Oh yeah, don't dry fire a 1911 type pistol without snap-caps. They do not react well to it as described above. Another tip is not to hand feed a round directly in the chamber. Feed all rounds out of a mag. A hand fed round tends to ware or break the extractor before its time.

MD where did you find those punisher grips ?

lol I believe my local FFL's shop, quite awhile ago. They are WAAAAY thicker than the factory 1911 grips though so beware, makes it feel like an M9 (ugggh) grip-wise but is actually comfortable if that makes sense(?)... The jury probably wouldn't like them too much though! lol

Thanks all,

will probably go the Kimber route, they look cool and price is all right here.

Taurus' PT 1911 is a fine machine. They're dialed in out of the box. Quality control has greatly improved since these have been on the market.

Big fan of Taurus' full line.

I'll be honest. I have the new Taurus 1911 and it's a beauty. Not a single mis-fire or other reliability issue. Built with the same customizations that would cost you double with Kimber (stacker sights, night sights, walnut grips, ambi-option, etc.). It has less re-coil then mt G22.

A lot of the top pros shoot Kimber though.

I Have many 1911's. My favorite is the Colt Gold Cup. It tends to shoot any load you put in it. Sissy loads up to Sizzle loads without changing any springs. I had a Kimber Raptor II, but found that the Colt would out shoot, out function and generally run circles around the Kimber.
I also own a S&W model 945 out of their Performance Center Custom Shop that runs a close second to the Gold Cup.

I Have many 1911's. My favorite is the Colt Gold Cup. It tends to shoot any load you put in it. Sissy loads up to Sizzle loads without changing any springs. I had a Kimber Raptor II, but found that the Colt would out shoot, out function and generally run circles around the Kimber.
I also own a S&W model 945 out of their Performance Center Custom Shop that runs a close second to the Gold Cup.