[Paladin]

I'm considering picking one up. Anyone who owns one here--your thoughts on the gun? Strengthes and weaknesses?

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"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be." --Thomas Jefferson to Charles Yancey, 1816.

 

[traevin]

Paladin,

Have you considered the WC SDS? It's supposed to be the paradigm of all concealed carry pistols. Of course, Terry's been lauding the virtues of the Ed Brown Bobtail. I know one of our members has an ANIB Bobtail for sale (he bought it from Terry). If you want to contact him, talk to Terry or email me and I'll dig up his address.

You may remember I sold my Sentinel back in January. It was a very unreliable pistol, even after heading back to Wilson's shop on a couple of occasions. I never did get it to feed with any other magazine except Wilson 6-rounders. The two 8-rounders that were shipped with the gun jammed at least once per magazine. It's hard to complain, though. I sold it for about $50 less than I paid for the gun.

But it's really difficult and unfair to make a judgment on any gun if you've only owned just one. Perhaps another member will give you a bit of positive input about the Sentinel.

But personally, I think you'd be happier with the Bobtail, and the difference in price is negligible.

 

[LONE WOLF]

I think that the compact WC guns are the smallest I'd want a 45ACP. The CQB & PROTECTOR compact, as well as the SDS are very compact and easily concealed.

The SENTINEL may be a little to small for the 45ACP, the short 3.6(?)BBL and smaller slide/frame make for a less controllable package and a loss in velocity (performance) of the 45ACP round.

What you have gained in concealability is not worth losing in performance & handling.

With the SENTINEL I believe you are paying more for less. The compact models CQB and PROTECTOR are better guns at a lower price. They are both a better value than the SENTINEL in my opinion.

[This message has been edited by LONE WOLF (edited 06-13-2001).]

 

[traevin]

LONE WOLF,

That's pretty much how I feel. The Sentinel's retailing at what, $2100? So it's essentially a production line gun with a custom gun price.

OTOH, I've been taking a long, hard look at the CQB Compact and I've almost made up my mind to buy one.

Paladin, before you buy a Sentinel, do some research on the Ed Brown Bobtail.


[This message has been edited by traevin (edited 06-13-2001).]

 

[Paladin]

Traevin,
I already have an Brown Bobtail, and they are phenomenal guns! A pleasure to shoot, the most reliable you can find, and a beauty to look at. It's not as small as the Sentinel. Believe it or not, I also already have the CQB Compact too. It's also a fine pistol. Okay, so now you're asking yourself, "Why the hell would he want to spend the money on replication when he's got two of the best?"

Well, the Brown is larger than the Sentinel, of course, and not as thin (I like the thin TRS, feels nice in the hand). And the CQB Compact is great, but still a little bulkier than the Sentinel. Actually, I can get a slightly used Sentinel for a nice price plus a trade-in of my new in box Kimber ProCarry, never been shot. I've never actually seen or held a Sentinel, which I'll be doing Friday to see how it fits in my hand. And I confess that if it is too much a replication of the CQB Compact, I may just hold my money eventually for a Wilson TE some day. But I like the idea of a small, stealthy little high-quality carry piece that's bigger than the Guardian (I pocket summer-carry) but smaller than the CQB Compact and Brown Bobtail.

I know, I'm nuts (shaddup you guys from the political forum).

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"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be." --Thomas Jefferson to Charles Yancey, 1816.

 

[traevin]

If you're only going to judge the Sentinel by feel, take your credit card, because you're going to buy it. Mine fit my hand like a second layer of skin, and the trigger was simply unbelievable. If the gun had been just ever so slightly more reliable, you can bet yout bottom dollar that I'd still own one.

Have you given any thought to the Wilson SDS? But one caveat: I've heard from some pretty smart professionals in the gun business that the Stealth is somewhat over-priced. One gentleman told me if you could find one used, but in good condition, you couldn't go wrong by getting one. The price range he mentioned was about $2000-2200.

You also may want to do a little research and find a custom shop willing to make the gun to your specifications. There's several excellent smiths available that won't take five years to fill your order.

 

[Bob H]

I have had a Sentinel for about 1.5 years and after 6,000 plus rounds including a week at Thunder Ranch DH3 it is boss. It is my daily carry gun. It is a bit small for big hands and I don't care for the grips and you need to change recoil springs every 500 rnds but overall it is a very reliable pistol and shoots everything I feed it. I have had none of the afore mentioned magazine problems with either the 6 or 8 rounders. It does take some getting used to the perceived recoil because of its small size.
Bottom Line: If I had to be in a fight I would be glad to have my Sentinel.

