Consensus wanted on Sig, S&W 1911s

[G34]

A year and a half after owning two Kimbers that were both truly piles of shit, I'm looking to get another Government 1911 and am not interested in what I suspect is the minimal gain of buying a custom over a quality factory or factory semi-custom. I haven't been able to find much reputable opinion (mostly firearm mags who's opinions I don't trust for a second and could write a fluff piece that would make a Ferrari out of a Yugo) on either the S&W or Sig 1911s so I'm interested in a brief summary opinion from anyone who owns either make. Thanks.

[Redhat]

I have a SW1911PD Commander (scandium alloy frame). Has about 2k through it. Had a few feeding issues with the factory ACT Mags but since I switched to Wilson 47D's, Checkmate Hybrid feedlip and CMC Cobras, that all went away. Recoil is "peppy" compared to a full size steel gun. I replaced the full length guide rod with a standard GI type from Ed Brown, switched out the factory Novak sights for a set from 10-8 Performance and replaced the grips with VZ Operators.

Triggers typically have a little play horizontally / vertically, this seems to bother some but not me. Accuracy is about what you'd expect in a duty gun.

No parts breakages yet.

[Sigmax]

Well here is my unvarnished opinion. Given SIG's current condition even the dear to my heart classic P-series SIG's are questionable.

The 1911 SIG's are full on medium quality boat anchors as boat anchors go if you ask me. Been down that long, expensive, frustrating, exhausting, dark, out of spec, crappy MIM (as in bad MIM parts) filled road. And I would save you the hassle if you will let me.

On the other hand, the S&W E series is a fav amount the professionals I know in LE that are allowed to carry 1911's & I have seen a decent number of them run pretty well.

As always a Used Wilson CQB or Nighthawk could be a good fit.

[G34]

Well here is my unvarnished opinion. Given SIG's current condition even the dear to my heart classic P-series SIG's are questionable.

The 1911 SIG's are full on medium quality boat anchors as boat anchors go if you ask me. Been down that long, expensive, frustrating, exhausting, dark, out of spec, crappy MIM (as in bad MIM parts) filled road. And I would save you the hassle if you will let me.

I figured as much, I wouldn't buy one unless a large amount of people rolled in here singing Sig 1911's praises and I checked their post history for symptoms of fanboyism. I've heard so many negative things about their new P-series guns I didn't walk into this thread with any pre-conceived notions that they would make another all metal gun with any modicum of success.

Confirming my suspicions is as good as dispelling them so thank you for that!

[BOOMER72]

I own a S&W 1911 E-series and i fed it just about every reload i could think of and it fed and ate it all. Let me start by saying I am not a huge 1911 fanboy, I know almost all fighting pistols derived from it and i respect it greatly but I dont own a but one. That being said I went with what I figured to be middle of the road as to what I could afford and I am impressed with the overall quality for a $750. 1911. I would definately consider other S&W 1911 variants. JMO

[Richard Heinie]

I thought I would jump in on this thread to tell you my experience with the Sig 1911.
I was in attendance at a Media Event earlier this year and Sig was there one day. I had a chance to shoot the 1911's they had with them. Probably hand picked to make sure they worked, since a bunch of gunwriters were going to be shooting them. I saw very few malfunctions with these Pistols and there were hundreds of rounds shot thru them. The only thing I saw as a problem were the mags. They are marginal. Good mags to use to learn malfunction drills. The base pads break and the mags will go to far up in the magwell with a slide back reload.
I bought two Tac-Ops Sigs off of Gunbroker, to use for sight testing.
I purchased these off of Gunbroker for two reasons. Price and they would not have been hand picked since I was getting them.
Both pistols had three problems, other than the mags, which I corrected and they both run fine. I did not find any extractor problems. The extractor problem has been beat to death on the internet. Many times it is something else causing the problem.

One problem is the firing pin hole in the breach face was sharp. It needs to be chamfered.
Second the barrel feed ramp was flush with the feed ramp in the frame. This needs a .025-.030 step.
Third the feed ramp needs to be opened up a bit on each side to facilitate different bullet shapes.
Both pistols run fine with Semi wadcutters, Hollow Points and ball. Of course I used good mags. Wilson and Nighthawk Stainless mags with Wolff 10% over springs.
I didn't see anything wrong with the pistols, that a knowledgeable 1911 smith couldn't fix in short order.
It should already be fixed by the manufacturer, but that is the way it is with many companies. Very little knowledge or they asked the wrong person for advise.

[Tzook]

If you have the money, I'd opt for a Springfield TRP or a Dan Wesson Valor.

Anyway, my friend has a Sig Scorpion 1911, so I've got to see it put through it's paces to an extent. It seems to eat pretty much any ammo, and I haven't seen it fail yet. The workmanship is so-so, I wouldn't call it a "safe queen" worthy gun. It's pretty heavy, and moderately accurate. (only have my TRP Operator to compare it to there.)

If you were looking for a gun to shoot the piss out of, and not take exceptional care of, but at the same time not have much in the way of a pretty gun, the Sig might not be a bad option.

[RCI1911]

I had several issues with my TacOps which have been documented on here in several posts. I did have extractor tension issues; brass would fly anywhere from 4 o'clock where it should be to over my left shoulder and even straight back at my so badly that I had cases cut my forehead. Also, the barrel link lug was out of spec bad enough that the factory barrel link did not fit properly causing failures and eventually causing the link to egg-shape. A replacement from the factory would not even allow the slide to go to battery. A link of a different size was fitted by my gunsmith and the gun ran fine. My gun also exhibitted the same feeding ramp fit issues as Richard's gun with an improper gap between the barrel ramp and frame ramp. Other issues included a disconnector that would catch very hard on the slide cocking lug and a general roughness to the inside of the gun. I have a limited knowledge of the new S&W E-series guns but due to the high praise they have received from guys "in the know" I would have to imagine that they are a much better option then the Sig 1911's from my experience.

[G34]

I thought I would jump in on this thread to tell you my experience with the Sig 1911.

Thanks for your input Richard, I'm not a 1911 guy but I know you're a legend in the 1911 smithing community. Thanks for everyone else's input as well!

[TehLlama]

Going from Kimbers to Sigs - no. Just no.

Both can be made into usable pistols, but for the time and expertise of somebody competent enough to do that (read cost), you might as well start off with a cheaper Imbel unit (Springfield, ~Loaded price point), or just get a Colt.

Used Wilson, NHC, Baer, or on the new side, the TRP or Colt Rail Gun, 1911's are expensive enough, no point making it worse by trying to polish turds with greenbacks, as you've no doubt already discovered with your Kimber experience.