What 45 ACP handgun you guys recommend for a budget of under $1,500 ? Has to be CA compliant BTW.
Thanks in advance.
I have the Springfield emissary. Pretty nice looking gun.
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The Emissary is a nice looking gun for a modern 1911 interpretation, but unfortunately, I don’t think it’s on “roster” in California. Now hopefully the various cases challenging the “roster” will remedy that problem, but for now, I would probably say one of the Springfield Loaded 1911 variants to stay in your pricepoint.
Pretty much anything by Sig, H&K, or Glock is a safe bet in a CA compliant model. I bought a Springfield 1911 before I was stationed out there because literally every firearm I owned was CA illegal. I still have it and like it enough that I still buy Springfield pistols.
My very first gun was a 9mm Springfield 1911.
About 2 months ago I was at my gun dealer and sales lady showed me a Springfield “Operator” 45 ACP for $1,200. Apparently it is discontinued, but a very solid, reliable pistol I was told. I was there to pick up a few other things and I told her I get back to her. I contacted her three days later to find out it was gone already.
I have looked at h&k, they do have 45acp under $1,000.
What’s your intended use? The 1911 is thoroughly engrained in my brain to the point where it is synonymous with 45 ACP. So of course, that is what I first recommended.
I started shooting handguns seriously with the 1911 and at the time (late 90s early 2000s) the 1911 ruled the roost. It was next to impossible to pick up a gun rag without seeing a 1911 on the cover. However, today I carry a Glock 19. If you use is CCW I would definitely add the the Glock and Springfield XD to the list.
It would be primarily for protection. I haven’t given it a thought for concealed and carry.
And perhaps some target shooting, so at least I know how to use it. I will look up the 19.
I went on Springfield website to see what 45s they had and much to my surprise, they do still make the “operator” model for around $1,200!
The Glock 19 is 9mm, but you might check out the Glock 21 in 45 ACP. I should also note, which I carry the 19, my bedside gun is a 1911.
I have the Champion Operator (the one with a 4.25” barrel) in 45 ACP. Love that thing. Given that California has a 10 round mag max I don’t see the bigger benefit of going with a 9 since you won’t be able to take advantage of the 13+ round mags.
Fair point about mag limits, for now. We will hopefully get the decision from Judge Benitez soon. He’s already struck it down once and and is likely going to again and this time, I don’t think the 9th Circuit is going to be able to save it.
Yeah I typically buy for what compliance I have to obey for whatever the law is. Honestly I’ve gotten some really great deals on pistols that came with 10 round mags after the 2004 mag capacity sunset took effect. Literally folks weren’t buying guns that came with 10 round capacity mags so because of that I got some great deals on two H&K USP pistols for about the same price that I could’ve gotten a Glock for. Same with my Springfield Champion Operator given it had the shorter barrel. I paid about $850 for it and to have some Trijicon night sights installed on it because most people sought the 5” pistols. Makes for a great CCW option as well.
Kimber should fall in that price range.
Yes, I have seen it at my dealer. I believe it retails for something like $1,200+
I bought their 357 revolver.
One of the sites I get email from has H&K 45 ACP USP on sale for under $1,000.
I am contemplating it!
I have an older Kimber TLE/RL II. It’s a great gun. Never had any problems and it has held up well over the years. Scuttlebutt is that in more recent years they have had some QC issues, but I only had a couple of stoppages when the gun was relatively new. I’ve lost count how many rounds at this point, but I’ve shot it a lot.
The only thing I’d say against a H&K is that for some people shooting a pistol with a higher bore axis is more of a challenge. Over time and with effective training/use it stops being a problem. For example when I first got my first USP, I shot my buddy’s Glock 23 better than my USP 40 initially. Over time when the pistol became second nature it wasn’t a problem because I knew what to expect and how to compensate for the higher bore axis.
All that said, since I bought my first 1911 I’ve been a 1911 guy. Yes they’re more upkeep but if you don’t take care of your carry/duty weapon then you probably shouldn’t carry… IMO of course. I just think that many of the examples you hear of why not to carry a 1991 style pistol are ridiculous from experiences of people that used them in the Middle East, to the “requirement” to run them slightly wet (or at a minimum use a sufficient amount of dry lube but be prepared to clean more frequently), to the failure rates. While they’ll never be as reliable as a mass produced polymer pistol on account that many parts are hand fit and machined, there’s no reason that they can’t be reliable with baseline care.
I haven’t looked into newer Kimber’s. There was a period starting around 2005-08 timeframe where their reliability went way down due to moving to different extractor design and MIM parts that weren’t as strong as what is produced these days. I’m not sure if any of that is still the case as I haven’t looked closely into them. 1911’s are kinda like watches in that you can get your “Timex” like a Springfield that just works, you can buy your “bespoke” base gun to customize in a Colt, or you can get your “Rolex” in an Ed Brown/Wilson/Nighthawk… in any case I think Springfield probably represents the best value but I wouldn’t discount many of the newer 9mm models either in double stack “2011” designs. The Springfield Produgy (specifically the 4.25”) has a solid reputation. The early 5” ones suffered from QA/QC issues from what I understand. I assume they’re fixed now since it’s been about a year since release.
My first gun I bought is a Springfield 1911 9mm handgun. My second handgun purchase was a Kimber 357 revolver. And now looking for a 45 ACP handgun. Right now I am leaning toward H&K. The rest of my collection has been mostly bolt action rifles, with only two semi-suto rifles. I am mostly into bolt-action rifles, and now concentrating mostly on LR bolt-action.