 

[Big Dawg #877]

Well guys I took Delivery of my new Sentinel this evening and I have to say it was a disappointment. Having taken delivery of my first Wilson Combat Gun, a new CQB on May 24th thrilled me. That gun was able to digest 450 rounds of anything I feed it. It is my most accurate 1911. I've never owned a gun that worked as perfectly as my CQB out of the box. With that expectation I ordered the Sentinel.
Well within the first 10 rounds 230gr Winchester Ball, the gun FTF on round 5, and did not go into battery on rounds 7 and 9. Perhaps I'm limp wristing the piece. Anyway proceded to clean excess oil off the piece, swab barrel I load a fresh magazine and the gun refuses to load rounds, 19, 23, 30, . Change over to 8 round Mag, gun functions fine till round 40, fails to feed 44, and 50.
So much for the Winchester Ammo.
Grap a box of Speer Lawman 230 grain ball. Have range officer fire of 2 magazines. Failure to feed rounds 10, 16, and 22. By this time I'm getting a bit PO.
My turn in the next 4 magazine loads the gun refuse to feed the last round in the Mag. Do I have a tight gun that need a few hundred rounds to break in ? Is this a bad magazine, it seems the same problem happens with the 8rd mag. Or is the gun an overpriced POS? I know Wilson has good customer service but having to have waited 3 weeks and laid out $2000 in cash ain't fun when you're expecting that 2nd Wilson gun to be as good as your first.
What do you guys think. Do I start crying on the phone to wilson, do I put another 100 rounds thru the gun? Do I buy new mags or I'm a jerk doing something wrong?

I'm dying to hear back from someone that might help.

 

[traevin]

I think most people will tell you to shoot at least 500 rounds through the gun before you pass judgment, and I would agree. Give the Sentinel a chance and see what happens.

The great thing about Wilson is he stands behind his products, so there's definitely nothing to worry about.

 

[KB]

The Sentinel was my 4th and most recent Wilson purchase and is as accurate as my SDS or Full Size Stainless. I now use it as my most frequent daily carry piece without hesitation as I would with any of my Wilsons. The Sentinel is not for everyone. This is especially true if you have large hands, as the Micarta Grips are thinner than those found on Standard and Compact sized 1911's, as this firearm was designed with an emphasis on concealability.
As for the gentleman who just purchased his Sentinel and was having feeding problems. Recommend that you use 185gr or 200gr bullets instead of the 230gr you are now using and having problems with during practice (230gr will beat you up on a firearm of this size). If you are "stove piping" the rounds, this is usually caused by the dreaded limp wrist, which is easy to do on a firearm of this size. Or using an improper "teacup" hold. As a CCW Instructor in the State of Utah, I've seen it all.
If you intend to carry this firearm for self defense, recommend using Federal Hydra Shoks. This ammunition is designed for personal defense and should function flawlessly in your Wilson. The best results I have found in Wilson 1911's are using the 165gr Hydra Shok in Compact and Sub Compact 1911's, and the 230gr Hydra Shok in the Full Size and Compact 1911's. This ammo is expensive to shoot, so buy a box and run it through your firearm to make sure it functions properly before using it as your "carry" ammo.
If this is your first Wilson Combat 1911 purchase, and you are looking for something that is comfortable enough to use as a daily shooter, concealable, modestly priced...then I would recommend the CQB Compact...you won't be disappointed! ;-)

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[Paladin]

This has been some great feedback, thanks guys. I'm going to take a look at the Sentinel on Saturday at the Austin Gun Show to see what it feels like in the hand. But at this point, it will have to prove to me it's not a replication of what I can do with the CQB Compact I currently own. If too much the same, I'd just as soon use the money to put down on a Tactical Elite for delivery later in the year after I've been shooting my other stuff.

BTW, just got a digital camera and will load it up and start posting pics of the Wilson TRS #'1 &2 here. Probably this weekend, so look for it! I know once I start posting these pics, I'll be a picture-posting fool (shaddap over at the political forum!).

Thanks again for your feedback. Shows the ongoing value of this forum and our communication!

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"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be." --Thomas Jefferson to Charles Yancey, 1816.

 

[Big Dawg #877]

Traevin, KB,
Thank you for your reply. Spent yesterday at the range and on the phone with Gregg @WC. Failure to feed (round striped from mag, refused to enter chamber completely leaving gun out of battery) was nailed down to bad ammo, and proably faulty mag. Wilson provide new mags, used different ammo Federal 230 gr Hydra Shocks and Speer Lawman and I've had 0 FTF in 100 rounds.
Hope that cures it look forward to making this sentinel my daily carry piece. Want very much to replace my Glock 36. I'm very comfortable with condition one carry and love the 1911 trigger.

 

[Metazorro]

Paladin

Hi

I have a Sentinel and a CQB compact. I bought the Sentinel used, and have not fired it. To me, the size dif is very subtle, and probably not worth owning both.

I found the smooth grips too slippery, and got a set of carbon creations for the Sentinel, so I probably made it worse.

That said, if you (or anyone else), is interested in buying my Sentinel, please email me

>..

thank

Richard

[email protected]

(baby helping me type)

 

[Paladin]

Just got to handle the Sentinel for the first time at the Austin Gun Show, Allan Yoast's table. Nice little gun, but I compared it immediately with my CQB Compact, which I carried with me at the time and there's just not enough of a difference to merit having both. As a matter of fact, I felt the grip on the CQB stocks was more sure. It just feels like more of a combat weapon in the hand. Not to take anything away from the Sentinel, again, it's a nice little pistol. But the CQB has more rounds, better girp for a potential sweaty-handed situation, and I already own it!

Passing on the Sentinel.

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"If a nation expects to be ignorant and free in a state of civilization, it expects what never was and never will be." --Thomas Jefferson to Charles Yancey, 1816.

 

[traevin]

Originally posted by Paladin:

Passing on the Sentinel.

Excellent decision.