Joe D

Not sure which Kart barrel you are using but the EZ Fit has a long leade/throat.

Paul gives you another good one to check.

Whether the parts are STI/SVI/Novak/Wilson has nothing to do with a proper trigger job. There are many sear/hammer check fixtures available. Buy one and check the hammer/sear fit yourself. It would appear that I live a few miles from you so that makes it a little difficult to figure out your problem. I would suspect not enough sear engagement, hammer hooks too short, hooks not square, sear not square, not enough tension on left finger of leaf spring just to name a few. Look at Illustration 3 and Figure 9. Reputations come and go.

Give us time.

I can't tell you how many times I have seen guys buy an Airweight Smith for their wife to have as a carry gun. It is absolutely the worst gun you can buy for your wife/girlfriend/mistress/significant other/hooker. Did I cover everyone?

Before you do anything you need to make sure that your slide has rails the are thick enough. You will need a minimum of .116" to properly fit the slide to a "match" frame. You also need to make certain that your slide is not too wide. Sure you can peen down the frame rails and squeeze the slide, but that is kind of a half ass way to do it. If you are just wanting to build your own then go with a new Essex slide and frame. Seems like they will even fit it for you for next to nothing. The LB frames are really nice. So are the Caspians. You can get all from Brownells. The Essex slide and frame already have a matte blue finish.

I think you need another gunsmith or learn to do it yourself. One question - you are not asking for a 1 lb. trigger are you? I think the key words here are "using the same smith". 1911 trigger jobs are really easy to do. Just learn to do it yourself. http://www.brownells.com/aspx/NS/GunTech/N...p;t=1&i=545 You don't need expensive tool to do it. The Ed Brown sear jig works fine.

Who's calling me a gamer!!! I just take full advantage of the rules.

The barrel fit was not that great. Hood had .006 width clearance. The upper barrel lug was .010" away from the slide lug. The barrel fit the match bushing pretty good.

Here you go. http://ezine.m1911.org/RIATactical_frame.htm Looks just like mine except for the FO front sight.

I am somewhat shocked. I took the Tactical to our outdoor range during lunch. I fitted a match bushing to the gun last night just for grins and stuck a fiber optic front on. I set up a target at 20 yds. and shot a five shot group from a rest. That is a 2" Shoot-N-See.

I posted a more detailed look at the gun here. http://forum.m1911.org/showthread.php?t=23042 Yes, I have a 25 yd indoor range in my basement.

I used Tetra for years. Even used it when it smelled really bad. I have since gone to FP 10. I really like it. It stays put and works well in cold weather. IMO grease is not a good choice for a gun. There are some the swear by Mobil 1. Never tried it.

Picked up my RIA Tactical today. First impressions are pretty good. Did not have time during lunch to do much with it. I did fire a couple of 5 shot strings in my basement range. Sights are spot on at 25 yds. The trigger pull was very crisp at 4.0 lbs. No creep. I was able to put 3 rounds out of 5 well inside a 2" Shoot-N-See. The other two cut the edges. It fed 200 gr SWC rounds smoothly. The slide to frame fit was very good. The fit was as good as a couple of my Kimbers. The barrel bushing mic'd at .695". The slide hole is .7015". A stainless bushing I had went in perfectly. Did not shoot it with this bushing yet. The guide rod was too long. That took 5 min. to fix. Removed about .150" from the length. The overall finish was good. There were few if any internal tooling marks. The hammer is an improvement over the old style. I don't care for ambi-safetys. That is the first thing I will change. The grip safety was well centered and allowed a nice high grip. I will adjust the grip safety as you have to depress it completely for the gun to fire. Did not like the grips at all. That's any easy fix. More info tonight when I have time to really take it apart. So far it looks like a winner. Not too bad for a $400 gun.

Another option would be a Wilson KZ, BUL or Caspian in .45ACP. Much cheaper. The BUL is the best deal by far. Just wish someone other that the morons at Charles Daly brought them in. Dealer cost on a Government model is less than $600. There is the issue of the bull barrel they come with. 15 min on the lathe cures that though. So does a $100 Kart barrel.

If you are going to shoot ESP and don't mind using 9 round mags then you have several choices - 9mm, .40 and .45ACP. If you want 10 round mags then you are stuck with 9mm and .40. Yes there are 10 round .40 mags that will fit into the box.

