It has to be the Smith & Wesson 5906. Just look at it. All steel 1911s are selling for a mint these days. They will never, ever be able to make guns like this again. If you don't get one while they're still available at a decent price, you never will.
That's regrettable, but the only parts this gun will ever need are springs, and I've got spares. Also magazines. In a world full of striker-fired pistols, having a decent hammer-fired, all stainless steel gun, will be pure gravy. In the past, all the so-called Saturday Night Special autos (like the Ravens, Davis, Jennings, Sterlings and others) were all striker-fired pistols. They were cheap to make and many worked remarkably well. The idea of driving a firing pin forward by way of a spring was an innovative way to build a cheap, reliable pistol that would work shot after shot without malfunctions. But I have reservations about investing $500 in a striker-fired pistol that costs as much as a hammer-fired one. It was, in my view, a way for the entire industry to get rich by cutting some pretty hefty corners. Everyone seems to be headed in that direction, though, and there's a reason for that. There's more money to be made.
That's regrettable, but the only parts this gun will ever need are springs, and I've got spares. Also magazines. In a world full of striker-fired pistols, having a decent hammer-fired, all stainless steel gun, will be pure gravy. In the past, all the so-called Saturday Night Special autos (like the Ravens, Davis, Jennings, Sterlings and others) were all striker-fired pistols. They were cheap to make and many worked remarkably well. The idea of driving a firing pin forward by way of a spring was an innovative way to build a cheap, reliable pistol that would work shot after shot without malfunctions. But I have reservations about investing $500 in a striker-fired pistol that costs as much as a hammer-fired one. It was, in my view, a way for the entire industry to get rich by cutting some pretty hefty corners. Everyone seems to be headed in that direction, though, and there's a reason for that. There's more money to be made.
So unless one is willing to buy a 1911 or a Sig, these older pistols will, I think, increasingly become classics. Another "sleeper" pistol that nearly everyone seems to miss is the Taurus PT 92. And as much as I detest their revolvers, their Beretta clones actually make them better in some ways. In the early 80s, I found these autos to be as reliable as Berettas, but not nearly as accurate. And the finish was dull and listless. The quality was just not there.
Now, things have changed. My current PT92 is stainless steel with a beautifully plated frame and, unlike the current Berettas, they're not two-tone, which is a huge plus. Everything's silver and shiny, and the safety is the cocked-and-locked type, not a hammer drop, which I think is better. The gun has a hammer and is much less expensive than most striker-fired autos.
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Luger, ...
1911, shoots well, can be used empty as a bludgeon, reloaded and it still shoots.
Ruger ...
Browning Hi-Power,... Can also be used as a bludgeon and still function later.
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