Getting a custom gun built

[UW Mitch]

So I'll just open up this can of worms. I've never shot open, but I'm planning on having a local builder build me an Open gun - John Larson, JPL Precision. I've shot a shorty and a full size that he has, both amazing. I'd like to hear peoples preferences and reasoning behind the following questions:

- Long or short

- Skinny barrel or bull barrel

- Weight heavy or lighter, muzzle heavy or not

- lightened slide or not

- long or short trigger

Caliber is gonna be 9mm Major - that's what he builds, and he knows how to make them run. I could probably save a substantial amount of money buying a used gun, but I've always wanted something from John. His work is great, and he's a great guy. I come from collecting custom knives, so a custom gun that's built up from parts as opposed to a customized gun is very appealing to me.

Thanks in advance!

Mitch

[AikiDale]

Mitch,

All of your questions come down to personal preference. John will build a fine reliable pistol. How long or heavy or where it balances are issues only you can answer after having shot them in various configurations. You might want to shoot a few friends pistols before ordering.

[L9X25]

Mitch,

All of your questions come down to personal preference. John will build a fine reliable pistol. How long or heavy or where it balances are issues only you can answer after having shot them in various configurations. You might want to shoot a few friends pistols before ordering.

+100

None of the items you list have listed can fit into the universally better/worse category, as they are all personal preference items. About all that you can do is try as many examples of each as are available and decide what YOU like best.

Good luck!

[XRe]

Why don't you ask John which configurations work best with the parts he uses and the way he builds the guns, and go from there?

[UW Mitch]

Mitch,

All of your questions come down to personal preference. John will build a fine reliable pistol. How long or heavy or where it balances are issues only you can answer after having shot them in various configurations. You might want to shoot a few friends pistols before ordering.

+100

None of the items you list have listed can fit into the universally better/worse category, as they are all personal preference items. About all that you can do is try as many examples of each as are available and decide what YOU like best.

Good luck!

I guess that's the custom part of a custom gun. With knives, I just collect 'em. I've users, and display pieces, I buy based on what I like visually. Thanks for the quick replies. I would for reference points like to hear people's preferences. John says the long/short thing is cyclic. Short is "all the rage" for a while, then long is the king for a while. Wondering where people are coming from in their preferences.

~Mitch

[Jaxshooter]

My new 9mm open gun is a full size gun. I was shooting an SV IMM 38 SC prior. I based the build on the recommendation of my gunsmith. I told him what I wanted ie trigger, barrel, slide, grip etc. I then told him I wanted a gun that runs 100%. He said to build a full size gun and I have had absolutly no problems with it from day one.

[dansy]

I have 4 Custom Open gun's 2 from Bedell and 2 from Dawson........the options I chose were Swenson amby's, texture grip, color of the grip and C-more, side mounted C-more, Slide racker, trigger length and weight......holes in the barrel or not.....chrome or not....

The rest I really didn't care about your best list might be the worst one for YOUR gunsmith.....go with what he recommends for HIS best set-up, you as the shooter you will adapt to what he built.

Bottom line my choice of weight distribution on my gun's might be the worst set-up for you....

[konkapot]

One thing's for sure.....you picked a great gunsmith.

FY42385

[Merlin Orr]

Why don't you ask John which configurations work best with the parts he uses and the way he builds the guns, and go from there?

+ 1

I see people every day telling the gunsmith how to build a gun.... Suggest parts or specify some things you want...OK. Tell the gunsmith how to do his job - arrogant stupidity on your part.

My .02

[G-ManBart]

Mitch,

All of your questions come down to personal preference. John will build a fine reliable pistol. How long or heavy or where it balances are issues only you can answer after having shot them in various configurations. You might want to shoot a few friends pistols before ordering.

+100

None of the items you list have listed can fit into the universally better/worse category, as they are all personal preference items. About all that you can do is try as many examples of each as are available and decide what YOU like best.

Good luck!

