The brew guy

Picked up the Colt a couple days ago. I haven't had a chance to try it out yet, but I did strip it down and give it a good cleaning. My initial thoughts on the Colt, as compared to my Springfield Loaded Stainless and my wife's Para Expert Stainless, are as follows. The Colt comes packed in the standard blue case with egg crate foam interior. This is a little nicer than the molded interior of the Para case but a far cry from the cut foam Springfield case. Inside the case are the usual lock, paperwork and two 7 rd, blued mags. The mags appear to be made about the same quality as the Springfield's stainless mags, the Para came with two 8 round mags with rubber base plates that are of similar quality. The gun itself, came out of it's plastic bag with a pretty good coating of oil. A quick wipe revealed a smooth, deep blue finish. The Commander is a fairly basic 1911 so it doesn't come with all the upgrades that the other two 1911s have. The hardwood grips are attractive and seem to be very well made, much nicer than the plastic grips that came on the Para but not as nice as the gorgeous grips on the Springfield. Oddly, the right grip is cut for an ambi safety. Hopefully the gun will break in quickly, because it seems very stiff. The thumb safeties on the other 2 click back and forth smoothly with just a little nudge, I'm sure the extra leverage of their extended safeties (ambi on the Springer) is part of why they feel so good. The Colt is old school and it's early-style safety requires substantially more force to operate. The mag release is also pretty stiff, mags won't drop free unless it is held all the way in and some mags will not insert without depressing it while other mags go in, but with substantial resistance. The trigger aslo seems a little heavier than the other 1911s. It's a series 80, but so is the Para and that is not noticeably heavier than the Springfield. I'd guess that the Colt requires 20-25% more force than the other two. Disassembly and cleaning allowed a good look at the workmanship and I was happy to find fit and finish equal to my Springfield. The Para is probably equal in quality but is built to a lower price point and the simple bead-blasted finish is, IMHO, not as attractive as the mix of polished, brushed and matte surfaces on the 2 more expensive firearms. The only negative for the Colt was the slide release, it was a bear to get out requiring a good smack with a plastic screwdriver handle to remove. As I mentioned, I have not fired the Colt yet. The tight safety, mag release and slide release and the slightly heavier trigger may improve with use. The Springfield and Para have been trouble free so far with no failures after 700-800 rounds through the Springfield and about half as many through the Para. I'm not good enough to have uncovered any issues with accuracy with either of them. For now, my opinion is that the Colt Commander is a well made, simple 1911. The price is not unreasonable but you are paying a bit of a premium for the Colt roll mark. For comparison, my Stainless Springfield cost me less than $40 more but included a number of upgrades, came in a better case and included a coupon for accessories at a big discount. This is a first impression only and is likely to change with a trip or two to the range.

No, I haven't had a chance to look for a link, but the headline is "gun in car could land him in prison."

Wow, front page headline in today's Star Ledger. All publicity is good, right?

I've had no problems with Blazer, but it's sold out as already mentioned. Mini-mags are $8.99/100 (limit 5), add the Fed Automatch and the shipping isn't so bad.

that's the reply I got, word for word. I guess they've needed it often enough to have saved it.

I'm very sorry for your loss. It's always so difficult to put a good friend down, even though you know it's the right thing to do. It's harder for you, but it sounds like she was happy right up to the end and she probably wasn't in too much pain.

LOL, I get that, and I didn't mean to sound argumentative. I just know first hand that they will sell non-serialized parts in NJ and that they do have NJ FFL's on their list. It makes little sense that they won't sell a lower to a NJ resident. I'm going to email and ask about their policy. Like I said, their system didn't red flag my NJ address, maybe the "no sales" is an error. If not, I want to hear their explanation.

Is this a new policy or is it only for items that require a transfer? I bought an upper and BCG from them last fall and they had no problem shipping to me at the time. Edit: I'm not currently looking to start another build and I've already spent my firearms budget for the next couple months, but this seems to be a great price (if we in NJ can get it) and I've been thinking about another build this fall/winter. I was able to add this to my cart (signed in with my NJ address) and choose my (NJ) FFL. I haven't entered my CC, so they could still reject my order or cancel it after it's completed but I'm curious to see if it would go through.

I have one 9mm that's pretty finicky about what it will run correctly. It likes to double feed and the first trip back to the manufacturer didn't help. Until I get around to sending it in again, I'll just use the one ammo that has never had any sort of problem, Fiocchi. MagTech, Herter's and UMC have been OK, with only 1 or 2 issues per box/50, I had 4 double feeds in a box of PMC, but I haven't had a single problem with Fiocchi yet. At the other end of the spectrum is Federal and Blazer Brass, I can't remember the last time I made it through a magazine of either of them without having to clear a double feed. The good news is that I've become proficient at clearing double feeds, the bad news is I need to send the gun in again. BTW, I thought I'd heard somewhere that Herter's (black box) is also made by S&B. Edit; http://njgunforums.com/forum/index.php/topic/77369-fiocchi-9mm-20-centsrd-shipped/

Well, after a handful of replies I started looking at Kimber again. I kept coming back to the Compact CDP and, specs wise, it's pretty similar to the RO Compact but with Trijicon sights (a plus), checkered front strap (never tried it, but I'll call it a plus) and ambi safety (I don't really want it in this case. As pretty as it is, the price tag is 50% higher than the Springfield and it's simply out of my price range at this time. I figure I can re-visit the "4" barrel/shortened grip" combination next time and maybe the budget will allow more options. In the mean time, the Colt covers the "4-4.25" barrel/ full size grip" combination that I was considering and it got the most votes. I ordered the Colt.

A few months ago I got an email promoting the newly released Rock Island Ultra SE. It looked really nice for it's $399 intro price. That's what made me decide to get a couple more permits.

