When I was 11 years old, an old military buddy of my dads came to visit us. He brought along two guns that changed my life. The first was a Ruger 10-22 and the second was a 1911 Colt Combat Commander.

Because of this, the first Pistol I ever bought was a Colt Delta Elite. Since I was unfamiliar with pistols, the 10mm was too much gun for me and I eventually traded it to the local Sheriff for a Beretta 92FS.

Since then I have owned several 1911s including a Colt Gold Cup, a Colt Commander, a Kimber full size, and a Kimber Pro-Carry Compact. The problem I have always had, and the reason I no longer own any of them, is the magazine capacity. It has just never made any sense to me to carry a full size auto that carried the same number of rounds as some .357 revolvers. I also hate the way the guns handled and looked with the extended 10 round mags.

I have been looking to get a full size .45 ACP and I picked up a new FNP 45. It had a 15 round mag capacity, could be carried cocked&locked, and would feed anything. I kept it for about a month, practiced dry firing it, but just couldn't get used to the size of it. It was enormous. I had trouble finding a holster, mag pouches, or any other accessories for it. I never even shot it. I took it back to my dealer and had almost settled on a Kimber Warrior or the new Sig P220 with the Flat Dark Earth finish.

That is when I found the gun that I have been looking for since that day when I was 11. My dealer brought out a Para USA P14.45 EB. It is only slightly thicker than a single stack 1911 because it has very thin grips on it. In fact it feels like a single stack 1911 with Hogue grips on it. Since I always put Hogue grips on my other 1911s, that is perfect. So why am I so happy about this gun, IT HOLD 14 ROUNDS. Finally a 21st century 1911. It uses standard 1911 accessories and gives you the capacity of a modern fighting handgun.

This is the gun that John Browning envisioned. The safety, trigger, and smooth operation of a 1911 with reliability (solid feed ramp) and mag capacity of a modern combat pistol and still with a smaller grip size than my P226. No more extended mags. No more carrying 4 or 5 mags. With 3 mags I have the capacity of 6 Officer model mags.

I have always thought it was kind of silly when someone would claim that the single stack 1911 was the only pistol for serious combat shooting. Eight rounds does not a combat pistol make, for the same reason the M-1 Gerand is no longer our primary combat rifle. I have always loved the fire controls and the accuracy of a well tuned 1911 and this one is destined to become my go to pistol for serious shooting.

When fully loaded, this gun holds 15 rounds of 200 grain Gold Dots at 1,125 fps. That is enough to stop any threat in its tracks.

Don't hold me to it, but I believe that is the first model that Para came
out with. It's what launched them. Maybe it's an upgrade from the
original? Can you pack it? Give a report when you have time to race
her. ......Now if they could put that many in a 10mm

Wait, would that be the holier grail?

Rem, good post.
I had a chance to buy a para a long while back. I regret not having done that. It was a used gun, but it was a steal. I am not really....I guess I should not say this on 'THIS' website.., but I am not really into 45s. I recently have shot two different models that shot great though. I shot an EAA Witness, factory ported and kicks less than my P229. I also shot a Springfield XD that did not kick much either. Like you, I like to have more rounds and less mags.

Nice post Rem. Lots of thought went into it, and I can sense how solemn you are regarding the topic.

I am going to look at a Para Ordnance 1911 tomorrow (if he remembers to bring it to work). Supposedly, he wants 725 for it, brand new in box, never fired. Comes with a couple boxes of ammo and 5 mags. It's a comemorative model, with a POW/MIA theme. I should know more tomorrow. Before I pull the trigger, I'm going to run it past you guys, as you are definitely more versed in 1911's than I.

Recoil out...and congrats on your find Rem!

I hope I don't get crucified for this blasphemy....but I think Para's quality has really suffered in the last couple of years. there is a guy at work that swears by Para pistols, he has gotten a lot of guys at work into guns, and this is a good thing...but, there is a driver ( i work for Wal-Mart's transportation dividion as a mechanic and therefore deal with a lot of drivers) who has purchased 2 para pistols on this guys recommendation, and he has nothing but trouble with them. He has had safeties fly of, an adjustable sight come apart, feeding issues even with ball ammo, and one of the guns has been back to Para three times for various problems....and now they tell him there is nothing wrong with the gun....he just needs to break it in. It has had nearly 1,000 rounds through it, and has NEVER worked right, regardless of the mags. They have even replaced the springs and followers in the mags to no avail, bought new ones etc. Maybe this guy is just very unlucky, but my experience with the older para pistols has always been good, maybe it's the newer stuff??

Well REM, good for you my friend....I know what it took for me to find the one that I have now....I may have to check one out, but I will have to go elsewhere because no one around here carries them....
Hey sometime if you are in the mood and just window shopping, you should check out a Taurus 24/7 pro Like mine...they also make the OSS which is the military model....but it feels real good in the hand and it holds 12 in the mag and one up the pipe..LOL....but I have put several hundred rounds through mine and had no issues...put the Heinie night sights on it and they rock...
But I am happy for you that you found you Holy Grail of pistols....

As some one once told me......you will know the gun when you pick it up, it will feel like it is part of your hand.....

I just wish Beretta would make a .45 in the same style as the 92FS, I would buy it in a minute...

I looked at the Para, I liked it, but it didn't tickle my fancy. It was thin, even though it was a double stack mag and held like 14 rounds of .45. I was impressed by that. The paint job was desert and had some work related markings on it from the factory. I would have made him an offer, but it wouldn't have been what he wanted. He sensed that and backed out on selling it.

However, I priced a 92FS Beretta yesterday at the PX on my post and my out the door price would/will be 593.00 if I decide to pull the trigger on my debit card. I'll keep you guys posted.

Recoil

When the gun shipped from the supplier, it came with two hi-cap mags. The problem was that the gun is a .45 and the mags were for a .38 Super. I called the salesman and they drop shipped 3 hi-cap (14 rd) .45 mags to me with no extra charge. Very good customer service over a minor screw up.

A couple nights ago I had a chance to take it completely down and lube it up. The tolerances are very tight so it was a little stiff before I got some oil into it.

Today was a nice day here and I finally got to run it through its paces. The pistol does not have a match trigger by any means but it is still effective. The pull weight is around 5 lbs but there is a lot of creep before it breaks. I will probably get it to Bob Munden and have him clean up the trigger.

I did not have any problems of any kind with the pistol. It shot very good in spite of the trigger, turning in a 10 shot group of less than 1.5 in, offhand at 15 yards. The bullets hit right where the sights were aiming and I received a card with the pistol saying it was sighted in at the factory. I don't enjoy drifting dovetail sights so this was a nice surprise. The wind was blowing right to left so aiming was a chore but at 25 yards I had no problem smacking 6 inch falling plates.

It ran on .230 FMJ and 200 gn Gold Dots with no hickups. I let two other officers shoot it and both really liked the feel of it. Felt recoil is very manageable due to the weight of the gun.

This gun shoots as good as any other 1911 I have owned and I can say for sure that it will be in my collection for a long time to come.

Well my new P14 is staying over at the gunsmiths for a few days. Not because of any problems, it was very reliable and worked as advertised, but there were a couple things on it that I wanted to be tweeked. I didn't like the trigger pull and I didn't like the little skinny thumb safety. It will be coming home with a wider ambidextrous thumb safety and a good trigger. I will try and post some pictures of the safety when I get it back.