What would YOU put on your 1911?

[Technosavant]

I got this idea from another thread. Let's pretend you're able to begin with a basic GI-spec 1911, and you have an unlimited amount of cash to spend upgrading it with the features you want on it. Mind you, I am only considering features here, not qualitative differences (meaning, a bull barrel or ramped barrel would be a feature difference, but a "match barrel" is not, since it is more of a quality upgrade).

What would YOU put on YOUR GI-spec M1911A1?

So, here's mine (no particular order):
1) Checkered front strap
2) Upgraded sights, preferably the Novak Extreme Duty adjustables with tritium inserts
3) Beavertail grip safety
4) Rounded commander style hammer
5) Lightened adjustable trigger
6) Flat checkers mainspring housing
7) Lowered and flared ejection port
8) Extended single side thumb safety
9) Beveled magazine well (for a house gun, a full large magwell would be nice)

Edit: Crud, I did the poll options wrong, I'll need to see if a mod can alter it so more than one can be chosen. My bad.

 

[crankshop1000]

Personally, just the beavertail 'cause mine bites me. You would be much farther ahead getting a "loaded or tactical" 1911 that has most of that stuff already added without the extreme smithing prices.I'd bet you could buy a tactical (RIA) or springfield loaded for what it would cost you to do the mods.

 

[jad0110]

I voted for lowered, flared ejection port. I am a reloader, so the modified ejection port is less likely to ding cases.

 

[Technosavant]

I should probably note more noticeably that this isn't "your FAVORITE mod", I just messed up the poll. You can put more than one.

 

[w_houle]

I have a RIA 1911 on layaway that I should be picking up on the 18th and am already shopping for grips

 

[AK103K]

A good set of night sights. What else do you really need?

1911's work best when you start with Colt specs and then leave them alone.

 

[Seiko]

Send it to Chuck Rogers and say make it shoot, and be pretty.
$3500 latter you can have anything you want

That said I wont shoot a 1911 without beaver tail and checkering.

 

[Guitargod1985]

Night sights
Bobtail
Snakeskin sheckering on front strap and MSH
Commander style hammer
Extended safety
Extended slide release
Beavertail
Lowered/flared ejection port
Some cool engravng

That's about all I need. I don't have a 1911 yet, but plan on getting a Dan Wesson Commander Classic bobtail to start with in a few months. I have the money now, but I want to wait until I can afford to purchase it an then still have a few Gs left over.

 

[Vern Humphrey]

I want (and have on my M1911):

1. Good sights (wider and higher than the issue standard.)
2. A good trigger.
3. A beavertail grip safety (with a "bump") and corresponding hammer.
4. Lowered and beveled ejection port.

 

[Socrates]

This Kimber Custom II was setup as a carry gun.

Ed Brown internals replaced Kimber MIM, on Ed Brown's recommendations, sprinco recoil guide rod with recoil reducer, I'd like to get rid of the beavertail, since I've never had 'bite' problems, gun parts installed by Jack Huntington Advanced Gunsmithing, and, Chip McCormack Ultra Thin grips.

Kimber slide, barrel, and frame are excellent, even on the lowend guns. Use Wilson Mags. I've had the gun retimed By Mr. Huntington,for 45 Super, and, installed the stiffest springs from Wolfe they offer.

I would certainly consider, if I could shoot that well, a bull barrel, by Ed Brown.

The gun shoots better then I can.

 

[mljdeckard]

I've built my perfect 1911, Kimber did most of it for me, to include;

Lowered-flared
hand-fitted frame/slide,
I wouldn't have asked for the front serrations, but it has them,
match trigger and hammer
beavertail safety
beveled mag well

I added

Hogue wrap-around finger grips
dropped the full-length guide rod for G.I. plug
Trijicon sights, although I will look at a few different styles for my next one
Ciener .22 kit
Arched mainspring housing with lanyard loop
Galco Miami Classic shoulder rig
Milt Sparks IWB rig

 

[rcmodel]

Sights, trigger, and a beaver-tail if you suffer from hammer bite!
Flared port if you reload.

IMHO: Extended controls are an ingenious solution looking for a problem.
They get in the way in many holster designs, and make knocking the safety "off" by accident much more likely.

Extended slide releases can easily get in the way and lock the slide back before the gun is empty.

Front slide serrations eat holster lining for breakfast and are not needed anyway.
If you forget the useless solid guide-rod, you can easly press-check a 1911 with a finger & thumb.


rcmodel

 

[TimboKhan]

I only really require 2 things on a 1911 to make it perfectly awesome for me.

Beavertail, because my big fat hands are subject to snakebite, and better sights. I am a recent convert to the Heinie Straight 8 system, so that would be what I would go with, but Novaks would be my second choice.

 

[weisse52]

1. Good sights (wider and higher than the issue standard.)
2. A good trigger.
3. Lowered and beveled ejection port.

That is all I have ever needed for 30+ years. That is what works for ME.

