MA>JP>Get 1911 if you want a good pistol.
MA>Yeah, 1911's are great, if you have $800 to start for a vanilla
MA>Springfield, then you go on to add $900 of modifications for stocks,
MA>ambi-safties, brushings, caspian slides, etc.  As a matter of fact: All
MA>the 1911 "toters" I know of, only two carry theirs stock.  Only two.
MA>Those are fine. One is a Norinco, the other is a Para.  If the 1911 is
MA>so great, why do they need all the extra crap?  My Smith 686, un-
MA>modified, out of the box, hits steel plates at 80yds. I'd LOVE to see a
MA>stock 1911 reliably do that.  If I ever buy 1911, I've given certain
MA>people permission to shoot me with it (so when I wake up in the morning,
MA>I'll never do it again :) )
My carry gun (which I've won a few bucks with in practical handgun
competitions) is a M1927 Argentine -- that is, a Colt made the way Colts
used to be made.  It cost about $200.  Total modifications to this gun
were:
                New sights (the old sights were battered) -- $12.00
                New Grips (the old grips were cracked)        10.00
                Longer grip safety                            24.00
My two of my three "modifications" were based on the fact that I bought
a used gun with some holster wear.  The third was simply "nice to have."
People who buy Glocks usually replace the sights.  People who have
Ruge 10/22s often outfit them with new barrels, stocks and so on.
People who buy Model 70 Winchesters put scopes on them.  Does this mean
all these guns are somehow "bad?"
The things that are done to M1911-type pistols are mostly in the same
category -- they tailor the gun to meet their personal preferences, and
are able to do it because of the wide availability of after-market
parts.
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