Full metal Colt 1911 gas blowback reccomendations.

[XOIIO]

Hello all, I currently have a very cheap, crappy, spring colt 1911 that I got to peek into the world of airsoft, the only redeeming feature is that it has a metal slide so is a bit more realistic in weight than a pure plastic one (though only around 600 grams with a laser on it), however, I want to treat myself and upgrade once I find a steady job again.

Now, this will likely be an expensive one as there are several things which I am looking for.

Gas blowback, naturally.

A full metal construction, I know that the weight would probably be something that isn't desired a lot, and the actual 1911 weighs a bit under 2.5lbs, but I want a combination of realistic weight and durability, and a full metal model would be ideal.

Black, as I'm not a fan of the silver ones, though there are some silver guns that I do like (but sadly can't be imported to Canada because they fire too slowly (what??)), but the 1911 just feels better when it's matte black.

Now, for the somewhat uncommon stuff I imagine.

A threaded barrel to support a mock supressor, hopefully the supressors all use a somewhat standard threading, but I have my eyes on an osprey style supressor because holy crap those are sexy. This one here looks to be one of the few out there. http://ace1arms.com/goods.php?id=134 **Edit** Crap, they will not ship suppressors to Canada, that's a pain. If anyone knows of another site with this style suppressor that would also be great,.
A picatinny rail for mounting a laser/flashlight

And finally, while likely uncommon to come with everything else, I would absolutely love a 1911 that could mount an RDS somehow, I love the look of low profile red dot sights on pistols, and with an osprey supressor it would be a pretty good replica of some of my favorite guns from payday 2.

I'm not familiar with how those mount up though, or if they are even that common, so while it would be a nice bonus, it's not quite as important as the other things on the list.


Even just recommendations on manufacturers/sites which make some guns along these lines, or direct links if there are some which match these criteria would be great, and of course shipping from within Canada would be a bonus

Granted I am sure that a nice quality one will be somewhat expensive, but it's still bound to be cheaper than the real thing massively, and will make one heck of a nice display piece too.

[localfreerider]

Welcome to ASC where everything you seek is within our sanctum sanctorum the classifieds...

Do not bother shipping things into Canada unless you have to as our poor dollar and risk of getting things like suppressors and guns seized is not worth the effort.

Check out the forum rules and how to become age verified. The process has been streamlined to an extent and wait times should not be too long. It is totally worth doing and will open up a lot of avenues for you to get what your looking for!

[Cliffradical]

Buying within Canada is your safest, cheapest, bestest option. We can't share links to websites with you until you are Age Verified because you need to be over 18 years of age to purchase these things legally.
Once you are AVd, you get access to all of our specific retailer advice, as well as the Classifieds. Who knows, somebody might be selling exactly what you want, all put together!

The major brands you'll want to look at for a 1911 are Tokyo Marui (TM, top end, what you actually want), KJWorks (KJW, workhorse, practical, no frills), and WE (WE, best 'deal', dead-end for most upgrades, enjoy it for what it is).

A TM will grant you the best performance, best lifespan given the availability of replacement/ upgrade parts, you can possibly build a gold plated competition gun that matches your real one if you want. These are the standard for a serious 1911/ Hicapa/ 2011 build. Their cost easily eclipses other airsoft pistols (a competition Hicapa can exceed $1200), but compared to a real STI custom IPSC blaster ($5000 easily), cheap like borscht.

A KJW is a good standard for playing and plinking. Overall unremarkable, but in this case that's a good thing. Replacement parts exist, some upgrades suitable for a TM will work just fine. Magazines are (mostly) cross-compatible to TMs which make them a good choice for everyday use when you don't want to carry your $1K gat out into the mud-soaked wilderness. Can be had at competitive prices when they're in Canada.

A WE is a hard gun to openly recommend, just because they can be so variable. Some come out of the box shooting dimes, some apparently didn't get QCd at the factory. They tend to wear out and end up as bricks because of soft materials used in critical parts. Mags aren't compatible, upgrades that might work are often wasted on them because tolerances on many parts have so much slop.
THAT SAID, they can be great if you just enjoy them for what they are. I had a very nice nickel plated 1911 that rocked socks. It would never grow up to be a competition gun, but it went BANG when I pulled the trigger (with one of the mags anyway...) and it kept running even after I dropped it and shattered part of the ass end of the slide. I would buy another one if it wasn't for the magazines, frankly.
They are pretty inexpensive generally, and they boast a massive variety of available models. I know some guys who have bought WE guns and never had an issue. That seems like a bit of a lottery, though.


Accessories like suppressors, RDS units, lights/ lasers are pretty much vanity items in airsoft.

