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1911 Pros: 1911 Great trigger Good profile Wide range of aftermarket support. Reliable as all get out. Cons: Capacity (to some but "speed is fine, accuracy is final") XDs: Pros: Good ergonomics Capacity Cons: Pretty uninspiring trigger Plastic aspect of the gun may offend some Debated: Muddy older gen XD magazines are said to cause failures on a massive scale |
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Get the 1911 for greater justice. It's a fine handgun that has proven it's self through the roughest environments for nearly 100 years. It's rock solid, lots of aftermarket parts (although fitting may be required), accurate, great trigger, great ergonomics, etc. I can't say much about the XD though, but from nearly everybody's reviews, it works fine. |
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I have both. I like both. If I had to keep just one, I'd have a really hard time deciding between them. You should handle both and see which one feels better in your hand. To me, the XD feels a little better in my hand and it's recoil feels a little tamer than the 1911...but not enough to where I'd ditch my SA 1911 in favor of the XD. |
I have two XD45's and a LW Commander. 1911 = sports car. XD45 = pickup truck My XD45 Service is my main carry gun. Takes a ton of abuse and keep on running. The Commander gets some carry use in specific circumstances because my carry gear for it is comfortable and well broke in. They are both excellent guns. In true wishy-washy ARFCOM fashion, I recommend you get both. ZM |
May I recommend that if you're not experienced with handguns not to buy a .45 first. The best pistol to buy first is a .22LR (Ruger MkII/III or 22/45 or Browning Buckmark). You can pick one up second hand cheap for a bit over $200. .22 is cheap, is quiet and doesn't recoil, in other words, is perfect for learning how to shoot. Then I recommend getting (another) second hand compact 9mm (G19, XD9 Compact, SW MP etc). Likewise, a 9mm is soft recoiling and with good ammo makes a fine defensive tool. Once you've mastered those two, you will be a great shot with a .45. Go to lots of ranges and if you can, some Hometown forum shoots. Shoot lots of guns and pick which one you like the best. 
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+1 that being said, i'd rather have the 1911 |
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Thanks for all the replies. So i guess it all boils down to can the 1911 do anything that the XD .45 cant? From what ive heard from you guys and read online im thinking the answer is no. Throw in the 13 round magazine capacity and i think ive got a winner and for about $250.00 less. oh and .22's are a no go for me i see them as a waste of $ sure maybe its cheap in comparison but thats still 200 dollars that i dont need to spend plus the cost of a handgun that can actually do the job if the SHTF. but then again if the Sh** really hits the fan im grabbing my AR-15 not a handgun. thanks again guys. |
Have you every used a handgun before? If not, and if you must get a centerfire, get a 9mm first.
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A 1911 is a classic platform and most folks would say you need to own one. I agree with that and have owned several. I've also owned two XDs. One in 9mm and the other is the 45ACP. 45ACP is a great round so either of your options will fill the bill. I would recommend the XD for a beginner. Everything is just much simpler. It is relatively fail safe. You just need to understand that gun handling is going to be important because you will have no manual safety on the weapon. I believe this is a good thing as you should learn right away to treat all firearms as if they will go bang when you pull the trigger. Never depend on a safety to make a gun safe in your hands. Only you can make a gun safe in your hands. The second benefit of the XD is the additional capacity. |
The best thing to do, would be to buy the XD, then save up another $100, add that to the $250 you've saved and buy a RIA M1911 to play with. |
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Both are great pistols. I've got an XD 45 Tactical and love it. Obviously I'm a 1911 fan as well. You really can't go wrong either way. The XD is a bit thicker and bulkier than a 1911 with thin grips and harder to carry. I've found the XD to be spectacularly accurate. Obviously the 1911 has a better trigger, but XD's is pretty good. It's got a bit of slack and is a bit heavier, but it's not bad. Tough choice. |
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I own both but my XD is a 40. I carry an XD daily and enjoy the 1911 at the range. To get the 1911 as accurate as the XD out of the box, it took several hundred dollars of smithing, trigger work and deburring. XD also has a loaded chamber indicator that not all 1911s have. Last but not least is capacity. Goodluck, TG1 |
