Who's carrying a 1911?

[Bob Mayne]

How often do you carry a 1911 pistol?  Please vote in the above poll and if you want to comment, please do so here.  But please cast a vote before you comment.

Thanks,

[EmptyMags]

I voted 25% of the time, but if you would have asked me 2 years ago, it'd have been 100%.

I carried one of my full size 1911s in an IWB holster for years, every day. It was not until I got the Ruger SP101 a few years back that I changed. From there I got even smaller with a SW Bodyguard 380. Now it all depends on my mood and what is most convenient.

I used to dress to carry, and during the summer here in AZ that can be bad. Now I can carry according to how I dress for the weather. If its 115 degrees out and for some reason I'm forced to leave the house, its shorts and a t shirt and a little heater in my pocket.

[Panhead Bill]

I have my Kimber Custom II 1911 that I carry almost 24/7 - it comes off for showers, and immediately before I lay down to go to sleep (and then it's within arms reach).  Before my 1911 my daily carry was a Glock 23.  I picked up the 1911 and found out I was able to shoot it a whole lot better.  So, I decided for practical purposes, if I shoot it that much better, and I was more likely to hit what I was shooting at, it should be the one I carry to defend my family and myself.  

With practice I've found that I can pretty much wear whatever I want and still carry a full-sized 1911.  Of course, even in hot weather (our summers get around up to 105-ish), I usually wear long pants and a button up shirt of some sort (if not work, it's usually a bowling style shirt).  But I can still get away with the full-size gun in most t-shirts too (maybe its partly because of my build). 

Bill

[Dave.45]

I voted 75% of the time, even though 90% is probably more accurate. 100% seemed to say "that's all I would ever carry" which is not true for me. Right now, for instance, I have a M&P 9c and a Sig P238. I will range test and carry other guns occassionally as the mood strikes, but like Bill, my best shooting is behind a 1911 and that is a hard arguement to argue with when deciding what to carry. So the 1911 is what gets the nod nine mornings out of ten.

[308law]

My all time favorite carry gun was a 3" 1911, I sold it to get a Glock 34 for IDPA and a Glock 19 for carry. I like Glocks for their simplicity but I will always have a soft spot for 1911's. Lately I have been carring a J frame Smith & Wesson .38 special in my pocket.

[nicktheww2fanatic]

Full size 1911 in a Crossbreed Supertuck, and a S&W 442 as well.

[xmunckx]

I am about %75 of the time.

Sometimes though its a Ruger SR9c kind of day.

[melski]

Commander size Sig 1911 90% of the time or the Ruger LCP the other 10%.  Both with Crimson Trace lasers.

[NS2]

This is a thread about 1911 design pistols...pictures must be included! 

[melski]

Commander size Sig 1911 90% of the time or the Ruger LCP the other 10%.  Both with Crimson Trace lasers.

[NS2]

Very Nice Mel,

What do you think of the shorter grip?  Do you find that it really helps with your ability to conceal it well?

[Bob Mayne]

This is a thread about 1911 design pistols...pictures must be included! 

Nice picture!  What model of SIG 1911 is that?  Were those grips standard?

[NS2]

That is a Sig Sauer 1911 Traditional Two Tone.

The grips are VZ Grips from www.vzgrips.com.

It comes with a Novak style rear sight.  I changed that out to a more user friendly 10-8 ledge style rear sight.

http://gunrightsradio.com/forums2/index.php/topic,6996.msg54600.html#msg54600

http://gunrightsradio.com/forums2/index.php/topic,6964.msg54357.html#msg54357

http://gunrightsradio.com/forums2/index.php/topic,6496.0.html

[melski]

Very Nice Mel,

What do you think of the shorter grip?  Do you find that it really helps with your ability to conceal it well?

The grip is exactly what I wanted for concealed carry.  The slightly shorter length makes a difference to me in printing compared to my full size Springfield, since that is what is sticking out.  Slight cant with an IWB and you have to bend over just right to notice.  Also, since my hand and fingers aren't real thick or wide, the grip fits me perfect.  My father-in-law, with sausage fingers, can't get as good a firing grip, his pinky doesn't quite make it.

[jmstevens2]

Guess I am an oddball. Most of the time it is the Rock Island Armory full sized Goverment 1911A1. The rest is the Glock 23. There is usually a KelTec P3AT in the pocket too just in case.

[NC Buckeye]

When I started carrying I bought a 4" 9mm Kimber that I carried in a milt sparks VM2.  I had not yet gotten proficient enough to handle a .45 (training issue I know).

Eventually I purchased my G19 and in a kydex holster it is thinner than my Kimber in a leather holster, plus I have more rounds and I don't ever forget to remove the safety.

After a couple of years of training and competing, I believe that I am now capable enough to transition to a 1911 and may start shooting my Kimber more to be a more rounded shooter, but I doubt I will carry it.

The fact of the matter is the thing I like most about my glocks is that I look at them like hammers.  I have zero emotional attachment to any of them.   If I am training or doing tests like my NY reload test, I can drop the gun and I don't care.  I can put a few thousand rounds through it and the wear marks just add character.  If I am at the range and the sights seem off, I can "adjust" them with any punch, hammer or mallet that happens to be handy. I can have a little kit full of factory parts in my bag that will fix any of them and nothing needs fitted.  And if I ever need to use it I A) have full confidence it will go bang B) I know I can use it effectively and C) if it is siezed and an evidence number get engraved in it...  I won't care.  I'll grab another one out of the safe and carry it until mine is returned and then I will carry my current one again.

[ske1eter]

Voted, prefer polymer. I used to carry a 1911 of one brand or another but since acquiring an M&P .45, it has become my EDC.

[S391]

I plan to carry a 1911 once the conceal carry law goes into effect here in Wisconsin.....

[Bob Mayne]

When does it take affect in my homeland? (Wisconsin)  

My home state has had quite a year, the Packers won the Superbowl, they are getting their budget under control and now they are allowing concealed carry.  Maybe I shouldn't have left.  

[jmstevens2]

Well there was that whole flash mob thing at the fair.