Yesterday I ran across this Colt 1991 Government model http://www.slickguns.com/product/colt-1991-government-45acp-bl-5-76949for a modest price so am thinking of buying it BUT........ I recall reading a while back about Colt pistols and how for a period (due to ownership change??), their quality went down for a few years then it came back up again. For the life of me I can't find that article anywhere so.....
To those that know their Colts, is the model in the above link a good deal in regards to being one of the Colts made during the "good quality days"? The reason I think it might not be, is the price. The Colts I was looking at a few months ago were around $1000 + and this one is only $600. A gunsmith in Phoenix can add the ambidextrous safety for $90 so the whole gun would be around $700.
Nothing wrong with the GI 1991. It's just a basic entry-level Colt pistol with a parkerized finish and no frills. That's where the low price comes from. Colt wanted something to compete with all the clone companies out there offering cheap park'd "mil-spec" 1911s.
They're still good machines, just dressed in working clothes.
You might want to look at adding different sights while it's getting the ambi safety fitted. That model comes with plain sights. No white dots or stripe. Otherwise, it has a decent sized front post and the sights are not to hard to pickup in daylight.
Ditto - not a fan of the Series 80 because of the passive firing pin safety (the primary difference between the S80 and the S70) - they have been known to fail, and render the pistol useless.
If you're worried about it failing, you can gut the firing pin safety out of a Series80 (or clone) if you wish. Simple job for any smith familiar with the 1911 guts.
You can polish it up where it will make very little if any difference in the trigger pull too if all you're wanting to remedy is a rough feeling trigger caused by the FPS.
that safety has never been a dealbreaker for me. I've had a few .45s with it and a few without. Currently have one PT1911 that I gutted the FPS out of just because I never could get the previous owners bubba-work undone without replacing parts. It actually increased the pull weight by about 10oz.
Just as a basic shooter, or a frame to do a custom build around, the 1991 is a decent model for the pricetag. If you want the Colt brandname on it, go for it. Otherwise, you can get into a "basic" model from many of the clone companies for less than that 1991.
You can thank the UAW for dragging Colt down over the years. I've owned a fair number of Colts. The Series 80 was a nice pistol once you removed the firing pin block.
I was out shooting today and met a fellow who had a Colt 45 acp with "Colt Defender Series 90" on one side and "Lightweight" on the other side. It seemed half the weight of my Kimber with it's 4" barrel. He said he had it for at least 20 years and thought the frame was made from titanium. I don't know if they still make it or not but I'm going to find out!
I believe it was a 3" or 3 1/2" barrel and instead of recoiling upwards, it seemed to recoiled straight back and felt REALLY good in my hand.
I think I'm going to do some searching for one of these!
I think a lot of folk look at the years of 1985-1990 when Colt was on strike and a lot of guns were being assembled by temp workers as some of the bad years. I have a couple that were made during that time that are quite nice however.
Defenders are still being made and mine are quite nice. I have a 2002 in .45 (on the bottom) and 2010 in 9mm. I changed out the wrap around rubber grips for some stocks from the old Ajax Co.
About 20 years ago is when Colt introduced them and for a year or so they were also made in 40 S&W.
The price is way down. They were just offering $75 and $100 rebates, and had a special sale on essentially the same model for $649? or so.
Yes, some people don't like the series 80, but prefer the series 70.
So I might even think $600 was too much.
dc
Well - $600 is not exactly a 'bargain' for a Colt 1911 series pistol - BUT being a Colt you will get your money back if and when you sell it. More than the gun itself you are buying a brand name. Resale value is everything with a Colt.
Everyone and his cousin makes ARs and .45 ACP 1911 style pistols, but only Colt makes a Colt. If you are still thinking about this deal, I'd say go for it.
I have always been a Colt fan...Samuel that is, not Indianapolis ..... but I do prefer the older ones manufactured in the 70's-and 80's. I remember buying a new one and then going straight to the 'smith to have it ported and polished
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