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Para Ordnance good 1911?

Large Caliber Kick

Regular Member
Joined
May 13, 2010
Messages
224
Location
Mooresville, North Carolina, United States
A friend of mine who is looking to purchase his first firearm is strongly considering a Para and is addicted to the look of a 1911. I told him I reccomend a double stack high capacity model and wanted to gather a general opinion from tose of you who have owned or used a Para. Any input is appretiated. I myself carry a S&W Sigma 40 because it's cheap, reliable, shoots straight, and I spend ALOT of time on the lake so if I fall in with it I'm not gonna care that it got wet.
 

thebigsd

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Joined
Mar 23, 2010
Messages
3,535
Location
Quarryville, PA
While I don't consider a double stack Para a 1911, I have not heard anything negative about them. I have heard them to be reliable and well liked. Anything other than a single stack .45 1911 is not a 1911. There are some purists who would go farther than that.
 

WalkingWolf

Regular Member
Joined
Jul 31, 2011
Messages
11,930
Location
North Carolina
If your friend buys the Para make sure he buys one that has not been out of state, even if it means paying more. Para is a NC company, and the gun is stamped Pineville, NC. As long as the gun was not sent to a out of state dealer it is exempt from 1000 foot federal gun free zone law, and may be exempt from other federal gun laws.
 

cbpeck

Regular Member
Joined
Feb 14, 2009
Messages
405
Location
Pasco, Washington, USA
Para is known to make a decent firearm. I recently encouraged a friend of mine to pick up one of their compact, double stack guns because it was a good deal. One thing to be aware of is that their double stack feature is not the only thing that distinguishes Para models from the traditional 1911 design. Many of their pistols come with their "LDA trigger." LDA stands for light double action. It is a unique, though not necessarily bad design that I myself don't care for, though some others do.
 

45acpForMe

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Joined
Nov 21, 2008
Messages
2,805
Location
Yorktown, Virginia, USA
I have the Para Big Hawg which is a double stack 1911 14/15+1.

My experience is a mixed bag. First of all Para recommends 300-400 breakin rounds. While I have seen this recommended on most guns I have never had the FTF problems with the Big Hawg on other guns I own, 2 other 1911's. (Colt & Springfield) Secondly Para says not to use Blaser ammo. My local walmart stocked Blaser so I had 1000 rounds of it sitting there. I tried Remmington, Winchester, Federal and still had problems. I eventually sent it back to the company and they worked on it. When I got it back it worked alot better but I still had 3 FTF in 50 rounds. I then isolated it to one magazine and since then with 200-300 rounds through it haven't had a problem. I will still need to run a couple hundred more rounds through it before I decide it is carry worthy.

With that said, others have had good experiences with Para. I also love the gun! I really want it to work! The capacity, size in hand, accuracy, style all are a winning package.

hol-hawg1.jpg
 
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Large Caliber Kick

Regular Member
Joined
May 13, 2010
Messages
224
Location
Mooresville, North Carolina, United States
Thank you all for your input. I found it very helpful. Maybe soon I can get said friend to start visiting this forum himself so I don't have to be the middleman. 45acpForMe, I would send that firearm back again if it's having that many ftf's in just fifty rounds. I have put about 6500 rounds downrange in various semi-autos, revolvers, rifles, and shotguns combined and the only ftf I have seen in my lifetime was with 40 year old military surplus 7.62x54R. Thank you for the photo as well, I was wondering if Blackhawk made a serpa for these and now I know.
 

45acpForMe

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Nov 21, 2008
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Yorktown, Virginia, USA
Thank you all for your input. I found it very helpful. Maybe soon I can get said friend to start visiting this forum himself so I don't have to be the middleman. 45acpForMe, I would send that firearm back again if it's having that many ftf's in just fifty rounds. I have put about 6500 rounds downrange in various semi-autos, revolvers, rifles, and shotguns combined and the only ftf I have seen in my lifetime was with 40 year old military surplus 7.62x54R. Thank you for the photo as well, I was wondering if Blackhawk made a serpa for these and now I know.

Yes Blackhawk makes a 1911 SERPA and the Para fits fine. The double wide magazine and thin grips make it only a 1/8th (their advertising) wider in the grip than a single stack 1911.

I isolated the FTF to a after market 15 round magazine and when I took it out of rotation I haven't had another FTF. For laughs I put it back in the rotation and still haven't had another one. If I go a couple hundred more rounds without one I will relax and be confident in carrying it. The user DREAMER on this board has several Para's and never had any problems with his.