I guess that's the custom part of a custom gun. With knives, I just collect 'em. I've users, and display pieces, I buy based on what I like visually. Thanks for the quick replies. I would for reference points like to hear people's preferences. John says the long/short thing is cyclic. Short is "all the rage" for a while, then long is the king for a while. Wondering where people are coming from in their preferences.

~Mitch

I'd be willing to bet that a lot of responses on why people have what they have won't help you since they'll be "well, I shot my buddy's ABC shorty and I loved it, so I ordered one." Most people haven't been able to get a number of guns together and do a comparison shoot and see what the timer tells them. Also, a lot of people make decisions based upon what's hot with the best shooters in the world since that's one of the few points of reference they have. I think that's exactly why there have been quite a few shorty Open guns sold used in the recent past. They balance great and transition great, but they're generally a lot less pleasant to shoot than a similar full-size gun.

It's also somewhat about how your brain processes things...what looks just right and feels just right to one person might seem sluggish to another while what looks right to you might seem violent to me.

When I decided to get back into Open I went with a shorty in 38SC. I shot a lot of Open under the old power factor with a shorty and know that the snappier feel doesn't seem to slow me down any. I also know that I'm used to the way a shorter gun balances so it just feels right. When I shoot full-size guns I like the fact that the dot is a little steadier and they certainly are more pleasant to shoot, but the extra length (and often weight) feels like there's an anchor on the front of the gun to me. If I'd started out with a full-size gun that probably wouldn't bother me as you can make them roughly the same weight as a shorter gun without too much trouble. I'd be willing to bet that the average new Open shooter would be best served by a full-size gun and if after a while they felt it was holding them back, then it might be time to look at a different combination....but that's just a feeling and nothing backed up by any data. R,

[BOGA]

I started shooting open 8 years ago with a regular lenght slide in .38 super. I liked it and then here comes the shorty open.

I sold my long open and bought a new shorty in 9mm major. I liked it too.

But after 6 months I sold my shorty and...

Now I am back to LONG SLIDE (lightened to 9.75 oz) in 9MM MAJOR. This is it. I like the combination of long slide and 9major (this is my own personal experience - other persons have different feel about this)

My final open gun (I hope ) I am not going to change it anymore.

[Joe4d]

I'm gonna repeat a thought HSmith said on another thread, Er on the side of light weight. It is very easy and cheap to add weight with a tungstun guide rods steel magwells and mainspring housings etc that dont require skilled labor. It is harder and more expensive to remove weight. Other than that I would let the smith decide what he feels is best based on your build, handsize, experience, etc.

[Putty]

JPL does great work. I can call him anytime and he will discuss at length, what I need based on my own quirks. He said it best "It is what works for you and no one else". Perhaps he can pull out some of his open guns and meet you to shoot em....all you have to do is ask!

[warpspeed]

To answer you rquestions:

Long - I have both and for a 9 major IPSC gun, I prefer the 5" slide

Skinny - Cone compensator.

Balanced - I like a gun that feels very neutral with an empty magazine.

Lightened - not swiss cheese but swooped at the rear, flat on top.

Short - that is because of my fingers. YMMV

[Loves2Shoot]

I can call him anytime and he will discuss at length, what I need based on my own quirks.

And that is saying a lot! John might even be candidate for sainthood for that one

But seriously, if you can shoot some guns, making the decision for yourself is a MUCH better way to go than taking a poll on the net.

[dr2e]

like it has been said many times, "talk to jpl, he'll know what to do". i have just recently started shooting my jpl special and couldn't be more pleased with john's work. it runs, which to me is THE most important feature, it looks good and the service has been fantastic. if i ever do have any issues/questions he is more than willing to help me. i know there are other great 'smiths but to be able to actually go to his shop makes a world of difference to me.

Edited January 30, 2008 by dr2e

[turbocomp38s]

Hi Boga,

I felt the same way. Now, I'm shooting a regular 5 inch gun with a longer comp about 2/12 inches and shoots well. Tried everything from shorty to regular 5 inch gun and has finally settled for the 5 inch with 9mm major runnning at around 170 pfs.

