Posted: 4/14/2008 5:58:52 PM EDT
I went down to my favorite gun shop and ended up bringing home a TRP. Hopefully I will be able to shoot her at the end of the week.  I do have a few questions. What mags should I pick up? Are there any parts I should consider upgrading? Have there been any problems with the (ILS) in the mainspring housing? How do you feel about the full length guide rod vs the standard set up?TIA Varnagian 
|
Opinions vary. Many like Wilson & will pay extra, even for the "name", some say. Others, like myself, adhere to Chip McCormick mags. They give one an extra rd (as do the Wilson's) & have a bumper pad for ease of use with a mag funnel.
On a TRP, *I* sure can't think of many, if any at all.
Leave it like it is, IMO. Unless you're wanting to add weight to the front end to counteract muzzle flip, a FLGR doesn't add too much to the accuracy of the gun. By all means, avoid the two-piece units. Watching one's front half of the rod go shooting downrange because it had become unscrewed is most unsettling. Always be sure to keep the slides well lubed to maintain smoothness of operation. Enjoy your gun! 
|
|
The $9 springfield mags available on the coupon supplied with the pistol are a bargain. They don't have a plastic/rubber baseplate, so that has to be added to make them anything other than range mags. The available holster on the coupon is also a "deal". I've tried every mag configuration I own, and all have worked without problems. I haven't modified anything on mine, and have no immediate plans to do so. The full length recoil spring guide rod is a nuisance and sharp edeges on the plug make it a challenge to reassemble without drawing blood. Good shooting pistol and no regrets. |
|
I picked up a used TRP on Saturday and was able to shoot it Sunday. I immediately changed out the FLGR, as I don't like them at all. I went with a GI setup. As for changing anything, there are 3 other items I'm thinking about changing. First, is the checkering. It is sharp and I don't shoot enough to keep from being a wuss. I'll probably soften this up a little. The second thing I might change is the ambi safety, but I'm not sure I want to switch this out yet. All my other 1911's have a strong side only Wilson safety, and I'm used to the shape and feel, so the ambi might have to go. The last thing I might change is the magwell. I don't like the extra length it adds, as this will be a CCW gun. If I do that though, I'll have to bevel the magwell, as SA doesn't blend the add on magwell with the frame. As for mags, stick with the usual suspects and you'll be GTG, Wilson, CMC, Tripp. Right now I'm not changing anything other than the guide rod, but these are the things I might need to modify. |
|
I'd pick up some mags with thick base pads. Personally, I like the Wilson 47DAB which has a .350" base pad. It extends a little past the bottom of the mag funnel which helps you get the mag seated correctly. Wilson Mags  As for the guide rod, I took the front half of mine out and put in an Ed Brown GI style plug. It greatly aids in take the pistol apart, you don't need an allen wrench and you don't have to worry about it coming loose. Ed Brown Plug 
|
|
I'm leaning more and more towards the TRP... Give us a Range Report if you don't mind. ETA: I swore for years I'd get a Wilson CQB, but honestly... When I first wanted a CQB, it came with a mag well, dehorned, ambi safety, etc, for $1800, then the price jumped to about over 2k a couple of years back, now they gutted the CQB and put all the features on a new model and called it the Elite and it costs almost 2.8k. I've said I was going to buy that pistol when I turned 21 for the last...2 or 3 years, at least since my senior year of high school, it's price has risen almost 33% from that day. I understand inflation, but this crap is ridiculous. I honestly think they produce a great product, and I'd be thrilled to death to have one, but even Night Hawk (who when I first started looking at Wilson Products as my "going to buy" was way over priced.) has the same price they had back then, and they're 2.4k. I just find myself asking is it worth almost double the price, especially the way they have been price hiking. That's what leads me to looking at Les Baer's and Springfield's, etc. Les Baer's a great product, but they don't necessarily have all the features I have but, I could get over that if I found something resembling what I like, I don't care for bluing but if it was the right pistol, I'd learn to like it. I mean, at least to me, I look at the price of the pistol, +50-ish for the transfer fee (The guy who sells them here, or sells some high end 1911's is 200 