Colt1911 straightening & tightening? Feasible? Worth it? Get New Gun?

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Teac

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So I have a dilemma ...

I have a Original Colt 1911 Gold Cup (80ies series) and while the gun works fine and is reliable its machining and tolerances would make a Norinco 1911 hide in shame ...

It does not affect functionality but bothers me as just looking at it makes me wince in pain. It is so also so loose (always was) that it can be used as musical rattle instrument.

Obviously being tight is not necessarily and advantage but since this is not a carry or mud gun but a Canadian quadruple locked paper puncher, we can go for aesthetics over reliability in mud ...

My main turn offs are:

- the "lines" on the slide and dust cover are not straight and curve up towards the muzzle which looks really silly. Can a gun smith "fix" this? Or would it turn it into a hack job that then will look even worse? We are talking only cosmetic concerns here.

- Can the slide be tightened so it doesnt have so much play? there are many hack job ways but I want something solid .. maybe adding some material to the rails and then fitting it. Will this damage the gun? Will it make anything worse? We are not taking lesbaer tight but an improvement from the rattlesnake appeal.


Lastly, will this financially make sense? How much will I roughly pay for it? Are we in new gun territory and better off with a new gun? Mostly important is there even anybody in BCLM that would and could do that? If not then: thread over and: "Which 1911 should I buy?"


Assuming that gun smiths arent cheap and this is mostly hours of manual labor, I figure that for $2000-3000 I can get a new quality 1911, so is this undertaking worthwile? It would probably not make sense to spend over $600 on such project ..


Any thoughts and recommendations?

Teac
 
Assuming that gun smiths arent cheap and this is mostly hours of manual labor, I figure that for $2000-3000 I can get a new quality 1911, so is this undertaking worthwile? It would probably not make sense to spend over $600 on such project ..


Any thoughts and recommendations?

Teac[/QUOTE]


Exactly what you said; plus, after spending that money, what if you are not happy with the result ?
 
For generations, 1911 pistols have been reworked. Tightening the slide/frame fit is routine. Often it involves pinching the slide, peining the frame rails and refitting.
Look around for a 'smith experienced in accurizing 1911s.
 
DanRR said:
Assuming that gun smiths arent cheap and this is mostly hours of manual labor, I figure that for $2000-3000 I can get a new quality 1911, so is this undertaking worthwile? It would probably not make sense to spend over $600 on such project ..


Any thoughts and recommendations?

Teac
Click to expand...


Exactly what you said; plus, after spending that money, what if you are not happy with the result ?[/QUOTE]

this is exactly my concern ... However there might be someone in BCLM who does this all the time and is a pro at it ... if not then hands off

What alternatives are there for new 1911:

needs to be not a cast frame, reasonably accurate and tight as well as well machined ...
 
tiriaq said:
For generations, 1911 pistols have been reworked. Tightening the slide/frame fit is routine. Often it involves pinching the slide, peining the frame rails and refitting.
Look around for a 'smith experienced in accurizing 1911s.
Click to expand...

I need recommendations for a gun smith in BCLM experienced in 1911 work. I went to one local gun smith before and the cosmetic results were .. lets say ... "an issue"
 
Teac said:
I need recommendations for a gun smith in BCLM experienced in 1911 work. I went to one local gun smith before and the cosmetic results were .. lets say ... "an issue"
Click to expand...


Bits and Pieces. Bumblebee Gunsmithing. Maybe get Jerry Khunhausen 1911 bible and some goodies from Brownell and do it yourself. Ok maybe tackle a Norinco first then the Gold Cup:p Good luck.
 
Your profile does not mention where you are.

I have had a number of 1911s tuned up by Roger Kotanko at Dark International, Simcoe, Ontario.

I mail him a gun and I get it back in two weeks. He is not expensive.
 
Series 80 Colt Gold Cups aren't that rare.

In the OP's scenario, if it was mine, I'd just sell it & get something else.

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NAA.
 
Just sell it and get something else. With what you describe, a smith can only do so much. Less of a headache to sell and buy, will be a wash or cheaper depending on what you get, you will probably end up with something tighter (or equal) and definitely better finished than the reworked colt.
 
Teac said:
My main turn offs are:

- the "lines" on the slide and dust cover are not straight and curve up towards the muzzle which looks really silly. Can a gun smith "fix" this? Or would it turn it into a hack job that then will look even worse? We are talking only cosmetic concerns here.

- Can the slide be tightened so it doesnt have so much play? there are many hack job ways but I want something solid .. maybe adding some material to the rails and then fitting it. Will this damage the gun? Will it make anything worse? We are not taking lesbaer tight but an improvement from the rattlesnake appeal.


"Which 1911 should I buy?"



Teac
Click to expand...



Hey Teac, post pictures of your gun. Not sure of your first turn off? Yes gun can be tightened, even an accu-rail can be added but expensive. Get a quote from Dark International? Or sell outright. However since you blabbered:) we now know it is looser that a geriatric ####star’s bone hole and you’ll take a bath on it in the EE:p As for which 1911 to buy, get the best one you can afford. Good luck.
 
How much play are we talking about exactly? There was a time not all that long ago that a very tightly fit 1911 was considered a ticking time bomb.
 
I have an old 1915 Colt 1911 I bought from an estate, paid $700 for it because it looks like it was in both World Wars and a few others. It's all pitted, rattles some, who knows what the original finish was but all there except couple of loops for lanyard. Its one of my favourite guns to shoot, I don't worry if it gets dinged or scratched. Still going after 103 years, keep that one as a shooter and buy a pretty one for special occasions. I bought a deluxe Coonan few years ago, black slide and stainless frame, took it out first time and put two magazines through it, if any has shot a Coonan that brass goes flying. After I was done looked down at the slice and the brass had put chips on the black slide on a brand new gun!! Fvck was pissed. Now I use black electrical tape on the frame before I take it shooting and if you want to avoid a cylinder ring on your revolvers do the same. Put strips of electrical tape on the cylinder between each look up but of course NOT lock up dimple and you will pretty much eliminate a ring on your revolver cylinder if its new or keep it from getting worse if it's used.
 
Take a look at the SS colt Gold Cup trophy, they are a series 70. My son bought one; its so easy to shoot well, it even makes an old shooter like me look good. Sooooo easy to hit with, ticks all the right boxes for fit, finish, and lots of refinements that make a pistol shoot well. A step up in price but very worth it.
 
thanks to all for the responses!

I am aware that lose is not a functional issue but it just bothers me. Lets not forget, its a papergun so functionality in dirt doesnt matter....

I was at the local gun store and looked at a new colt and the new one was about 3 times tighter to a point where its almost acceptable. A new SIG 1911 was acceptably tight and worlds tighter than mine and well machines, all lines straight. they had a les baer and it was mega tight and well made...

It turns out that a new les baer can be had for 2400 which is a better investment than having someone hack up mine for hundreds ... Like I said my experience with local gun smith is not so positive and all visits have left guns with cosmetic issues so I am not so confident having my gun fixed for cosmetic issues ...

If someone can fix it up for a few hundreds thats ok but I dont want to pay and come out worse ... probably just rebluing it will run 200-300

below some pics of the lines on my gold cup


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If you are going to go for line straightening, you might as well go for a 'Full House Build' for your dream gun. The cost of the filing and refinish makes it less than practical if that is all you want done on the gun. You also need a smith who knows what he's doing. For tightening, the best smiths will weld up the frame and then machine and fit the slide on it. Once again very expensive but superior to peening the rails.
 
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