I disagree with your call of fail. If he would buy the XD, he could get some reputable training and be ahead of where the .22 would put him. Not everyone has the ~200 bucks for a .22 pistol, and besides, poor habits will happen with .22's or .45's. I feel that money is better spent on ammo or reloading equipment or professional training. XD is my choice of the 2 for a HD/carry gun. 13>7. IMO wait on the 1911. Good Luck, Mark |
Professional training maybe, but a .22 saves you ALOT of $ and you can train for pretty much everything except hammers or mag-dumps. Edit: Yes, there are a few very limited circumstances where buying a .22 in addition to his .45 handgun MIGHT be inconvenient, but I doubt it in this case, and further, my call of fail was more on what he said/attitude behind it. |
Very well put. I have both too. Both are excellent guns. The 1911 is a bit easier to carry as it's thinner in cross section. But the XD just does everything else so well and is very comfortable and accurate to shoot. In my case I bought the XD first and later got a SA SS Mil Spec 1911. |
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22s are far superior for training. You can shoot 5-10 times as much .22 as .45 for the same amount of money... It cannot be denied that the shooter who shoots more is in a position to be a better shooter than the shooter who shoots less. Get a 1911 and a 22 conversion, if money is tight get the XD45, don't waste your money on a cheap 1911. |
Poor habits occur much more often with .45... Not many people develop a big flinch out of fear of the .22
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If you like tinkering, spending money, and really getting to know your gunsmith, go with the 1911. If you want a weapon that will fire any ammo type you feed it, only needs sporadic cleaning to run perfectly every time, carries twice the number of rounds, and your image on internet fanboy boards is not an important thing, get a modern design polymer frame autoloader. XD-45, Glock 21 SF, FNP-45. You can live in the past, or live in the future, the choice is yours. |
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Maybe you should read Larry Vickers latest article in SWAT, he basically says the same thing about 1911's. Oh, and isn't he some kind of 1911 guru? |
Forgive me if I don't sacrifice small animals at the altar of Larry Vickers along with you. I don't read gun rags, either. |
The point is that you can all you want, but when even a well known 1911 advocate points out that it just may be an overcomplicated, finicky, outdated design, well, the bell has rung.
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I'm not dissing 1911s as such. I've owned a couple myself. But the truth is that technology advances. While the 1911 is a great weapon as 97 year old designs go, it is far from state of the art now. The simple fact that the United States Military won't consider it anymore (if and when they decide to get their act together and dump that POS Beretta) is very telling don't you think? Or would you, by the same logic, re-arm our military with 1903 Springfields? No, I didn't think so... |
You may hang on every word Larry Vickers says, but I don't. "The bell has rung"? Do you realize how pitiful you sound? How about speaking from your own experience rather than that of someone else whose name you throw around in hopes of lending credence to your argument? My experiences with the 1911 have been very different and the word of one guy who has BTDT isn't enough to throw out the positive experience I've had with the platform. |
Not very much logic in this post. Rifles have advanced very far since 1903. Pistols haven't advanced nearly as far. Hardly at all, for the Glock uses the same basic operating system as the 1911. News flash - the M16 isn't a bolt action. Second, the military went to the M9 to standardize ammo with Europe; serious consideration was given to rebuilding 1911s in service to 9mm. However, they were so worn out that this idea was scrapped. Certain .mil units still choose the 1911...this means nothing to you of course. Third, claiming the Beretta is a POS only highlights your ignorance. The M9 is one of the most reliable and accurate pistols money can buy. Bad mags will make any gun fail. |
Your estimation of the value I hang on Mr. Vickers opinion is overblown, I really don't pay much attention to it. The only reason I took note of this article is that his opinion seemed to weigh heavy in the 1911 world, so I thought it was interesting. I am sorry you seem to take it as a personal attack, at least you seem to be getting all emotional about it. My experience with the 1911 is that I finally sold my last one a few years ago cuz it just sat in my safe and was better use when turned into money. |
See, I can do it too. |
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Get what fits your hand best, and get familiar with it. The 1911 is like roaches and volkswagens, They will be around longer than most of us. The XD is a modernized pistol with higher capacity, and it will be improved upon further. As for the place of the .22, it is a fantastic tool for marksmanship training, and reenforcing fundamentals at lower cost than a .45. I fyou get your .45 that's fine but you should invest in a .22 later. A Distinguished Marksman recently told me that for evry round of .45 he shot he woul shoot 10 rounds of .22. for every round of .22 he would dry fire 10 times. That equals a lot of trigger time. A .22 conversion may even be best because then you are still using the same grip and trigger. |
