I Traded a Used P220 I had for a few months For a SA MIL SPEC 1911
I know I know … I NEED HELP.
I Paid $630.00 for SIG and traded for a Mil Spec.
I was upset to find out it was made n brazil but its very hard to find one here locally.
Someone here help me feel a little better about my choice…
The Sig was great but it was old from 95 and I wanted a 1911 again very badly.
Is the parkerized the best option for Armory Kote or a Ion coat later on
Fear not. All Springfield 1911s start life in Brazil. If >50% of the work on them is in Brazil, it gets put on the frame rollmark. If not, it says Geneseo, Il. My Loaded says Brazil on it. I have a Mil Spec on back order that I will admit, I hope it says Geneseo on it only 
Have fun with it!
What is your intention with this pistol? The 1990s SIGs are great, and I personally would not have made the trade you made.
The parkerized and Armory coats will both wear, and will allow rust and pits if not taken care of, well. Parkerized coatings and ion coatings are designed to hold oil, but the ion coating is more durable and less prone to wear. The Armory coating does not have to be oiled. For the money and wear, especially if you practice holstering and unholstering, a lot, my opinion would be to go for the ion coating.
parkerize w/ Cerakote over
Don’t knock Brazil-made 1911 frames and slides. They make 'em by the tons for a reason…they are, generally, very good. The Mil-Spec is a good gun and will last a long time if you take care of it. Don’t have trader’s remorse now, pal, cause it’s a done deal.
the gun looks good as is-it sounds like you want to refinish a new gun? shoot and carry it till it looks like hell then think about “fixing” it. many of these guns run great out of the box- most problems occure when people start putting in “drop in” “upgrade” parts.
Welcome to the 1911 Brotherhood!!
You have a great gun there. Resist the temptation to ‘upgrade’ it for now; invest in ammo, take it out, shoot it and get to know it. Don’t look back on the trade, you “very badly” wanted a 1911 for good reason - go out and enjoy it!!
Regards,
I shot a milspec Springfield the other day. It was a little tight, but accurate. Not a bad gun at all. I love the Sig P22X series in 9mm, but I don’t think they handle well in.45acp. I would personally rather have a 1911 If it’s a range toy, congratulations and enjoy. If it’s a carry pistol, you might want to get some work done to it before you stake your life on it. Either way congratulations on the new pistol.
If you want to close escrow on your gun finish, then this is the way to go, or you can ionize and Cerakote. Either way, it will be a done deal.
You made your choice already so not much validation is needed. You own it.
IMBEL makes great frames so don’t worry about the Brazil markings… Put a proper set of sights on it and have the trigger cleaned up, Cerakote and rock on… Run a thousand rounds through it to make sure you dont get hammer bite because you might want to add a beavertail I and I would do that at the same time I did the trigger…
The GI is a great base gun.
I have the GI 1911 model similar to yours and have been quite pleased with it. After getting a lighter mainspring and sear spring in it, the trigger pull is very light and crisp adding to its accuracy considerably. I also use a Kimber .22 conversion on the frame which makes it very versitile. The finish has held up well so far- have had it for about 6 years. Have fun with your new toy.
I have the Springer Mil-Spec in stainless. It has approximately 1K rounds through it so far with NO malfunctions. I have used factory ball, HP, and a lot of 200 grain HG semiwadcutters (reloads). Great 1911 for the money. I did, however, keep my P220 :D.
I like my Mil-Spec far more than the P220 and P220R that I used to own.
So what if it’s made in Brazil? All SA 1911’s start their life at Imbel.
I still have my SIG P220 from 1996 with the plastic checkered grips. I don’t think I will EVER part with it. Especially for a Springfiddly 1911. I sold my Champion years ago because it was crap, kept jamming even after 2 trips back to the factory and who knows how many different mags. SIGs are priceless while Springfield 1911s are not worth the $$$$. Just my.02.
well thanks guys. I know I made a mistake but its all good…
I like 1911s very much
Now I cant wait for the FTF and FTE and Etc.
:thank_you2:
I disagree, you made the best choice possible… 
But I am a 1911 nut myself. Forget about it, guns come and go… its not like you traded it for a Lama.
If its a shooter, I’d say put a little money into the internals, with a nice adjustable trigger, tool steel sear, disconnector and hammer. Other than that, a nice set of sights can make a HUGE difference on a mil-spec. If its not a shooter, then find a good smith to refit the barrel bushing and see where are from there. Grips couldn’t hurt either.
If money is tight then I would:
Buy ammo and enjoy it.
Put on better sights.
Grips.
Bushing
Internals
If money is no object, then I would do them in reverse at the same time.
On the finish, the parkerized finish is actually very nice for moderate useage. If you carry everyday it will wear, but I have found it still keeps the rust at bay. However, I am in dry Colorado… this may not be as true in a more humid area. If I had to have it coated, I would do Cerakote over park.
Thanks for the upgrade advice…made me feel a little better.
The first thing I wanted to get done after putting 200 rounds thru it was new barrel and bushing,
something about this two piece barrel seems cheap…
then after that maybe a reliability package and then I would do in order :trigger, sights, beavertail, hammer, pachmayer grips.
Personally, I wouldn’t sweat the 2 piece barrel, I have had a lot of Springfield 1911’s and not one has ever given me a problem. It is a money saver (for SA) but I would shoot the rifling out of it before replacing it. Now, you will gain a good bit of accuracy by replacing the bushing alone but the barrel itself isn’t what is adding accuracy, having a properly fit barrel will. Obviously these guns are a system and all the other sub-systems, when correctly tuned, will reveal a more accurate pistol for sure.
When I found out my SA 1911 was made in Brazil, I got mad and sold it.
That being said, before I knew that, the extractor broke from the gun having the living daylights shot out of it. I sent it back to SA for repair. The part, the labor and return shipping were all free. Not bad.
But I still sold it.