With the alloy frame and full magazine it doesn't weigh much more than a stainless 1911 but as you shoot it, the last 7 rounds seem to have more muzzle flip as the gun gets lighter. I was in search of the perfect .45acp gun and found a few hi-cap models to try. I also have a FNP-45 which is also 14/15+1 and is a mix between a Sig P220 and H&K USP. I still carry my Sig P220 (OC) mostly with my H&K USP a tie or close second. 12+1 is the USP is a pretty good capacity. I carry the Sig more because I shoot it better. I can't give a big thumbs up for Para but I do love the gun and hopefully my experience will get better and better over time.
 

WalkingWolf

Regular Member
Joined
Jul 31, 2011
Messages
11,930
Location
North Carolina
Yes Blackhawk makes a 1911 SERPA and the Para fits fine. The double wide magazine and thin grips make it only a 1/8th (their advertising) wider in the grip than a single stack 1911.

I isolated the FTF to a after market 15 round magazine and when I took it out of rotation I haven't had another FTF. For laughs I put it back in the rotation and still haven't had another one. If I go a couple hundred more rounds without one I will relax and be confident in carrying it. The user DREAMER on this board has several Para's and never had any problems with his.

With the alloy frame and full magazine it doesn't weigh much more than a stainless 1911 but as you shoot it, the last 7 rounds seem to have more muzzle flip as the gun gets lighter. I was in search of the perfect .45acp gun and found a few hi-cap models to try. I also have a FNP-45 which is also 14/15+1 and is a mix between a Sig P220 and H&K USP. I still carry my Sig P220 (OC) mostly with my H&K USP a tie or close second. 12+1 is the USP is a pretty good capacity. I carry the Sig more because I shoot it better. I can't give a big thumbs up for Para but I do love the gun and hopefully my experience will get better and better over time.

Examine the lips and the magazine with the ones supplied by Para. It is common even for supplied new mags to have burs, dents, or bent feed lips that cause problems. Most times it can be repaired, comp shooters inspect and polish every mag. I did also when carrying for duty, for awhile I was issued a M39 and these guns were finicky to damaged mags, they had to be inspected after each and every qualification.
 

tim12232

Regular Member
Joined
Jul 1, 2011
Messages
131
Location
Charlotte, NC
If your friend buys the Para make sure he buys one that has not been out of state, even if it means paying more. Para is a NC company, and the gun is stamped Pineville, NC. As long as the gun was not sent to a out of state dealer it is exempt from 1000 foot federal gun free zone law, and may be exempt from other federal gun laws.


Not trying to thread jack, but I am not familiar with this. Could you please explain how it works or send me a pm with the laws regarding this? I live just a couple of miles from the Pineville HQ.



Thanks

Tim
 

WalkingWolf

Regular Member
Joined
Jul 31, 2011
Messages
11,930
Location
North Carolina
Not trying to thread jack, but I am not familiar with this. Could you please explain how it works or send me a pm with the laws regarding this? I live just a couple of miles from the Pineville HQ.



Thanks

Tim

As soon as I locate the federal statute I will put up a link. Basically the gun free zone school act of 1990 was ruled unconstitutional. The act was passed again in 1995 with the stipulation that it must be proven that the firearm was used in interstate or foreign commerce. A gun manufactured and stays in one state is exempt from the law.
 

Butch00

Regular Member
Joined
Sep 27, 2009
Messages
215
Location
Alaska
I have a P-14 Limited and it is stamped Made in Canada.
I have never had any issues with it, never had a ftf.
 

wheelgun nut

New member
Joined
Oct 2, 2011
Messages
2
Location
north east missouri
i had a very nice 14-45 for sometime . i shot it alot and it ran everything i feed it without a mishap but it was a tuned comp gun . i have some friends that shoot several different 1911 style pistols and most of them dislike the paras and say there customer service is terrible . my .02
 

MR Redenck

Regular Member
Joined
Nov 1, 2010
Messages
596
Location
West Texas
I have had double stack 1911's, they are heavy which is fine for me, and they are a little wider which is fine with me.
I have had several Para Dbl stack .45acp mags and hated all of them. I did a lot of tricks to those mags to make them work and it was not worth the time. Even after all the work I did, they still didnt feed the last couple of rounds from time to time.
I suggest getting some STI double stack mags. As far as the gun goes, if it doesnt work right, it's a 1911 so its fixable.
 
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