? for you 1911 folks.

[A & P]

I did the Bob Marvel custom build class. I consider him the Zen Master of the 1911. He puts a drop of oil on either part of the interior slide rail and a drop rubbed on the top of the barrel where it will contact the bushing. That's it. Granted, we're talking about hand fit, custom guns. Mine feels comparable to any top tier gun. Bob actually had his own brand of oil. It was thinner than most. Remember that oil and especially grease will trap dirt and then become like a lapping compound. I guess if your gun wiggles already, then it doesn't matter. But if it's precision fit, don't mess it up.

Oddly enough, the only jams I had with this was when I first built it and forgot to lube it. It was dry as a bone. After lubing and break in, it hasn't ever failed. My Glock 19 was reliable too...until my NRA Instructor test. 2 failures to go into battery in the first 20. Then another in the second 20 rounds. Never failed before. Turns out it was just filthy. Powder and garbage piled up at the rim of the chamber and threw off the headspace. Did two FTF clears. The third time I just pushed forward on the slide a bit to put it in battery. Lesson learned: If you might rely on the gun to save your life someday, keep it maintained. It can, and will, fail at the worst time. Lucky for me it was just during a test. Twice.

 

[Kar98]

Lesson learned: If you might rely on the gun to save your life someday, keep it maintained. It can, and will, fail at the worst time. Lucky for me it was just during a test. Twice.

I might not clean them after every range session, but I do rotate carry guns and whatever gets rotated in for that week, gets cleaned and lubed first.

 

[OLDVET]

A 1911 is like any other complex machine. It requires maintenance and service. You can use oil or grease. You can use super sophisticated lubricants. Remember the 1911 was first adopted by the military back in 1911. They didn't have super fancy lubricants back then and the 1911 served for over 100 years with just general lubricants.
Changing the springs and tuning the extractor are just as important. If you keep a 1911 in working order it will save your life. When the Army switched to the Beretta, I remember stories of active GIs stationed around the world contacting their parents or spouses asking them to send them a 1911 because the Beretta just didn't cut it. The Marines recently switched back to the 1911. You may be a Ford guy or a Chevy guy, but the fact that our military guys and girls still rely on a 100 year old design for protection is good enough for me.

 

[Brains]

I'm a simple guy. Hoppe's new'ish synth oil, 1 drop each for the rails, barrel, barrel link, and pins. Cycle it a few times, wipe it down with a rag to catch the excess, which I then wipe down the entire gun with. Makes it look shiny and pretty while it sits in the safe.

 

[Dawico]

A 1911 is like any other complex machine. It requires maintenance and service.

Yes and no.

Yes on the maintenance and service part.

No on the like any other complex machine part. It is an outdated design that has been replaced many times over by better less complex machines that work better and last longer. The only thing keeping it around is nostalgia.

Even JMB himself came up with a different, better design.

You may be a Ford guy or a Chevy guy, but the fact that our military guys and girls still rely on a 100 year old design for protection is good enough for me.

Yeah, because the military only uses the best equipment..........

 

[Kar98]

Oh so you are actually serious about complaining about 1911s?

 

[Moonpie]

Anything will work.
Mobil 1 motor oil works great. I use it on the AR's too.
Normally I prefer something with a bit more viscosity on the rails so I use RIG.
The old school Lubriplate white lithium bearing grease works too.
Way way back in the day when I was chasing that Pancho Villa guy around we didn't have all the wondermous lubes of today.
We had wheel bearing grease.
And we were damn glad to get it!

 

[Moonpie]

Oh so you are actually serious about complaining about 1911s?

Never mind him. He's the resident 1911 hater.

 

[ZX9RCAM]

Never mind him. He's the resident 1911 hater.

 

[Dawico]

Oh so you are actually serious about complaining about 1911s?

Never mind him. He's the resident 1911 hater.

I don't hate 1911s, I am just honest about them. They are decent firearms.

They are not the best thing available by far.

1911s, Garands, M14s, single action revolvers, etc. all made their place in history and deserve admiration for what they did. They have all also been replaced as the go to firearm for good reason.

 

[1911'S 4 Me]

I like 1911's period. Especially in .45. If some one wants me to carry something else then you buy it and I'll try it!!
Some drive Fords, some drive Chevrolets, and some you drive Kias.

 

[oldag]

No on the like any other complex machine part. It is an outdated design that has been replaced many times over by better less complex machines that work better and last longer. The only thing keeping it around is nostalgia.

Pure bull that cannot be backed up. Also simply wrong.

 

[Dawico]

I like 1911's period. Especially in .45. If some one wants me to carry something else then you buy it and I'll try it!!
Some drive Fords, some drive Chevrolets, and some you drive Kias.

But who is still driving a model T?

 

[Kar98]

I don't hate 1911s, I am just honest about them. They are decent firearms.

They are not the best thing available by far.

1911s, Garands, M14s, single action revolvers, etc. all made their place in history and deserve admiration for what they did. They have all also been replaced as the go to firearm for good reason.

The reason the 1911 was replaced with the Beretta in the US military was politics to achieve NATO-wide standardization.

You can compare "better" guns like the P.08 and the P.38 for instance with the 1911 and admire their craftsmanship and cunning design principles, and then realize it was the side with the ugly, brute, primitive, obsolete 1911 that won WW1 and 2.

Every trigger design to this day has to compare to the 1911. Is it good? It's great! Almost as good as a 1911!

 

[1911'S 4 Me]

But who is still driving a model T?

But who is still driving a model T?

I have one. A 23 T bucket.

 

[CyberWolf]

Oddly enough, the only jams I had with this was when I first built it and forgot to lube it. It was dry as a bone. After lubing and break in, it hasn't ever failed.
....

Turns out it was just filthy. Powder and garbage piled up at the rim of the chamber and threw off the headspace. Did two FTF clears. The third time I just pushed forward on the slide a bit to put it in battery. Lesson learned: If you might rely on the gun to save your life someday, keep it maintained. It can, and will, fail at the worst time. Lucky for me it was just during a test. Twice.

This is something to be particularly cognizant of when doing alot of suppressed shooting, especially if using budget ammo...

Factory gun + Supressor + big box/bucket of cheap ammo = possibility of getting dirty enough to start seeing failures by the end of single range session.


Btw, I love my glocks, but the 1911's shoot great and have an added benefit in that they can be used as a melee weapon (like a steel brick) to beat an attacker to death should you run out of ammo! (j/k)

 

[easy rider]

Yes and no.

Yes on the maintenance and service part.

No on the like any other complex machine part. It is an outdated design that has been replaced many times over by better less complex machines that work better and last longer. The only thing keeping it around is nostalgia.

Even JMB himself came up with a different, better design.



Yeah, because the military only uses the best equipment..........

That's the same argument I hear about welding machines. Are the welding machines of today better? They do have many features that can make them easier to use, but I see many more welding machines that are still in use today that were made 70 years ago then I do welding machines made 25 years ago.

 

[Moonpie]

For being old and outdated the 1911 sure seems to be one of the most popular handguns made today.
Good goonie goo-goo, how many 1911 makers are there? Dozens?

 

[Charlie]

And, ................... they shoot .45 caliber, the best defensive caliber. Not needing 17 +/- bullets to do the job.

 

[Moonpie]

And, ................... they shoot .45 caliber, the best defensive caliber. Not needing 17 +/- bullets to do the job.

If only they made a pump action 1911!!!!!!!

MY GOD!!!!
The sound of racking the slide would tear their arms off!