over MSRP usually, and most dealers actually mark DOWN from MSRP not above, I'll buy one in another state and have it transferred before putting up with that crap.), plus 300-350 for the .22 LR conversion kit that I plan on getting because of the price of ammunition, plus the 5 spare mags I'm going to buy, which will be 80-100, plus the holster, which I'm thinking will be 80 to 100, and you really need to at least IMHO get 500 rds to break in the pistol/get used to the weapon, which will run at .45 ACP costs around honestly, even at walmart WWB price, 150~. That's 700 dollars in accessories and crap that I want, plus the pistol. Obviously, I could skip the .22 conversion temporarily, but that's still around 400$, plus a CWP class, plus the probably around $30 to get the license, you're looking at around a (ETA:I factored in the cost of the 22 Conversion originally, 900-ish with, probably 600 ish without)in start up costs. So I could get all of that and a Springfield TRP for the price of the wilson, and honestly, the price difference, or the price of all of that crap, is how much Wilson has gone up on their prices since I originally started looking. Food for thought. (I didn't mean to hijack this thread, but I did, looking back, my Bad.) |
You might want to take a look at these guys SGC. They are master dealers for Wilson and Springfield, and I believe sell for less than MSRP, at least they do for SA. I bought a TRP from them a couple of weeks ago and it was for the lowest price I could find--even on the net, although I did have to pay our AZ sales tax. Their shipping fee is $60, I believe for on-line sales. I'm still getting use to the TRP, but it clearly is the best shooting 1911 I own, and that accumulation includes Gunsites, GCNM, TM, etc. Really haven't shot the TRP enough for a meaningful range report, but no problems of any kind in a couple of hundred rounds. The SA Coupon supplied with the pistol cut down on the prices some of the extras--mags, holster, etc. |
If your considering a TRP ($1400-$1500), get a Les Baer TRS ($1700). Much more gun for the money. As for the CQB, they didn't remove any features from the CQB. The new Elite has a few cosmetic differences - serrated top & rear, U-notch rear sight, etc. |
|
I recently traded a TRP in Armory Kote for a Nighthawk T3. I had the TRP for a year and never had a single failure with the pistol and fired about 3K rounds. The Springfiled stainless mags worked without any problems. As has been stated above you may want to consider replacing the FLGR with a GI setup. The FLGR was constantly coming loose while I was shooting it at the range and I had to stop to tighten it. The TRP is a very accurate pistol. Enjoy it. |
I was thinking used Les Baer, but that RRA Basic Carry is essentially the same thing. I figure they're both of the same or similar quality. They're both blued, strong side safety, "polished" mag well. (In reference to CQB Elite. I realized I just changed gears mid thought process.)Other than the top and rear serrations... and the sights, What's changed and a Mag Well? I just don't see it. Maybe it's the lanyard loop hole in the Mag Well. I like Les Baer, we'll see. Thanks for all the input guys, I really appreciate it. Sorry for hijacking the thread though. Before I realized it I was done with a rant about Wilson Prices, hahaha. ETA: I narrowed it down to a TRP, used, and I don't really care if it's slightly used, honestly, I don't, if some guy shot it a couple hundred times, and didn't beat it, and nothing is mechanically wrong. It's like a car, he'll take hit of 300-400 on resale from the MSRP. So I figure I could get either a used LB TRS, or TRP for around 1300-1400 or that RRA for 1600 NIB, I don't see too many RRA's out there and honestly, it's a good enough price I'd consider ordering direct from them and not shopping for a "deal". ETA 2: Make sense of a paragraph, and also, I didn't want to post the inevitable "Which one's better" thread. ETA 3: Also, when I said gutted all the features, I meant the Mag Well... Which I'm second guessing, because I'm not sure if I'll like how much it'll bulge, versus not. Oh well, they have gone up almost $600 on the base line CQB though. |
I appreciate it, Tell them to hold it for 4 months and 8 days and it's SOLD! I can really attribute most of the knowledge I've gained (I know, Ha, I'm not an expert, but I wouldn't say I'm a complete idiot.) to this forum. Personally, I like the TRP do you think it will be as accurate as the RRA or a LB, or do you think it wouldn't be significant enough to matter? I think I need to address the Mag Well issue too... but I need to do that in another thread, rather than tying up and torpedoing this poor guy's. |
