1911 in 9mm. What’s the best?

[RevolverRob]

The best 9mm 1911 ever made is a Browning Hi-Power, full stop.

The next best would be a commander length single stack gun, a Dan Wesson or a Wilson.

I would not buy a 9mm 1911 in full size, nor could I be convinced to carry one. I'd rather spend the money on .38 super ammo than go with a 5" 9mm 1911 of any flavor.

Yes they can be made to run and run well, but the best of those running are commander sized, I take that as a clue.

My only 9mm 1911 (technically 2011) is an STI in Commander length. Next 1911 will be a CCO in .38 Super I think, with maybe a 9mm as my trainer.

[theJanitor]

So, thanks to a buddy here on PF, I'm now in the 9mm 1911 game. 12 more days until I can pass judgement on a wilson 9mm

Me, to FFL: Hey my gun should come today
FFL: I'll let you know when it's here

FFL, later: Your gun is here
Me: What do you think?
FFL: Umm. it's interesting. maybe they shipped you the wrong one.
Me: Why?
FFL: It's painted. It's tan. It's not 5". it's not 45. There's not barrel bushing. It has a magwell. Wrong gun, right?
Me: Actually, LOL'ing

[M2CattleCo]

The best 9mm 1911 ever made is a Browning Hi-Power, full stop.

The next best would be a commander length single stack gun, a Dan Wesson or a Wilson.

I would not buy a 9mm 1911 in full size, nor could I be convinced to carry one. I'd rather spend the money on .38 super ammo than go with a 5" 9mm 1911 of any flavor.

Yes they can be made to run and run well, but the best of those running are commander sized, I take that as a clue.

My only 9mm 1911 (technically 2011) is an STI in Commander length. Next 1911 will be a CCO in .38 Super I think, with maybe a 9mm as my trainer.

The Hi Power doesn't compare to a 1911 in any meaningful way.

I've had 4 Commander size and 5 5" 9mms, one STI, the rest Springfield Custom and Wilson and have had much better luck with the 5" guns. The STI I ordered is the only 5" that never ran right. The Wilson ETM and Metalform ramped mags have really closed the reliability gap between 9&45.

[Bucky]

The best 9mm 1911 ever made is a Browning Hi-Power, full stop.

The EDC X9 is way better than a Hi Power, IMO.

[Robinson]

I do like the Lightweight Commander for a 9mm 1911 -- it's just a good size and weight for the cartridge. But my 5" 9mm guns ran just as reliably as my Commanders.

I'm back to all 45s for 1911s now, but I had fun with the 9mm guns for a couple of years.

[JSGlock34]

The Hi Power doesn't compare to a 1911 in any meaningful way.

Agreed; I had a relatively nice Browning Hi-Power and it was not nearly as accurate or 'shootable' as my 9mm 1911. Even the best Hi-Power trigger simply cannot compete with a 1911. Not even close.

[45dotACP]

The best 9mm 1911 ever made is a Browning Hi-Power, full stop.

The next best would be a commander length single stack gun, a Dan Wesson or a Wilson.

I would not buy a 9mm 1911 in full size, nor could I be convinced to carry one. I'd rather spend the money on .38 super ammo than go with a 5" 9mm 1911 of any flavor.

Yes they can be made to run and run well, but the best of those running are commander sized, I take that as a clue.

My only 9mm 1911 (technically 2011) is an STI in Commander length. Next 1911 will be a CCO in .38 Super I think, with maybe a 9mm as my trainer.

I used to say the same thing man...but about the M&P9. I will freely admit I was mistaken. Granted I'm choosing the M&P to supplant my Glock as the "Uber reliable soulless people popper" but is also capable of printing a 1.5" group at 25 yards...something I can't do with a Glock

With that in mind: My sample is of two 1911s in 9mm. A commander and government model. They both work about the same with the shootabity edge going to the gov. The government model is stupid nice to shoot. It does need hotter ammo to eject not into my face...but then the Commander uses that stupid extra length ejector and boinks me in the face from time to time regardless of ammo type. Accuracy is about equal.

Fortunately, Speer Lawman is cheap.

As far as fun guns go though...damn a 5" 9mm 1911 is hard to beat.

Also, you need a present for when the PhD is done...it rhymes with "shmilson shmombat"

Sent from my XT1585 using Tapatalk

[M2CattleCo]

My 5" Wilson had a FTRB yesterday. Was locked up pretty tight, had to bump the slide on a board to get it open (good reason for a g.i. recoil spring arrangement).

12.5lb factory spring with almost 8K rounds on it seems like it has plenty of oomph to cram this (Winchester NATO) in there:

[Jim Watson]

A friend showed me his Nighthawk President 5" 9mm.
The slide is heavily "tri-topped", not just for looks, there is a lot of weight gone. The little slots take off a bit more but not much.
This is something I have been saying is needed for a long time. It worked for Colt in 1950, why has it taken so long for others to figure out?

That said, my full size 9mms reciprocate ok but I do not have the sensitivity of the Princess and the Pea to perceive sluggish operation as I have seen reported on the Internet.

[farscott]

I just found a new (to me) failure mode with my STI Duty One 5.0. I was shooting 147-grain Federal HST with Metalform "Springfield ramp" magazines and the slide closed after what I thought was shot ten. So I did a chamber check only to find I cannot count and the chamber had a live round. Only the slide would not close on the mostly chambered round. The round was still under control of the extractor, but it must have been misaligned just enough to not allow a full return to battery. I was able to clear the malfunction by retracting the slide, and the round extracted and ejected as expected.

The round was compared to other 147-grain HST and no differences were observed. I was able to reproduce the issue with other 147-grain HST rounds, and the failure could not be reproduced with 115-grain IMI "Ex Star" ammo. The ammo chambered and fired with no issues in a LTT Elite. The presence or absence of the magazine was not a factor; the only factor was retracting the slide more than about an eighth of an inch. My guess is a very tight chamber combined with the barrel starting to unlock and tilt downward. I will be casting the chamber with Cerrosafe to determine if that is the cause.

The pistol allows for tight groups when I do my part, and I may have to identify which ammo is suitable and which is not. For now, 147-grain HST is not.