ltwguns.com

My friends, good news. 4TC1s is back from Ion Bond. Now let me tell you that "out for refinish" is by far the hardest part of a project for me, because that's when I'm trusting all my hard work, or in this case the hard work of Stan, Chuck, Don, and myself, to some one I may never have met, who is far away.

Whew! They did a great job and the turnaround was great. Between Metaloy and Ion Bond, we have a 1911 with what may be, or may be close to, the ultimate finish. Let me tell you, it's beautiful.

Actually, let me show you..... but not quite yet. I did get a few pics tonight, but I'll have to take some others for posting, because these first ones are taken for a magazine, in a last-ditch attempt to make deadline so we can get a little more publicity on this one, and maybe sell some more tickets. Which, after all, is what this is all about-- getting some funds together for americansnipers.org.

When I get a project like this back from refinish, I tend to go into slow motion, because at that point, there is no more leeway for fixing a little scratch or dent. So as I assembled it this evening, I took my time, and while I was doing it, I gave a lot of thought to the guys it is meant to benefit. Soon I realized I was not only being careful and methodical, I was being reverent.

I think there are a lot of things about these guys that might be hard to understand for those of us who have not been in their combat boots. How could we really understand, when their frame of reference includes things that, yes, we hear about and read about, but have not experienced? My friend Jeff Chudwin likes to use the quote, I don't remember who said it, "Nothing is real until you have experienced it." How can I, leading the same life of comfort, safety, and leisure I always have, discuss hardship and mortal combat with a guy who has lived it for extended periods, been wounded, had friends and colleagues killed in action? A man who has gone for days, weeks, months on end, where the only thing separating life and death are his wits, skills, his comrades, equipment, and some luck? The answer-- I can't, but these guys are so humble about their sacrifice and accomplishments, that they make it seem like I can.

More philosophy-- and some pics-- later. Dang thing is beautiful.

Dude, this is like Christmas Eve when you're a kid.............

_________________
ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE
Thunder Ranch THG & UR(x2), Gunsite 250C,
Yavapai Firearms Acad HG1(x2), HG2, & SG,
Shootrite Prvt Inst HG, NRA Life Member

Ned my friend...your KILLING US!!! This gun should be a real eye popper!

_________________
https://www.graffcustom.com/

Get ready folks. Might want to get a fan blowing on your modem, I made these as large as I could…..



4TC1s, at the job site. Notice the Chris Reeve knife that is part of the package (binocs too, “rifle not included” ).


Couple of right side views. Don Williams’ expertly fitted hammer was left in chrome, while the triggers he fitted were given Tungsten DLC. Yup, it even goes onto a part that is half stainless steel, half aluminum. Both triggers (short and medium) have overtravel stops that will never, ever come loose. Don’s action job is superb; purposely not feather light, but a perfect duty-grade 4.5 pounds… crisp and positive. Nice work, Don.


Showing the Leupold 10X50 Tactical binocs, Surefire X300, yes the new X300, two spare Tripp mags, three total, which have also been treated with Tunsgsten DLC along with the pistol and all of the numerous spare parts. Notice the CorBon DPX in one of the mags.... they sent a bunch of different loads for test firing. 4TC1s likes them all-- this gun flat out works. Black Hills is also providing ammo that goes along with the package to the lucky winner.


Left side…. the Golfballs are truly a happenin’ treatment for a gun like this. Nice job, Brother Chuck.


Top, showing the Yost Professional Grade sights installed “Shield Driver” fashion for maximum purchase in a one-handed racking maneuver. Stainless BarSto barrel treated with Tunsgsten DLC….. what a beautiful finish. All non-stainless parts were Metaloyed first. Thanks a ton, Metaloy and Ion Bond.



Rear view, more Golfballs on the mainspring housing, and Chuck’s lanyard point. Gemtec is on board now for a lanyard BTW. Sights have tritium lamps (courtesy of Trijicon) recessed forward so only the shooter can see them.



Little known fact among those who are not fluent in Mandarin Chinese: “Stan Chen” means “magwell”
Miss this during a reload and prepare to be the butt of jokes!