I would try and shoot different types of open guns made by different gunsmiths and go from there. Goodluck and hope you find what you like.

[bgary]

Most of it has already been said, but I'll chime in anyway...

1) you already did good on the hardest part of the decision, when you picked JPL. John's been building my guns for years, and I could *not* be happier. He'll build you what you want, but he'll also inject his own experience and help you understand the implications of different choices and trade-offs. His guns run and run and run, and his service is second to none (hey, that even rhymes! John - I want royalties if you use that on a radio commercial! <vbg>)

2) As far as short vs long, as others have noted, that's totally personal preference. It not only has to do with the recoil characteristics of the gun, it has to do with how *you* like your gun to feel, and things like how *you* transition between targets. A short gun is going to "snap" quicker on transitions, but the trade-off is that it tends to be "snappier" on recoil. A full-length gun shoots softer, but it more mass swinging around on the end of your arms. I tried the short/light guns, but have wandered back toward the full-length. I note that a lot of the guns for sale on the forums tend to be short/light guns with few rounds through them - that might be a data-point.

3) John built me a short/light gun a couple of years back, which was exactly what I wanted, but it was pretty "snappy". He has since done some pretty innovative work to keep the short/light benefits but mitigate the recoil timing. That seems like a really great way to go. He has recently converted my short/light gun (it is out for hard-chrome right now)... can't wait to try it. I think its gonna rock.

4) I have a full-length 9-major JPL gun, and an short/light 9-major JPL gun. I'm planning to be at the Marysville match on Feb 17th... if you're going to be there, let me know and I'll bring them both, and a bunch of ammo so you can try 'em all you want.

Bruce

[AlamoShooter]

Shooting Open is a constant evolving learning cycle. If you don't evolve you fall behind.

What you plan to do with the gun has everything to do with the build 9 limits you just a bit but if you are happy with the trade off, that fine.

Your shooting has strong points and week points ...If you were to tell John what they are and how far you want the gun to take you. You will end up with a true custom gun built for the "You" that could be you.

Benny Built my gun giving me the best value for my budget. I look at it a piece or Art just like you do your knives

If I was you I would take one of your Favorite Knives and Gift it to John before he starts your build.

[UW Mitch]

Thank you guys for all the responses and insight. I definitely will speak with John about his thoughts on a gun for me, as well as shoot all the open guns I can. In the mean time input from the peanut gallery on the internet will have to do

~Mitch

[A38337]

Good advice has been given.

A few years ago, I bought twin Bedell 9mm Major Shorties for my father and I. 4.5" barrel w/o ports, Ti Bedell Comp, lightened slide.

Wanting to know how an identical gun with a 5.0" barrel would work for him, he had Dan build one.

With the shorty, the dot does not leave the lens, but the 5" gun shoots flatter.

The 5" gun is just barely slower with transitions.

The 5" gun allows more powder/bullet combinations, and that longer .5" gives between 30 and 50 more fps.

Dan's shorties use a full-length recoil system, and they run like a raped ape.

While I don't feel that I am at a disadvantage by using a shorty, I think that a 5" gun is the best way to go.

As everyone else has said, JPL builds great guns. He has done some work for me on other guns (not complete guns). He does quality work, on time, and reasonably priced. You have picked a good gunsmith!

[UW Mitch]

John, Sue, Will, Bruce and Dave, thanks for letting me shoot your various guns! I think we're homing in on some specs!

~Mitch

[jpl]

Mitch, you're most welcome!! I'm glad you are closer to figuring out what you like!

[boz1911]

Recently bought a full length 38SC open blaster with a titanium comp. Since I have been shooting Limited for about a year and a half I really thought the extra length etc would be awkward during fast transitions. This has NOT turned out to be the case. I feel no slower during transitions that I did with a Limited gun. The gun felt natural to me in a couple of hundred rounds. I know a GM shooter would feel the difference, but for me, I liked the full length so much I ordered a new one!

[dr2e]

anytime mitch! it was cool you had so many examples of jpl's fine work available at the same time. now decisions, decisions...