1911 .22 conversion kit debate?

[CALIFORNIA]

Hi,

At first, I have read and been told that the .22 conversion kits available for 1911 platforms ( ciener, kimber, etc ) ONLY work if you have a 1911 in .45 calibre only.

Then I was talking to Phoenix, and they tell me .22 conversions work on ALL 1911s, be it 9mm., .40, or .45, since the frame is identical in all three calibres.

Can someone settle this controversy once and for all?

Thanks,
piccolig

 

[Dustin]

I have one of the Ciener ones, it is for use with .45 cal pistols only. The problem lies with the ejector. The .38super, 9mm, .40cal etc. all require a wider ejector than the .45. Because of this, the .22 conversions won't work with any other than the .45.

 

[hr]

i thought the .22 kits was a complete upper???

 

[CALIFORNIA]

Exactly, I thought the ejector was part of the slide

piccolig

 

[Dustin]

The ejector of the conversion kit is part of the unit, but the 1911's ejector is a standing unit that you can see beside the hammer at all times

Here's a link to a pic:
http://www.brownells.com/aspx/NS/store/ProductDetail.aspx?p=1305&title=1911+AUTO+EXTENDED+EJECTOR

 

[redleg]

As indicated above, they work on all 1911's, but if you have a gun in a different caliber, you need to remove the ejector. This makes conversion a little more time consuming and problematic.

 

[Hungry]

Exactly what Redleg said....

I bought a Ciener kit for my .45 and life was great. My wife wanted a 9mm M1911 platform for herself. So I bought one 9mm for her. Life is good.

One day, I wanted to end this argument once and for all, so I tried the .22 Ciener slide on the IMBEL lower/reciever and yup, the ejector on the 9mm was too far over to the center (1 or 2 mm) of the reciever / frame.

I was / am too lazy to switch ejectors, so the .22 kit still sits (and gets a shatload of use) on the Springfield Armory Loaded PX9109L fram. for all my practice and also taking newbies out to the pistol range.

Life is great,
Barney

 

[NAA]

Of course the answer is to have a dedicated frame for your .22 Conversion Unit. Mine sit's 99% of the time on a WWII vintage Colt USGI 1911A-1 frame that I have set up with an adjustable Videcki trigger. Shoots like a house on fire. Occasionally, I put the .45 ACP top end on and shoot it that way, too.

You can get complete 1911A-1 Norinco lowers from Armco for $240, so why not give your .22 Conversion Unit a permanent home...