Functional piece of art 1911

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Iamduck82

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Calgary, Alberta, Canada
So I'm a 1911 junkie of sorts. A Canadian made Para was the first pistol I owned and the style has grown on me. Are there better performing pistols that can be more comfortable to shoot. Yup but the 1911 is the king of my gun safe.... Ok maybe not king but definitely that spoiled brat of a prince.

Here is my thing.

I'm wanting to pick up a fairly basic 1911 and upgrade, modify, and eventually get engraving done. Like the title said it will be a functional piece of art.

What make would you start with?

STI
Kimber
Dlask
Para
Sig
Norinco

Let's get some opinions rolling..... This is a bit of a dream but will probably get started some time this year.

Suggested gunsmiths or engravers would be sweet too.
 
Actually I just acquired a colt in 38 super from a family friend..... The debate of doing the above to this gun is what made me post the question. Can't believe I forgot colt in the above list.
 
Colt.

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That is all.

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NAA.
 
Took this picture when I first got the Sig. I guess I've had it a couple years now. Almost sold it once, had two buyers flake out on it and after that I realized I couldn't sell it. I would have been terrifically sad if I had sold my Sig 1911!

1911teaser.jpg
 
Don't bother doing a Norc. Seriously, you're gonna make a piece of art using a rag instead of a brush ?

If you're genuinely going the " Art " route I'd suggest Caspian just because you can order them blank with no cuts or markings at all, or custom serial number if you want. Colt, Smith, Sig all have their names and logo's predominantly marked on the gun. An engraver would have more room and cleaner space to work with on a Caspian than any of the others imo.
 
A norinco wasn't really an option. Just put it on the list to keep the norc fans happy.

If I order from factory most manufacturers will ship a blank canvas if requested. I know STI and Kimber will. Caspain is one I forgot about. Good suggestion.
 
I wouldn't discount the Norc. They are reliable, tough and cost effective to modify.

I've had my sig slide on a norc and a norc slide on my sig. Fitment was excellent, however the series 80 firing pin safety on the sig prevented discharge on the Norc frame, but the Norc slide had no such issue on the sig frame.
 
Want art? Colt series 70 bottom - Caspian Damascus slide BUT WARNING!!!! Wear diapers cause you will surely pee your pants when you see the slide. Of far lesser importance - don't forget the $$$ involved -real pistol artwork doesn't come out of the home handyman's shop!!!
 
Iamduck82: Man in MT does it. Actually the process involves all the usual work on the slide THEN the slide is polished BRILLIANTLY and then its "etched" with acid to bring out the "grain" in the metal. When I asked him who would actually shoot a work of art like that he admitted "these are "barby guns" - you know - when you take your tricked up AR and 1022 and 870 or Benelli in your Chromed up Dodge Ram to show off to your buddies at the Saturday nite BAR-B-Q - THIS 1911 is the final jewel in your crown". When asked what it cost he just laughed - "you don't wanna know - this guy has LOTSA $$$$!" But then again it would be worth it! We can always dream!!!
 
Superted: paying for it it the painful part. but i've never owned anything and kept it as a "tailer queen" or in this case a "safe queen". i was almost speechless when i had to explain to my insurance what i had in my collection. and i shoot them all. anything from a CIL model 70 that was used for hunting seals long before i was a twinkle in my fathers eye, to my AR that has optics worth a mortgage payment. if ya own it shoot it otherwise whats the point?

at the end of the day i can go to the casino or the bar and spend god knows how much and have nothing to show for it.... take that money and put it towards a piece of art that you can shoot. why not? i see it the same way as owning a classic car or a tricked out custom chopper. built to use and have fun with. otherwise whats the point? other than it being a big shiny cod piece? lol....

its a real shame that people put money into stuff just to show off. or have a jewel in a crown..... i helped my dad and a buddy of his to build his dream car a 64 shelby replica, took 4-5 years but came out sweet... lots of people asked how he was going to get it to car shows in the summer.... he always drove it. it has rock chips, and road grime on it.. guess this pistol is my 64 shelby. build it, and shoot

like ya said we can always dream.... i want to make it a reality.

is there anyone in canada that does good work?
 
NavyCuda said:
Took this picture when I first got the Sig. I guess I've had it a couple years now. Almost sold it once, had two buyers flake out on it and after that I realized I couldn't sell it. I would have been terrifically sad if I had sold my Sig 1911!

1911teaser.jpg
Click to expand...

The OP was asking about a classic 1911. Sigs are anything but that especially one with a tactical rail.
 
Iamduck82 : Agree with you 100% Guns are meant to shoot just like cars are meant to drive. I've "dicked" with a "few 1911's" in my time and learned : first make 'em work ... THEN make 'em purty! Don't care how pretty they are -if they don't work -they can't cut it!! Regarding smiths in Canada who can make 'em pretty AND make them work reliably enough to be a high level IPSC competion gun, unfortunately I'd have to say only one or two AND further, the waiting time would be prohibitive. Smithing is a TOUGH BUSINESS! Every shooter wants all the bells and whistles but FEW are willing to spend the $$$ time and VERY SPECIALIZED EXPERTISE the smiths put into their work. I don't know of many RICH gunmiths - serious ones are PASSIONATE about their work and simply "make a living at it" . My hats off to them - likewise to those CGN's who I suspect are smiths and post very useful AND VALUABLE advice on line!! "Good on ya lads"
 
I would start with a Colt Series 70 reissue as the donor gun: the slide markings and serrations are not fugly.
 
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