The business end….. beautifully recessed crown, the polish of which really glows black with that DLC finish. Stan’s fitting of the barrel and bushing is duty-oriented, so, not binding tight…. but to look at the groups he shot with this pistol you would guess it was. Recoil spring plug has three hidden drain holes.


Nowlin extended mag release has mini-Golfballs by Chuck to match the rest of the gun. Safety and slide stop are serrated on underside. Gun comes with spares for all three (one ambi and on not-ambi safety provided). Grips by VZ Grips, custom made to match the Golfballs.

WOW!!!

That is really a great looking hard use gun, wihth the finish(es) used it should be almost indestructable! I'm buying more tickets.

_________________
https://www.graffcustom.com/

WOW!

You guys are truly awesome, and so is your work.

And 'thanks" is in no way enough to convey how we feel about the folks who are the beneficiaries of the raffle, but I guess it will have to suffice.

My compliments to all the artisans and contributors. Truly a work of practical art!

_________________
Life isn't fair, it's just fairer than death that's all - John Goldman, "The Princess Bride"

Colt and Mark beat me to it.....WOW! And like Mark, I'm buying more tickets!

_________________
ΜΟΛΩΝ ΛΑΒE
Thunder Ranch THG & UR(x2), Gunsite 250C,
Yavapai Firearms Acad HG1(x2), HG2, & SG,
Shootrite Prvt Inst HG, NRA Life Member

Wowie-wow-wow!

Hidden drain holes in the recoil spring plug? That be detailed.

Looking at this gun, I suddenly started wondering about the life that LTW 1, 2 and 3 are living. Are they being shot? Carried? Kept in safe?

4TC1s would not be out of place in this little museum we have around here in Ogden, UT. Yet I hope this gun goes where it will be carried and shot until that DLC asks for forgiveness. And then shot some more.

OK, Ned, you're much better in math than I am. Would my chances be higher if I bought 20 consecutive tickets or 5 tickets each month till the raffle ?

Couple of tech details for y'all.

The Dawson rail is installed with three, 8-36 screws.

With two safeties, and two sets of safety detent plungers and springs, there were four different combos possible, so there was a little extra effort in setting the safety on and off efforts, to make sure there was a crisp and positive action regardless of the combination of parts.

Although the overall finish is not shiny but satin or matte, Ion Bond was kind enough and careful enough to preserve the high polish on the feed ramp. Nice touch.

The drain holes are kind of a "this is Michigan" idea I had, for cops' duty guns, after concocting a scenario drawing on a combo of actual events that could easily enough happen: You and officer Fido are tracking the suspects through a swampy area along the river. It's 25 degrees Farenhiet. You fall in the river and get soaked along with your pistol which is in a drop-leg Safariland 6004. As you leave the search party and start back to warmth and safety, your pistol, also at 25 degrees, has mostly drained before freezing solid, except the recoil spring plug, which has now become a solid object with a recoil spring sticking outthe back of it. You could fire one shot, but the gun would short cycle. Yeah, silly probably. Hmmm... I sense a test coming this winter.

Plenty of spares with this one, in keeping with the "goin' to the war zone" theme. But the triggers and safeties also offer the winner some options. I wouldn't want the winner to have to send this one back for a trigger or safety alteration.

There has been no "break in". This thing did not see ammo until it was already good to go-- no tweeking this or that. We wanted total reliability FIRST, durability second, even before accuracy.... we definitely got all three. We wanted to be able to convey to the new owner, "total reliability since round one", not: "well, there were some hitches at first but you'll have that sometimes, we got them pretty much ironed out". Not gonna say looks didn't matter, they do although sometimes, some folks don't want to admit it, but looks affect our impression of anything. O' course in a case like this, where we're trying to generate some enthusiasm, they are more important than usual. I hope the final product looks interesting.... it does to me (now where did I put those Swiss account numbers and tickets to Belize....).

The Tripp magazines are the new style, I had not seen them yet. They look like good stuff.

Hmmmm, I can see that. I guess the recoil spring plug is essentially a small cup.
Which brings the question: "How many 1911 recoil spring plugs equal one shot glass?
Just, you know, in case an expedient is needed.
Another advantage the Gov't size has over the Commander.

I like the way you think!

I can't speak for LTW 1, 2, and 3, but the guns from the Operator raffle (not LTW guns, but the usual cause) get used.

