[ballistic gelatin]

I am kicking around the idea of buying a 1911 frame and matching it to a .22 conversion kit. Where can I get an affordable frame "assembly"?

[ballistic gelatin]

Particularly a commander sized frame.
So far, this (http://www.gunparts.citymax.com/page/page/778833.htm) is the best I've been able to find.

[JoeHatley]

www.essexarms.com

You'll have to have your local dealer order it for you...

Joe

[Old Fuff]

B.G.

Considering the methods of manufacture "affordable" and "acceptable quality" may not go together. Frames are made from:

Forgings - a lump of steel (or whatever) that is machined into a finished part. In the process more material is cut out then is left, but if the work's done right the finished part is usually dimensionaly correct.

Investment Cast - A cast part is pretty close to its finished dimensions when it comes out of the mold. What's left is drilling holes, maybe milling the rails, and some finish work. A cast frame can rival a forged/machined one, but it requires precise tooling too do this. Like forged frames, high quality cast ones are expensive. But when you start to build them up into a gun you'll soon learn that the higher price was worth it.

So are all inexpensive frames bad? No, not necessarily, but it's sort of a roll of the dice. You can sometimes "tweek" other parts to compensate for off-dimensions in the frame, but this requires knowledge and experience.

I've assembled enough pistols to know that the old saying, "you get what you pay for" is right dead on.

[Jim K]

FWIW, I'll go along with the recommendation on Essex. They are pretty good, even though cast, and they seem to hold up well.

One point of interest. The Essex frames are made to GI specs. Unfortunately, some of the after market and clone parts are not. This results in folks buying off the wall parts at gun shows and then complaining that the frame is bad because the parts don't fit.

I have seen this several times, and had one guy tell me I was wrong because he had paid extra for genuine GI parts. I showed him real GI parts, and installed them on his Essex frame with no problem. What he had bought may have been Genuine India or something like that, but they were not U.S. made parts, something that would have been obvious to someone with more experience.

Jim

[ballistic gelatin]

How difficult is it to build a complete 1911 frame?
On a scale of 1-10. 1 being easy and 10 being hard.

[Old Fuff]

It depends on (1.) what exactly the frame is, and (2.) who made the lockwork parts. As both Jim Keenan and I have pointed out, all parts are not equal.

If you started with a Colt commercial frame and all Colt commercial parts you could probably assemble a frame assembly with a minimum amount of fitting. But you might not be happy with the trigger pull. The same applies to a G.I. frame and parts. When you get into aftermarket stuff you may not know until you've tried it.

If you are thinking in this direction I'd advise you to get a copy of Jerry Kuhnhausen's book, "The Colt .45 Automatic - A Shop Manual." It explains what too do with lots of pictures. Then I'd buy a frame from a known big-name maker that also sells the principal lockwork parts - hammer, sear, disconector, trigger, mainspring housing, and grip & manual safties. If you do have problems you only have to go back to one place.

I'd also get a copy of Brownells catalog (www.brownells.com) because they carry both the parts and tools you might need - plus an excellent answer-your-questions service.

But all of this is not the least expensive way .....

[Mute]

Assuming a truly milspec frame and all milspec drop-in parts (no after market custom stuff), probably about a 4 if you can follow instructions. Of course that's alot of assumptions.