[gunsrfreedom]

Sometime ago I started a thread about a 9mm gun for informal shooting at steel plates at 25 yards. At the end I bought a Beretta M9. Although the Beretta is a very nice gun, it's not very well suited for 25 yard plates due to the trigger and the sights. I do much better with my Colt 1911 .45 (but the .45 ammo prices are killing me). The trigger and the sights on the Beretta can be worked on but I would like to leave the Beretta as is, because it is a very good looking gun that is a very close copy of what our guys carry in the military. I'm considering getting a 1911 in 9mm and the only ones on the market now that are new: are Kimber and Springfield (I have not seen STI guns in my area).Of the two guns, the Kimber 9mm and the Springfield 9mm which one would you pick for 25 yard steel plates?

 

[jaysouth]

I would bypass both and get an STI Trojan 5.0 in 9mm.

I would buy it from Brazos or Dawson Precision and have a trigger job done on it prior to shipment. Another good ideal for STI is to have one of the above sell you some extra mags and fit them to the gun.

In almost 4 years I have shot over 10,000 rounds of my cast bullets with nary a bobble. My Springfield Loaded in 9mm would not fire a whole mag without some sort of failure.

 

[fattmallard]

I have the Springfield Loaded 9mm with target sights and absolutely love it, no muzzle jump and cheap ammo.

 

[1911pete]

I have a Springfield stainless 1911 in 9m with the adjustable sights. The rear sight suck, the gun is good otherwise. I would prefer a nice 4" model though so I am thinking of trading it in on a STI Ranger II. If you get a Springfield make sure it has fixed sights or get rid of the adjustable sights it came with and get real Bo-Mar. I love the heavy stainless frame and slide combination as it reduces recoil to nil. Kimber has alloy frames, not the way to go in my book.

 

[1911pete]

Sometime ago I started a thread about a 9mm gun for informal shooting at steel plates at 25 yards. At the end I bought a Beretta M9. Although the Beretta is a very nice gun, it's not very well suited for 25 yard plates due to the trigger and the sights. I do much better with my Colt 1911 .45 (but the .45 ammo prices are killing me). The trigger and the sights on the Beretta can be worked on but I would like to leave the Beretta as is, because it is a very good looking gun that is a very close copy of what our guys carry in the military. I'm considering getting a 1911 in 9mm and the only ones on the market now that are new: are Kimber and Springfield (I have not seen STI guns in my area).Of the two guns, the Kimber 9mm and the Springfield 9mm which one would you pick for 25 yard steel plates?

Trade in the Beretta for a Taurus PT99, it shoots better due to the SA trigger and frame mounted thumb safety. The Taurus is a good platform and made the way the Beretta was originaly designed, with a frame mounted thumb safety for condition one carry. Beretta only added the decocker to satisfy the US Army pentagon weenies who wanted a decocker knowing they would never carry one into combat.

 

[sarhog]

I have a Kimber Tactical Pro II in 9mm, it runs flawless now, with the new Tripp 10 rd 9mm mags.
I have never shot the Springfield offering, so I cannot compare them.
Good luck,

 

[gunsrfreedom]

Hey Pete what's wrong with Springfield adjustable sights? We are talking about a range only gun, I don't plan to carry it, so one of my requirements for this gun is adjustable sights. The other requirement is an all steel frame. I'm sure STI guns are great and I would buy one if they were available in my area, but I have not seen them here, and I don't think I can oder one due to some draconian local laws. So at this point the choices come down to Springfield Loaded 9mm and Kimber Stainless Target II 9mm. From what I've seen on the internet Kimber goes for about $100 more than the Springfield. The Springfield Loaded 9mm I saw in a local store was listed for about $880 or 890. Like I said before, I don't plan on getting rid off the Beretta M9 because it is a good gun and I think everyone should be familiar with their country's service weapon.

 

[parallax]

I've got a Kimber Tactical Pro II in 9mm, and a Springfield EMP. Can't go wrong with either company IMO. I shoot the Kimber for fun and competition, (tactical & bowling pin matches), and I carry the Springfield EMP.

Some people will harp on the Kimber's Swartz safety, but I've never had a problem with it on either of the Kimbers that I've owned. The Springfields are 70 Series pistols.

 

[WESHOOT2]

my actual experience

I have the Springfield Loaded 9mm with target sights and absolutely love it, no muzzle jump and cheap ammo.

I 'like' mine.

It's 'muzzle jump' is more controllable (and less painful - WreckedBodyBoy) than my 40 S&W (or 400 CorBon) or 45 ACP 1911s.
It was relatively inexpensive to buy ('cause I bought it used, w/eight mags, for $650).
My factory adjustable rear sight had its notch widened by me; I think it's a fine rear sight (and I have a BoMar on my Caspian to compare it to).

The gun needed a fitted barrel bushing to enhance accuracy; took me less than one hour to fit a stainless Nowlin with hand tools. Significant ("huge") improvement in accuracy, stellar now.
I installed a Dawson fiber-optic front sight because my eyes aren't user-friendly.
I installed a flat 20LPI MSH because I prefer them, and that meant the ILS crap went away.
A few little personal-choice parts were also installed, but have no real bearing on the basic goodness of the platform.
Oh, and a strip of skateboard tape on the frontstrap, and $9 Hogue pebbled-rubber stocks.