The SA Operator itself gets shot some, has accompanied me through at least one class, and is a must-have for any overnight or longer trip.

The Remington 870 shotgun may actually get used more often, although the round count is probably lower. It's become my standard "house shotgun" replacing my old Ithaca 37, and I've used in a several 3-gun matches. Hopefully, it will go with me through a Louis Awerbuck shotgun class next summer.

I'm still lovin' 'em, still appreciating them, and still shocked I won.

Oops, here's the missing knife, I seem to have cropped it out in the first pic. Perfect tool for a little weed whacking.

What can I say that has not already been said. Beautiful work. I like the black band in the grips, it's a nice touch to help us remember those we've lost.

Hmmm, note to self: buy more tickets.

I started this new thread to kinda delineate between the anticipation stage and the "here it is" stage. But for those who happen upon this thread without having been through the previous one, I'd like toagain list all the industry contributors:

http://www.springfield-armory.com
http://www.dakotaammo.net/products/corbon/dpx.htm
http://www.vzgrips.com
http://www.trippresearch.com
http://www.centermassinc.com
http://www.safariland.com/index2.asp
http://www.egw-guns.com/
http://www.black-hills.com
http://www.starlightcases.com
http://www.wilsoncombat.com
http://www.nossargunleather.com
http://www.barsto.com
http://www.striketactical.com
http://www.brownells.com
http://www.chrisreeve.com/greenberet.htm
http://www.leupold.com/tactical/products/binoculars/
http://www.fnhusa.com/
http://www.dawsonprecision.com
http://www.heirloomprecision.com/
http://www.nra.org/
http://www.uspsa.org/
http://idpa.com/
http://mattburkett.com/
http://www.safedirection.com/
http://www.trijicon.com
http://swatmag.com/
http://www.originalmetaloy.com
http://www.ionbond.com
_________________

Gonna give a brief description of what each company has contributed. But I'm going to start with Matt Burkett. Reviewing my posts I see that in all my posting I gave him rather short shrift as far as credit for his contribution.... yes, he contributed the complete set of his DVD's, a $300 value, but the biggie is a day of one-on-one training with him. The value on that is $1200.... nominally. But a guy like Matt, you're lucky to get a day with him at any price, really.....let's just say demand is high. Matt has a new 1800-acre shooting facility in Texas (glad I don't have the mowing contract on that one....), that has several ranges, one of which is a one-mile, yeah that's one mile, range. If you go to his site you can listen to his program, "Practical Shooting Radio" (try this one: http://mattburkett.com/podcast/radio_show31.mp3). Good guy, good stuff.

Springfield Armory-- donated the pistol. SA has always been supportive of the shooting sports and community, thanks for a great base gun!

Dakota Ammo-- Contributed a case of ammo for test firing. So now we know that 4TC1s works well with all kinds of hollow point ammo including the excellent DPX. And there's some left over for the winner.

VZ Grips-- just take a look-- they're a perfect compliment to this paroject gun.

Tripp Research-- Three of their excellent magazines.

Centermass Inc.-- A police-oriented company that does training and has a line of shooting products, most of which are sniper or patrol carbine oriented. They also have some products they produce such as a remotely operated moving target system, and rifle rests for sniper applications. These rests have been a much-requested item at americnsnipers.org, so-- Centermass is contributing one to the package.

Safariland-- is contributing one of the 6004 holsters and other duty gear-- pretty much the standard these days.

EGW-- contributed several of the internal components for this build, including an extractor, trigger, and firing pin stops (two fitted).

Black Hills-- A case of .45 goes with the package. I'm told that americansnipers.org is one of their favorite causes.

Starlight cases-- I've had one of these since '99 and it's really knock-proof. Heavy duty, O-ring sealed, just the thing to keep all the winnings in (although nobody makes a case that big)!

Wilson Combat-- contributed several of the internal and external components-- two firing pins, two firing pin springs, sear spring, ambi safety, grip safety, two of their Bullet Proof extractors.

Nossar Gunleather-- contributing a custom sharkskin concealment rig-- beautiful stuff!

BarSto Barrels-- Thanks for making 4TC1s a tack-driver!

