Customized Colt Commander Progress

[CumminsPower]

I bought this NRM SS Colt Commander in October and sent it straight out.
Here is a rundown of what all I have done so far.

1. Videcki 3 hole trigger
2. Install, smooth frame slots and set overtravel.
3. EGW thick flange bushing .575" Cut and fit to barrel
4. Refit lower barrel feet for Proper lock up and crown
barrel
5. Reliability tune(throat frame and recontour and polish, polish barrel mouth and recontour forhollowpoints, polish chamber and
breechface, bevel firing pin hole,clearance grip safety to remove
without dropping MSH, set extractor tension and polish, deburr bottom of chamber, and smooth disconnector rail, and smooth hammer hooks and sear nose, and check for hammer
follow, set trigger at 4 lbs
6. EGW Slide Stop
7. Wilson Extractor
8. EGW Firing Pin Stop
9. Lower and flair ejection port
10. Ed Brown High Rise Beavertail grip safety with memory groove
11. Ed Brown 20lpi Checkered Main spring housing
12. ISMI 19lb main spring
13 Ed Brown Tactical Thumb Safety
14. Cylinder & Slide Ultra Lite Sear
15. Kimber Double Diamond Rosewood Grips

Next to come will be a set of low mount Novaks, C&S Ultra Lite Trigger, and hard chroming

The picture does not show the beavertail blending very well.....but I can tell you that the smith did a fine job of blending it to the frame.



Sorry for the quality of the picture.

 

[Grayrock]

Man! I guess Colt needs to QC their products better if they need that much work out of the box. Probably spent more on fixing it than you did buying it. Hope it shoots well now.

 

[CumminsPower]

Colts products are some of the best out of the box 1911's going right now. I dont believe I ever mentioned having any malfunctions of any kind. You just assumed that because you wanted to show your arrogance. This gun was bought with the intention of modifying it.

 

[clown714]

looks SWEEET

half the fun of 1911's is customizing them

are you going to do anything to the frontstrap?

how about a range report,when you're done.

clown

 

[CumminsPower]

Yessir...the front strap will get some treatment to match the Ed Brown MSH. Since the work, I have put 500rds thru it. At 25 yards I am getting great 1 to 1.5" groups.

 

[Hal]

looks nice. <-- understatement of the new year
1 to 1.5 @ 25 = shoots nice too.

Needs some dancing pony grips though or maybe some Hakan's(sp?).

Can't wait to see the final product w/the hard chrome. Colt Commander is on my very short list of potential carry pieces. I already have one and would like another eventually, with pretty much exactly the same setup as what you're doing.

 

[Grayrock]

OK- so out of the box how was it performing? What percentage improvements have you achieved? Why doesn't Colt do these things to their guns in the first place? I can understand wanting to make the gun special for your own use. I would like to able to do that, too. However, I lack the knowledge of what improvements are available, and which ones I need and/or want.

Give us a finished product report.

 

[BluesBear]

 

[CumminsPower]

The only problem I had with the function of the gun NIB was the result of a loose FPS which let the extractor clock which was easily corrected. This let some rounds have extracting problems. Other than that, all other changes were made because I wanted them changed. As far as improvement...it went from a 3" group gun to a 1-1.5" group. I feel the improved grouping had more to do with the EGW bushing, and EGW slide stop than anything else.

Why didnt Colt do this from the factory? Number 1, costs to produce which falls back on higher prices to the consumer, remember, this is just there plain jane pistol. They have an enhanced line of 1911s marked the XSE, Gold Cup, Gunsite, and the special combat which has the added features. Mine was the plain jane version. I would rather buy a plain version 1911 for customizing rather than to buy one with the features already added if your going to just take them off. But, if I didnt want to customize, then I would go with a loaded version.

 

[SouthpawShootr]

Man! I guess Colt needs to QC their products better if they need that much work out of the box. Probably spent more on fixing it than you did buying it. Hope it shoots well now.

I have 3 Colt 1911 pattern pistols (purchased over a span of 10 years - last one was 5 years ago. Not one actually needed anything I did to them. All have original barrels with no modification. I've thoroughly tested each with Speer's 200 grain "flying ashtray" bullet and they run fine. Every modification I made was something that I wanted done. While the sights on my government model were not ideal, they still shot to point of aim. Bomars were added to so that the sights were easier to pick-up (although this modification essentially ended any potential for a CCW gun) and a 3-hole trigger was added (I had the gunsmith make sure the trigger was set a 4 pounds). My Colt Combat Commander and Officer's ACP were just fine as far as sights were concerned. Each has been fitted with a beavertail gripsafety and the officer's has gotten an S&A magwell. Other than these small modifications they have been left stock.

I've found the whole beauty of the 1911 design is that it allows you to customize it all you want. Colt screwed themselves by not offering the guns with popular modifications, assuming that they couldn't please everybody, they chose not please anybody. Attitudes are a bit different now and, if I were to buy one of the newer "enhanced" versions, I likely wouldn't do anything to it.