If I may? I don't see the TRP being as accurate as a Baer. While I don't own the TRP, I do have its cousin, the SS Trophy Match as well as a Baer. Certainly there may be the rare shooter who might shoot the TRP better/more accurately than the Baer, but all things being equal, the Baer will nose ahead on accuracy, IMO. As for "does it matter enough?", I like asking people this question: You have a deranged nutcase holding a mouse gun or a knife to a hostage's throat at a store robbery at the mall. The thug is higher than Ted "where's my car?" Kennedy & he's gonna kill the hostage because some $5/hr clerk can't open the time safe. You have a small window of opportunity for a clear shot at the perp over the hostage. If you're the hostage, how accurate do you want the gun doing this shot then? |
That's how I feel about it, but I figure between two pistols that are nearly the same price, what's the difference? I honestly think the difference will be the amount of time spent constructing each. I know Les Baer's will have way more attention to detail IMHO than a SA, I think the RRA's are probably the same story, especially if they give different hand checkering options among other things, they should certainly be good in the accuracy department, especially with a Guarantee. I feel the same way Bob, and for that much money, I really don't want to go back to a Smith. I feel the TRP might need a trigger job, I believe it's 4.5# whereas a RRA or LB is 3.5#, big difference? No, but those little differences add up. Thanks. Not saying SA's are bad, just how I feel about it. ETA: I guess to just go ahead and voice what I'm thinking, SA's are produced in much higher quantities, you can find them in most stores, Tells you something about their construction time, of course you come across a Les Baer or RRA Stocking dealer once in awhile, but they usually only have a few models on hand, or you come across one used. Other then that, it's a wait for one to be built. Says something. Either 1) they need a larger manufacturing plant and they're running Rock River Arms out of their basement or 2) they put a lot of time in their weapons or pistols to be more specific. (Les Baer, that's everything, but anyway.) I'm sorry I continue to just blatantly hijack this thread, apologize and do it anyway... So, eh, anyway, PM me I guess if you want to discuss it further, or if the OP doesn't mind we could continue here. I just don't want to rain on his parade, that's a POS thing to do. |
I'm a big fan of the SA line but there are a lot of differences between the TRP and the LB/RRA. For one, the SA is full of MIM parts. No issue IMO but it is a nice feeling knowing the internals are all tool steal, not metal injection molded. Both the RRA and the LB come with Kart barrels, much nicer than the Storm Lake in the TRP IMO. Fit and finish on the TRP is actually very good, nice tight slide to frame fit on the one I owned. LB and RRA are flawless IMO. Trigger was good, not as good as my TRS, but very crisp. The Baer is worth the couple hundred more than the TRP, the TRP would be a killer gun for $1100 new (like they used to be). That being said, my favorite 1911 is still my Wilson CQB. It's never failed me, eats anything and still looks like new. I'd say my LB TRS is a close second. |
Summed up what I was thinking. I think Wilson's a good company, just a bit over priced, same with NH, I mean the GRP's a great looking weapon, they all look good, but I bet RRA and LB put just as many hours into their firearms as them. I remember when WC was selling Catalog's for 5$, that changed as I'm sure nobody bought any, I received a free one after they came off that high horse. I thought SA had MIM, but I didn't want to bash a guy's weapon choice in his thread about how he had just acquired one, and that I mercilessly drove off topic into my gripe fest... |
No bashing at all, as I have said the TRP is a FINE weapon. It's the best production 1911 made IMO. |
It has all the features I like, just none of the fine tuning, I might tone down the LPI some. 20, is a bit much, I'd do 25 LPI, maybe 30. I think 25 is a good number to get used to, I think it's regrettable that some have to sand paper down theirs. |
| If I had to pick a striclty production grade non custom 1911 to bet my ass on and take to a fight, it would be a springfield TRP. On caveat to that though, the frame would absolutly have to be drilled and the ejector correctly pinned in place before I would even think of carrying it. The Loc Tited, non pinned ejector that Springfield uses is a shortcut that I just can't accpt. |