Strike Tactical Solutions-- Contributing the full spectrum of their CQB handgun classes, level one through level six. This training is intense, it is not easy but it is soooo worth it. Unfrotuntately due to certain arrangements, these classes can only be available if the winner is police or military.

Brownells-- what to say? The most reputable, square-shooting company I ever dealt with. They contributed a lot of odds and ends such as recoil springs (several spares), some cleaning and maintenance gear, and I'm sure I'm forgetting something. Every serious shooter needs their catalog and again I can only say, when you're dealing with them you're getting great service and products.

Chris Reeve Knives-- the Green Beret knife they contributed came as a result of me consulting americansnipers.com to determine what kind/brand of knife would appeal most to the sniper community and this was the immediate answer. Chris Reeve did not hesitate to help us out on this.

Leupold helped out with a set of their 10-X50 Tactical binocs, which came to us through FNH USA.... stupendous glass!

Dawson Precision-- kicked in the rail and adapter for the Surefire light... these are a great option for light attachment to a non-railed gun and really better in some ways since the rail itself is so compact. Standard on Marine Corps Force Recon 1911's last I knew.

NRA, USPSA, IDPA-- all have contributed one-year memberships.

Safe Direction-- gave us one of their soft cases that are actually armored, so that loading and unloading can be done in a "Safe Direction".

Trijicon-- put the tritium inserts into the modified Yost-Bonitz (now Heirloom Precision ) sights.

Yost-Bonitz (Heirloom Precision now)-- contributed the hammer-sear-disconnector set, plus the front and rear sights.

SWAT Magazine-- a one year subscrition. One of my favorite mags these days, not related to me writing for them once in a while .

Metaloy-- kicked in the hard chrome plating that went on everything but the stainless BarSto barrel. As good as this finish is, of course a white gun is maybe not idela for a sniper-themed gun, so the Metaloy became the "base coat", which in a way was a waste of the beauty of a nice chrome job, but-- it makes for a great anti-corrosion layer under the W-DLC.

Ion Bond-- provided the Tungsten Diamond-Like Carbon final finish over the Metaloy. This finish offers a ton of benefits-- it is super, super hard, and even done over chrome it imparts a beautiful dark charcoal-colored finish. The one area it does not excel in is rust resistance, hence the Metaloy "undercoat".

Thanks so much for all the industry support-- if I have left anyone out, let me know!

And thanks to all you ticket buyers-- without you nuthin' happens.

HOT DAMN!!! that is a wonderful culmination of many tallented and generous folks. kudos to all of you-cam

Okay, Ned, I'm on to you, and I'm not going to fall for your trap.

Sure, stick that beautiful Chris Reeves knife out in the yard as bait so you can lure the unsuspecting to their demise. But not me, I'm not going for it. I see the rifle poking out around the corner.

I can see the muzzle, but I can't see you behind it, your ghilli suit must be awesome. Curses, but you are a sneaky rat!

_________________
Regards -

Patrick

Is the knife 4TRC1s? The details are amazing...like the bottom of the slide stop and the safety, the recoil spring plug, right down to a lanyard!

Edit: just a play off the name of the pistol to the knife....for the really close ones

4TC1s is the name of the pistol. From one of the earlier posts about it:

"I spent several weeks in Romania 11 years ago. During my stay there I saw many interesting things-- Vlad Tepes' castle (AKA Count Dracula), I stayed at a Transylvanian hotel (in Sinia) where just weeks before, a former Special Forces Captain (US) had seen a ghost in his room and would not go back to it (I found a swastika in one room on the inside of the balcony, leading me to believe the place had been a Nazi HQ during the war)..... and, maybe 1/2 mile from that hotel, the former royal palace with a fantastic arms room. I was closely examining a peculiar sword-- it didn't really seem to be either a tool or a weapon. The blade was thick, maybe 5/8", and it did not terminate in a point, but rather was blunt like a big cleaver. Just forward of the hilt was an inscription, which my Romanian friend translated for me:
"After this day, no more worries". Indeed it was a cleaver-- the headsman's cleaver.

That's not really a hint, but kinda illustrates the frame of mind here, the tradition behind naming a special weapon or describing its purpose, attaching to it some kind of persona. Those of you who are or have been readers of sword-and-sorcery novels are well acquainted with the blades of epic warriors and the mystical names given them."

