splashdown Posted December 15, 2007 Share Posted December 15, 2007 (edited) Sometime in January I will be handing over some parts to John Larson (JPL Precision) to build a 6" limited gun. There's a couple different styles I really like, but I settled on Brazos style holes. I am taking my backup STI with a black grip, cutting the frame short, and putting a new top end on it. The first pic is of a gun John built. It belonged to a fellow RO at this year's Area 1 match and I had a chance to shoot it. Very nice indeed. The second pic is my photoshopped version of that gun with a few tweaks. I added a fifth hole on the side, cut out the recoil plug tunnel, extended the panel cut and removed one rear serration. The third pic is from the JPL website showing a slot milled into the top that I may go with instead of the multiple holes shown on the first pic. Let me know what you guys think. Good design? Do you think it will be too light with a long slot cut into the top? Also, I was planning on having it finished as the 5" gun is shown (clear duracoat). I really like the IonBond, but not for $300. What about just bluing it? I'm not sure if I want it black or not. Any advice on a finish? The velvet crush is a musical reference. Bonus points to anyone that knows where it's from. Thanks for looking. splashdown Edited December 15, 2007 by splashdown Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dr2e Posted December 15, 2007 Share Posted December 15, 2007 i like the slot. can't go wrong having jpl build anything your heart desires. thanks jpl! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JimmyZip Posted December 15, 2007 Share Posted December 15, 2007 Sometime in January I will be handing over some parts to John Larson (JPL Precision) to build a 6" limited gun. There's a couple different styles I really like, but I settled on Brazos style holes. I am taking my backup STI with a black grip, cutting the frame short, and putting a new top end on it.The first pic is of a gun John built. It belonged to a fellow RO at this year's Area 1 match and I had a chance to shoot it. Very nice indeed. The second pic is my photoshopped version of that gun with a few tweaks. I added a fifth hole on the side, cut out the recoil plug tunnel, extended the panel cut and removed one rear serration. The third pic is from the JPL website showing a slot milled into the top that I may go with instead of the multiple holes shown on the first pic. Let me know what you guys think. Good design? Do you think it will be too light with a long slot cut into the top? Also, I was planning on having it finished as the 5" gun is shown (clear duracoat). I really like the IonBond, but not for $300. What about just bluing it? I'm not sure if I want it black or not. Any advice on a finish? The velvet crush is a musical reference. Bonus points to anyone that knows where it's from. Thanks for looking. splashdown Brian Copeland, K.P. Devlin, or the band Velvet Crush? Oh, and the blaster pics are cool too! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zerwas Posted December 15, 2007 Share Posted December 15, 2007 Looking good!! Man, those pistols are contageous! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HSMITH Posted December 15, 2007 Share Posted December 15, 2007 My advise? Don't get too specific on the build, you picked a particular gunsmith because you feel that you can trust him to build a great blaster for you. Give him the idea you have, some money and let him do what he knows how to do best. If you get specific on how many holes are going where and things like that he won't have the freedom to set the gun up the best he knows how. IMO this is the best way to proceed and has the best chance of both you and the smith being satisfied with the final result. The photochopped gun looks great BTW, very cool aesthetically. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dr2e Posted December 15, 2007 Share Posted December 15, 2007 (edited) My advise? Don't get too specific on the build, you picked a particular gunsmith because you feel that you can trust him to build a great blaster for you. Give him the idea you have, some money and let him do what he knows how to do best. If you get specific on how many holes are going where and things like that he won't have the freedom to set the gun up the best he knows how. IMO this is the best way to proceed and has the best chance of both you and the smith being satisfied with the final result. imho that is very good advice mr. smith. when jpl was building one for me i asked to have holes put into my slide and he said with an open gun they might not look right due to the way he cuts the slide to match the comp. he told me he could do it, with smaller holes, but it might not look the way i expected. i took his advice, no holes/slot on top, and am very happy with the results! my main desire with the gun was that it works and it does that (and then some) and looks very nice. i guess the thing i like most about jpl was that when i was ready to get started we went through all the details that would make the pistol "mine" and he was able to tell me what he has found to work/not work or necessary/not necessary. his input and our discussions reinforced my feelings that i had chosen the right 'smith for the job. Edited December 15, 2007 by dr2e Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
splashdown Posted December 15, 2007 Author Share Posted December 15, 2007 Thanks Howard and Dave for the good advice. I have already discussed it with JPL and sent him the photoshopped pic above. He hasn't objected to any of my suggestions and I bought parts that he prefers to work with. It is pretty easy to get caught up in how I want the gun to look. I mean, afterall, if I lose the match I at least want to look good doing it, right? Ha ha. So, yes, I will listen to what John has to say if he feels something is not right. splashdown Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
splashdown Posted February 3, 2008 Author Share Posted February 3, 2008 Well, the 6-inch gun is in the works. Attached is a pic with the slide cuts finished. The frame had been Acc-u-Railed, so it's now on the way to Michigan so the slide can be fit to the frame. I'll post pics when it's entirely finished. Probably will be in early March. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dr2e Posted February 3, 2008 Share Posted February 3, 2008 any cuts on top? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
splashdown Posted February 3, 2008 Author Share Posted February 3, 2008 Yeah, I went with an approximately 3" long slot in the top like the one shown in my first post. It also has the french border but it didn't show up in the pic. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cking Posted February 4, 2008 Share Posted February 4, 2008 So what did the slide end up weighing???? I just ordered a 6" and trying to figure out the cuts also. Thanks in Advance Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
