Hey guys,

My friend has a stainless Colt Commander that he wants some stuff done to. he cares most about function, wants new springs, it needs sights, and would like the extended beavertail grip safety. I have never messed with a 1911 before and had some questions:

1. Can anything be done about the finish? I have access to a blast cabinet if that would help, or is it a hand polish job or what? (he doesn't care about cosmetics if it costs $, but if it's something I could do it would be nice)



2. The magazine release seems less than optimal, takes more pressure than I'd expect to release the magazine, and when putting the mag back in it really wants to stop when it hits the catch. Is this something that likely a good clean and lube will fix or is it something I may need to replace a spring or something on?

3. The front sight literally is broken off, I think the hardest thing here is on the inside where the swage was ground I can't see where to punch it out. Will brownell's 65 swage tool work or is only the 270 one good? (I ask because at 65 not bad, at 270 he's gonna have to send it out )

Thanks guys.

Red

Here's the stuff I'm planning to get. On the sights I think the front sight on this model is the narrow. I don't think anything is too difficult, but I really would like to give it back to him LOOKING good not just functioning. I think it is nickel plates, it's a series 70, and from what I've found they made no stainless but matte nickel plated some. serial is 70sc79xxx.


beavertail

Does this look like the right spring kit? I'm sure I could just call wolf and they would know exactly what to get, but thought somebody here might know too.
spring kit

front sight staker

sights

PS
I also noted that the serrations on the top of the hammer are pretty sharp and thought I'd just knock them down a bit with a diamond stone, good idea or bad?

These are all good items to use, and if it were mine I would never grind the ears on my frame. I like the drop in beaver tail.

Let us know how the Colt turns out.

I do this kind of 1911 work almost every week...and a lot more.

The "drop in" beavertails look like ass. A properly fitted beavertail requres the rear of the frame to be radiused, and then the beavertail and thumb safety are blended with the frame. If this is not done correctly the shooter often ends up with a blister on the inside of their thumb.

Beadblast with fine glass beads and you'll restore the finish. You can sand off any deep scratches first; there's no need to polish anything.

The mag release can be blended for smooth function and a lighter spring can be installed to allow easier function.

There is only one tool that properly stakes an original front sight; it's from MMC and is expensive. Dovetailed sight work so much better and offer so many more options most people are far, far better off with them.

Checkered frontstraps provide a major improvement in "gription" so I always recommend that mod as well.

If it is a satin nickel 70 series, be careful using any abrasive on the finish. You'll quickly go through the nickel plate to the copper layer below it and it'll look awful.

The same caveat for anything that requires cutting on the frame such as a grip safety other than a drop in. Not saying you can't do it, but you'll have to strip the nickel plating and refinish the gun.

quote:

Originally posted by M Pursell:
If it is a satin nickel 70 series, be careful using any abrasive on the finish. You'll quickly go through the nickel plate to the copper layer below it and it'll look awful.

The same caveat for anything that requires cutting on the frame such as a grip safety other than a drop in. Not saying you can't do it, but you'll have to strip the nickel plating and refinish the gun.

Exactly right. There aren't any stainless steel series 70 guns. I've stripped nickel off quite a few.

Hey guys thanks for all the information. It's starting to sound like maybe I can only do the spring stuff and he may have to have the front done by a smith afterall. Maybe better off not doing the beavertail unless it ends up getting refinished anyways. I'll talk to my buddy tomorrow and see what he has for blasting media already. I have another friend that thinks he may be able to get it stripped for me.

It's hard to see in the picture but the pachmayer grips are wrap around on the front. If it were mine I'd go with a checkered front strap and a flat main spring housing, make the grip a bit nicer to get around.

Bergie what does that mean about grinding the ears on the frame? I'm not a 1911 guy and don't know all the proper names for everything on it, yet.

Red

"grinding the ears" I believe is referring to putting a radius on the frame to properly fit a beavertail grip safety.

Just a thought. You can remove the grips and disassemble then place the gun in a mix of hot water mixed 50/50 with white vinegar and let it set. It will remove the blue and soften or dissolve crud in all those little hard to get to spots. Then you can see what kind of dings and dents are present and decide on a finish. It will also reveal wear spots. The solution will not turn the gun bright, but it will bring out all the surface flaws.

Bergie what does that mean about grinding the ears on the frame? I'm not a 1911 guy and don't know all the proper names for everything on it, yet.

burgie: in gunsmithing school we had a 1911 teacher show us how he fitted his beavertails using a fixture bolted on the ears. It was hardened steel and he took the frame over to the disc sander and ground the ears just close. Then he filed the ears down to the fixture and de-burred the frame and installed the beavertail and it worked and looked great. Some of the students made the fixture and they worked well. Of course you had to blend the ears and polish the frame to the beavertail to finish it.

Dago,

Jerry Kuhnhausen has written 2 books on the 1911 pistol that IMHO are quite good. I believe volume 1 covers all the questions you are asking here. Your local library can probably locate a copy for you, but if you are at all interested in these pistols the first book sepecially is a really good book to purchase IMHO.

In regards to the beavertail safety, for it to look clean the safety needs to be one that requires the frame to be ground. When done well it looks pretty nice:


However, the frame itself needs to be ground/filed on a radius. Here is a pic of the jig used to give you a better visual:


As Toomany Tools mentioned, you can get beavertail safetys that do not need to be ground but they look pretty unappealing to me as well, here is one for sale so you can see:

http://www.armslist.com/posts/...-for-government-mode

For the pachmayrs, something that looks and works pretty nice is to take some tape (I used cloth medical tape) and roll it up into little "worms" (you know the paper sticks on lollipops, try about 1/2 that size)and with the grips off stick it to the front strap to get the spacing correct for your friends hand. When the spacing is proper stretch the grip panels over the worms. I also rolled the tape up sticky side out so it sticks to the frame to get the spacing right, then move them to the front of the grip so they do not slip on you. you get some built in finger grooves that fit your hand quite nicely and help the gun stay in place. If you decide you don't like them just take them off.

It may have been in the Kuhnhausen book, but somewhere I saw a 1911 that had a case head rupture and the comment was made that the pachmayr grips had a steel panel in them which saved the shooters hand which sounds like a good reason to me to use them.

If the finish is plated and worn, after a cleaning if any of the finish is actually worn off or work is done like the front strap being checkered a finish such as Gunkote or Duracote is also a pleasing and durable option.

I'd opt for dovetailing the front sight. So much easier when changing sights and more sturdy in my opinion. I've staked many 1911 front sights with a staker I got from Brownells over 30 years ago and none of them ever came off or even got loose. Unless they've changed them I don't see why any other brand is better. I've even stake front sights with my tool on pistols that weren't 1911's. If using the stake on sights they have two different tennon (part that fits down into the rectangular hole in the slide and part you peen from the inside) and if you carefully remove what is left of the broken sight you can then see the tenon and use a correct size punch to punch it through to the inside of the slide.

Sounds like your magazine release is either crud up or spring too stiff, maybe even a burr.

Radius off the ears to make a better fit and appearance. If you're wanting to keep the pistol as near as original then you don't want to do the beaver tail or dovetailed front sight.

I had a satin nickel finish Combat Commander in around 1970 but don't remember them saying it was a stainless pistol.