I've been something of an absentee around these parts of late, and we'll show you all why in a little while, but for now, I'd like to share a little background on Number 4....

This type of pistol was Ned's idea for a different type of LTW project. Ned took the initiative to contact the guys from American Snipers.org and set up a meeting at SHOT last year. It all seemed like a great fit, so we decided to go for it. Since it was Ned's concept, we thought it would be cool if Ned served as project manager.

No one had any idea that the project would end up as unbelievably complete and as exciting as it did. Except maybe Ned

I'd like to offer my heartfelt appreciation to Ned for ramrodding this project, and to each and every one of the smiths, holstermakers, companies and individuals involved. You've all worked together to make this a fantastic setup.

I'm not just satisfied, or even impressed by this outcome - I think I'm a bit overwhelmed. Thank you all, for all you've done.

This is LTW. I really like it here.

_________________
Heirloom Precision, LLC.
480-804-1911

Far and away the best prize that life offers is the chance to work hard at work worth doing.

TR

The whole thing is absolutely beautiful. I can only hope I win the package.

I have purposely not fired 4TC1s since it came back from Ion Bond and has been reassembled. I know it's sighted in even though obviously the sights have been taken out and put back in, since I recorded their exact locations in the dovetails and put them right back where they belong upon final reassembly..... but I've held off shooting it.

I wanted the person doing the initial test-firing and sight check to be a vet. My Dad has a friend who jumped at Normandy on D-Day but unfortunately had a stroke a year back and is unable to.

Then Eli got back from Iraq. Some of you guys might not remember the Eli story, it's here:
http://www.louderthanwords.us/forum/vie ... sc&start=0

He hasn't been back long and I haven't seen him yet-- he's been rather busy with a new job and a new fiancee, but we've talked and he's up for it! He's going to bring his uncle, also mentioned in the above link, a Viet Nam vet..... perfect!

What's this cut for?



First two correct answers get a raffle ticket each, Email me the answers at metalmaster@m-guns.com . Respondents may not be gunsmiths! Answer is subject to, ah, what I have always thought it is for, butif somebody has a better theory I'm good with that. Some more recent brands don't have it but it's there on the print.... left to right:

'70's LW Colt Commander,actually an early Bill Wilson gun;
A Springfield Armory 5"
A very recent '70-Series Colt
A 1914-made Colt 1911(no "A1").

....they all have the cut.

So as you can see it's a cut that's been there from the start and is still there-- but some brands don't have it.

Frequenters of this board get a head start but tomorrow I may just post it all over the place.....

After a feverish internet search I found a definite answer:






I'll be buying [more of] tickets myself .

Curious to know what's this for, though.

I have two good answers--- one is from Pat Sweeney and one is from a supporter who wants to let the ticket roll over to the next right answer-giver since he already has several tickets.

Sweeney of course is DQ'd for, well, being Sweeney .

I went to the Illinois Tactical Officers Association Conference Sunday and Monday. Americansnipers.org had a space in the vendor area so I brought 4TC1s along to display and sell some tickets, which we did-- don't have the actual number yet but I think about a hundred. Lots and lots of coppers support AS.org but we also got to pull in some new guys. The ITOA Conference is kind of a big deal and really well done. Guest speakers included Dave Grossman, John Peterson and Paul Howe, for example.

Sitting with the guys from AS.org, and flipping through the pics sent back home by the snipers over there, I learned a lot more about the org and the guys they're helping-- and believe in the whole thing that much more. A lot of pictures showed their hides and positions-- one .50 Barrett was cleverly camouflaged with a real live rooster strutting around in front of it! I gotta say, nobody would ever expect a .50 caliber slug to come at them from a rooster, but it's kind of a one-shot deal

OK-- both tickets are won. One winner rolled his over to one of our centurions and I'll say no more since if he should be the one I want it to be a surprise.

Here's the answer I was looking for:
When the hammer is inevitably dropped with the slide off, OK, I know we don't do this but when you're equipping tens of thousands of Doughboys it's gonna happen, so when it happens several times, the peened-up metal from the hardened hammer impacting the frame does not go above the top frame surface and impeded slide movement.