splashdown Posted February 5, 2008 Author Share Posted February 5, 2008 So what did the slide end up weighing???? I just ordered a 6" and trying to figure out the cuts also.Thanks in Advance I don't know if it's been weighed yet. I did get all Engi-nerdy and calculated the volume of the cuts from which you can get the weight of the material removed. I weighed the slide on a postal scale and it was 14.1 oz with the flat top and sight cuts already done at STI. I believe with the cuts that have been made we're looking at 11.5 to 11.75 oz. I will be weighing it and checking for balance point once it is complete. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UW Mitch Posted February 8, 2008 Share Posted February 8, 2008 Maybe John will be nice enough to let me photo it when it's all done! Sweet looking so far! ~Mitch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
HSMITH Posted February 8, 2008 Share Posted February 8, 2008 After seeing your pictures Mitch I would make SURE he let you if that was my gun being built!! Great job on the 9mm SS pictures. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
splashdown Posted March 17, 2008 Author Share Posted March 17, 2008 JPL delivered my 6" today, and just in time. The dawson front sight of my SV broke in half at Friday's practice. I sighted her in, gave the Bomar 2 clicks down, chronoed my loads and proceded to shoot the match. The gun is TIGHT, and will need some breaking in, but it ran great today. I don't know if this will take me to A class overnight, but it sure won't hurt. A couple of quick stats, JPL says it weighs approximately 34 oz. It balances about 1/4 inch in front of the trigger. My 5" loads chronoed at 168 PF at Area 1 this year. I dropped that load by 0.3 grains for this gun and today it chronoed at about a 177 PF! Gotta drop the charge a couple more tenths, which will put me under 4 grains of powder. Sure is flat shootin'. Here are two pics. I'll drop them in the 6" thread in the gallery as well. Thanks for looking, splash Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
zhunter Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 That is a freakin' sweet lookin' blaster!!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
benny hill Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 Looks great, now go & do it justice. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
boo radley Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 A couple of quick stats, JPL says it weighs approximately 34 oz. It balances about 1/4 inch in front of the trigger. My 5" loads chronoed at 168 PF at Area 1 this year. I dropped that load by 0.3 grains for this gun and today it chronoed at about a 177 PF! Gotta drop the charge a couple more tenths, which will put me under 4 grains of powder. Sure is flat shootin'.splash Splash -- I, too, am looking for 6" loads (going to try 165gr zero flat nose, and 5.0 n320 to start), but your chrono results are amazing. Can you share details? Assuming a 180gr bullet, you've not only gained 50 fps, but with .3grains less powder?? How can this be? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
UW Mitch Posted March 17, 2008 Share Posted March 17, 2008 Larry, Thanks for sharing pictures! From yesterdays match results looks like it ran well for you! Uber cool! ~Mitch Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
splashdown Posted March 18, 2008 Author Share Posted March 18, 2008 A couple of quick stats, JPL says it weighs approximately 34 oz. It balances about 1/4 inch in front of the trigger. My 5" loads chronoed at 168 PF at Area 1 this year. I dropped that load by 0.3 grains for this gun and today it chronoed at about a 177 PF! Gotta drop the charge a couple more tenths, which will put me under 4 grains of powder. Sure is flat shootin'.splash Splash -- I, too, am looking for 6" loads (going to try 165gr zero flat nose, and 5.0 n320 to start), but your chrono results are amazing. Can you share details? Assuming a 180gr bullet, you've not only gained 50 fps, but with .3grains less powder?? How can this be? It's a 180 grain Masterblasters bullet, and I still have about a year supply left. Tom S. always claimed his bullets were about 70 fps faster than jacketed, and I believe it. I've compared out of the same gun. My 5" load was 4.45 grain @ 1.200" and the 6" is 4.15 @1.200". How can this be? Well, Ive been told schueman barrels are accurate but slow (my 5") however I always felt I got good velocities out of it. My 6" is a KKM which my smith, JPL, says are fast barrels. Ok so that's one factor. Second, I've read that Ramshot Competition is inverse temp sensitive, so my 5" was chronoed at Area 1 at about 85°F and yesterday the temp was about 45°F. So that's another factor. I'll dial it down a bit more and chrono this summer before A1. Thanks for looking everyone. I'm very pleased with how it turned out. It feels very natural and I placed 4th at yesterday's match with a 79%. A class, here I come. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Zerwas Posted March 18, 2008 Share Posted March 18, 2008 Splash, Be sure to put your loads in the 6" recipe area of the reloading forum. Perhaps you could help someone else out with that info. By the way, BEAUTIFUL pistol you have there my friend!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheers623 Posted March 18, 2008 Share Posted March 18, 2008 Larry, glad to see the wait finally paid off!!!! It looks like John built an amazing blaster for you. I have now seen 2 of JPL's built for shooting buddies and they all run like a scalded dog. I have a self defense gun John did some work on and I am very happy with it. Anyway, looks like I need to get my ducks in a row and save some $$$ to send to JPL!!!! Hope to see you at Renton this EastershootinSunday!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Cheers!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
splashdown Posted March 24, 2008 Author Share Posted March 24, 2008 I LOVE THIS GUN! The 6" is so easy to shoot well. I finished 2nd out of 12 at today's match and won 2 stages by 5% apiece. I've never won a stage before with significant competition. Anyone want to trade their lightened 6" for my 5" long wide SV Sight Tracker??? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bulm540 Posted March 24, 2008 Share Posted March 24, 2008 Longslides rock, I am enjoying my Benny Hill fat free. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cheers623 Posted March 26, 2008 Share Posted March 26, 2008 Congrats Larry!!!! I was shooting with him last Sunday at Renton and watched him mow down targets with the new JPL blaster. He kicked my butt and a number of others as well. While I know that it is the Indian and not the Arrow, it is nice to see a guy get his hands on gear that helps him maximize his potential. By the way, the gun appeared to run great for him, as if you couldn't already tell. Hope to see you out on the range soon Larry. Chris Olka Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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