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What's the least expensive brand of 1911 style pistol I can rely on? Rock Island/Armscor? Springfield? Taurus? I'm not looking for anything pretty (Kimber, Colt, etc), I'm just looking for a good quality gun for the money.

Also, I'm not a very big guy, so I'm thinking either a 3" or a 4". How much difference will there be in felt recoil and accuracy between the two?

Thanks!

As far as I know, there are no junk 1911s on the market these days.
The cheapest come from the Phillipines, and I have seen no major complaints from any of the two or three companies that turn them out under several brands. Armscor is the biggest, making Rock Island and several others. They start at about $359 and seem to be quite servicable. they make a 4" and 5" but I don't think they make a 3".
The next stup up is the Mil-spec series from Springfield Armory. It's also the cheapest you can get a 3" model IIRC.

Go shopping, get what you like. You can save quite a bit buying online from Sarco or J&G or several others.

I took my Rock Island commander to the range today. A co-worker took his Kimber Ultra Elite. We took turns shooting them.

The Rock Island is 1/2 the price, but the Kimber is twice the gun.

You can't beat a Taurus PT1911 for the money AND they are available.

I really like my Kimber, but I think the main difference between it and a Rock Island Armory is more in the "fit and finish" and quality of manufacture areas. But that said, I don't know that my Kimber is any more reliable than an RIA 1911, and a number of RIA owners on this board have posted to the effect that theirs function flawlessly, and that's what really counts. . . . .But Kimbers are really nice guns. So are Colts, and other premium brands. It's like choosing between a Ford Crown Victoria (RIA) and a Lincoln Town car (Kimber). Both are big, reliable, comfortable, and powerful. I'd rather be chauffeured around in the Town Car, but the Crown Vic will get you to the dance, and it's nothing to be ashamed of.

The problem (for you) is, once you get the 1911 bug, you're not going to stop with "just" an RIA. Heck, we've got 4 of them in our safe - Ithaca, Kimber, Springfield, and Taurus - and I'm not even close to the collection some members here have. You might as well face it. If you buy in, you're done for. . .

. . .and none of your Glock friends will ever speak to you again.

Makes it hard when you have a mixed marriage. Right, TAM?

You with your Kimber, her with her fabulous Glock. I'm sure if you treat her nice, she will let you shoot it some day.

The Annoyed Man wrote:I really like my Kimber, but I think the main difference between it and a Rock Island Armory is more in the "fit and finish" and quality of manufacture areas. But that said, I don't know that my Kimber is any more reliable than an RIA 1911, and a number of RIA owners on this board have posted to the effect that theirs function flawlessly, and that's what really counts. . . . .But Kimbers are really nice guns. So are Colts, and other premium brands. It's like choosing between a Ford Crown Victoria (RIA) and a Lincoln Town car (Kimber). Both are big, reliable, comfortable, and powerful. I'd rather be chauffeured around in the Town Car, but the Crown Vic will get you to the dance, and it's nothing to be ashamed of.

The problem (for you) is, once you get the 1911 bug, you're not going to stop with "just" an RIA. Heck, we've got 4 of them in our safe - Ithaca, Kimber, Springfield, and Taurus - and I'm not even close to the collection some members here have. You might as well face it. If you buy in, you're done for. . .

. . .and none of your Glock friends will ever speak to you again.

There is a certain romance to a 1911 much akin to that belonging to the venerable Colt SAA.

Back on point, if you could beat a Taurus PT1911 for the price, TAM wouldn't have one in his arsenal of arsenals.

I have 2 1911, one from Colt and the other from Kimber. Neither was reliable out of box. read my review on Kimber's CDPII on my blog.

I am not a big guy either, but I do like shooting my little 3" barrel Kimber. Only when shooting +P defense loads, the recoil becomes bad.

I think several manufacturers have added "GI models" to their lineups as more cost effective options to their 'loaded' or premium models, such as Springfield and STI and possibly ParaOrdnance. Those might be worth looking at also.

oh, and it will be your 'first' 1911, but not your 'only' 1911 :-)

Crossfire wrote:Makes it hard when you have a mixed marriage. Right, TAM?

You with your Kimber, her with her fabulous Glock. I'm sure if you treat her nice, she will let you shoot it some day.

It ain't fair. I'm nice to her, AND she gets to shoot all my guns, and I've still only shot her Glock a couple of times. Pretty nice pistol though, in an ugly cousin kind of way.

The Annoyed Man wrote:

Crossfire wrote:Makes it hard when you have a mixed marriage. Right, TAM?
You with your Kimber, her with her fabulous Glock. I'm sure if you treat her nice, she will let you shoot it some day.

It ain't fair. I'm nice to her, AND she gets to shoot all my guns, and I've still only shot her Glock a couple of times. Pretty nice pistol though, in an ugly cousin kind of way.

I think we what we have here an example of the reverse-Napoleonic Code. What's belongs to her belongs to her, and what belongs to you belongs to her.

WildBill wrote:What's belongs to her belongs to her, and what belongs to you belongs to her.

Isn't that normally how it is? My wife, reading me the riot act =>

Works for me.

The Annoyed Man wrote:

WildBill wrote:What's belongs to her belongs to her, and what belongs to you belongs to her.

Isn't that normally how it is? My wife, reading me the riot act =>

You ain't kiddin' brother!!!

"KeithB" remembers my foray into the 1911 world...He set me on the path after many years of carrying Glocks and other assorted combat tupperware...

That 1911 I bought has a little upgrade work done and suddenly...

(Insert Darth Vader Imperial March theme music)

"Wife-Unit" who is no stranger to handling a 1911 and liking it...Somehow fanangled it away from me and called it her own...Uggg...

Well, that certainly justified buying another one for just good ole me, right??? I mean, I deserve it, right???

BTW, they are both Springfields...

Thanks for all of the replies.

I would love to buy a Kimber; they sure are pretty. I also want a boat, fishing gear, several more guns and quite a few other things. If I came home with a $1000 gun, my wife would shoot me with it. I'm only 28, but I'm just getting started working on my collection of toys so I'm all about quantity right now and willing to give up on [high] quality until later in life. In shotgun parlance, a Benelli would be nice, but I can accomplish the task with a Remington 870 and still buy plenty of shells.

My future brother-in-law just recently bought a Taurus PT1911. It's a 5-inch and is a pretty big gun for me to carry concealed. From a practical standpoint, I don't feel that I have a use for a pistol that I can't carry concealed. I hope to build a collection over the years, but I need to stick with versatility for now. That's why I'm considering the 4-inch but would really prefer the 3-inch - as long as it's still a good shooter. Springfield makes a 3-inch GI model than can be had for around $500.

*ETA: For clarification, I'm trying to build a collection of decent firearms that I can afford, not the best that money can buy.