1911’s in general, 9mm versions specifically

[Formidilosus]

Got some more rounds down the tisas 1911 this evening. No failures and really enjoying shooting it. I am interested in changing out the sights. From what I’ve seen a big u notch black rear and big fiber optic dot seems like a go too. What brands are a good recommendation and when it comes to size what are most people doing as well?

I don’t prefer, and would not suggest a U notch rear sight.

Dawson Precision black rear and FO fronts are about the best overall combo available.

 

[Bc45]

I don’t prefer, and would not suggest a U notch rear sight.

Dawson Precision black rear and FO fronts are about the best overall combo available.

When it comes to height and size what do you recommend?

I noticed on there website it has a guide calculation does that work well?

 

[Formidilosus]

When it comes to height and size what do you recommend?

I noticed on there website it has a guide calculation does that work well?

Yep- buy what they recommend, then you can shoot it, see if there is an offset, call them and they will send you a corrected height front sight.

 

[Bc45]

I don’t prefer, and would not suggest a U notch rear sight.

Dawson Precision black rear and FO fronts are about the best overall combo available.

Thanks I’ll give them a try. This the one your talking about?

 

[Formidilosus]

Thanks I’ll give them a try. This the one your talking about?

That’s the combo. I prefer a .100 or max a .115” wide front. But, I lean towards speed precision.

 

[Sandstrom]

Threads like this make it hard to save money! I was looking at two different Tisas double stack 9’s. One has the traditional bushing set up for, the other has the bull barrel similar to the staccato. Is there any reason to pic one over the other? They are both roughly the same price.

 

[Reddish]

Threads like this make it hard to save money! I was looking at two different Tisas double stack 9’s. One has the traditional bushing set up for, the other has the bull barrel similar to the staccato. Is there any reason to pic one over the other? They are both roughly the same price.

In theory if you shoot it enough to wear out a bushing, you can easily replace the bushing. Or fit the bushing for more accuracy. Whereas a bull barrel if you wear the slide out, you’ll have to have it machined for a bushing or retire it.

 

[alpine_troop]

The allure of the 1911 is strong - finally succumbed and joined the club. I decided my first one ought to be classically styled and in .45 ACP:
Springfield Armory Loaded Government 5”
Swapped to a G.I. recoil spring plug, VZ grips, and added the Stan Chen SI magwell. A stack of Wilson Combat mags and a case of 230 grain ball. Runs great.

Biggest smile from a new gun…probably ever.

 

[Sandstrom]

In theory if you shoot it enough to wear out a bushing, you can easily replace the bushing. Or fit the bushing for more accuracy. Whereas a bull barrel if you wear the slide out, you’ll have to have it machined for a bushing or retire it.

Is there any benefit of one vs the other in “shootability”?

 

[NSI]

Is there any benefit of one vs the other in “shootability”?

Bull barrels have more weight further out on the lever and theoretically reduce muzzle rise. They can also be easier to disassemble for the uninitiated.

-J

 

[RockAndSage]

In theory if you shoot it enough to wear out a bushing, you can easily replace the bushing. Or fit the bushing for more accuracy. Whereas a bull barrel if you wear the slide out, you’ll have to have it machined for a bushing or retire it.

By the time anything like that could possibly happen, you'll have fired $50,000 in ammo. It's a non-issue in reality.

Is there any benefit of one vs the other in “shootability”?

It seems companies are able to accurize a bull-barrel/cone-barrel system easier than a bushing setup, but they're not mutually exclusive. As @NSI said, there's a weight difference and it might affect muzzle-flip in some setups. And they might be a bit better for porting, as the barrel's OD is closer to the slide's ports, and would result in a bit less fouling getting inside the slide and blasting grit all over the friction surfaces. But honestly, someone would probably have to have a lot of time on handguns to be able really tell the difference in how a bull-barrel vs bushing setup feels.

 

[RockAndSage]

View attachment 946717
The allure of the 1911 is strong - finally succumbed and joined the club. I decided my first one ought to be classically styled and in .45 ACP:
Springfield Armory Loaded Government 5”
Swapped to a G.I. recoil spring plug, VZ grips, and added the Stan Chen SI magwell. A stack of Wilson Combat mags and a case of 230 grain ball. Runs great.

Biggest smile from a new gun…probably ever.

Ya know...something that's pretty cool about the time we live in, is this gun would have been a fairly expensive custom job in the 1990s, and today it's a stock, very affordable option.

Almost every one of these options would have been at least $100-150 fitted and installed, by a skilled gunsmith, some of which would have included machining, almost all of which would have required hand-fitting with stones, files, jigs, and other specialized tools:

1) Slide cuts and installation of Novak tritium sights
2) Machining front slide serrations
3) Extended ambi thumb safety
4) Beavertail grip safety
5) Match-grade barrel
6) Match-grade barrel bushing
7) Full-length guide rod
8) Lightweight hammer
9) Adjustable trigger
10 ) Trigger job (work on hammer, sear, disconnector, sear-spring, etc)
11) Checkered, flat mainspring housing
12) Re-bluing slide, frame, small parts

About the only additional thing that would have made this a "full house" custom job would be checkering the front strap. It easily would have been a $1500-2000 custom job 30 years ago.