Well, I spent yesterday getting familiar with my new .45 pistol. I combined Reaper’s and GH's advice to find a weapon that fit my personal needs. I even ended up using a little NDD advice too. LOL QS and Psywar- I appreciate your experiences as well.
Concerning my "need" to by a Wilson, I got on
http://forums.1911forum.com/ and read every post I could about the different gun makers-custom and factory. After thinking about the subtle advice I have seen from NDD and GH, I decided I would go look at other maker’s weapons and try them out before I ordered a "guru" gun from Wilson.
Anyway, I wore an old KC custom gun leather IWB holster (similar to a summer special type model) to the gun shop. I tried the different sized .45 in the holster and in my hand for comfort/fit/conceal. I decided the 4" barrel/full size AL frame was the best fit for my needs. Did a few dry fires with the different guns to get an idea of the quality of triggers as well. Thanks for the advice gentlemen.
I ended up buying a Kimber Custom Pro CDP II. It has a 4" SS match grade bull barrel hand fitted to the slide, full size aluminum lower with beveled mag well, Meprolight night sights, 30 LPI front strap checkering, 3 1/2-4lb match alum. trigger, dehorned(melted is what Kimber calls it), lowered/flared ejection port, and beavertail grip safety.
http://www.kimberamerica.com/cdp.php
I am sure it is not comparable to a Wilson, but it really seems like a quality first gun for my introduction into the 1911 .45 world. It conceals quite nicely on me, even with just a T-shirt over it.
I borrowed two Wilson 8 rd mags and took it to the country for a little shooting. Put around 200 rounds through it and thoroughly enjoyed it. Per Reapers common sense, I am practicing shooting at 5 and 15 yards for now. Initial response- This little gun is very accurate and reliable.
I saved around $1000 bucks verses the Wilson CQB compact too. I did order four 8 rd Wilson mags with the aluminum bases last night. I have read bad things about the flat/split metal follower on the Kimber mags when used with AL lowers.
Only thing I didn't like about it during my initial shooting was that it has a flat contoured "plastic" mainspring housing that is poorly/roughly checkered. I am now looking for an AL replacement that has 30 LPI checkering. I have a spare steel part that is substantially heavier compared to the plastic so I think an AL (with its luster similar to SS)type would be a better compromise in weight/strength/feel/looks.
Assuming this gun continues to fire reliably, is it wise to worry about changing to name brand spring kits(WOLF) before it comes time to replace them around 800-1000 rounds?
Again thanks for all the help. If there are any other suggestions, please chime in. I am listening.
*** edited to fix broken/misstyped link