Posted: 3/26/2013 8:35:04 PM EDT
I have been looking into getting all my 1911's checkered, I've had a few recommendations but i'm the diy kind of guy so i just bought a 30 lpi file from midway? Anyone here ever do front strap checkering? any tip's or tricks that would help me through this? any help would be greatly appreciated! Thanks (UPDATE) got my files in and just waiting on warm weather, and my brother is machining me a file guide out of delrin, so hopefully i will be able to get going on it within a few weeks
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Cheap, easy, takes little time and you don't have to worry about fucking up your gun.
If you wanna go through with it, make sure to practice on some pipe first. Here's a how to |
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use a piece of machined steel clamped to the frame to give you a straight guide to get you started...take your time...be careful on the cross cuts, that you end where you want to on the edge and don't roll too far over the edge...be mindful of the clean up at the top under the trigger guard, again where you roll the edge on the side of the frame....use a new file
try an old un checkered main spring housing first.... for my competition pistols, I prefer stippling |
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Quoted:
I have been looking into getting all my 1911's checkered, I've had a few recommendations but i'm the diy kind of guy so i just bought a 30 lpi file from midway? Anyone here ever do front strap checkering? any tip's or tricks that would help me through this? any help would be greatly appreciated! ThanksIt’s not exactly rocket science, but it is tedious as all hell; you’d better be a patient man. The How-To link that MeatBag provided is pretty good; not exactly how I do it, but certainly good enough. About the only real major issue I have with how it’s done in that link is the section above the checkering. After the checkering is done, I take a file and lower that whole section to the depth of the checkering cuts to make it look like the checkering “grew there”. I did a quick Google to try to find an example and I’m amazed that it seems no one else does that anymore…people getting lazy. |
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Thank you ! that step by step is exactly what i need!and thank you guy's for the suggestions and tips! I didn't want to go with grip tape or even that wilson front strap add on, i figured i would save a ton of money if i did the work myself, and have something to pass on to my kids.
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Holy crap man starting at 30 lpi you are a glutton for punishment. I go cross eyed just thinking of the last one I did. I used the marvel jig from midway to get my lines started. I then finished by hand to depth. I have done three at 20 lpi and one at 30 lpi. I will never do a 30 again. It is very tedious the smaller you go and pointing the diamonds is a pain. I prefer candle soot for marking over dykem. The dykem works but gets on everything.
Be patient and don't try to knock it out in one night. You will fatigue and it will show in the work. Setup before you cut is key. For as much as a 1911 costs you would think the front strap would be true from top to bottom, but most are not. You may need to draw file to true the strp or your checkering will be uneven. DIY Checkering My very first attempt on my gun. Not perfect but its nice and sharp. 
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The DIY job done by mstrtech looks real good.
Please put up some pix when you have it completed. I tried to do a mainspring housing years ago, didn't turn out very well at all....a combination of youthful exuberance and not knowing WTF I was doing....since then I have had a frontstrap done by a smith. It was first one for him, results were good not great, but his price was very reasonable. If I were to do it again I'd probably go for an insert. Saw one at a vendors table at an IPSC Area 8 match, also many years ago, I think it was EGW table, results were excellent. Cheers! |
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Quoted:
i have some steel pipe that i'm going to practice on before i attempt it on my front strap, but i have always been pretty good with this kind of stuff. i should have everything next week and will keep you guy's updated............if your interested? Thanks I'd definitely be interested to hear (and see) how your project goes! I've always wanted to give checkering a try, but have not yet been able to work up the courage! |
| I wanted that done as well and as someone already stated you better be a patient man. That's not me and the fear of trashing a $1000.00 hand gun convinced me to take it to a local 1911 gunsmith in my area. He charged me around $180.00 and a week latter I had it back. It looked great. |
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I honestly cannot believe Wilson puts his name on that abomination. Of the ones I have seen in person they are equivalent to a couple of layers of aluminum foil with checkering stamped in them. A friend bought one and you could see pin holes all through it from the stamping. It was also loose on the gun. I would go skateboard tape over the Wilson piece. Looking forward to the Ops pictures when he is done. |
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+1 on 30 LPI sucking, I've done it once, with a jig, and good lighting, using a large sharpie as dykem, and my eyeballs crossed repeatedly, 20 LPI on the other hand, I've done freehand so to speak, using a straight edge to get me started, and never had many issues on single stack guns, double stack guns always suck.
JKJ |
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