Hey guys,
I am toying with the idea of buying a range toy 9mm 1911. Anybody make a decent one these days?
Springfield EMP or there is a model by STI that I have heard good things about. Not sure if there are others.
I have a Sprigfield Loaded Full size 5". Came with a craptastic trigger, but new sear and some sring work, little polishin here and there and its passable now.
runs 100% so far
I got it just a couple months ago used, prob have 600+ rounds through, HP’s, mixed ammo, factory reloads, WWB, cheap crap.
I put an aluminum buff in it and it just sits still while slide reciprocates.
Ive heard of bad examples as well, mine runs.
Ive heard good things about the STI single stacks as well.
I was in a class with a guy running a DW that had a few issues,
LAV’s 9mm 1911 from Wilson seems to be working OK for him.
Picked up a new STI Legacy in 9mm about 2 years ago. Gun is at 3K rounds now without a single failure. 
Running CCI Blazer 115 ammo and Tripp 10 round magazines.
Ejector broke at 1k but was easily replaced.
Pistol is used mostly in USPSA and Steel matches.
On a lark I picked up a STI Trojan in 9mm a couple of months ago. I didn’t want to drop big money on a Wilson and have a 9mm 1911 turn out to be a dud, so I took the middle ground and went with the STI. Boy, does this gun shoot like a house on fire! I went through Dawson Precision and had them perform their voodoo, install an S&A magwell, and a DP FO front sight. I was a little unsure how I would like the chain link stippling, but I’ve become a fan.
I’ve run about 1200 rounds through it and she just got her first cleaning the other day. Filthy on the inside, but she didn’t miss a beat. She cleaned up real nice too! The Trojan worked right out of the box, but I’m sure the good folks at DP had something to do with that.
They only thing that I don’t like about the gun are the “thick” grips. I changed those out with some Wilson’s I had laying around. I also thought I was having some mag issues, but I think it’s operator error. I found myself occasionally riding the slide stop and not allowing the slide to lock back on an empty mag. The supplied Metalform and my Wilson ETM mags work just fine.
Knowing what I know now, maybe I should have ponied up for the Wilson, but for half the price, I don’t have any regrets. Good luck with your search. There are few things more fun than shooting a nice 1911 at half the price and half the recoil.
I have a Springfield Loaded 9mm that I picked up slightly used about 5 years ago. It is as accurate as any 1911 and runs like a Swiss watch. I keep hearing how 9mm is the wrong choice for a 1911 but my sample of one has been excellent.
The barrel is ramped which may aid in the reliability. My 11 year old son shoots it when we go to the range and after the last range session he informed me that he would like one for his birthday.
I recently traded for an older Springfield Loaded 9mm - black Novaks instead of the three-dots they’re using now, but post-whenever Springfield started putting the lock in the mainspring. Fantastic shooter, completely reliable with ball. Balked at some 147gr Gold Dots I had sitting around, but I’m not terribly concerned with it’s hollowpoint performance.
I need to order a GI guide rod setup and new recoil spring for it…
Didn’t know he had one in 9mm
It’s not really a production 1911, but I have a Fusion commander in 9mm. It has worked well for me through the 400 or so rounds I’ve fired. I had a few occaisions were it did not fully extract spent casings from some reloads with a low powder charge & a 14# recoil spring. 3.8 grains I believe. Factory ammo & reloads with a higher charge are no problem. Nothing wrong with the firearm itself.
Don’t know if that will help you any.
v/r
Aaron
I think in all honesty it is a crap shoot… It seems that for every one “happy” owner of a 9mm 1911 there are many others who are not as “happy”…
Wilson IMHO would be one of your better options to try. You can get them to run, but sometimes it takes a little work, that being the case Wilson’s service is excellent so that would be my choice… Best of luck!
Baer also makes a few models in 9mm and depending on your use he might have a build that will work…
Not sure if you want a custom for a range toy, but I know a 1911 'smith who made one that got a favorable review in combat handguns. When I shot it, which was minimal to be honest, it ran well and shot soft. He said the hard part is getting good mags for it.
Wilson solved the mag problem with their tactical elite 9mm mags the guns.
We do lots of guns in 9mm it just takes some tuning and proper parts.
First the mags then the extractor. The STI product is what we suggest.
A friend of mine has a kimber aegis 9mm, nice gun. Very accurate and has run flawless so far. I’d like to have one myself,
The S&W pro series is pretty bad ass.
the Wilson ETM’s for my 9mm have have run without issue
I have a STI 4.15 that’s very reliable. I have a STI Guardian in 9mm that’s having issues with return to battery. The choices for officer size magazines aren’t that great.
Pardon me, when you say the STI product is what you suggest, is that the extractor you’re referring to or the entire gun?
I have several (I know hard to believe)
A Springfield loaded 9mm runs well no issues
A STI top end on a Wilson frames which is my favorite
A Ed Brown Class A which runs perfect but will not work with Wilson mags
Mike
Larry Vickers is running a WIlson CQB in 9mm
I emailed him yesterday, says it runs like a champ and he loves it
seriously considering one