Auto-Ordnance 1911

[philly]

Ok i am not going to get the Glock 21. I have the 22, and the 23. So i guess I am in the market for a 1911. I was at AGs in Lowell just a while ago, looking at tahe 1911s they had in stock. Now I am not cheap, but I do not want to spend alot of money here.

I was looking at the Simths, and then I saw the Auto-Ordnance. The only 1911 I have shot was my buddys Colt that was made in 1923. His is very basic gun, nothing fancy about it at all, just like the Auto-Ordnance. So I think thats the one I am going to buy.

What do you all think of them?


Phil

 

[JonJ]

A few people on the board here have them and love them. I don't have one one but have looked at them. Some people are still reporting problems with the AO's. I talked to the owner of one shop last week who has sent one back to the factory for a customer 2 times. A gent who works in the same shop owns one and hasn't had a single problem with it.
I looked at one real close at another shop and they didn't have anything nice to say about the AO but in the same breath, they were trying to sell me and overpriced SW1911.
Figure out what you want it for and read as much about them as you can on the 1911 forums.

 

[Len-2A Training]

Phil, a nice used S&W 1911 can be had for $550-600 at Four Seasons, just keep your eyes peeled.

Since AO raises questions for some, I would pass and put the extra money out to have a high-quality product.

That's my 2 cents!

 

[philly]

Phil, a nice used S&W 1911 can be had for $550-600 at Four Seasons, just keep your eyes peeled.

Since AO raises questions for some, I would pass and put the extra money out to have a high-quality product.

That's my 2 cents!

yeah i know that, but i really liked the look and the feel on the bare-bones AO 1911. thats the one i want, unless smith makes in that looks like the AO.

 

[jhrosier]

FWIW,
The older AO's (like mine) had some significant QC problems.
Substandard internal parts were common and "generous" tolerances on the sizes and locations of frame features can make replacing worn or malfunctioning parts a real problem. They can be made to work well, but it is more difficult than if you start with a better gun.
The only original parts on my AO are the frame and slide
It now runs like a champ.
I bought it as a "donor" gun for a race gun project, so I wasn't concerned with the quality of the other parts. A few years later, I tried to build a blaster using the leftover parts but they were all defective or so far out of spec that they wouldn't fit a standard Colt frame.
The more recent production, since Kahr bought AO, are reported to be good quality guns.
I have no idea if the guns are marked in some way to allow you to distinguish who the manufacturer actually might be.
So, if you can get a NEW AO, with a warranty, go for it.
Otherwise, keep lookin'.
Jack

 

[Len-2A Training]

OK, I understand.

 

[Pilgrim]

From what I understand the older AO have slanted serations on the slide and the newer ones have vertical which match the original military style.

my AO runs perfectly, got it last Nov.

 

[jhrosier]

Pilgrim, you might have just nailed it! Here's one of the old ones.

Slanted serrations....Thanks for the info.
Jack

 

[matt]

I was at AGs in Lowell just a while ago, looking at tahe 1911s they had in stock. Now I am not cheap, but I do not want to spend alot of money here.

Phil

What was AG asking for the AO?

 

[philly]

What was AG asking for the AO?

Not sure. I will be going there again tomorrow, to see when it was made, to make sure its one of the newer ones. I will also going by Four Seasons Tuesday, on the way home from work, to see if Carl has them in stock.

Anyone know of any other shops in the area that sell these?

 

[Bugs100]

They had them last week when I was at Four Seasons. They only have a 1 year warrenty. A used S&W has a life time warrenty. They had some used S&W 1911'S there for $599.

I have a couple of the S&W 1911's and looked at the AO's if you put them side by side and handle them both I know which one you will take.

 

[PistolPete]

don't get the Auto Ordinance. Yes, they are cheaper than the Smith but not made as well. You get what you pay for. As others have said get a used Smith and call it a day. A ten times better product. Nothing wrong with the Auto Ordinance but nothing great about it either. Just a basic loose fitting 1911.

 

[drgrant]

Don't bother with an auto ord unless-

-You want a replica gun that really only deals with hardball, and your
happy with the crude sights, and mediocre trigger.

