November 30th, 2023
18:30 runtime
People have very strong feelings about the 1911, on both sides.
Interestingly, they both feel those are the negative and, conversely, the positive attributes of it.
For me, the decision is not hard.
Balanced and powerful, the Springfield Armory 1911 line-up offers a wide-range of pistols. One is bound to be perfect for your needs.
I like the 1911.
I like its longevity, its design, its accuracy potential, and its construction.
But selecting a particular 1911 can be a bit more complicated and can be a daunting task.
Selecting the best 1911 pistol for your personal defense needs varies according to the individual.
Springfield Armory has a large line of 1911s, and each one has their own personality.
Well, fear not.
Confusing, Much?
To simplify, I broke this down into five categories.
First is the primary purpose on how you plan to use the 1911.
Is the 1911 for home defense, carry, competition, range fun or all of the above?
TheSpringfield Armory Garrisonis an excellent full-sized 1911 pistol. Recoil is mild and the accuracy is excellent.
Second is choosing the right caliber.
Springfield offers 1911s in various calibers that will directly impact your shooting performance and purpose with the pistol.
Third, we will explore what magazine capacity will fit your preference and shooting style.
While most self-defense encounters are at much closer distances, the 1911 is capable of good accuracy to even 100 yards and beyond.
I will give you my choice with each category.
I completely understand that each shooter has their own preferences.
There are several to showcase so lets get to it.
Some 1911 handguns follow a traditional form, but others include modern features including an accessory rail for adding a white light.
Primary Purpose
For home defense, I am going with the 1911 Operator in .45 ACP.
The 1911 Operator has aggressive G-10 grips that will help with sweaty hands.
It has a front tritium night sight and a dust cover Picatinny rail for adding a light.
The Springfield Emissary is a thoroughly modern 1911 pistol. It features aggressive texturing, unique slide cuts, squared trigger guard and an accessory rail.
Combined, the defender can focus on the night sight and spot the light when needed.
Those modern 1911 features are why I chose the 1911 Operator in .45 ACP.
The 1911 DS Prodigy has a bull barrel, steel frame and a light single-action trigger.
The Prodigy uses a double-stack magazine to pack up to 26-rounds into each one. The gun is also ready from the factory for a red dot sight.
A competitor will benefit with decreased felt recoil when transitioning between targets.
The 1911 DS Prodigy offers every advantage a competitive shooter needs to be successful.
Most concealed carriers prefer a small, lightweight pistol.
1911 pistols are offered in a variety of calibers. The .45 is the most popular, but others include 9mm and 10mm.
The 1911 Ronin EMP 3 is chambered in 9mm with an aluminum frame with nine-round magazines.
It is available with a bull barrel and a fiber optic front sight.
A 4 model with a 10-round magazine is also available.
Compact 1911 pistols like this Ronin EMP 3″ are quite popular for CCW. They offer many of the benefits of their larger cousins in a smaller package.
The 1911 Ronin EMP weighs only 24 ounces.
More importantly, the pistol shoots as accurately as a full-size 1911.
Can we all agree that 1911 fans are show-offs?
In the author’s opinion, the Springfield Armory TRP is one of the best pistols of any kind on the market. For many, it is the king of the 1911’s.
Considering 1911s are gorgeous handguns, there is none more beautiful than the 1911 Emissary.
The 1911 Emissary has a Tri-Top cut to the slide that sets it apart from most 1911s.
Beautiful is an understatement when looking at or shooting the 1911 Emissary.
How do you choose which 1911 is best? Start with a list of your needs and see which of these handguns is going to check all of those boxes.
Calibers
The most popular caliber in the world is 9mm.
Springfield Armory offers several 1911s chambered in this round.
However, Springfield Armory did not stop there.
The 1911 Emissary and the full-size 1911 Ronin pistols also have 9mm models.
John Browning created the 1911 in .45 ACP, and Springfield Armory has many in their line of 1911s.
Springfield Armory has met that demand with the 1911 Ronin 10mm.
The 1911 Ronin shoots the 10mm round softer than any other 10mm handgun I have ever fired.
The accuracy the 1911 Ronin 10mm delivers is as precise as the 1911 Garrison in 9mm.
Equipped with an eight-round 10mm magazine, the 1911 Ronin will exceed your expectations at the range.
Magazine Capacity
Springfield Armorys 1911s are very consistent in terms of capacity.
Springfields 9mm 1911s are also very consistent.
Almost all of the Springfield 1911s that are chambered in 9mm will use a nine-round magazine.
There is however one exception.
The 1911 DS Prodigy has 17- and 20-round magazines.
A 26-round magazine can be purchased separately from the Springfield site.
That is some serious 9mm firepower.
Grips
This category is quite extensive.
Springfield Armory offers a variety of features on their 1911s.
They create a 1911 pistol to suit all preferences and personalities.
Lets begin with the grips.
Springfield basically uses three types of grips on their 1911s.
One will notice they have several 1911s with G-10 grips, wood or wood laminate and gritty polymer grips.
G-10 grips look and feel great.
They are installed on the1911 Emissaryand the 1911 Operator.
The polymer on the 1911 DS Prodigy is an incredible grip texture.
It fits the 1911 DS Prodigy perfectly.
The same adaptive grip texturing is on the Echelon and Hellcat handguns.
Shooters rave about how well the adaptive grip texturing feels on their hands when shooting their handguns.
Sights
There are several types of sights that Springfield Armory uses with their 1911 pistols.
First is a fiber optic front sight with two dot rear sights.
A good example of that sight picture is the 1911 Ronin line of 1911 pistols.
Next is night sights.
The1911 TRPhas both rear and front night sights.
The 1911 Operator has serrated black rear sights.
The 1911 Emissary has a large U-shaped rear sight.
It is commonly known as aU-Dot sight picture.
The U-dot sight picture is also installed on the Hellcat and Echelon handguns.
Personally, I love the U-Dot sight picture.
Just sink that large tritium night sight inside the U and you are shooting dead nuts all day long.
The 1911 Garrison and the 1911 Mil-Spec have a standard three-dot sight picture.
Triggers
If there is one quality that 1911 fans enjoy the most, it is the trigger.
A 1911 trigger reigns supreme compared to any other throw in of trigger on the market in my opinion.
In particular, Springfield Armory 1911s have incredible triggers.
The single-action trigger weight ranges between 3.75 to 4.5 lbs.
I have found the trigger pull, reset and weight extremely consistent with all Springfield Armory 1911s.
The most common trigger used in their 1911 line is a skeletonized trigger.
The 1911 Ronin also uses a skeletonized trigger.
There are few Springfield 1911s that have a full body trigger.
The 1911 Mil-Spec has a full body trigger that is common with the original John Browning design.
The 1911 Emissary uses a full body flat trigger.
Your 1911 should be an extension of your confidence, skill, and values.
Treat it with respect, train diligently, stay safe, shoot straight and make every shot count.
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