I have a 1911 problem that I am sure is easy for you 1911 gunsmiths.
A guy I work with recently inherited a 1911. This is a very nice genuine US Property 1911 (not 1911A1). According to a website, it was manufactured in 1913. His grandfather forgot to give it back at the end of WWII. Anyway, the guy knew nothing about it and asked me to show him how it works and how to take it down for cleaning. I suggested to him that if he was going to shoot it, he should replace the recoil spring and possibly the firing pin spring. At that point he asked me if I would be willing to take it home, chean it, buy and install the appropriate springs...............
I started playing with it in the car on the way home and noticed that if I pulled the trigger without pressing the grip safety, the hammer would fall to a half cock position. A little more playing revealed that if I engaged the thumb safety and pulled the trigger, the thumb safety would disengage and the gun would fire !!!!!!!!!!!!. Obviously not a very safe condition. What is wrong ? I have shot a lot of 1911s and done some very routine parts swapping, but I am far from even a shade tree gunsmith. By the way, the thumb safety goes on with a very clear click and feels solid.
One more thing; what would something like this be worth ? This is one of the nicer GI 1911s that I have seen. It does have finish wear and a few dings on the barrel bushing; it has been carried by a pilot in combat, probably for several years and is far from pristine, but still very nice for a used GI 1911. It is also nice and tight. When you shake it, it doesn't rattle at all. He mentioned that he would like to leave it original. He also mentioned that if someone was willing to give him top dollar, he might sell it. I personally don't understand selling guns, let alone one that my grandfather carried in combat, but it is his gun and not mine. Anyway, if something needs to be replaced like the hammer, I don't know what his feelings about this would be. I was thinking about asking him if he wanted to sell it to me. I own a number of 1911s for shooting and would leave this one as is, as a curio (not replace any parts). I would give him a generous price, I have no desire to low ball him - he is a super nice guy that I enjoy working with. I also considered trading him a NIB 1911 of modern manufacture and some cash. I do know that he was recently asking me about buying a handgun, so he does want one. Telling him that this one is unsafe to use in it's present form might make him not want to keep it. Of course if this problem is simple to fix then it doesn't matter.
A guy I work with recently inherited a 1911. This is a very nice genuine US Property 1911 (not 1911A1). According to a website, it was manufactured in 1913. His grandfather forgot to give it back at the end of WWII. Anyway, the guy knew nothing about it and asked me to show him how it works and how to take it down for cleaning. I suggested to him that if he was going to shoot it, he should replace the recoil spring and possibly the firing pin spring. At that point he asked me if I would be willing to take it home, chean it, buy and install the appropriate springs...............
I started playing with it in the car on the way home and noticed that if I pulled the trigger without pressing the grip safety, the hammer would fall to a half cock position. A little more playing revealed that if I engaged the thumb safety and pulled the trigger, the thumb safety would disengage and the gun would fire !!!!!!!!!!!!. Obviously not a very safe condition. What is wrong ? I have shot a lot of 1911s and done some very routine parts swapping, but I am far from even a shade tree gunsmith. By the way, the thumb safety goes on with a very clear click and feels solid.
One more thing; what would something like this be worth ? This is one of the nicer GI 1911s that I have seen. It does have finish wear and a few dings on the barrel bushing; it has been carried by a pilot in combat, probably for several years and is far from pristine, but still very nice for a used GI 1911. It is also nice and tight. When you shake it, it doesn't rattle at all. He mentioned that he would like to leave it original. He also mentioned that if someone was willing to give him top dollar, he might sell it. I personally don't understand selling guns, let alone one that my grandfather carried in combat, but it is his gun and not mine. Anyway, if something needs to be replaced like the hammer, I don't know what his feelings about this would be. I was thinking about asking him if he wanted to sell it to me. I own a number of 1911s for shooting and would leave this one as is, as a curio (not replace any parts). I would give him a generous price, I have no desire to low ball him - he is a super nice guy that I enjoy working with. I also considered trading him a NIB 1911 of modern manufacture and some cash. I do know that he was recently asking me about buying a handgun, so he does want one. Telling him that this one is unsafe to use in it's present form might make him not want to keep it. Of course if this problem is simple to fix then it doesn't matter.
