First 1911

[Joe in PNG]

A simple 1911 buying guide:
1) Get all of your money together. That's not enough, and you don't really need two kidneys anyway.
2) Send that money to some custom 1911 builder. It's not enough for what you want, so get a second mortgage.
3) Pick up a second job while you wait for your 1911 to arrive. You're going to need the extra cash.
4) When your 1911 arrives, immediately send it unopened to a custom 1911 smith to replace everything except the grip screws
5) On second thought, better replace those as well
6) And while you wait for that, pick one of your kids to sell off.
7) Years later, after the gun is finally finished, take it to the range and find out that the mags you have don't work with the gun you have.
8) It's also kind of picky about the load it likes, and needs iridium coated platinum cases to function properly
9) Start over with a new 1911

ETA, for the budget minded.
1) Buy a Kimber
2) Never ever ever shoot it
3) Brag about it in a way that crossfitting vegans thing excessive

[Robinson]

Necro thread time!

I finally did get my first 1911 and it ended up being a SA Range Officer Operator in .45Auto. Unfortunately, thanks to ammo prices, ammo availability, COVID, and USPSA taking up my time and attention for Production, I really haven’t shot it all that much. That said, I want to start making some personal touches to this thing. Things I’m looking at include:

A new rear sight
A magwell MSH
An ambi-thumb safety
A nice set of wood grips
A different trigger

I think the first things I’d like to do are the magwell and wood grips. My 1911 is parkerized, so I’d prefer to have a black/blued MSH and magwell in one piece. For the grips, I’m thinking walnut, fully checkered, cut for an ambi safety, and cut for a magwell obviously. No double diamond patterns. Anyone have any suggestions for those?

Since your gun is parkerized, it will be tough to find a mag well that matches the finish. But it it's a must-have, the Smith & Alexander part is pretty good and fits most pistols without modification.

For wood stocks, the Herret's suggestion is a good option. But I also recommend checking out Wood Caliber. They usually have some nice stocks available, but the really nice thing is they will make you a custom set to your specifications. You can choose the wood, checkering pattern, etc... and they do really nice work.

[spinmove_]

A simple 1911 buying guide:
1) Get all of your money together. That's not enough, and you don't really need two kidneys anyway.
2) Send that money to some custom 1911 builder. It's not enough for what you want, so get a second mortgage.
3) Pick up a second job while you wait for your 1911 to arrive. You're going to need the extra cash.
4) When your 1911 arrives, immediately send it unopened to a custom 1911 smith to replace everything except the grip screws
5) On second thought, better replace those as well
6) And while you wait for that, pick one of your kids to sell off.
7) Years later, after the gun is finally finished, take it to the range and find out that the mags you have don't work with the gun you have.
8) It's also kind of picky about the load it likes, and needs iridium coated platinum cases to function properly
9) Start over with a new 1911

ETA, for the budget minded.
1) Buy a Kimber
2) Never ever ever shoot it
3) Brag about it in a way that crossfitting vegans thing excessive

I did this completely wrong then as I have 1,000 rounds through the damn thing without changing anything already.

[Joe in PNG]

I did this completely wrong then as I have 1,000 rounds through the damn thing without changing anything already.

At least set $2,500 in cash on fire so you'll fit in.

[gato naranja]

But I also recommend checking out Wood Caliber. They usually have some nice stocks available, but the really nice thing is they will make you a custom set to your specifications. You can choose the wood, checkering pattern, etc... and they do really nice work.

The Wood Caliber 1911 grips I bought earlier this year (but haven't gotten around to installing) are quite well done.

[spinmove_]

Since your gun is parkerized, it will be tough to find a mag well that matches the finish. But it it's a must-have, the Smith & Alexander part is pretty good and fits most pistols without modification.

For wood stocks, the Herret's suggestion is a good option. But I also recommend checking out Wood Caliber. They usually have some nice stocks available, but the really nice thing is they will make you a custom set to your specifications. You can choose the wood, checkering pattern, etc... and they do really nice work.

To be perfectly honest, despite the fact that it’s got a rail, I plan on having this gun stripped of itself parkerization and blued way down the road when it needs it. Or maybe when I feel like setting some cash on fire or whatever. I’d rather have blued parts on it though than blingy stainless parts contrasting with the parkerized finish.

The Wood Caliber 1911 grips I bought earlier this year (but haven't gotten around to installing) are quite well done.

I thought I had heard something about WoodCaliber’s work on here. Rediscovered them yesterday and they have just about exactly what I’m looking for so long as I do a custom set. So I’ll be going that route.


Thanks, guys!