Would you rather have an Ed Brown SF or Nighthawk GRP Recon?

[kaltblitz]

So I'm pondering doing some horse trading to get a railed 1911. Right now I'm looking at the Ed Brown Special Forces Rail and the Nighthawk GRP Recon.

Which one of these would you buy and why?

[rat31465]

A few years ago I had the chance to handle and shoot an Ed Brown 1911 in .45 ACP. The quality and pure shootability of this Pistol was magnificent and of the highest quality precision workmanship....I have no hands on with the Nighthawk GRP Recon so I can't offer a side by side to the Ed Brown...If I were in the market today for a high quality 1911 I wouldn't hesitate to purchase the Brown.

[1911snob]

Tuff choice, I would get both :D

NH has killer CS, and very skilled GS. If there is a problem, they take care of you. I would not hesitate to buy..

EB special force is a great weapon, and one of the best 1911s made. But if you have any problems and have to send it back you may not like the way they treat you.

I hope you reload, its very addicting shooting high end 1911s ;)

[mattjmcd]

PM sent

[mpardun]

I (personally) prefer the Ed Brown. They are all great - IMHO:

EB (Kobra(Gov't), Kobra Carry (stainless), Ltd Edition Engraved/Ivory grips (Gov't) and Special Forces bobtailed (Gov't)): Loved them all...just got WAY into AR's and sold a few off to buy SBR's, Silencers and Optics
NHC (Talon w/ rail(Gov't), TalonIV (Officer), GRP (Gov't)): over complicated the designs (bushings mainly), don't seem nearly as smooth and always felt heavier than they should to me
Les Baer (SRP Commander): Never could get gun to feed reliably, too damn tight, even after 1k rounds break-in
Wilson (CQB Gov't)): My #2 choice, great CS, design, just prefer Ed over Bill is all


Have since sold my NHC', LesBaer's and Wilsons and am 100% Ed Brown, and no more commanders - Gov't all the way. With Bobtail, no printing and 100% reliability!

I like the elegant simplicity, accuracy and 100% reliability I have had with all 4 Brown's I have owned. Now I am down to 2 Ed Brown's: Special Forced, 5", bob tailed & Robar NP3'd with a Robar trigger/action job. Daily Carry:
http://i194.photobucket.com/albums/z302/mpardun/MP_SBR_LT.jpg

And my old workhorse, a ~2000 era Kobra 5" blued (nicely work ater 5k rounds and several schools under her belt). This is my to hell and back 1911.
http://i194.photobucket.com/albums/z302/mpardun/KobraBlondDaimondbacks.jpg

And for old time sake, the prettiest 1911 I have ever owned (SOLD in 2007):
http://i194.photobucket.com/albums/z302/mpardun/ClassAEngravedAngleRedRT.jpg

[maximus83]

Those are some sweet 1911's Mpardun. Nice collection! Makes me hanker for a Brown.

[mpardun]

Those are some sweet 1911's Mpardun. Nice collection! Makes me hanker for a Brown.

They work for me...can't go wrong with any of the above makers...for semi custom, they can't be beat.

Opinions are like a$$holes and elbows around these forums (esp. TOS)...everybody has one (or 2) and take them for what thy are...:p

Brown does wonderful work and has worked for me. That said, I have also fallen in love with the M&P45's as of late. Oh what to do, so many toys, so little time (and money)!

Here is my M&P custom from Dan Burwell for a little more custom pistol porn. Closest thing I have found in Polymer to 1911 (grip angle, triggerpull, pointability):
http://i194.photobucket.com/albums/z302/mpardun/MPs_MandP45.jpg

[13F3OL7]

Personally I would choose the GRP Recon. Simply because I already own a GRP and would feel confident that the Recon would be just as good.

By no means am I knocking Ed Brown handguns. I just don't personally have experience with them.

[MarshallDodge]

It would be a hard choice for me but I would lean toward an Ed Brown because of his fine craftsmanship. I have been lucky to shoot a couple of his 1911's and they are so well made that it makes shooting them feel effortless.

[Rinspeed]

I would choose an Ed Brown over the NHC.

[Kimbo]

I prefer the SF, very clean beautiful gun. Then again another question is who has the faster turn around time Ed Brown or Nighthawk? I've been waiting for my SA Professional since Oct, so thats another thing to consider...

[Aggunner]

Both are nice guns, but I after shooting both and having dealt with both I'm going to have NHC build me my first "custom" at the end of the year just because of their customer service.

[rob_s]

I had a Brown SF and sold it recently. I'll be having NHC build my next 1911.

I don't think you can go wrong either way though. Brown's CS absolutely sucks, while NHC has a great reputation for CS, so you might take that into account.

Are you looking for the base gun with a couple of tweaks, or are you looking to buy a stock gun?

IIRC, the Brown may be a little less expensive, is this still the case?

[Aggunner]

There use to be a bigger price difference between the two but Brown took a price increase this year which brought them with in a hundred or two of NHC.

[macman37]

You won't find me disparaging Nighthawk, but I think the EBSF is a fantastic pistol.

[JonInWA]

I considered both, but chose Nighthawk. I doubt if there's a bad decision to be made here for you. Ultimately, while the intrinsic quality and gunsmithing between the two companies is probably a wash, Nighthawk encourages you to spec out the gun as specifically as you want to your tastes, and then backs their products with superb customer service.

If your desires coincide with an Ed Brown package, it's a wash decision-wise. If you want your gun customized by the manufacturer and tuned as a final package by the manufacturer, then go with Nighthawk.

I realize the the Nighthawk GRP is a package gun, but Nighthawk still allows for some lattitude in componentry.

Best, Jon

[User Name]

nighthawk

[BiggLee71]

i own both an ed brown sf and a nighthawk (talon,not grp). you cant go wrong with either one.price tag on the ebsf was lower which may sway some opinion.as for crappy cs,cant say cause i never had a problem with eb.nh,on the other hand,i've spent quite a few hours on the phone with them(not for anything bad,just me being totally indecisive about spec-ing out a pistol!) and they seemed like nice people.so,like i said,either way,you wont be making a bad purchase.

[get_the_roof]

Nice pistols both. The lack of forward slide serrations on the EB gets my vote.

[mattjmcd]

For the OP- I see you got my PM.

For the benefit ( fwiw- I am far from being an expert) of other readers, I will offer the following suggestion. With a high-end 1911, it *might* be wise to shop the CS aspect of your purchase to at least the extent that you do any other aspect such as aesthetics, accuracy, etc.

[decodeddiesel]

I too would probably go with the Nighthawk simply for the better CS. I think with something as finely fitted as a high end 1911 having outstanding CS is a must.

[The Dumb Gun Collector]

Although I have heard some mixed thing about Ed Brown guns, I must admit to coveting a railed SF model without the rollmark. I love non-serrated rail guns.