Question from a first timer

[FirearmFan]

By the way I do really love the look and feel of 1911's but the only ones in that price range I found were Taurus and I have heard some not great things about them. Anyone have any good experiences with a Taurus 1911? Also I didn't think a 1911 would be a very practical choice for my first gun.

The way I see it is the Taurus PT1911 is either hit or miss. You either get a really great one or you get one that causes nothing but problems. As a general rule for me, I don't really trust Taurus autoloaders. I know they aren't all lemons but there is a larger amount of problems from them then there should be. Plus their stuff doesn't typically appeal to me anyways. However, like I mentioned before, there are other 1911 options in your price range. RIA being a great choice and the Springfield GI another one. I decided I wanted a really nice 1911 so I spent a little over a $1000 on mine and don't regret it. If it is mostly going to be a range gun plus also the HD factor I don't see how a 1911 would be impractical. That being said .45acp is quite a bit more expensive then 9mm (yeah i know you can get 1911's in other calibers but .45 is the most common plus a 1911 should be .45 IMO) Pretty much any of the options mentioned in this thread are all good guns. Don't be afraid to buy used either. Gun owners typically tend to take care of their stuff, just inspect it (preferably shoot) before you buy if you do decide to go that route.