The 10 round 38 Super mags are not extended. The problem I have seen with most 9mm 1911s and 10 round Super mags is the first round will tend to nose dive. The tapered 9mm case can be a real issue. I had a SA in 9mm a few years back. I could just not get it to run 100% with 10 round mags. Changed ramp angle, tried different followers, different OALs, all to no avail. There are those that like the idea of using 9 round mags and starting with 10 in the gun. I can only think of a few match stages that having 11 in the gun worked better. IMO the ramp angle is not quite right in the Trojans. A non-ramped barrel might be a better plan in a 9mm 1911. I may just build one to see. I think my bud Jim Watson has a non-ramped 9mm 1911 BBQ gun. OTOH if you are using a 1911 a .45ACP with 9 round mags works just as well for ESP. Yes the Eagle is legal for IDPA.

I think if most folks were totally honest with themselves they would find that going from a Glock to a 1911/2011 platform really did not improve their shooting. I have a safe full of 1911/2011 guns and Glocks. As for me, note I said for me, I find no difference in my scores using either platform. I have come to realize that the over used expression "It's the Indian, not the arrow" is very true. If we break down the two platforms we will find that the draw times are the same, splits the same and transitions the same. IMO we tend to look at a Glock as a beginner gun with the next step up being a 2011. One of my good friends and shooting buds has taken the Glock to STI and back to Glock path. Going from a Glock to 2011/Para is not going to catapult you from a B shooter to Master overnight. If you do get to Master with the 2011/Para then go back to the Glock for a while. I suspect you will find yourself shooting at a Master level with the Glock. Just my opinion.

I really don't put it in the dishwasher. I have used FP 10 for years. I really like the stuff. Tetra is good, but remember to shake it up. I just noticed something. Steve joined this Forum one day after I did. What's the deal with the member numbers? Why so far apart?

The more I play this game the more I realize there is no magic gun. Went out yesterday to practice a little. Set up part of a stage we shot the day before. Had a popper in the center that activated a turner. A half target 10 yds to the right of the popper and another full target 10 yds to the left of the turner. In other words from left to right full target, turner, popper and half target. Pretty good practice stage. You had to be really quick to get the popper, 1/2 target then back to the turner before it turned away. I shot my Kimber .40, STI 2011 in .40 and my Kimber 45ACP ESP gun. All were loaded to about a 130-135 PF. Fired 6-8 strings with each gun. Totaled up the times and points down. Totals were almost identical. I happened to have my Glock 35 with me. Shot 6 strings with it. Guess what - same scores. I should probably just sell the STI 2011 and the Kimber .40 and stick to Glocks.

I would not be too quick to blame the WSP primers. I have used well over 100,000 of them. I had exactly two that failed to pop. Both had no mix in the cup. All of these were fired in Glocks with reduced power striker springs. Touching primers will not kill them unless your hands are covered with oil. I would bet high primers. One of the pictures looks a little odd. Looks like there is another gun that has the dreaded "Glock firing out of battery" syndrome. I'll bet it has an "unsupported chamber" also. How many kabooms have you had? Wait till this spreads across the internet like wildfire!

I do talk big when she is not around don't I. I did have to chuckle when she showed up for the match. She looked like the little kid in the snow suit from that Christmas Story movie. She must have had 10 layers of clothes on. I should have taken a picture.

I would just get the G17. I have a G34 and G17. The G17 points a little faster/better. You have to pay a bit more attention to sight alignment with the G17 than you do with the G34. I did some testing a couple of months ago with my G17, G34 and G35. I shot 10 strings of fire with each gun. The stage was a simple no movement stage. I tossed out the best and worst string with each gun. I was a little suprised that after I added up the times and points down there was little if any difference bewteen all three.

So Chet you are telling me that Dawson takes every gun apart that they sell and inspect every part. Sorry but I find that a little hard to believe. If they do then my hat is off to them. Larry seems like I have offended you, sorry about that if I have. As I recall I just asked a pretty simple question about barrel fit. You do know what a properly fitted barrel looks like don't you. Maybe you don't. BTW Loves2Shoot you will have to try harder than that to bust my bubble. I certainly don't want them to be a POS. Why would I? If a well made, properly fitted 1911 can be bought for under $600 then I will be their biggest fan. Sorry if I have offended some of you - get over it.

I have my wife load my mags. I allow her to carry my bag and tag along at matches. She picks up brass after each match. When we get home she cleans my guns. If you doubt my words just ask Jim Watson.