-You intend on ripping it apart and using the frame as a "parts host" for a
better 1911 down the road. IMO, this would be the only real reason
to buy one, as its the cheapest way to get a "new" 1911 frame in MA.
(I own a gun built off an AO frame, and the frame is fine... dont know
about the rest of the parts though, because I dont have em... ).

Otherwise buy an S+W for a couple hundred more and get a much more
capable gun, out of the box. I think I'd rather have a used S+W than
the AO.

-Mike

 

[Pilgrim]

don't get the Auto Ordinance. Yes, they are cheaper than the Smith but not made as well. You get what you pay for. As others have said get a used Smith and call it a day. A ten times better product. Nothing wrong with the Auto Ordinance but nothing great about it either. Just a basic loose fitting 1911.

If all you want is one 1911, I agree, spend the extra cuppla hundred and get a S&W. If you want a 1911 milsurp style then the AO is the way to go.

I wanted a milsurp style to add to my milsurp collection and couldn't afford a 'veteran' 1911 so I got the AO. It fills in a hole in my collection. It's a good shooter and I trust it enough to carry it....in fact I did for a while.

When I saw the SW1911sc, I had to have that for my carry piece, it was pretty, smaller and lighter.

They are definitely different guns.

If the budget is really limited, I wouldn't hestitate to buy the AO.

 

[Jay G]

Don't bother with an auto ord unless-

-You want a replica gun that really only deals with hardball, and your
happy with the crude sights, and mediocre trigger.

-You intend on ripping it apart and using the frame as a "parts host" for a
better 1911 down the road. IMO, this would be the only real reason
to buy one, as its the cheapest way to get a "new" 1911 frame in MA.
(I own a gun built off an AO frame, and the frame is fine... dont know
about the rest of the parts though, because I dont have em... ).

Otherwise buy an S+W for a couple hundred more and get a much more
capable gun, out of the box. I think I'd rather have a used S+W than
the AO.

-Mike

The bolded sentence is exactly why I bought my AO1911 - I wanted something close to the military issue 1911 without forking over ~ $1,000 for the genuine article.

It's not as reliable as I'd like - maybe 1 or 2 FTE out of a box of 50 rounds, even with the good magazines - but certainly not bad, and with a smidge of work would be fine I'm sure.

I might even pick up one of those Mech-Tech carbine conversions and use the AO1911 as the donor pistol for it. Mighty cheap way to get a .45 ACP carbine (well, cheap since I already own the AO that is...)

 

[PistolPete]

.

It's not as reliable as I'd like - maybe 1 or 2 FTE out of a box of 50 rounds, even with the good magazines - but certainly not bad, and with a smidge of work would be fine I'm sure.

This is the EXACT reason NOT to buy this pistol. You say 1 to 2 jams out of 50 isn't bad???? Nothing is more important out of a pistol than its reliability. I only shoot 1911 style pistols and I spend sevaral thousands on each one and pay the extra money because the guys are more "RELIABLE." Like I said before you get what you pay for.

 

[philly]

This is the EXACT reason NOT to buy this pistol. You say 1 to 2 jams out of 50 isn't bad???? Nothing is more important out of a pistol than its reliability. I only shoot 1911 style pistols and I spend sevaral thousands on each one and pay the extra money because the guys are more "RELIABLE." Like I said before you get what you pay for.

I dont have a grand or two, that I can spend on this....I just bought a pool lol.

I also like the WW2 look of the AO, and living in Mass, i dont have many options here.

It will never be a carry gun, thats what Glocks are for.

 

[Adam_MA]

IMO, this would be the only real reason
to buy one, as its the cheapest way to get a "new" 1911 frame in MA.

That's an untrue statement. There are NO laws prohibiting a MA FFL from order a frame for you.

 

[drgrant]

That's an untrue statement. There are NO laws prohibiting a MA FFL to order a frame for you.