Lights can be very useful, but I'd recommend getting a pistol with an integrated rail if you're going to use one. Add-on rails tend to require modification for fitment or can be squishy and mushy.

Lasers are disallowed at many games because of dodgy or nonexistent measurement of the power output. Airsoft guns are hardly accurate enough to make use of one anyway, and a bb's flight trajectory is a curved one by necessity. Something you have if you like it, that's it really.

RDS sights are kickass additions if the added weight and bulk doesn't bother you. You get a gun, you get a sight mount, you mount the mount, then mount the sight. Research mount-to-frame compatibility for your specific gun before you buy.

Suppressors are (almost) good for nothing unfortunately. Most of the gas used in a GBBP is bled off to cycle the action, so it's not going to make your gun quieter. They can also cause problems with cycling because of the extra weight added to the outer barrel (like a real one x1000). They're mostly used to hide an extended inner barrel and look pretty while doing it, or purely for aesthetic purposes. You may need to do a fair bit of work to get a suppressed pistol to cycle correctly, or if you're lucky you'll just see increased wear on some components.

I hope that helps. Running into the "Get Age Verified, Noob" wall can be frustrating, but the process is pretty painless (costs some time and a doughnut) and it's one time only.

Welcome to Airsoft, good luck trying to keep money in your wallet!

[localfreerider]

"Get Age Verified, Noob" I hope what I wrote did not come off like that...

[XOIIO]

Alright, looking into the age verification now, I actually bought some bbs from the guy that does our verification.

I've actually looked at some WE m9's before, the sword cutlass specials from black lagoon, I really want a set of those but they are the ones which are too slow to be imported to Canada, at least from the sites that buy them, so I'd need to find someone from the states to buy them and send them over, or something else which would be a hassle, but someday. Especially when the dollar isn't piss poor.

I've seen some $70-$80 red dot sights for handguns, do you think ones of that price range would be more fashion than function? I figure for that price you should be able to get one that actually does work fairly well, however you would go about adjusting the aim (or just get used to your shot hitting 1 inch below your aim).

I also likely won't be airsofting (if that is the term), I don't think it's all that popular here, so these guns are mostly just toys to mess around with at home from time to time, maybe doing some short range target practice indoors.

As for the suppressor, that's also just for looks, it would be purely a vanity item in my case, but honestly it's such an awesome vanity item that I just can't resist. Didn't know that they might affect the cycling, but I suppose with a higher end airsoft gun it might not be as much of an issue.

I'll look into the mount-frame compatability stuff some more, I've seen some picatinny RDS's, but I think those are more for assault rifles/smg's.

I'll also keep the tips about WE in mind, from when I did research before it seemed like they were widely recommended, I suppose the worse reviews/opinions were just a bit harder to find.

Side note, if anyone knows of a way that I could get the sword cutlass guns in above board, if there's someone that has some sort of replica importing license, I would love to know, as a pair of the sword cutlass M9's would be even better. (then I'd just need to find a brunette witha black top, jean shorts and anger issues to go with them lol)

http://www.evike.com/products/31442/

[localfreerider]

There are retailers in Canada that stock what your looking for and could be found with a little google-fu, unfortunately I cannot link to the due to the rules.

[XOIIO]

Originally Posted by localfreerider

"Get Age Verified, Noob" I hope what I wrote did not come off like that...

Not at all.

A side question since at least one of you guys seems to know about the rules for airsofting, in general are the orange tips required, or do people play with them off? I mean, technically we don't need them here in Canada, and if it's on private property where nosy passers-by wouldn't see, it wouldn't do any harm. Just curious what the official rules are like.

[localfreerider]

orange tip is not required at all but common sense is. So long as you are in a private location away from public view you should be fine.

[Cliffradical]

Originally Posted by localfreerider

"Get Age Verified, Noob"

I was typing while you were typing, and you won the race!

Orange tips are not necessary in Canada. Most of the ones that have them are US imports, where they are required by law. Most orange tips can be easily removed with a heat gun and some care or nail polish remover and some time.
Airsoft guns are considered Firearms in Canadian law, so it's best to treat one as a firearm. Trigger locks and storage separate from ammo would probably be taking things a bit too far, but being careful while transporting/ displaying/ storing/ using the thing would be A Good Idea®.

Many cities and RMs have bylaws which prohibit the use of Airsoft guns within their limits. Aside from being (possibly/ practically) illegal to discharge one on your own property, they definitely carry enough energy to damage eyes, teeth, and personal property.
Shooting in your garage, basement, or linen closet is probably fine if you take precautions, but backyard ranging is probably A Bad Idea®.