Oops, I knew what you meant but screwed up in my reply. That's what I get for posting when I should have been asleep. Clearly, I was also referring to barrel length but used the word slide in error. In my defense, I had been looking at parts for custom builds and the slides were defined by the barrel length they were meant to use.

I am quite happy with my 22/45 and my wife's SR-22 eats any cheap ammo that it's offered, so I'd consider a Ruger. The Night Watchman might be an option. I'd considered it, and it's not off the list, but I'm leaning toward the Compact if I go with another Springfield. Any particular reason for the Champion over the Compact? I have to admit that it would be way too easy to become a multiple SA owner, my Loaded has about 500 rounds through it and has been flawless except for 1 FTF (Blazer brass, nice strike mark and it fired the second time, I suspect a sketchy primer). I'd like to have all three sizes eventually, and it could easily become more than just three. My understanding is that the Commander is traditionally a 4.25" slide on a Govt frame, but there are a handful of 3 and 3,5" Commanders out now. The "Officer's size" was originally a Commander slide on a reduced frame, but it seems that you can find them with 3, 3.5, 4 and 4.25" slides now. Maybe it's time to break that last group in two. And Hmmm. I'd forgotten about the rebate, I may have to take another look at the R1. .45acp only right now. It's the only caliber I reload for now and I'd like to stick with it for this purchase. I may own a 9mm 1911 one day, but I suspect 38 super will come first. Being as that you're the second to mention it, any particular reason for suggesting the full size over the compact?

Seconded

I like the Kimbers that I've seen so far, especially the Compact. Unfortunately, the Compact CDP II is a few hundred above the price point I am looking for. The Compact Stainless is a little closer but I wasn't looking for another Stainless 1911. The Ultra Carry is closer still but I'm not sure about a 3" barrel and it's still $100+ above where I want to be. The Kimbers seem to be very well made, but I'm not convinced they are worth a significant premium above the Colt or SA. I hadn't heard of Fusion so I checked out the website. $2600 and up just ain't gonna happen right now. Thanks for the input though.

I think I've been bitten by the 1911 bug. My first is a Springfield Loaded Stainless (PX9151LP) and I'm enjoying the heck out of it, every chance I get. I have a permit with about a month left on it and I'm thinking it might be a good time to add another 1911. I'd like something different this time, different size, different color, different gadgets, different feel. I like the idea of a commander or officer size and I'm sure I'll have both eventually. I've always liked the "old school" look of the earlier 1911s and I have a fondness for blued guns. The budget isn't huge by 1911 standards. I'd started off looking at the low end of the range, ATI and RIA, but decided I could come up a little from there. Currently, the leaders are: Springfield Range Officer Compact, I love my current Springer and this is different enough to be interesting. -OR- Colt Commander, I like the old style thumb safety and blue finish, but is that full size grip and 4.25" barrel enough of a difference? Both of these can be found for $700-750 plus FFL and NICS fees, That's going to be my limit, otherwise the Kimber Ultra Carry might have made the list. I'm open to suggestions other than these, and would love to hear the thoughts of those more experienced in 1911s than I am.

I took my wife to the First Steps-Pistol course at Heritage Guild a couple years ago, they brought out a bunch of rental guns for the range portion of the course, My wife liked the Kimber the most, until she saw the price. She now has a Para Expert 1911 and a SR-22. Don't assume she'll like a .22, have her try a few different guns and make up her own mind.

Not many sizes left, I could only get khaki. If you're average sized you may be out of luck already.

Great :roll eyes:, another chance for Christie to make a high profile case go away instead of fixing the real problem, and to fool a few more suckers into believing he is less of an anti than Obama.

Typical attempt at misinformation.

Of course, I can only go by my experience at the one location, but yes, they brought out 7 guns and everyone got the chance to try any or all. Ammo was supplied as well, including for those who had brought their own firearms with them. You should probably call and confirm that this is the case with any other range, if you decide to do this. Might even want to check that this hasn't changed at HG if you decide to go there. I am very certain that the course did more to get my wife started than I could have done on my own.

I was in the same spot a couple years ago. I hadn't fired anything in over 20 years and my wife had only taken a few shots with a .22 rifle way back in the 80's. I decided to let her ease in slowly by signing us up for an NRA First Steps Pistol course at Heritage Guild, this had the added benefit of allowing her to try out a few different guns during the range portion of the course. In our case, the range time included use a S&W 22A (similar to the MK III) and a SR22, along with a LCR, 686+, M&P9, Glock 19 and Kimber Custom II. Much to my surprise, and hers, we both liked the 1911 more than anything else. We each got 2 permits and planed to each get a .22 (cheap to shoot) and a 1911. She ended up with a SR22 and a Para Expert. I had planned to go with a MK III, 22/45 or Buckmark but somehow ended up with a 9mm instead, availability of .22 ammo had a lot to do with it. I also went with a Springfield Loaded Stainless. Her SR22 is a lot of fun and, as expected is much cheaper to use than .45acp. I've had no trouble getting .22 ammo at reasonable prices so I'm planning to pick up a .22 for my self next. What I'm getting at is, in my experience, a course might help her become more comfortable and would allow her to try a few different firearms. She just might surprise you by deciding what she likes on her own and it might not be a .22.

Springfield 1911 loaded stainless, Sccy CPX-2, AR-15 and Mosin Nagant.

GSA has had mini-mags the last few times I was there.I don't remember the price but it wasn't unreasonable.

NJs liquor laws are as screwed up as the gun laws. They've made a lot of improvements in the last decade but there's still a long way to go. I work in Middlesex and, if it isn't obvious from my screen name, I've made a few hundred gallons of beer. I even looked into going pro myself at one point. I'll have to check this out. Local breweries need all the support they can get.