1911: Compact vs Full Size

[The Annoyed Man]

I own both a 5" and a 3" version of the 1911, and of the two, I carry the 3" most often. Why? Weight and size.

[dicion]

However, the 3" Kimber DESTROYED all the others in Accuracy!

Well, not exactly:

# Accuracy is the average of five, five-shot groups fired from a sandbag bench rest at 25 yards.
....
NOTE The Ultra Raptor accuracy test runs were at 15'

Oh, I missed that part.

Still, sub 2" Groups at 15 yards? That's Well within Minute-of-Felon

[Sidro]

Found this site for info. http://stevespages.com/page8f45acp.html" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[rm9792]

74Novaman now you need a 4" or 4.25" to have a full set. It's a vicious circle once you buy a 1911.

No, need a 6" and 7" as well to complete the set...

[G.C.Montgomery]

I currently own a Rock Island 1911A1 GI model. 5 inch, bare bones 1911. Love the gun.

It does make me wonder though: Whats the advantage of a 4 inch 1911? Does that extra inch really make it that much harder to carry a full size? For that matter, the compact models with smaller round counts confuse me too.

I don't seem to have any problems carrying my 5 inch 1911, so I was wondering why others had gone with the 3.5 or 4 inch versions.

Just my $0.02, I carried 1911s in various forms for a decade and shot them in USPSA during that time. A friend of mine once said, "There's no such thing as a 'compact' 45." I am now, very much of the same mind set. The shorter barrel doesn't make a whole heck of a lot of difference in terms of concealability or comfort in carry as far as I'm concerned. What does make a difference is a shorter butt/grip. This is where the Ed Brown "Bob Tail" conversion makes a real difference in both comfort and concealability. The shortened grip of the "compact" models help in the same manner but, it can poke some folks in the wrong spot and some of us with large hands aren't especially fond of 1911's with short grips.

Not everyone will agree but, I eventually came to the conclusion that John Moses Browning was one smart cookie. He designed the 1911 as a five-inch gun and in general the 5-inch guns run smoother, more reliably and tend to be more accurate. If you find you can comfortably shoe-horn a full-size 1911 into your life and waistband, there is no point in going smaller. Of course, I'm the sick joker who has been wearing a Glock 34 as my daily carry in recent months.