Building the Ultimate Carry 1911

[JCook5003]

Hey Guys-

I am intersted in building a 1911 with my granddad.

I would like a 1911 in officers size, probably stainless steel for carry purposes with nice rounded edges and low profile gi sights....

I would prefer to use a Caspian frame and slide and have them fit them just for ease of assembly....what would you guys consider mandatory to build the "ultimate" carry 1911....of course it would probably wind up being a BBQ gun just for sentimental sake but who knows I may love it and carry it......

I was thinking as I said before nice rounded edges with low profile sights of some sort....officers size frame and slide, and probably in stainless for easy care....undecided on bushingless or bushing barrel, opinions?

How would you guys finish it or build the "ultimate" carry 1911?

Open to lots of opinions and insights.....also pictures and links are always appreciated.

Thanks Guys.
Josh

[DefensiveCarry.com]

[Ping Ping]

For a carry gun, I would subscribe to the K.I.S.S axoim. I'd recommend a FLGR on an officer size, since they need all the help they can get.
Single side safety (unless youre a lefty). Front night sight, plain rear. Rounded butt, extensive de-horning, Hi-ride beavertail. NM bbl and bushing. Serrate top of slide. Checker front strap and under trigger guard. If youre going with Caspian, I'd consider a Ti frame and SS slide. The stainless can and will rust, but the Ti wont. I'd go for thin grips. You also have the option of sticking with carbon steel and having it either Ion Bonded, or Black-T'd. Either will prevent rust better than SS. If you can make a Black-T'd gun rust, they will redo it for you for free. Good luck, though, the Navy department hasn't been able to. The new EGW process is getting some very good press also.

Additionally, I like what Caspian is doing with the plunger tube now. Making it part of the frame rather than the traditional method of staking; a Larry Vickers idea and a good one. I dont know if they are offered on such a gun though.

I am assuming you and/or your grandad have built a few 1911s before. If not, you will need some special tools and a good smith for some of the critical work, like bbl/bushing/slide fitting, tuning the trigger, etc. These are not Snap-Tite model kits.

[pogo2]

I would like a 1911 in officers size, probably stainless steel for carry purposes with nice rounded edges and low profile gi sights....

I would prefer to use a Caspian frame and slide and have them fit them just for ease of assembly....what would you guys consider mandatory to build the "ultimate" carry 1911

...undecided on bushingless or bushing barrel, opinions?
Thanks Guys.
Josh

This sounds like an interesting project. Since you specified Caspian frame and slide with dehorning (you said rounded edges), these major items are fixed. Wilson Combat makes a stainless Officer's size gun called the "Sentinel" that might be a good model for your efforts. It has a bushingless barrel and thin Wilson grip panels. I'm sure you could buy all the component parts from Wilson to use on your Caspian frame and slide:

[Redneck Repairs]

Personally i would not recommend, nor would i do my base "ultimate " 1911 on an officers format . Well i would take a lightweight frame , trim it to officers length, and bobtail it . Then i would mate it to a full 5" slide and upper assembly . By choice i would if possible do all the above with a fixed ramp , but that is just icing on the concept cake . My ideal build it myself pistol would have a subtle extended beavertail but other than that an extended nothing , it would even have a slimmed slidestop and slimmed series 70 style thumb safety .
Different folks have different needs tho , and my needs are not go fast for ipsc but go/carry well for defense .

[JCook5003]

Maybe I will look into the Ti frame, only slightly more when you look at the quality of gun and sentimental value we are building together.......

Yes he has built 11 1911's this will be my first a good way for us to spend time together and a good way for me to have a very nice gun

so I keep getting mixed reviews on the officers frame and slide? Why?

It seems the general consensus is Commander......

Redneck Repairs I agree with you I would like it to be very slim and ultra reliable for CCW those are my main concerns as well

Also I am not stuck on Caspian frames or slides I am open for other opinions, I was just under the impression they made the best 1911 components for the money

[Bud White]

I would go pretty much what Ping Ping said except i got to have that ambi

[pogo2]

So I keep getting mixed reviews on the officers frame and slide? Why?

It seems the general consensus is Commander.

Whenever one posts a positive comment here (and elsewhere) about a 1911 with a barrel length less than 4.25 inches (Commander size), the resident curmudgeons come out of the woodwork and harrumph about how terrible the shorter barrel 1911s are. They subscribe to a religion that believes the short barrel 1911s don't work and are an insult to 1911 dogma as laid down by John Browning.

They don't seem to mind that many other handgun designs with barrels of 3 to 4 inches work just fine, and don't comment on those others - only 1911s.

I would suggest ignoring them and doing what you want. If you want an Officer's size gun with 3.5 inch barrel you should go ahead and build it. Between your experienced gunsmith grandfather and the high quality parts you are buying, I'd give odds the gun will work very well.

Here is a picture of a 1911 curmudgeon:

[AKsrule]

.

Take a Look Here for some great pics of custom 1911s.

http://coolgunsite.com/comm_pistols/...m#Custom_1911s

[JCook5003]

Anyone else?

[vernonator]

Skip the build and just buy a Dan Wesson Classic Bobtail Commander - all stainless, dehoned and ready to rock.....

http://www.czusa.com/product_detail.php?id=66

[artz]

I have had in my posession, a Baretta 96DAO, that was finished in NP3 by Robar INC. in arizona. The mags were coated also. Amazing stuff...
I was impressed.

[Wildcat Creeker]

Just a minor point here, I don't thing you can build a barrel bushed 1911 with less than a Commander length slide. Shorter than that, such as Officers ACP size, and you have to go bushingless. (coned barrel) A very popular size concealed carry 1911 is to copy the Colt C.C.O. with a Commander slide(4.25" bbl) on an Officers ACP frame. I have an original Colt version of the C.C.O., but several makers (such as the Les Baer Stinger) and custom builders are offering this size. Just food for thought.

[Ping Ping]

I think it's pretty clear that I am, indeed, a "1911 Curmudgeon." Moreso, I am a reliabily curmudgeon. Whatever. He asked about an OACP and I gave the best advice I could. I didn't offer any opinions on the size, because he didn't ask for any. Do other platforms of 3-4" semis work and work great? Absolutely! He didn't ask about them either.

The fact is, I have seen many OACPs that ran just fine. I've seen a lot of commanders that wouldn't. There are certainly stout arguments out there for not delving below 4.25", on a 1911 platform, enough so that it is sound advice, but not absolute.

I think it's a great idea to build a gun with your gandad. The bonding and the memories will last a lifetime. It sounds like a worthy project to me.

It may be a good idea to look into what wilson can offer you for parts, as mentioned above. It would likely reduce the hassle factor markedly. Call them. Their customer service is highly regarded.

Best of luck!

BTW, JMB never had anything to do with, nor ever even saw a commander sized gun. That was Colt's baby.

[Pistolman1974]

If I were building a gun with my grandad, I would not be carrying it. to much sentemental value. Heaven forbid you have to use it in self-defense there is a possibility it would not be returned to you. Build something nice with grandad and buy something reasonable to carry.

that said, I would go with a full size 5" or commander size.