1911 barrel swap?

Boomer454

Boomer454

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I was playing on the internet last night and found my self at the storm lake barrels site. I have a Kimber custom target II in 45 auto, but want a 1911 in 9mm.

If I had a barrel in 9mm and dropped it into the 45 slide and changed the recoil spring appropriately would it function normally. Obviously I'd have to get the right mags as well.

This question has likely been asked before, but I couldn't find it with the search function.

Thanks in advance.
 
Always a topic. Short answer is "difficult". The nine will not eject with the standard .45 ejector, and if you change to a 9mm ejector the .45 slide will not fit on the gun without the milling of the centre rib to bypass it. In addition the nine case will not be held satisfactorily by the extractor and will slide across the breech face because the space is set for .45. The case is such that yes you could do it, but the outlay in effort is such that it will be cheaper, and more effective to buy another gun.

Cheers Dr. Jim
 
the best thing to do is get out a PARTS LIST and see if the parts interchange- way back in the early 90's GUNS AND AMMO ran an article called the 5-in - 1 colt-they first tried with a colt standard mk4/series 70, found that it didn't work, and then started comparing parts- they found out the COMMANDER used the same part number for all three calibers- ie 9mm 38 super and 45- with respect to the frame components-the only things that needed changing were the entire"top end"( slide, barrel and spring) for each caliber PROVIDED YOU USE A COMMANDER LOWER -so how do you get 5 in 1 you ask,?
well, they included the 22 conversion kit, ( that's 4) and an oddball called the 38/45 clerke- the 9mm and 38 super are kissin cousins with a supposedly heavier spring in the super- the 40 short and wide wasn't around yet- and the 10mm is just a tad long to fit in the mag well- of course you have to use the proper mags-
 
There is a dude on here with a Nork frame and I forget how many 5" top ends but .38spl wadcutter, and 7.62x25 were a couple of them along with the regular offerings.....takes some work but can be done. It's more then just a barrel swap for most of them...
 
Buy or trade for a proper 1911 in 9mm. The amount of trouble that can be caused from trying to figure out why your 45 to 9mm conversion gun isn't working right isn't worth the money spent if you have to use a gunsmith. Can it be done? Yes, just like a M-1 Garand in .458 Win Mag.... but is it worth doing? Like that man said, .400 CorBon for quick and easy, other wise, buy a 9mm 1911 for all your 9mm ammo.
 
mcpherson284 said:
Buy or trade for a proper 1911 in 9mm. The amount of trouble that can be caused from trying to figure out why your 45 to 9mm conversion gun isn't working right isn't worth the money spent if you have to use a gunsmith. Can it be done? Yes, just like a M-1 Garand in .458 Win Mag.... but is it worth doing? Like that man said, .400 CorBon for quick and easy, other wise, buy a 9mm 1911 for all your 9mm ammo.
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That post was partly made in jest. Garand and I have shot together for years and he gives me a hard time about switching guns as often as I do. He also has a (very dear to him commander) I've been trying to get him to part with.
If the funds were there I would absolutely just buy one, but in just not in a position to do that. And I don't want to part with my kimber in 45.
 
Barrels require fitting. 9mm barrels require a 9mm slide.
McCann Industries made a .458 WIN M1. It's available in .338 Win Mag too.
 
Boomer454 said:
That post was partly made in jest. Garand and I have shot together for years and he gives me a hard time about switching guns as often as I do. He also has a (very dear to him commander) I've been trying to get him to part with.
If the funds were there I would absolutely just buy one, but in just not in a position to do that. And I don't want to part with my kimber in 45.
Click to expand...

http://practicalperformance.ca/shop/commander-length-400-cor-bon-barrel/

He may have been joking, I wasn't. He has the barrel, he is a friend and was thinking about building a 400 for himself, but ended up with something better instead.

but, if that fails and you find a slide for 9mm, then he has these in every now and again

http://practicalperformance.ca/shop/5-9mm-forged-barrel/

http://practicalperformance.ca/shop/5-38super-forged-barrel/
 
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Boomer454 said:
That post was partly made in jest. Garand and I have shot together for years and he gives me a hard time about switching guns as often as I do. He also has a (very dear to him commander) I've been trying to get him to part with.
If the funds were there I would absolutely just buy one, but in just not in a position to do that. And I don't want to part with my kimber in 45.
Click to expand...

I will pass it on to my Executor that you have 1st offer on my 9mm Colt Combat Commander, from my estate, if that works out for you?
 
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