Never been a big .45 fan, but decided to help a buddy when he called. A friend called and his sister's husband just up and died at 40 with a massive heart attack with no health insurance. The wife was panicking over the fact she didn't have any money. I bought the guys Springfield .45 1911-A1 with a tasco propoint for $400 to help her out. Got the gun home and took that awful sight off, bought new grips and a new pin set. Went to fire it a couple weeks ago and the hammer would follow the slide down. Decided to go to the gun show and trade it off for a standard Colt 1911. The cheapest one was $775 up to $1300. There was a guy there that did 1911 work and had him take a look at my weapon. After the damage was complete, I traded the mount, sight, and $50 to replace the main spring, sear, sear pin, and have a trigger job done. Seems that the joe that had it before tried a home style trigger job and shaved a little to much and also bent the sear pin and broke the main spring. Now I have a slick SA 1911-A1 with $525 in it! Guess I have a new pal for life!
What happened to the original Colt Government models? I remember as a kid, you could easily get them for $200, now they are getting more scarce than a M1 Carbine! by the way, the cheapest at the gun show today was $700!!
Dremels have gotten more work for gunsmiths than anything else! I'm glad you didn't get rid of it in that condition - many would have and I don't think it's right. BTW, my Springfield Mil-Spec shoots so much better than my Colt NRM it's a joke. So I upgraded the Springer with lots of new shiny parts including a beavertail and 4.5# trigger pull. It's sweet and a great shooter while the Colt sits until I can replace the innards of it.
People are getting into the "antique" thing. So everybody wants one. Which drives the price up. Wish I could find me a M1 Carbine...it's what my dad trained on and I had hoped to get one before he dies of cancer...but I don't think I'm going to manage that. Oh well. In the meantime you did a good deed sniper by buying the gun. Yes I know the guy screwed it up but no good dead goes unpunished and you will find that good things happen to you because of you helping the lady out. It may take time but it will happen. That's just the way it works. Believe me some of the strangest things have happened to me lately...and I would of told you before last month that these things never happened in real life.
Well, I took it to bed with me earlier to watch the tube and just held it and played with it. Kinda starting to grow on me. I did buy six brand new govt. mags for it. Maybe not such a bad deal after all.
Sniper-66, you got to find the right people to buy from. There's a guy on The Firing Line named WildAlaska that used to have lots of sweet group buys, and I got the Colt NRM for $500+ $25 shipping in one of those. Right after the end of the AWB he sold me a Colt 6721 AR-15 for $1000, which is a steal. Everyone else wants $1400! Once you get in with a guy like that you get some deals, and he's still there!
You did the right thing all around. First, you helped out a young widow in need. Secondly, you picked up a good as new 1911 and we all know that every man & woman needs a 1911. It is only the finest pistol ever created. It is the pistol that has stood the test of time. They do grow on you! I had lots of different new "fangdangled" auto's, but once I picked up and shot that 70+ yr. old 1911 that a friend of mine had, the love affair started. Once you go 1911, you never go back. I think this might be the beginning of an addiction................
Thanks guys. I have to take it out today and do some firing drills to set the trigger, that may make me feel better. It does have a much nicer pull now, 3.25 pounds and that is supposed to drop to 3 pounds after it settles in. Guess I will just have to save the money and buy a Colt some day and just have two .45's, just don't tell the wife.
I forgot to mention, that yes every man and woman needs a backup 1911 too! I wouldn't buy a newer model Colt though, they are pretty pricey. If you really want to invest your money wisely, buy a Les Baer.
Oh I don't know I picked up a full size Colt 1991A1 Series 80 for $524 (that includes tax) out the door just last month.
Not necessarily E.L., I think it shoots like shit. Of course that was only the first 2 mags and I said screw it for the day and shot the other 45's Huevos and I had between us. I think once my boss gets back I'll take a Monday off and put about 200 rounds down range (it'll be a cold day since they are closing the only indoor range around) but I'll then tell you if that $524 was a good deal or not. Right now the jury is out. On the other hand...that little Colt Lightweight Commander that's been ported was the best $800 I ever spent.
I have been eyeing some of Les Baer's Comanche TRS's. Basically it's a Commander type, but with all of Les's magic thrown in. I bet it would be really easy to carry. And really sweet looking in hard chrome............................................Christmas time's a coming!
