Show us your Guns!

[Boyo]

Nice work Deacon ^

I have to admit I wasn't familiar with the Fitz conversion. I have seen revolvers with the trigger guard partially removed but i didn't realize the provenance.

Curious to see / hear about the end result. ( and would you carry it)

 

[DeaconKC]

Nice work Deacon ^

I have to admit I wasn't familiar with the Fitz conversion. I have seen revolvers with the trigger guard partially removed but i didn't realize the provenance.

Curious to see / hear about the end result. ( and would you carry it)

Yes, I would carry it. It has a very smooth [typical S&W K frame] action in Double Action mode and does fit my old Bianchi IWB holster. Here are the finished pics.

 

[DeaconKC]

Finished up another fun project today. A fellow Cowboy Action Shooter had some broken parts guns he had no use for so I put together a small shadowbox with these three derringers. Just had another friend suggest some poker chips, etc to finish it off.

 

[DeaconKC]

Found this image and thought that my fellow gun cranks would enjoy it.

 

[DeaconKC]

Well, brought a Colt 1991 Commander home today. Good trigger and night sights but the plastic mainspring housing has to go. Even came with a McCormick and a Wilson Magazine.

 

[Yahoody]

Its' an affliction my friend I suffer from the same. No obvious cure known to date. Nice Colt!

 

[Boyo]

the plastic mainspring housing has to go.

That something you’ll handle yourself?

 

[DeaconKC]

That something you’ll handle yourself?

Oh yeah. I have been detail stripping 1911s for decades and have lots of spare parts lying around. [We are not gonna discuss losing a MSH hammer pin last week]...

 

[Yahoody]

>the plastic mainspring housing has to go.

It is the Internet so advice is required even when not requested

Colt uses a type of high strength nylon for their mainspring housings. Really tough stuff. Unlike Kimber's plastic version which more often than not breaks at the retaining pin hole. For a carry gun I actually prefer Colt's serrated version of "plastic" over any metal version. No lube required. You'll have little or no rust if you first replace the pins inside with stainless. If it is a Colt Commander (the LWT frame version) and not a Combat Commander (steel frame version) I stick with the original Colt part for those very reasons and dropping the extra weight of a steel or aluminum mainspring housing. I have a 5" steel gun with the same Colt mainspring housing installed that was intentionally carried daily for more than a decade that way.

 

[DeaconKC]

>the plastic mainspring housing has to go.

It is the Internet so advice is required even when not requested

Colt uses a type of high strength nylon for their mainspring housings. Really tough stuff. Unlike Kimber's plastic version which more often than not breaks at the retaining pin hole. For a carry gun I actually prefer Colt's serrated version of "plastic" over any metal version. No lube required. You'll have little or no rust if you first replace the pins inside with stainless. If it is a Colt Commander (the LWT frame version) and not a Combat Commander (steel frame version) I stick with the original Colt part for those very reasons and dropping the extra weight of a steel or aluminum mainspring housing. I have a 5" steel gun with the same Colt mainspring housing installed that as intentionally carried daily for more than a decade that way.

Hmmm, thanks for the info! I will let it ride for a bit then and see if it behaves.

 

[Yahoody]

A couple of custom Ruger's LWT, Commander size guns in 9mm and 45. The Ruger's come from the factory with nicely 25lpi checker, flat, steel, mainspring housing. Both of these guns have Colt's nylon main spring housing installed as part of the modifications to eliminate a bit of weight primarily. But a serrated mainspring housing also offers an excellent grip that will not chew up clothing when being carried.

 

[fireman]

>the plastic mainspring housing has to go.

It is the Internet so advice is required even when not requested

Colt uses a type of high strength nylon for their mainspring housings. Really tough stuff. Unlike Kimber's plastic version which more often than not breaks at the retaining pin hole. For a carry gun I actually prefer Colt's serrated version of "plastic" over any metal version. No lube required. You'll have little or no rust if you first replace the pins inside with stainless. If it is a Colt Commander (the LWT frame version) and not a Combat Commander (steel frame version) I stick with the original Colt part for those very reasons and dropping the extra weight of a steel or aluminum mainspring housing. I have a 5" steel gun with the same Colt mainspring housing installed that was intentionally carried daily for more than a decade that way.

Every thing Colt is better.

There are lot of other 1911 makers out there that have more bells and whistles but use lower quality parts.

I love my SA Prodigy but it is not up to the same standard.

 

[DeaconKC]

Oh those are fine looking examples. Yahoody excellent taste Sir!

 

[Yahoody]

Thank you Deacon. I am a die hard Colt fan. But, Colt doesn't make a LWT Commander size gun out side the Collt Custom Shop or a custom maker (read big $ for either and long waits) that compares to the LWT Rugers for attributes.

I have 3. One in 9mm, another 9mm that was converted to 38 Super and one in 45.

The 45s come with a serrated front strap on the fame and a titanium feed ramp insert. The 9mm guns come with a fully ramped barrel so no insert needed. Having done them all, I can tell you, they are costly mods on a Colt. Not a big fan of Novak style sights but they are a decent sight picture. Lots of the Ruger OEM parts got switched out on my guns to something I thought better and then were hand fit. But none of that work made them shoot any better, just made them easier to shoot quickly. All three always shot and functioned just fine.

I never dreamed of having 3 lwt Commander sized guns in various calibers. My last custom lwt Colt cost more than all three of these combined when they were first offered to the public. Only thing wrong with them now...is they are still Rugers And it seems the prices have gone up a good bit.

A Colt LWT Commander is a solid pistol just they way they have come from the factorty for the past 74 years! Nothing else needed besides good ammo and good mags. It is why any Colt demands top $ today.

Hope you and your family enjoy your Colt for at least another 75 years!

 

[DeaconKC]

Try out the Wilson stamped metal front strap grips. They feel like 25LPI checkering and are easy to slip on, just held in place by the grip panels of your choice.

 

[Yahoody]

Good suggestion Deacon, thank you. Just not a fan of the Wilson product. Some like skate board tape as an alternative. I have checkered 1911s in 40, 30, 25 and 20 lpi and 20, 25, 30 lpi serrations. I prefer serrations over checkering for feel, cost and durability. The serrations work as well as checking IMO for weapon retention and give you a majority of what checkering offers for enhancing your grip. Much easier to mrore your hand around though on serrations than checkering if you get a bad initial grip. Used hand matte as well. Which I like but not to the extent of a Clarke gun with "shark's tooth".

25 lpi, raised panel, hand checkering.

30 lpi machine checkering

25lpi serrations

Hand matte

 

[DeaconKC]

This one came into the shop last week and I snapped it up. A 1948 built K22 that has been carried and used quite a bit, but whoever had it loved it and took great care of it. The bore and cylinder are spotless and the action as tight as the day it left the factory.

 

[Yahoody]

Nice 17 there! I had two. Both with lots of wear I put on them. Accurate, tough guns. Things got tight. Sold both and shipped them to Alaska.

 

[DeaconKC]

Nice 17 there! I had two. Both with lots of wear I put on them. Accurate, tough guns. Things got tight. Sold both and shipped them to Alaska.

I hit the Like button, but needed a sad button for having to sell them!

 

[Yahoody]

>needed a sad button for having to sell them!

Thank you. Although I learned to shoot a handgun with one of them, which started a life long pursuit and livelihood , I was good with the decision. They looked pretty beat up but were still great guns. I've thought about replacing the 17 a number of times. Haven't though. I have more use for a suppressed .22 these days. Wish I could have combined the two. (suppressed, Model #17) .