I'm well aware of that, but practically speaking, finding an FFL in MA that will
actually do that for you is exceedingly difficult these days. I've asked at least
4 different ones, and they've all told me -no way-. I know there are still
people doing it though, because I see highly customized guns floating around
that are obviously "new". (The other day I saw a 6" Caspian 1911, with
caspian slide and frame). The owner didn't build it though, so I couldn't find
the source. But obviously, whoever -did- build it, mustve had someone
transfer the frame for them.

-Mike

 

[Jay G]

This is the EXACT reason NOT to buy this pistol. You say 1 to 2 jams out of 50 isn't bad???? Nothing is more important out of a pistol than its reliability. I only shoot 1911 style pistols and I spend sevaral thousands on each one and pay the extra money because the guys are more "RELIABLE." Like I said before you get what you pay for.

Pete,

I bought the AO1911 as a fun plinker. I've got an SW99 for my carry gun, and it is utterly reliable. Feeds anything I put into it and asks for more. The 1911 is a fun plinker for punching holes in paper or sending water jugs to their doom. One jammed casing out of a whole box isn't the end of the world, especially for a gun that costs ~ $300 less than its nearest competitor.

I'm also certain that were I to invest a little time into it, I could tweak it so that there were no more failures of any kind. It's a stout frame that can take a lot of tweaking, and lord knows there are zillions of parts available...

 

[PistolPete]

The problem with the AO 1911 is it isn't a very good gun to throw any money into. The reason being first off is the slide to frame fit is extremely loose. I don't know much about their barrels and all the internals. I looked at them when they became MA compliant and was very dissatisfied with it. The best parts of the 1911 are missing from this pistol. Good trigger, good sights, tight slide to frame fit, good controls, etc. The AO 1911 doesn't have any of these. I'm not saying people shouldn't buy one but if you want to get into the 1911 game this is not a good choice. Many times we buy things because of price. Then after spending the money we decide this isn't what we should have done. We then sell the cheaper item and lose money on it to only buy the item we should have bought in the first place. That is my case in point. Good luck with the gun and I hope the feeding problems go away.

Most guns we buy are for fun. The problem is when they don't function properly then we don't want to shoot them.

Pete

 

[Pilgrim]

The problem with the AO 1911 is it isn't a very good gun to throw any money into. The reason being first off is the slide to frame fit is extremely loose.The best parts of the 1911 are missing from this pistol. Good trigger, good sights, tight slide to frame fit, good controls, etc.

Don't make this a general statement. Mine is as tight as my SW...and the SW is not loose. In fact I was amazed at how tight it was when I got it.

The 'best parts' are missing? This is a repro of the original. That's what came on them, they aren't 'missing'.

As I said, if you want a military repro, then get the Ao. If you want a 'modern' 1911, get something else.

My AO has also not hiccupped once in about 500 rounds. I can't be the only one that is happy with it.

 

[philly]

The problem with the AO 1911 is it isn't a very good gun to throw any money into. The reason being first off is the slide to frame fit is extremely loose. I don't know much about their barrels and all the internals. I looked at them when they became MA compliant and was very dissatisfied with it. The best parts of the 1911 are missing from this pistol. Good trigger, good sights, tight slide to frame fit, good controls, etc. The AO 1911 doesn't have any of these. I'm not saying people shouldn't buy one but if you want to get into the 1911 game this is not a good choice. Many times we buy things because of price. Then after spending the money we decide this isn't what we should have done. We then sell the cheaper item and lose money on it to only buy the item we should have bought in the first place. That is my case in point. Good luck with the gun and I hope the feeding problems go away.

Most guns we buy are for fun. The problem is when they don't function properly then we don't want to shoot them.

Pete

Yes i am buying this for the price, I am also buying it for the look. I want a ww2 looking piece. I dont care about all the bells and whistles. i dont care if the sights are small. This gun has the look that I am looking for.

 

[Adam_MA]

Yes i am buying this for the price, I am also buying it for the look. I want a ww2 looking piece. I dont care about all the bells and whistles. i dont care if the sights are small. This gun has the look that I am looking for.

The in that case... The AO seems like the only logical gun for you to buy.