Les Baer 1911 Break-in

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Nice gun mckey. The "WC" stamped on the slide, after the serial #, are my stampings. The "W" is the first letter of my last name and the "C" means that I have checked the clearance on the dust cover (AKA spring tunnel) on the slide to insure it doesn't rub against the frame. They rarely do, but every so often one will. A good custom shop will always make sure they do not.

Fire another 500 and it will smooth up a bit more. It will not begin to loosen up until many tens of thousands of rounds. The girls on our shooting team used to put 30-40 thousand rounds through their guns before sending them back for a re-built to tighten them up.

good shooting
 
tark - need to buy a barrel bushing wrench tomorrow - I thought I had one, but I guess not. I never needed one before - on my Colt Combat Commander, I did it all with my fingers. :)

Jim, will use the oil generously. Since I'll use so much, and clean the gun reasonably frequently, should I ignore the grease I used to use, and just use oil? :confused:

mckey - thanks for posting all the photos. I never would have known what the stampings are for on the inside of the slide, until tark just pointed them out. :what:

dakota1911, just curious - how many members of those "snooty gun clubs" actually know how to shoot their guns well? Any? :rolleyes:

tuj - I know, now - but the little booklet doesn't say that, and when I called the Les Baer office today to point it out, the lady who answered the phone said not to worry about taking the gun out of battery. I'm not surprised - in all my life, the people up in a "front office" don't know things as well as the guys actually doing the work. I'll follow the advice from tark and you. :cool:

tark - I'm glad that the gun starts out tight, and loosens up gradually to get where it needs to be, but I'm a little guy - my hands only have so much gription. If it wasn't for the video I linked to in my second post, I don't know how I'd ever get the slide to pull back. :cuss:
 
One more question - in the paperwork and other things that I got along with the gun, there was a small tan-colored envelope, with the name, model and serial number of the gun on the outside, and a single 45 ACP case inside. "Speer 45 Auto".

Is there a reason that was included with the gun? Does it mean something?

The person I bought the gun from said only that it was from the first bullet that had been test fired with the gun. I think I'm missing something here.....
 
mikemyers said:
One more question - in the paperwork and other things that I got along with the gun, there was a small tan-colored envelope, with the name, model and serial number of the gun on the outside, and a single 45 ACP case inside. "Speer 45 Auto".

Is there a reason that was included with the gun? Does it mean something?
Click to expand...

Some states require the FFL to send that case in to be registered by law enforcement. They believe they can collect spent brass at a crime scene and match it to registered guns.
 
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HOOfan answered your question, Mike. The girls that ship the gun include a case with every gun, regardless of where it goes. That way they never forget one.

I can't give out any names but the girl that usually answers the phone has worked for Les longer than I have and she knows 1911s like few men do. She would not tell you to turn the bushing while the slide was in battery. One of the other girls must have answered your question.
 
tark, yep, that question was answered. First time I've heard of this, but I haven't bought that many guns, especially recently.

The girl I spoke to yesterday probably just wasn't as aware of the product as others, as even though I double checked, she told me to just go ahead and use the wrench. Between that, and the missing information in the little booklet,had you not written what you did, I'd have gone ahead and done it incorrectly. (I think I understand what you are saying, and why - the barrel is larger at the end than elsewhere, which provides a better lock-up, but is why one should take the gun out of battery before attempting to turn the bushing.)


I need to order 1000 rounds of 45 ACP later today. Are there any brands of ammo that the gun seems to like the best? .....or any that maybe I should avoid?
 
but is why one should take the gun out of battery before attempting to turn the bushing
Click to expand...

OOB pushes the barrel forward, allowing the bushing to rotate around a more narrow part of the barrel. this puts less wear on the lockup.

As for ammo, it really helps to get a custom loader to load for you if you are not reloading. I found a Nosler 185jhp at about 750fps was the accuracy recipe.

If you really want some match ammo, check out ASYM Precision or Federal Gold Metal.
 
tuj - thanks to all the explanations from 'tark', now I understand this, and it all makes sense. If I had a <rewind> control, and I could go back to what I thought a week ago, I would have been "sure" that the entire barrel had one single outside diameter, and that the barrel bushing was worked on until it was the appropriate size for that particular barrel. Obviously (now), for Les Baer, that is not the case. I guess I'll find out soon enough how tight the bushing is in the slide.

Regarding reloading, I have the equipment, but need to change it over from 38 Special to 45 ACP.

Regarding match ammo, right now I'm just looking for "good" 230 grain JHP ammo, for break-in. Once that's done, I will go back to target loads, which I enjoy shooting more than the heavier loads.
 
The Old Fuff is a world class cheapskate. :uhoh:

Shooting is one thing, but doing it to break in a pistol is ridiculous. Frankly, if the builder did it right it shouldn't be necessary. :cuss:

But anyway, this is the cheapskate's way of going about it.

1. Detail strip the pistol.

2. Put the slide back on the frame. Hand-cycle the slide while feeling for tight spots. If they're any keep cycling the slide until it moves freely.

3. Put the barrel assembly back into the slide, and the slide back on the frame. Hand-cycle again while feeling for tight spots. If they're any it's usually caused by the barrel's bottom lug/slide stop fit. Again hand-cycle the slide until things smooth out.

When done, reassemble the pistol while lightly lubricating the parts. You should find it is much smoother then it was. Now go out and shoot it. ;)
 
Old Fuff said:
The Old Fuff is a world class cheapskate. :uhoh:
........Shooting is one thing, but doing it to break in a pistol is ridiculous. Frankly, if the builder did it right it shouldn't be necessary. :cuss: ......
Click to expand...


