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Vic;
A few years back a friend who was short of money sold me a 1911 he had built on an Auto-Ord frame. It had a non-functioning grip safety, but it was otherwise OK, and it was mine for $200. I looked at the Kuhnhausen manuals, and determined that the fire control parts had been fitted with the trigger bow set too deep into the frame; the sear would trip before the trigger bow engaged the grip safety.
Keep in mind that the trigger, sear, hammer, thumb safety, and disconnector are interrelated. I replaced the trigger with an ultralight one with the adjustable pre-travel tabs on the bow, and set it to the correct position, according to Kuhnhausen. ( I also recommend Wilson Combat's "Combat Customizing the 1911 Auto" video). Then I replaced, fit, and polished the hammer (skeletonized), sear, disconnector, and thumb safety. While I was at it, I replaced the hammer strut and main spring cap with titanium items in order to minimize the lock time without sacrificing durability. During the fitting process, I noticed that the (medium quality) hammer, sear, disconnector, and thumb safety were quite easy to cut with a file. That's too soft for those parts to last very long, so I case-hardened them. I didn't modify the grip safety at all.
So now my Auto-Ord has a smooth, crisp, reliable and durable fire contol group; the trigger breaks smoothly and crisply at 4.0 lbs with no take up or overtravel. The thumb safety works like a light switch; either off or on, no in-between, no grit, smooth and easy. Two thousand rounds with no malfunctions at all.
This pistol is now more accurate, pleasant, and reliable than my bone stock Springfield Armory 1911A1 for a total cash involvement of less than $350.
Good luck!
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