Re: Sig Tac Ops 1911 vs Kimber Tactical Custom HD
Have you seen the new E series from SW with the rail??
I own the Sig 1911R which is identical to the tacops only difference is Grips and single sided thumb safety and no magwell. I since added a magwell and grips so its virtually identical to the factory tac ops minus the Ambi safe.
Overall it is a quality firearm I had been hearing good things for awhile and decided to pick one up. It shoots better than I do and thus far has proven itself reliable. The factory mags are junk so toss them anyway. The factory trigger is decent for a factory production gun but its not anything that will take your breath away. Fit and finish is good overall and but from what I can tell the nitron finish is not the same nitron of old its holding up well but it lacks imo. But its definately a good gun for the money I ordered mine through buds police supply and all said and done probably saved 125$ over a factory tac ops model. I added a magwell from springfield since Sig would not sell me one factory direct and nobody stocks them.
Now for the dislikes. Sigs 1911s are sold on the notion of being well machined with tight tolerances.. like I said its well made but that claim is a bit overboard in my opinion its not on the same level as a custom gun or semi Custom for that matter. Les Baer, Wilson, Nighthawk, Even the TRPs so dont pick one up thinking it will be.
Im not a fan of the series 80 fps and plan on removing it at somepoint. I have no issues with the external extractor. Also the grip safety sucks given its design and actually prevents you from getting as high a grip as possible. Ive caught myself a few times on the range doing presentation drills and not being able to engage the grip safety and fire the weapn as the grip safety rides so low the weapon doesnt fully seat into my hand. (and yes its the weapon not the shooter in this case) So swapping it out and fitting another brand is a must IMO.
The 25lpi checkering on the front is done will and does its job however I have preferance towards 20LPI personally but 25 may be sufficient for you.
All in all its good quality firearms minus some of my personal gripes and If you pick one up in the mid 800 range or less its a good buy. Ive seen a few tac ops CPOs go in the low 700s so thats even better if you can snag one. but at around 1000 or more its not worth it. Your better off picking a TRP operator and getting a much higher quality firearm for only a few 100 more I think. Im a huge fan of TRPs but frankly I think their one the best factory production guns out there. Springfields reputation and customer service is one of the best in the industry to boot. Sigs can be hit and miss and mostly miss in my experiences.
I cant speak for that specific kimber but I personally do not like kimbers in general. Crappy past experiances.
I mentioned the SWs since ive been hearing alot of good things about the ones that have hit the streets. External extractors and a true series 70 pistol has promise. the slide serrations are a bit odd but are functional and thats what matters most. Their under a grand street price to some maybe something else to look it. like I said personally Id go springfield but do your homework and see what you want.