Run about 5K (10K?) so far through it; very happy.

Only poopiness?
Utter fer-crap slide-to-frame fit, but that WILL get 'fixed'.
(Oddly, same fer-crap fit on my 40 S&W version, with the same need for a fitted -that time a carbon Kart- barrel bushing, but that gun shot wayway more accurately with the factory bushing than the 9x19 version).

 

[mitrod3]

Bummer on the STI thing. I currently own multiple 1911 9mm's (right arm damage has moved me more toward the 9mm now as can't shoot as much with my well loved .45's) In the current herd are Springer 9mm Loaded's, old Springer Mil Spec 9mm (now acc-u-railed), Springer Slide/Caspian Frame 9mm, STI Ranger II 9mm and STI Trojan 9mm. All are solid and very accurate guns with the STI's edging out the others by a hair in terms of accuracy. One of the Springer Loaded's came in with a slide to frame fit that was too tight, but Springer Service solved that on and that gun is now over 12,000+ without a glitch since it came back. The others ran fine out of box. Also......a Kimber Stainless II (but in .38 Super) and it is one fine gun.

Of the two you mentioned....Kimber and Springer.....either should serve your purpose well. Springer offers really excellant service which might factor in.

Good luck and good shooting to you. :rock:

 

[kevins_garage]

Sometime ago I started a thread about a 9mm gun for informal shooting at steel plates at 25 yards. At the end I bought a Beretta M9. Although the Beretta is a very nice gun, it's not very well suited for 25 yard plates due to the trigger and the sights. I do much better with my Colt 1911 .45 (but the .45 ammo prices are killing me). The trigger and the sights on the Beretta can be worked on but I would like to leave the Beretta as is, because it is a very good looking gun that is a very close copy of what our guys carry in the military. I'm considering getting a 1911 in 9mm and the only ones on the market now that are new: are Kimber and Springfield (I have not seen STI guns in my area).Of the two guns, the Kimber 9mm and the Springfield 9mm which one would you pick for 25 yard steel plates?

I hate to sound like a dork here, but for what you spent on the Beretta, you could have got a decent reloading set-up, started loading some reduced power .45, and just shot the 1911 you already had.

Hopefully you don't drop another $700+ on a gun, only to find out it too has some issues and doesn't quite shoot as good as the 1911 you already have. Good luck! :rock:

 

[fattmallard]

Just so you know, when you buy the Springfield you get a loaded coupon, and can buy all kinds of thing at a reduced price, spare mags for 15.00, and so on.

 

[P-51 Bullitt]

Most peeps throw the factory mags in a drawer.......
Wilson Combat Mags are favored by most experienced shooters.......

Flame away.......:biglaugh:

 

[gunsrfreedom]

Kevin I wish I had time to reload, I barely have time to shoot. As stated above, there are no issues with the Beretta, it's just not well suited for 25 yard steel plates. And I want another 1911 in 9mm. Personally I had a bad experience with Springfield products: years ago I bought a $1600 Match M1A which wold not function correctly, I sent it back 2 times and they still could not fix it. I had to sell that gun for half the price. But I'm willing to give them another chance. And I had a $1100 Springfield clone of HK G3, same problem as with M1A, sent it back twice they could not fix it, sold it for less than half. I can't stand unreliable guns.

 

[randy191145]

You might like this 9mm.
http://www.gunbroker.com/Auction/ViewItem.asp?Item=90325404

 

[gunsrfreedom]

That's too much money, I don't want to spend more than $1000.

 

[whitey019]

+1 for the Trojan. Out of the two you mention, I'd go with the Kimber, just because of personal preference.

 

[Gene 53]

My wife bought me a springer 1911 9mm. for Christmas. Great gun . A little work in the msh , needle files and fine crocus clothe to remove the burrs inside saves break in rds, crocus clothe on the amby safety shaft and the gun is almost perfect. I use springer mags the only Willson mags I've ever had I've thrown out .

 

[seiko]

I just got a 9mm loaded from Springfield.

Fit and finish of the gun was good. Really liked the 2 piece guide rod using a allen now instead of a flat blade screw drive like the old loaded.
I put 300 rounds through it last week, not one malfunction (other then me accidentally putting a colt style 9mm mag in the gun so the first round hung up on the ramp).

But I was not impressed with the accuracy... Could have been my load but the same load was shooting nothing but x ring on a b27 at 15 yards out of my untouched series 70 colt 9mm on the same trip. The Springfield was all over the place. Was keeping it in the 9 ring, but all over the 9 ring. After getting home noticed the crown has a few nicks on it.

So don't know if the gun store I bought it from dropped the gun on its crown, or what. But having to recrown a brand new gun kinda ticked me off. I'd buy one again, but look over the crown careful. Going to take it shooting this week and see if the recrown fixed the problem.

 

[gunsrfreedom]

If I can get a 9mm Colt I would definitely buy it, but they are very hard to find. Although accuracy is important, it's not my number one concern because I'm shooting plates not bullseye. Reliability is my number one concern, I hate unreliable guns.