Why is the 1911 more popular than ever?

[TCinVA]

It is? ? ? Lets see some sales numbers. I have nothing against a nice 1911, but I literally only see old guys like myself shooting them at the range or competitions.

I think it's kind of like Les Pauls or pretty much anything from the Gibson custom shop these days. Their customers tend to be people who already own other Gibson guitars and still have sizeable excess incomes to let them buy more. It's actually a cause for concern at Gibson because their market is literally aging out.

It's possible that the single stack .45 ACP 1911 is making a huge comeback, but I think it's mainly people who already own and like 1911's in .45 ACP buying them. I'm sure there's some crossover from people who bought EDC type guns maybe spending some spare cash on a .45 ACP version, but it can't be that high.

I think overall Wilson is making a lot more EDC based guns than 1911's these days. Just my guess.

[Borderland]

Part of the reason to choose .45 in a 1911-pattern pistol would be a concern about magazine capacity limits. If one is concerned about a magazine capacity and wants a SAO design, a 1911 makes sense. If one chooses a 1911, it is easier to make one reliable in the round for which the pistol was designed.

Mag restrictions kicked in here in WA in July. No >10 rd mags being sold anymore. I expect a few more blue states will follow. Back to the future for some.

USSC may rule on that soon but I don't expect any relief.

I'm thinking about a semi custom 45 ACP 1911 like a Wilson. Never had a high end 1911 but I shoot my GC more than any pistol or revolver I own. It's well used. I already have about 20 magazines so won't be spending any money on those.

[Borderland]

YES, YES, YES!!!!!!

And make it with a duty grade bullet design.

A 38 Super is a 9x19 on steroids. I had an ELCEN Colt for awhile but sold it to a Mexican drug lord. Just kidding. Too much blinding reflection to shoot in the bright sun. I did like everything else about it though.

[Hambo]

Time and firearms whims are a flat circle.

[theJanitor]

Some of us never got off the 45acp 1911 bandwagon. My buddy in a free state just traded his stacatto for a Wilson in 45, this morning.

[ccmdfd]

A 38 Super is a 9x19 on steroids. I had an ELCEN Colt for awhile but sold it to a Mexican drug lord. Just kidding. Too much blinding reflection to shoot in the bright sun. I did like everything else about it though.

I had an ELCEN too! Sold it to consolidate years ago. Still have a couple of Colts in .38.

IMHO .38 is the goldilocks round for a 1911. Too much .45 shooting and I get repetitive use injuries, 9mm works, but feels weak and slow. .38-perfection!

Plus:


Edited to add pic

[TGS]

My thought:

They're nice pistols to shoot, and since most people have migrated to Glock 43x and P365 type pistols for CCW instead of Glock 19s, people probably see a "gap" for a fun full size pistol like the 1911, because let's face it...I'll be the first to say that the Glock 19 is a better defensive pistol, but a 1911 is arguably more fun to own and shoot.....that whole pride of ownership thing that Todd wrote about when he had the SACS guns. I doubt more people are carrying 1911s.

For me, personally, nothing has changed about my views from 10 years ago on the idea of a 1911 being a defense firearm. They are nice to shoot, though....and I'm at a point in life where I can afford to waste money to stupid shit, so I chose to drop coin on an M45A1 last year and also have an "antique" Surefire WML upgraded with an LED module waiting to go on a 90s/2000s SWAT/ICQB kinda-sorta inspired pistol (when I get around to it).

[Suvorov]

Time and firearms whims are a flat circle.

Truer words have seldom been spoken.

I’ve often wondered how much of that phenomena is driven by the human condition and man’s fickle nature when it comes to shiny objects (or in this case matte objects) and how much of it is driven by an industry that has a need to keep customers buying their products?

As a firearms nerd, I purchased a decent 1911 in .45ACP fairly early in my journey. Like most, I’ve shot it some but not extensively. I planned on buckling down and dedicating a year or two to shooting it as my primary pistol but in the end, I just keep going sticking with the Beretta 92 series.

I’m not rushing out to sell mine either as they are just damn cool guns.

[awp_101]

I’ve often wondered how much of that phenomena is driven by the human condition and man’s fickle nature when it comes to shiny objects (or in this case matte objects) and how much of it is driven by an industry that has a need to keep customers buying their products?

All of the above. And the 1911 is the small block Chevy of the shooting world so there will always be a certain amount of media about it in one form or another that creates a self perpetuating cycle of it’s the old faithful/it’s a dinosaur/it’s the new hotness. Lather, rinse, repeat.

The same goes for J frames and other small revolvers.

[Elwin]

No idea who else is actually carrying them, but I'm carrying them in part because they're fun guns. I like them and I'll never be without them, but I don't have the time or ammo budget to both shoot "fun" guns as much as I want to and keep up on proficiency with "serious" guns. So instead of half-assing each or either of those things, I just carry 1911s so fun shooting time is also practical practice shooting time. I figure I'm better off carrying a 1911 I'm proficient with than carrying a Glock 19 I'm less proficient with and leaving the 1911 I shoot well in the safe.

I'll also stump for single stack 1911s as still-relevant carry guns, if a few parameters apply. One is being a 1911 enthusiast, another is not being bothered by 8 to 10 round capacity, and the big one for me is that I conceal them much better than any double stack full size gun. So I'm carrying a gun I shoot well, but I can conceal it in clothing that wouldn't allow me to carry a Staccato.