Among compact, production 1911's is there anything better ( more reliable, accurate, more compact) than the colt defender? It seems to be the gun with the least amount of "MIM." Can the colt defender be retrofitted with night sights?

One last thing anyone reccomend this buffer for the 1911?
http://www.buffertech.com/stores/1/COLT_1911_CLONES_P3C2.cfm

Thanks.

Edit: Is there a reason the Springfeild and kimbers are 500 dollars more for a similar model?

The Defender is a great little gun.  For the money I'm not sure there is another "micro 1911" out there that will give you the same quality.  Night sights can be fitted to it by any decent gunsmith.  I think the older Defenders had dovetailed sights, but its been awhile since I've seen one.

The shok buffer is a can of worms that has been opened many times here.  In summary, they are fine on fullsize guns when used at the range, but not many people recommend using them while carrying.  I have yet to see anybody recommend a buffer for any 1911 under 5", just doesn't seem to work in the shorter barreled guns, although somebody will probably say it works for them.  

Spend the $5 and try the buffers.  They may work for you they may not.  I no longer use them as I see it as one more thing to go wrong.

Do not use shok buffers in a shorter then commander length 1911. EVER. Even the commander can be iffy. The slide need every MM of travel to the rear it can get.

The defender is a very nice CCW 1911. I have been carrying mine for about a year now, and I love it. 0 malf's.

Are compact 1911's any LESS reliable than larger sized ones? I'd assume they would be less accurate. Whats an Ideal carry size for a woman?

..........look at the commander lightweight.....also the officers lightweight......a little bit larger than a defender...(very little)....but nice carry weight.....i have no problem with defender....but never fired one....point is to check them all.....i have a ss officers...which is my primary carry gun....totaly reliable....the son has a lightweight officers...just the weight difference feels good....i like the commander size...but the officers will do....reliability is in the individual firearm...i like to upgrade the 1911`s....and as far as the compacts..they are 100 percent....actually...non of my 1911`s have failed in any way..including the 10mm...which is a great shooter.....to stay with colt...i highly recommend...far as the buffer...as the guys say...forget it...colt warns not to use with officers size...the myth being the shorter (more compact).....the more likely to hiccup....not my experience with colt...not to say that some guns won`t have a problem...especially new...but the mfg will correct any....the most frequent i have heard...is the need for throating...kind of understandable on a new 1911.....unless you are a very small person..you will get used to firing the 45 and won`t need to worry about "buffs"....part of the reason i think you should try a couple different models....to decide which is easiest for you to handle...recoil included...........good luck...........b/g

Quoted: ..........look at the commander lightweight.....also the officers lightweight......a little bit larger than a defender...(very little)....but nice carry weight.....i have no problem with defender....but never fired one....point is to check them all.....i have a ss officers...which is my primary carry gun....totaly reliable....the son has a lightweight officers...just the weight difference feels good....i like the commander size...but the officers will do....reliability is in the individual firearm...i like to upgrade the 1911`s....and as far as the compacts..they are 100 percent....actually...non of my 1911`s have failed in any way..including the 10mm...which is a great shooter.....to stay with colt...i highly recommend...far as the buffer...as the guys say...forget it...colt warns not to use with officers size...the myth being the shorter (more compact).....the more likely to hiccup....not my experience with colt...not to say that some guns won`t have a problem...especially new...but the mfg will correct any....the most frequent i have heard...is the need for throating...kind of understandable on a new 1911.....unless you are a very small person..you will get used to firing the 45 and won`t need to worry about "buffs"....part of the reason i think you should try a couple different models....to decide which is easiest for you to handle...recoil included...........good luck...........b/g

Sentence structure.  It's all about sentence structure.

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Quoted: Are compact 1911's any LESS reliable than larger sized ones? I'd assume they would be less accurate. Whats an Ideal carry size for a woman?

HELL YES! They can very well be less reliable, to the point of completely unreliable.

No matter how good/bad the manufacturer is, any 1911 with a barrel shorter than 4" is unreliable BY DESIGN. Given my range experience I dropped my 3.5" 1911 for carry and upgraded to a 4" compact. ANY top notch company that charges $$$ on their reputation alone will NOT make below a 4" for this very reason (They don't want the design problem to start any rumors about their drop in quality).


What's an ideal woman? Answer that and I'll give you a straight answer. The smaller the weapon the easier to tote and the more it kicks/hurts like a sonofabitch. If an ideal gun (FOR anybody) could be built it would weigh/conceal like a Seecamp .25, yet it  would feel/shoot like a Smith 629. The first consideration is what load can you handle. If you can handle a .45 and practice enough, then a 1911 with a 4-4.25" barrel will work well.  It always mistified me that wo/men carry these airweight titanium .357s that they never practice with (mostly because while great to carry they are horrible to shoot). How anybody would be so willing to go out there with a poor handling weapon they rarely use is beyond me.

I've read nothing but positive things about the Defender and will own one one of these days. In the meantime, I think my favorite configuration is the Colt CCO, Commander slide on Officer lightweight frame. I think it's a great CCW package. The Gunsite CCO is the only model Colt currently makes and it is a sweet gun. The Officer models are also great, either steel or lightweight frames.

Quoted: ............my computer............my way...............

[Frank]I did it my way ![/Frank]

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