Posted: 1/20/2008 8:52:41 PM EDT
|
Though you all might enjoy seeing our contribution to this years LTW SHOT Show display. For our pistols this year we did some of the old, some of the traditional, as well as a good dose of some new. So without further ado I’ll let the pictures roll and try to keep the prose to a minimum... enjoy!  I’ll start with the old... The Twenty Paces set that was a 2007 collaboration between Ted and I...      … also in tow will be Ted’s 2007 Signature Grade pair of Colt Government Models…      Next up is the traditional... I’ll be showing a Two-Tone Colt Government Model that I completed earlier this year...       .... and the Damascus Government Model I built for AH along with the Bowie from Kirk Rexroat and holsters from John Ralston at 5 Shot...      Ted will continue his tradition of LW Signature Grade guns with a pair of sorts… not matched but more like two brothers... First is the LW CCO in .45ACP...               ... and its “brother” a LW Commander in 10mm... yes 10mm                 Now for the new... As mentioned in an earlier thread on LTW, this year five LTW ‘smiths did a ‘collaboration’ of sorts. Ted, C.T. Brian, Ned Christiansen, John Harrison, and myself were each given one of a consecutively serial numbered set of five stainless Series 70 Colt Gov’t Models to customize as we saw fit. Ted and I rambled back and forth about how and what we would do to ours and in the end we each went in opposite directions while still following the same path... if that makes any sense.  For my gun I wanted to do something a bit different that what people normally see from our shop. So instead of our standard polished and overall classic rendition of a fighting gun I went with an all blasted finish to help soften the hand-cut 20lpi checkering that I tried to make as brutally sharp as possible.  Of course like every other gun from our shop this piece got a full detailing of every aspect to include line straightening, flattened and serrated slide top, bordered slide, serrated rear of slide, weld-up frame and slide fit, Kart barrel with EGW bushing, Wilson ambi-safety, S&A grip safety, best quality trigger job, hand beveled mag-well, and more.                As I said above Ted and I went in opposite directions while following similar paths... we both built a complete custom conversion with nothing left unaddressed and above all else a pistol constructed for a lifetime and a half of use. The “opposite” part comes in the execution, and while it would be easy for Ted at this point in his career to rest on his previous accomplishments he was determined to set a new standard for himself and with Ted’s contribution to this quintet he in turn set a new standard for our shop. While both Ted and I built what we mutually consider excellent pistols for any arena ‘ol Theo certainly raised the bar. Pictured with the elegant and durable leather work of Alex Nossar, what you see below is the new standard of working gun from Heirloom Precision, engraving by J.R. French.                   Last but in no way least is a project that has been two years in the making... a matched pair of cased Colt Commercial Government Models complete with matching tools and engraving once again by J.R. French. While I could write a book about these guns it would never compare to the words the pictures can say... so I’ll let them...                   
|
True, but I would imagine all of the others have properly staked tubes, and are sporting more traditional "supporting" grips. |
Thanks for all the kind words guys...bare in mind that these are just the guns from Ted and I so I’m sure you all can imagine how great the LTW display will be once Ned, C.T., Stan, Chuck, Don, John, and Steve get into the mix.
Well just to be clear all the guns pictured above are fighting guns... that's kinda’ what I meant by saying we went in “opposite directions while still following the same path”. Engraved or not, every gun that leaves our shop, every gun, is meant to be used, carried, trained with, and above all else shot a bunch. It’s easy to finish a gun in a matte blast and call it a "duty ready working gun". Building them the right way and then making them look pretty gives the owner/user a new sense of pride in a tool they use daily while giving us the chance to once again do our best.  The plunger tube... I’ll make you a deal, if you can get it off you can have the gun, if not you get to buy it.  The reality is that the stock panel covering the plunger tube only keeps the part from falling off should it be incorrectly staked to begin with. Keeping the part secured to the frame is a function of proper installation not the stock panel.
|
Jason. I think I must have been unclear in my post. I'm fully aware that everything that comes out of your shop is for "work" and my comments were not meant to be criticism in any way. I know the stock panel isn't supposed to keep the plunger tube in place, but merely to keep it from falling off should the staking be bad (which I know isnt' an issue with your guns). I wasn't doubting your work at all. I was merely curious why stock makers deviated from the more "traditional" design that partially covers the plunger tube; is it somehow functional or purely aesthetic? Thanks Rich |
Gotcha'... In this case it's functional. The stocks I chose for this gun are VZ slim 320s and as such the panel width of approximately .170" doesn’t lend itself to the extension that covers the plunger tube. With this gun I wanted the checkering to "stand out" as much as possible and the thin stock panels help accentuate the fore and aft gripping surface. 
|