Posted: 10/9/2007 4:48:42 PM EDT
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My first pistol was a 1911 and a few years ago redid most of the gun myself with Wilson Combat parts. I think the fact that I did all the work myself really makes the gun my favorite, aside from the great handling. I have recently been thinking of getting a commander sized 1911 and am thinking of doing the work to it myself again. Basically I was wondering if it is better/easier to buy something similar to a GI model and doing the work to that or buy a frame and slide and start from scratch. |
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I was looking at the caspian website last night. Having the slide, frame, bushing, and barrel fit seems like the way to go. I don't have any experience doing those kind of things and I'm not sure if I'm up to that challenge yet. The only bad thing is with caspian having so many options, the price raises quickly. It may be awhile before I can build up the desposable funds for this project. Does anyone have any opinions on titanium frames, and just for the hell of it, damascus slides? |
I have heard that Ti frames are a holy pain to work with. I read an account by one 1911-smith who swore he'd never use Ti in a gun ever again. They're expensive, too. |
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Fitting a slide to a frame can indeed be tedious. I have been fortunate, in that I have only had to do so a couple of times. Barrel to slide fit is more important to accuracy than slide to frame fit. It is tedious, but it is not rocket science. I use J-B bore cleaning compound mixed with CLP, and a handy dandy plastic mallet I bought for $0.99 30 years ago. I enjoy assembling Gov't model clones. Others may disagree, but I think it is one of the most fun things that you can do. 
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Agree. I use Clover brand valve grinding compound and a rawhide mallet. You should: 1) buy a brownell's catalog. 2) Order a copy of Huhnhausen & read it 3) order a Kart "E-Z Fit" barrel w/ fitted bushing. You should end up with a reasonably accurate 1911 if the slide-to-bushing fit is tight. |