Just thinking out loud. Let's say I bought a Wilson, which presumably still requires a break-in, but which I've been told is nowhere near as "tight" as the Les Baer. My brother's Wilson - I could cycle the slide and shoot it soon after he bought it. The Les Baer - I can't move the slide at all (without following the tricks in the video I posted). So, I've got to spend the time and money to do what is already done in the Wilson - but then I also saved the difference in cost between what a Wilson sells for, and what my Les Baer sells for. I'm guessing this is a $1000 to $2000 difference.

If, when all this is done, and both guns shoot pretty much the same, and if I were also a "cheapskate", mathematically I'm money ahead by doing the break-in myself! .....not to mention I need all that practice anyway, so it's not really wasting time.


Just a thought - and Old Fuff, the thing I probably need the most of right now has nothing to do with either gun, but just getting out there again and spending quality time shooting and dry-firing.

............as to your suggestions, I can't see any reason not to do that. It certainly can't hurt anything. I'll buy the bushing wrench tomorrow, so I can finally start doing some of this.
 
Shooting is one thing, but doing it to break in a pistol is ridiculous. Frankly, if the builder did it right it shouldn't be necessary
Click to expand...

Having owned multiple semi custom 1911's, including Baer's. Not a single one ever bobbled during their "break in". That's straight from the bag/box...
 
tark said:
Hi Mike. I fitted the slide to frame on that gun.......
Click to expand...


Tark, is that you at the 3:00 mark in this video?
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Dpdy8QQ-Y-Q

There you are (if it's you???) fitting the slide to the frame, and doing the hand checkering!

I looked all over for this video, and finally found it tonight. I read that the video CD used to come in the box with every gun that was shipped. Maybe I can still get a CD from Les?

john.jpg

....click on the little tool button at the bottom right, to watch the video in HD, preferably full-screen!
 
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Hi mike, been absent for a day or two getting a new car . Yes, that is ugly old me! Hacking away .! I had the biggest damn callous on my index finger you ever saw!!!!
 
I had to check to see which video it was, I thought it was Jim Scoutten's but I wasn't sure at first.

You can see in the video that fitting a slide to a frame isn't that hard, or time consuming. It would be if it weren't for the CNC machines getting everything so close to start with.

Checkering is easy, a monkey could do it. The hardest thing about checkering was getting Les to buy enough files, they wear out rather fast and they cost $30 apiece.

Les has some neat toys, eh????!!!! One of those Hemi Cuda's has four miles on the odometer. You read that right.
 
Part 2 ??? I need to do some more looking. What's a good place to find all these videos?

Hey, is it correct that Les suggests avoiding CCI Blazer Brass in his guns? Something about the size of the brass? Someone from the forum called me today, to pass on lots of information, and that's one of the things he told me about, from what he had been told about his own Les Baer.

Checkering - I bet it really is "easy", and anyone can do it, but I bet their end result would look NOTHING like what you can do!!!
 
Don't know about the Blazer ammo, Mike. But then, I've been out of the shop for over two years. I know that the aluminum cased stuff was not recommended. Click on the link you posted and you should see part two off to the right.
 
Need to post an update / correction here.

I had an interesting talk with Les Baer this afternoon. At one point I asked him about posts in this thread about not using a barrel bushing wrench while a 1911 Les Baer is "in battery". Les disagreed with that, and said use the bushing wrench whenever I want, with no need to take the gun out of battery.

One thing led to another, and then he suggested there's an easier way to take one of his guns apart. He described it to me, but an hour ago I found a web page that shows what he told me better than I could ever describe it:

http://miairsoft.proboards.com/thread/25465/1911-slide-takedown-guide-pics


I didn't read the whole thing - only the beginning. Less said this way, and the way most people do it, both work fine, but this way it's easier to work with the gun.

Here's one photo from the article, that shows what this way of disassembly is all about:

IMG_5219.jpg
 
Great thread!!!
With my old Jim Clark bullseye guns I was told to lube the heck out of them and shoot a couple of hundred rounds before any competition.

Someone at Clark told me many years ago regarding the shoot-in period with a new gun, "your elbow is pointed so the oil can run off and drip on the floor."
 
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I didn't read the whole thing - only the beginning. Less said this way, and the way most people do it, both work fine, but this way it's easier to work with the gun.
Here's one photo from the article, that shows what this way of disassembly is all about:
Click to expand...
Mike.

I hate to tell you this.
But that is what I showed you how to do in the two videos I made for you a week ago!

Didn't beleive me?

Disassembly:
http://vid81.photobucket.com/albums/j219/rcmodel/1911 dissembly_zpscagelncs.mp4

Assembly:
http://vid81.photobucket.com/albums/j219/rcmodel/1911 Assemby_zps2gdnyxo7.mp4

rc
 
That sure looks like A LOT of oil to use on a firearm.. you shouldn't need or want a firearm soaked in oil.

Why is there so much oil?
 
It is recommended to shoot 500 or so 230fmj first. The American Eagle is fairly warm and should cycle the pistol well.

My TRS has 40,000 plus rounds of mostly 200g. SNS LSWC with 4.5 grains of Bullseye. It will cycle and lock the slide back with a 18.5 lbs recoil spring. It is a soft shooter and incredibly accurate. If you go below 4.2 you will have problems cycling. I have tested a range of 4.0 and 4.9 grains of Bullseye and they are all tack driving loads. Since you have adjustable sights point of aim can be adjusted.

This was shot about 3 hours ago, offhand at 15 yards with the above load. You just can't miss with these pistols.
20150709_153420_zpshhw2mbq0.gif
 
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