Home Forums Hunting & Shooting Handguns Best 1911 Ever?

You're right..............not a 1911, but an absolutely outstanding gun development by Wilson, nonetheless.

MM

...not a pretty question....

Would depend on the overall circumstances on if I had other handguns....but to be most practical it would be the #1 top picture of the 1952 hard chrome Commander. Have carried that daily since 2007 and still looks much the day I got it back from Jody Joseph of JoJo's in Ct....a top 1911 builder.

Chrome is pretty hard to beat for durability............I always thought that Metaloy did a great job on handguns for plating too.

But it's relatively expensive today, mainly due to all the environmental issues surrounding the facility requirements, permitting & the subsequent waste treatment.

MM

The 1956 two-tone above has a Metaloy frame...I am not sure but I believe it is a hard chrome process of some sort. That used to be my primary IPSC many years ago...

The other gun was done by Accurate Plating...as was this one which is my friend's .45 SUPER...

Metaloy is hard chrome; Accurate is in Alabama & used to be a good plating house as well, don't about them now.

I've been involved with various coating processes over the years from both a practical & developmental standpoint, including hard chrome & helped develop / test some of the "etch free" baths in use today.

MM

Everyone knows the most interesting 1911's all say "Super .38 Automatic"

If we're swinging for the fence, my dream 1911 would be a factory nickel / MOP Super .38 Super Match...Just doesn't get any better than that!!
http://www.coltautos.com/1911a1_SuperMatch38_34982.htm

That’s mighty purdy.....

1st one of those I've ever seen...............dandy, alright.

What's the value today?

MM

Had a Colt Commander built long ago that I sent off to Robar up in Phoenix to get NP3 coated. Simply amazing finish, when done with a days shooting or from a match, all grime, powder fouling and dirt would come right off with a wipe down with a cloth. Another one I wish I had held on to.

Originally designed to defeat steel car doors. Never really caught on for that. The only thing that saved .38 Super was the fact that, south of the border, civilians weren't permitted to own a handgun in .45 ACP. That's it. That's its only justification for existing in any numbers. I don't get the mystique. I guess near our southern boarder, some showed up from time to time, and people thought they were cool, so it caught on in the US to some extent, too. Maybe people didn't understand that the only reason Mexicans had them was that they were prohibited from having the better caliber, .45 ACP. They assumed there was something special about them that only Mexicans knew about, LOL.

I thought there was only one gun store in Mexico and it was in Mexico City and generally Mexicans aren’t allowed to own guns?
So, how does any gun not smuggled in gain popularity?

They sold a lot of them, and the vast majority was north of the border. So clearly someone saw a use for them.

A few things to cover here...

1st - There is only one gun store in Mexico, and .38 Super is NOT legal in Mexico. Only handgun cartridges that are legal are .22, .38 Special, and .380 ACP.++
2nd - There's a HUGE market in Mexico for contraband 1911's and .38 Super is very popular.
3rd - Mexicans can own rifles, shotguns, and handguns. It's not an easy process...but it's getting easier, and they sell a good deal of guns legally and illegally south of the border.

++
The Mexican .38 Super story.
I don't know when the law was created, but it's been in place for as long as I can remember... But at some point in the 20th century (I'm guessing '50's or '60's), Mexico outlawed any military cartridges. They changed the law to state that only .22 or .38 caliber handguns can be owned. Well, the .38 Super is a ".38", and it's not a military cartridge, so .38 Super's went south by the truckloads. At some point, Mexico clarified the law (I'm guessing sometime in the late '80's), and Supers were no longer legal. They clarified the law to specifically state .22LR, .38 S&W Special, and .380 ACP.

Now I don't know for certain (as in, I have never actually seen it in the law), but I believe all previously purchased Supers were grandfathered. The reason I think this is twofold... 1 - You still see a LOT of 1911's in Mexico. 2 - If all Super's were actually banned, you would have seen thousands of .38 Special conversion kits heading south and that never happened.

...a blue SUPER MATCH runs $9-12K...only God knows what a nickel would be....

An engraved blue one sold for $12,999.00 a few weeks ago...

Would have to somewhat disagree with why there are still a lot Supers/1911s showing up in Mexico...because the guys who have them don't give a ratsazz about the law... If you look at BorderlandBeat.com one often sees dead badguys with engraved 1911s laying by them...go look on GunBroker at the "embelished" Supers for sale that SELL for $2-4K...any clue where they may be headed..

There is a YouTube poster from Mexico who does videos of his 1911 collection...he had a lot of nice Supers new and old...no clue what the law is down there now...and I don't think any one down there cares either...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HHL_lVf_uyk

...out in the desert you don't need ear or eye protection...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_3DO2i14vJs&t=307s

There is also an engraver who posts his art over on the Colt Board...I have recently seen him nicely engrave a 30's vintage SUPER MATCH...really!!!

I just like the gun/caliber combination as they shoot best for me...

Bob

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KSevk49yokc

Well, I did say there was a huge illicit 1911 market in Mexico...and they like them pretty!

I noticed over the last couple of months the lack of Colt Competition Models in .38 Super... Looking around they all seem to have been bought up by an engraver in...Seattle, Washington....

Check out his other auctions...

https://www.gunbroker.com/item/870335084

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Firearms_regulation_in_Mexico

Type of firearms permitted

In regard to what type of firearms are permitted, Title II, Chapter I, Article 9 of the Federal Law of Firearms and Explosives states:

(translated) It may be kept or carried, under the terms and limitations established by this law, weapons of the following characteristics:[27]

Semi-automatic handguns of caliber no greater than .380 (9mm Browning, 9mm Corto, 9mm Kurz, 9mm Short, and 9×17mm). Left excepted are calibers .38 Super and .38 commander, and also calibers 9mm. [Such as] Mauser, Luger, etc., as well as similar models of the same caliber of the excepted, from other brands.
Revolvers of calibers no greater than .38 Special, left excepted is caliber .357 magnum.
Land tenure owners, common land owners and farmworkers outside urban zones, may keep and carry, upon registration, one weapon of those already mentioned, or a .22 caliber rifle, or a shotgun of any caliber, except those of a barrel length shorter than 25 inches (635mm) and of caliber greater than 12 gauge (.729" or 18.5 MM).

I have a TRP in Armory Kote tricked out. It is a beast.




Had one in stainless, too. Nice gun. But, kept the Armory Kote.

The best one I've had (so far) was a '70 Series GM that I had redone for IPSC shooting. After using it 'as-is' for several years, I had a local smith build it right. He sent it off for checkering and also had Accurate P&W for hard chroming. It had a lot of other work, beavertail, 3.25lb. trigger job, Bomar Sights, Patridge front sight (dovetailed), and a compensator on a bull barrel that he designed. I took the compensator off and used it without the comp for other things, and he'd fitted the factory Colt barrel up with a good solid bushing up front. I never tried to group it at 50 yards, but I could hit whatever I wanted with that gun, at pretty much any distance. I shot it until the frame got tired and cracked on me. It was worked pretty hard over the 25 years I used it. I wish I'd have kept it.

I've now got a Custom Shop 1991A1 demo gun that I picked up for $500 right around 1995, it's got a beavertail, 4.5.lb trigger, and some other goodies, but it won't shoot like that "built" gun did. It's a nice gun, never given me any issues at all, but it's just not the gun the other one was. I've also got a Ruger SR-1911 Target that is the Custom Shop gun's equal, accuracy-wise, but it doesn't have the "personality" of that old Colt, either. No matter, I like them both.