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I'm a 1911 shooter. My carry weapon is a 1911. I have a .22LR conversion mounted on a dedicated (steel) receiver for when I want inexpensive plinking. I like shooting the .22, but make no mistake -- there is NO recoil, and it isn't in any way practice for shooting a centerfire 1911 (other than working on trigger control). In fact, it's easy to pick up bad habits, because multiple accurate follow-up shots are so easy with the .22 that there's a tendency to think I can do the same with full-power .45 Auto loads -- and that doesn't work out so well.
I have also shot the Kimber Rimfire (both the complete gun and the conversion), the GSG, the Colt/Umarex, and the Chiappa. The Kimber Rimfore is an excellent pistol ... but I hated it. It was accurate, and I had zero malfunctions in a range session. However, it's a aluminum slide on an aluminum receiver, so it feels like a toy. I've shot up-scale airsoft replicas that felt more like shooting a "real" 1911. The Kimber conversion on a steel receiver was much better, but I passed on that, too, simply because I already have a Ciener conversion (which the Kimber is a near copy of) on a dedicated receiver so I didn't need another.
The GSG is an excellent rendition of a 1911 in .22LR. If I didn't already have my conversion, I think the GSG is the one I'd buy.
The Colt/Umarex shoots very well and the one I was allowed to shoot ran without any hiccups. The drawback if it's for someone who wants to get started on the 1911 platform is that the construction is very un-1911 like. The barrel is fixed on a riser that's an integral part of the frame. The manual of arms for field stripping is quite unlike anything a 1911 shooter is likely to have encountered.
The Chiappa -- well, the one I shot belongs to a friend. I shot it right after he got it back from a warranty repair, and the plunger tube assembly fell off while I was shooting it. I won't say it's junk, but you can draw your own conclusions.
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