I'm not a 1911 guy. In addition, short 1911s in particular, have a bad reputation for reliability. Finally .45 ACP is probably not the best round choice for a small, short barreled gun (as the loads are usually developed around the 1911 standard 5" barrel.)

So why, after fondling a a Colt Defender yesterday, do I have this gun stuck in my head? It just struck me as a nice little chunky can of kick-ass.

Anyone have and/or know the story on this gun? Worthwhile or waste of time.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: BBMW,

I have the Colt "New Agent" which is the same gun sans sights (just a gutter down the top of the slide). I LOVE the dang little thing! SO easy to carry, completely reliable and actually quite accurate once you figure out the gutter sight.

I expect it would be quite 'authortative' in a 'serious social situation'.

Sorry that I couldn't talk you out of the thing, but like I said, I really like the thing a lot.

I have had the opposite experience. 3" .45 1911's, toe, have unpleasant recoil characteristics, are difficult to shoot quickly, and are generally like shooting a 1911 with a flashbang up front. Lots of flash, lots of bang, decreased terminal effectiveness. I've also seen way more malfunctions with a 3" 1911 than with any other format, and some research has told me that this is not a unique experience.

I had a much better experience with the CCO - Officer's frame for the short grip, Commander's slide/bbl for better reliability, longer sight radius, greater powder burn inside the barrel. If I ever get stuck in a People's Republic state, that will be my preferred carry.

I've owned a Colt GM 1911 and a Colt O.M., both since sold Currently have two Commander size 1911's: Colt LW Cmdr and Wilson Pro. Preferred mode of carry is IWB with Sparks VM-2. I have carried all of them extensively over several decades.

If the gun is for carry in an IWB, I see no need for going smaller. I'm not a big guy, but the gun disappears nicely in the VM-2. Comfortable, concealable and fast. IMO, dimensional differences begin to make a difference only in an OWB belt holster.

My Colt O.M. was reliable, but grip sensitive. Bottom rear of grip hit a bone in my palm and gave me different POI's in fast defensive holster drills. Slightly different grip pressure would cause displacement. Shot fine if gun placed in hand with perfect grip. Others may not have the same result.

The Commander size 1911's don't have any of the drawbacks present in the smaller pistols.

I have owned my two Colt Defenders since 1999, and run a lot of ammo through them both. Let's just say that I have zero plans to dispose of either. They get used for CCW from time to time without concern.

I have two 2017 version Defenders, (factory front night sight) .45 and 9mm. Both are good shooters, no malfunctions and not bad recoil. I think Colt (and Sig) have solved the problem of the 3" 1911. I also have the Traditional Ultra Sig 1911 in 9mm, also a flawless shooter and both are easy to carry OWB.

^
I had heard that also. Like I said, this wasn't a rational attraction.

When I was shopping for my first .45 I rented one at the range. At the time I thought it was very unpleasant to shoot and I didn't think I would be willing to spend the time with it to get proficient. After a few years of shooting full sized and commander sized 1911s it probably wouldn't be that bad now. I still wouldn't recommend it for a new to .45 shooter. Start with something with a bit more heft to it and a longer barrel.

I had a stainless O.M. many years ago. I only shot hardball in it, but it was flawless for the limited time I kept it.

I have shot .45's for about 40 years, so the recoil was not an issue.

As others have said though, a longer barrel is just as easy, if not easier to carry IWB.

Have the Colt New Agent. It's never failed, carry's well and is perfect when you need something badassery for potential close up and personal situations in .45

I had an older Colt Defender from the early 2000's. I had it for many years. The first round I fired sheared the hook off of the extractor. This happened in front of several of my newer officers who knew me to be Colt fanatic. Needles to say it was my segue into why you always carry a back-up gun on duty.

Anyway, Colt said that they had a bad batch of extractors from a vendor and offered to repair mine or send me a new extractor.

Once it was fixed, I carried it everyday for many years, shot it at every CCW class I taught and always used it as a second gun in one of my annual competitions that I shot in.

One year I was forced to use it by itself in the Comp and I won First place. I went on to use it several more years as my pistol in the Cops 3 gun match and always scored first, second or third. As I shot it a lot, I could shoot it fast, and hit what I was shooting at. I thought for a long time it would be the one gun that I bought new and would keep forever. I put a set of ivories on her and someone offered me stupid money for her and then she was gone. After fixing the extractor, I never had another issue with the gun. I had 100 percent reliability and confidence in that little pistol.

I had tried to replace it several times, but the little 9mm pistols were not much smaller back then and held less rounds than the 7 plus 1 .45 acp's

It is one of very few guns that I got rid of that I wished I had back.

Edited to add that I used this gun when Federal/ATK came to my department to demo their duty ammo with the FBI tests and even with the 3" barrel, 230 grain HST's expanded to over twice their size with perfect expansion.

Marcus,

I'm glad it worked for you. If you want another one, they're available. That's why I started this thread

I Would want to have the new model defenders in 9mm than in .45...i love the way they treated the front of the slide- the angled cut to ease re holstering its a lot nicer looking than the bevelling they made on the 4 corners of the slide of the old defenders that looks like an apprentice played on it using a dremel...but i found out that the new models doesnt come in stainless and I am such a sucker for stainless pistols because of the humidty here in our country..