 at Frontier Sporting Goods inFairbanks, AK.

I guess the amount you spend (=the degree of custom work) on a handgun would depend on the use you intend to put it to. A RELIABLE M1911 with a decent trigger does NOT have to cost a couple grand! If you are looking for X-ring accuracy at 50 yards, it will cost a little more!

RE: 1911 vs. XD
 

I have a Ruger KP97 in .45 acp. I have had no propblems. I did have a few failures to feer which was caused by limp wristing it. I paid $379.99 for it. I will never get rid of it. They stopped making it cause they came out with the P345. My friend recently bought one which has a few improvements then my gun. He paid $459.99.

I like Ruger and have no complaints about them.

RE: 1911 vs. XD
 

I have an XD Tactical 40 and love it. Wouldn't mind having a 1911 though. The 4" XD is every bit as accurate as the 5" tactical model.

RE: 1911 vs. XD
 

i like the springfield 1911 also, i own a kimber tactical II and the Springfield 1911s and love them both. Kimber = $1000, Springfield = $430

RE: 1911 vs. XD
 

I gave my wife Hoyt girl a XD subcompact 9mm for XMAS this year. She loves it and it fires every time you pull the trigger and shoots very well. Springfields are great guns. I have a Glock mod 21 45acp with a lasermax on it and it always goes bang when you pull the trigger and is a pretty accurate gun. Both are tough as nails and always go bang. FWIW, I have heard other guys on another forum complaining that when they had problems with their Kimber 1911's that a Dennis in their custom shop is impossible to deal with and the company is hard to get them to honor warranty work.

RE: 1911 vs. XD
 

You mention you can't carry. Here is a funlooking pistol.Only $499. .223 Kel tec

RE: 1911 vs. XD
 

i enjoy shooting 1911 model pistols more than anyother pistol and never had problems wiht kimber at ALL my next will be the sig gsr 1911 talk about a sweet gun

RE: 1911 vs. XD
 

The gun would mainly be used as a plinker/home defense, so 45acp would be plenty. Actually my 357 will be the primary bedside home defense weapon, so I'll probably end upbuying a 9mm/.40

I would rate my handgun expirience at moderate at best. I'm a hunter, not a collector. Right now my safe is holding a dozen firearms(10 long guns), all of which were purchased to hunt with. I've shot quite a few other handguns though. The gun I'm looking for now will be the first one purchased outside of the hunting realm, and probably my last purchase for a while, so I'm not wanting to F this up.

I did venture into asporting goodsstoretoday to look around and get prices. Seen a xd40(12+1) 4" black finish for $469, A S&W sigma(.40, 14+1) for $349, and a Ruger p944t .40 for $419. All prices are NIB before tax and transfer. The smith and the springfield felt about the same, wasn't a big fan of the fit of the ruger.

Also, why is it that a 9mm is around a hundred dollars more than a .40 in the same gun? Is it a supply/demand issue??

RE: 1911 vs. XD
 

I am biased because I am a 1911 fan through and through. God's own gunmaker (John M. Browning) invented the 1911 with devine intervention!!! ;)I know I speak the truth because all you have to do is pick one up and feel it. :D

ILOVE my Para LDA SSP "Blackwatch". That bein said, the XD is a fine piece and will serve you well for a lifetime.But for the money the plain jane, Springfield 1911M1 mil-spec 1911 is a GREAT piece especially when you consider it can be had for under $500 brand new. I would put it up against ANY XD. It's just a matter of choice as to which style pistol you want.

Good luck,
RA

RE: 1911 vs. XD
 

I love my Browning HI-Power, of all my guns. Easy to use, and clean.

RE: 1911 vs. XD
 

two different styles of guns. I would say whichever fits you the best. I myself have an XD9 and it's probably the best gun for the money on the market. Out of 2300 rounds, i haven't had one FTE or FTF. Springfield makes a great gun. The XD just fits ergonomically and economically. However the 1911 has a big following. I would look at springfields rendition.

RE: 1911 vs. XD
 

id get tha kind i liked. i like 1911's.. i also like the CZ pistols. i don't like the XD's looks; but their supposed ta be top notch guns that fit yer hand perfect. but i like the bottom line GI model 1911 so that's what id get cuz it's my $$$.....

early

PS unless i was gettin it fer my wife. in that case id get what she likes.

RE: 1911 vs. XD
 

I've got 2 XD's one in 9mm and the other in .45 ACP, both have been great. You can get the XD .45 for less than$500 on gunbroker. It's alot of gun for the money and alot less expensive than the Kimber's without a tremendous sacrifice in quality. Another nice feature the xd's and glock's have over the cz97 or GI Issue 1911 is the accessory rail. I recently cashed in my basspro points on a streamlight tlr-1, it doesn't effect the balance/handling of the pistol at all and throws a blinding beam of led light could give a split second's advantage in a SHTF homedefense scenario.

I also had a S&W Sigma 9mm for a while, in my opinion it is not in the same class as the XD. It felt fine in the hand, but the trigger was terribly heavy. If you choose to go the Sigmaroute make sure you dry fire it or rent one at a range before you buy, I think you'll see what I mean.

For more handgun specific info check out www.thefiringline.com and for xd specific info check out www.xdtalk.com