I can tell you why I would start with a GI. I do not like the forward serrations on the slide. I do not like full length guide rods. I like a King Tappan sight. A loaded is fine. But I still like my own mods my way.

 

[Constantine-p89]

Bull barrel.

 

[koja48]

Other . . . enough rounds/hours to ensure proficiency . . .

 

[Chris Rhines]

Bar-Sto hand fit match barrel and bushing, hand fit slide and frame from Caspian, 3.5# trigger job using Nowlin or EGW parts, mill the slide for a low mount 7MOA Docter Sight, Ion Bond the whole gun inside-and-out, grip tape over generic smooth wood stocks, Colt or Metalform magazines set up for wadcutters.



- Chris

 

[lee n. field]

Better sights. Lowered and flared ejection port, if and only if necessary for reliable functioning.

Absolutely nothing else.

 

[CWL]

Well, I took a bone stock SA GI-45 and had the following done to it by master gunsmith Bob Rodgers, it's now my 'perfected' carry/training sidearm.


Ed Brown hammer strut
Ed Brown slide stop
MGW front sight blank
Ed Brown mainspring housing
Kart match grade barrel
Ed Brown recoil spring guide
Ed Brown firing pin
2 Wilson extractors
Ed Brown recoil spring plug
Ed Brown wide ambi-safety
Cylinder&Slide disconnector
Greider Precision short trigger
Yost plunger tube
Wilson ejector
McCormick mag catch
Cylinder&Slide sear
Cylinder&Slide Tactical II hammer
Dawson Precision barrel link
EGW hardened pin set
EGW bushing
McCormick grip safety
Wolff recoil & extra power firing pin springs
EGW over-sized firing pin stop
Yost rear sight
Wolff sear & plunger springs

Parts total: $688.00

Labor:

Machine front & rear sight dovetails
Machine relief in vertical impact surface of frame
Flat top and serrate slide, arrowhead pattern
Lower & flare ejection port, extend port to aid in ejection of live rounds
High-cut and serrate front strap @ 20 LPI
Serrate mainspring housing @ 20 LPI
Machine recessed lanyard loop in mainspring housing
Weld frame tangs to allow fitting of a .250 radius grip safety
Fit barrel
Fit and contour barrel bushing
Flush cut and recrown barrel @ 45 degrees, bevel bushing opening
Remachine frame feedramp to proper specs
Fit & blend grip safety
High cut trigger guard
Extreme carry dehorn
Fit and contour ambi-safety
Fit & contour slide stop
Reliability/Carry Package
Fit 2 sights to dovetails, contour, pin front sight to slide
Fit extended mag catch
Fit trigger
Fit, polish, and tune spare extractor
Install plunger tube
Install 4 grip screw bushings
Bevel magwell
Test fire
Prep for finish
Refinish, matte black Enviro-Tech over mil-spec Parkerizing

 

[Black Majik]

Oh no, I'll actually have to think about this one.

Colt S70 Government
* Kart Match Barrel
* Tighten slide to frame fit
* 30 LPI Frontstrap checkering
* 30 LPI mainspring housing checkering
* Blended and beveled Smith and Alexander 1 piece blank magwell
* Dehorned all edges
* Heinie straight 8 sights
* Undercut triggerguard
* Ed Brown Memory groove grip safety
* Ed Brown extended thumb safety
* Wilson Bulletproof extractor
* Recut barrel crown flush to bushing and recess 45*
* Countersink slide stop
* Les Baer disconnector, sear, and hammer
* Les Baer 3 hole trigger
* French borders
* 20 LPI serrated topstrap into arrow
* Checkered 40 lpi Les Baer Mag Catch
* Serrate and soften rear of slide 40 lpi
* Ed Brown GI rod and plug
* Les Baer or Ed Brown bushing
* Les Baer slidestop
* Lower and flare ejection port
* Trigger job set to 3.5 lbs
* Hardchromed frame and controls by Tripp Research
* Polished blued slide with matte rounds
* Delete rollmarks on slide
* Ahrends dark Silverwood grips with magwell cut. Half smooth, half checkering like Alumagrips tactical checkering
* 4 hex grip screws

Hmm... that should do it?

 

[Six O'clock Tactical]

I voted upgraded sites... High visibility sites are a must, because aquiring a solid sight picture is the most important part of firing a gun.

 

[Geronimo45]

For myself, I think a beavertail would be nice - I don't appreciate hammer bite, but I do like the cocking/decocking ease with the spur hammer. Flat mainspring housing? Maybe... I put a frickin' laser beam on my 1911, and it's still screwy in the pointing department. Maybe a flat MSH would fix that.

 

[possum]

since i can only pic one from the poll above i would say a good set os sights.

 

[The Bushmaster]

We only get one choice in this poll? Then I can't vote...

 

[Technosavant]

Like I said, the one choice in the poll was my error; it should be multiple choice.

Feel free to list what you would do to a GI-spec 1911A1, cost no object.