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Perfect timing on this thread as I am looking at the same dilemma...great answers.

The obvious answer here is to do what I did and get both.

I love both of them equally. They both shoot great, and recoil is slightly more noticable on the 3.5 inch gun.

The only thing that determines which one i carry that day is clothing, at times. Just easier to conceal the 3.5 gun.

Longslide, 5", 4", 3.5", 3".............. it's all good. The real problem you are going to face
is not which one will you get, problem is how many you will end up with. 90% of folks
that get a 1911 end up with multiples. Myself included. Kind of like Lay's potato chips.
Good luck.

Just get the Sig P238

68Charger wrote:Just get the Sig P238

please dont go there!

TAM - you may try the 200gr +P gold dots and get solid results in a 3" 1911. Teddy's big thing was he wanted a fast burning powder in a gun that size.

E150GT wrote:

68Charger wrote:Just get the Sig P238

please dont go there!

Don't the guys over on 1911forum consider the 3" 1911 to be an abomination? I could care less what they think but I've heard that diehard 1911 enthusiasts don't highly regard the 3".

So far I've got a govt and commander size and just need a 3" to round out my collection. I've shot and handled tons of different manufacturers and sized 1911s and have to say that my favorite is the commander. It's not too big, not too small.

I love my Charles Daly 3.5" 1911. I've got at least a 1000 rounds thru it, and it runs like a sewing machine! Carries awesome as well! Only issues Ive ever had (around the 200 round mark) went away with new magazines!

I have built-up 5 Colt’s Officer Models over the years. My friends always talk me out of them after I get them running. The Officers is a 3 ½” rather than a 3 “ and with the right springs, they run great. I usually put the whole kit from King’s Gun Works in them and as long as the springs are changed out at 500 rounds, no problems. They do seem to prefer fast burning powder like the new Speer 230 gr short barrel round but mine have all run fine with plain old Ball ammo.

I have only limited experience with 3” guns and it has not been as good as with the 3 ½” ones. The smaller they get the harder it is to get them to run.

I will disagree somewhat on the degree of recoil that some of you have mentioned. To me it feels like the 3 ½” guns felt recoil is much less than a 5” gun. A lot of the felt recoil from a pistol is the weight of the slide moving, maybe as much as the cartridge itself. I don’t have any facts to back that up with but it is what I have experienced by shooting thousands of rounds over the years with all sizes of 1911’s. Maybe some of what you experience as increased recoil is really just some terrific muzzle blast. It can get pretty fierce with some rounds out of a short tube.

Thanks for all the replies guys. After pondering all day while I should have been working and dreaming last night that I was fighting Mexican drug dealers in the streets of mexico with a 1911 (true story), I have decided to get a full sized when I do get one. I have enough compacts. Now I need to find the one I want within my budget.

And that number is?

I know of a couple Colt Combat Commanders in $800 range.

gigag04 wrote:And that number is?

I know of a couple Colt Combat Commanders in $800 range.

800 sounds about where I wanna be. There is a kimber at a pawn shop here but it has the external extractor.

E150GT wrote:Thanks for all the replies guys. After pondering all day while I should have been working and dreaming last night that I was fighting Mexican drug dealers in the streets of mexico with a 1911 (true story), I have decided to get a full sized when I do get one. I have enough compacts. Now I need to find the one I want within my budget.

Here are a couple to get you started.

http://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/prod ... /411539728

http://www.budsgunshop.com/catalog/prod ... /411539801

I owned a Kimber Ultra Carry for the better part of 3 years and 1500 +/- rounds and it never ran right.

My Commander Bobtail has been flawless so far.