Talk me into (or out of) a V-Bob

[OlongJohnson]

I've had a 9mm Commander itch for the last year or so. Keeps flaring up and then going away when I ignore it long enough. But never all the way. I'm looking at a 9mm VBob in Duty Treat, new for a used price, and thinking this may be the time.

I rented a full-size steel Springfield in 9mm at the local range last summer and was surprised at how I stacked the cheap range ammo into the center of the target like I was shooting a Buck Mark.

I really like the way a 1911 feels and balances, and of course we all like the triggers. I haven't yet found my Goldilocks grip configuration with one yet, though. I handled a Valor Commander with the full grip and a V-Bob over the holidays, and was surprised when the bobbed mainspring housing just settled into the pocket of my palm perfectly and felt like it belonged there. I like the sights. Duty Treat is a good thing. The fit and finish put the P210 Americans I've handled to shame. An all steel 9mm should be very durable, and as long as private citizens are allowed to own firearms, a 1911 can remain serviceable one way or another.

Every Sig I have is a project, and I'm making a project out of the USP DA trigger press because I can't unsee what I've seen. Revolvers and Third Gens are even worse. Even Buck Marks are projects. I like them all, but I have too many projects. I'm kinda thinking a V-Bob is a gun I could just clean, lube, shoot, repeat.

Enable me or talk some sense into me, please.

[45dotACP]

A 1911 typically isn't the gun I associate with "take out of box, clean, lube and shoot"

This isn't a bad thing...you should practice with and verify the reliability of any gun you would carry...

But it's not a quality of 1911s in general. My carry and competition 1911s (Springfield RO in .45, RRA Poly .45, Colt Commander 9mm and Kimber Stainless II 9MM) all required some minor tweaking to run effectively. Most problems can be fixed by a quick trip to the internet.

That out of the way, DW is said to make the best 1911s under two grand and if I were you I'd buy it, because the 1911 is awesome.


Sent from my moto g(6) using Tapatalk

[JAH 3rd]

I have only one experience with Dan Wesson. I know you are looking for a 9. Earlier this year I purchased a DW A2 parkerized 5" in 45 acp. Fantastic pistol. Good parts workmanship and assembly workmanship as well. I don't have a trigger gauge, but the pull on this pistol is light and crisp. It doesn't need a thing done to it. I am sure if one was shooting competition, a trigger job would be factored into that pistol, but this A2 is spot on trigger pull wise. It has been 100% in all aspects. I have shot a variety of hardball as well as Remington Golden Saber 230 jhp. Very pleased!

[TC215]

Do it. DW is hard to beat.

I’ve had several VBOB’s, two of them were 9mm— A custom gun that I got before the 9mm was a standard offering, and then one of the first production 9mm’s. They are a lot of fun to shoot.

[Totem Polar]

Do it.

[Arbninftry]

Oh yes DO IT

[Robinson]

Dan Wesson makes good guns and they are a good value. If you buy a stainless one, make sure you follow the break-in procedure in the manual.

As far as "clean, lube, shoot, repeat", that's pretty much what my .45 1911s have been for the most part. My Colts have generally run well, and especially my Special Combat Governments have each been solid from round 1. So it certainly can be that way with a 1911, but like someone already said -- always verify before trusting. Even a DW.

[TOTS]

My DW Valor in 9mm has definitely been “shoot, lube, repeat “. In fact, I have just cleaned it around the 3500 rnd mark when the slide started to slow down due to the carbon buildup. Shooting a 1911 in 9mm is definitely “cheat-mode”, especially in full size.

[Joe in PNG]

Do it... but understand that you're going to do a bit more tinkering and fiddling with the 1911.
Not a bad thing if you like that sort of thing.

[jeep45238]

I really, really enjoy my 9mm DW Valor. I decided earlier this year to ditch my .45's, which included an alloy commander; it's a difference at the end of the day for carry and was immediately apparent when the alloy commander sold. I'm used to it now, but it's a difference to be aware of.

I was looking hard at the DW Vigil 9mm commander and sending that out for an optic milling, and replacing the beavertail/trigger/grips with clones of what's on my Valor, and would have made an alloy clone of the Valor with an optic mount at the end of the day. Then my bank account said 'wtf' and pointed at the Staccato lineup from STI.




It's hard to go wrong, and I know people say you need to be willing to tinker with them. Really, I can't see spending this type of coin without cleaning/lubing often anyway; vetting the pistol out of the box proved that there were a few issues and DW addressed them for me and then some. The only different thing I do with the 1911 setup is checking extractor tension with a dummy 124 grain every cleaning, thanks to a tip from a Bill Wilson video.

[OlongJohnson]

So I was driving past Collector's Firearms today after finishing all my other business in town. Stopped in to molest a few innocent guns.

They had a V-Bob in .45. The bob tucked into my palm just like before, but it turned out when I handled the one last week, I didn't handle it enough. Worked a few presentations, and got right back where I keep ending up with 1911s. The slim grip just doesn't work with my hand size/shape. When I grip it firmly, I have good pressure on the front and backstraps and my fingers can press the left side effectively. But on the right side, with the front strap locked into my knuckle bend and the backstrap pressed firmly into the rear part of my palm, the front of my palm and first knuckles form a triangle that basically eliminates contact pressure from the right side of the grip. And I ended up really inconsistent on the presentation. Not like a Glock where I'm consistently wrong in the same way, but inconsistent and having to chase the front sight quite a bit.

Leaving this here for posterity, so I can refer back to it next time this particular species of STAS infection flares up.

[M2CattleCo]

I had a V-Bob in 45 a long time ago.

I didn't find it particularly useful for anything. I didn't like the grip as the part that's gone is where I get a lot of my grip/control. The toe of the mag prints just like any other full size, the abbreviated slide length makes it more unstable on the belt, along with all the other goodness that comes with commanders, and was heavy.

To me it had all the drawbacks of a 1911 and none of the positives.