Sorry, but if you think that the XD is as advanced when compared to the 1911 as a Mauser is to an M16 or AUG or any other modern military rifle, you're a fool. |
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Lots of opinion no one asked for in this thread, so I'll add mine to it. To the OP, I agree with 87GN in that a .22lr pistol is a great first handgun to learn and fine tune the basics with. The 1911 can give you the advantage of a self defense pistol while being adaptable to use .22lr for cheap and plentiful practice. The 1911 is an outstanding self defense platform that has done its job for 97 years through 6 wars and numerous conflicts. Despite no longer being the mainline US Military service sidearm it never the less is still being used to great effect by select US Military units. It also continues to have a strong LE following in the United States, particularly with LE Tactical units. Now, I will add that the 1911's of today are indeed enthusiast oriented pistols, in order to consistently maintain the accuracy and dependability of this platform requires a higher degree of user knowledge of the pistol, it's components, it's design, and the willingness to spend the time to provide proper cleaning and maintenance of the weapon. All things true enthusiasts will do that most average shooters will not. my .02 |
My info may be incorrect, but doesnt the Marine SF, LAPD swat, as well as a few other special units use the 1911 platform. The old saying... If it aint broke dont fix it comes to mind. Dont get me wrong I own a Kimber 1911 and WILL be gettting an XD45. Just be cause the military abandoned the 1911 as a standard service pistol, I have to think that it because of cost issues not quality. 9mm cheeper than 45 right? |
WOW!!! you described my springer mil-spec 1911 down to a T (except for the mag capacity  ). AMAZING!!! Yea, who wants to trust a design that is still going strong after almost 100 years, seeing as it probobly isn't too proven or reliable. I have been in love with 1911s LONG before I found this forum. I think the bashing is a little unnecessary man. I noticed you refer to 1911 owners as fanboys, Did you ever think that not everybodys goal is to impress others on silly internet forums?? Perhaps they like the looks of the 1911(like me) and perhaps they have also never been given any trouble from 1911s as far as reliability and maintenance are concerned.(also like me) Don't get me wrong, the xd is a nice pistol and it might have some features that are more beneficial, and im not gonna stoop to your level and rip on xd owners, but perhaps the xd is not everybody's cup of tea. I like my 1911, I know it works, I know it will eat anything I feed it, and I would trust my life to it. To each his own though.
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they key word there is A. A(meaning one [1]) "well known" advocate. I doubt anyone here who cares what one man says about this issue. you know what they say, opinions are like A$$holes, everyone has one. but good for larry vickers. I guess all the SWAT TEAMS and SF units that have used 1911s are a little off center. Where have i been all these years, why didnt someone tell me the I only like the 1911 cuz arfcom said i should! but i guess the bell has rung so, thats it fellas, i guess im gonna have to sell it cuz it probobly wont work now, that aluminum frame might just disintigrate.
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The XD is a polymer pistol with no soul. The 1911 on the other hand has a soul, it's a mass market 1911 so it's soul is small, but it's there. Ok, in all seriousness the biggest difference between the two is that the 1911 is going to have a much better trigger. Caliber = same. Grip angle = same. XD wins on capacity, 1911 wins on thickness. If you can handle a somewhat mushy trigger then by all means get the XD. If you are the kind of guy who puts a 2-stage match trigger in all of your ARs then get the 1911. |
yes you sure can, but when you do it, it is hardly applicablie(in this situation) 87gn has an excelent point, comparing a mauser to an ar-15 is a whole different ball game from comparing a 1911 from a XD. it boggles my mind that someone would even make that statement. of course the technology is going to grow by leaps and bounds when you are talking about bolt action rifles but when you have an autoloading semi-automatic pistol to begin with... what is there to do...maybe increase the mag capacity, give it a little looser tolerances so it can take a little more abuse, but honestly, that was a terrible analogy on your part.
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why not a 1911 with 22lr conversion? |
Wise man. 
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