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Gary,
I am a far cry from being a gunsmith, so this is all from my personal experiences with various 10mm 1911s of my own and some I’ve shot belonging to friends. Here’s my $0.02. Take it for what it’s worth.
First and foremost, I think you’re making a great decision by starting off with a Caspian frame and slide for your build. No matter what you do to a factory gun, you’ll never get the total contact in frame/slide rail fit and the longevity of that fit that you get from a properly built parts gun. As far as durability is concerned, I have a Caspian frame/slide 10mm commander that has about 7K rounds through it, and most of those are full-powered stuff. There is no sign of battering and the wear is all even and proper. I use a 24# recoil spring in this with no shok-buff, standard FP stop, .45 Colt Extractor tuned to fit, and a 19lb mainspring. Everything about this setup goes against conventional wisdom, but I’ve had zero problems so far. Also, in this same gun, the slide stop, thumb safety, hammer, sear, and disconnector are Chip McCormick and are, indeed, MIM. Again, I’ve had no problems. This gun is not, however, how the rest of my 10mms are set up.
I think it was either Ted or Sean Smith who very appropriately said about 10mm 1911s, “nothing comes for free.†The 10mm will obviously wear on a gun faster than the fairly mild .45ACP, and that’s why the many “little†things you can do to help prevent premature/excessive wear & battering, such as a flat or lightly beveled firing pin stop, ramped barrel, factory weight mainspring, shok-buffs, heavy slide, or a bull barrel, are good for 10mm builds. Individually they don’t always make a huge difference, but collectively they can make a 10mm a pussycat to shoot full-powered loads through. I have a Para Ordnance/Caspian that Dave Sams built for me that uses an 18# recoil spring and 17# mainspring, and “nuclear†loads dribble out the ejection port into a neat little pile. The gun has a Caspian slab-sided slide, CP ramped Bar-Sto bull barrel, tungsten guide rod, AFTEC extractor, Bo-Mar sights, and a Smith & Alexander steel mag-well. While the mag-well and guide rod are not reciprocating mass, they do help absorb recoil significantly. The rest of the package makes for a very fast, accurate, easy to shoot gun with tons of power. In the right hands it might be a damn fine pin gun. Too bad I’ve never shot pins. Aside from the Caspian Commander and the Para/Caspian, I have a longslide Caspian with a Bar-Sto CP ramped bull barrel, a Delta with a CP ramped Bar-Sto standard bushing barrel, a Caspian 6†Longslide with a CP ramped Kart standard barrel in the works, a Caspian 5†gun with a CP ramped Clark standard bushing barrel in the works, and Colt Delta with a CP ramped Schuemann bull barrel in the works with Ted, and have had three other built 10mms that I no longer own. I shoot a LOT of 10mm. So, to make a long story longer…
I would stay away from the external extractors in any gun, and especially the 10mm. If you want the ability to fix a broken extractor quickly with minimal fuss, just have an extra fitted when the gun is built. Standard extractors are not expensive, and fitting an extra is a good thought for any gun. An AFTEC may be something to consider, but the7 are a lot tougher to fit properly and a pain at times to remove/clean/replace. AFTECs are tough, but nothing is indestructible. They can still break, and although I’ve never seen one break, some very knowledgeable folks, including Ned Christiansen (IIRC), has seen them.
Now for my favorite part… barrels. I have shot and/or used Bar-Sto, Kart, Clark, Colt, KKM, Schuemann, and Nowlin. I have 3 Bar-Sto barreled 10mms right now, but will likely stick with Kart and Clark barrels for future builds. I have yet to decide on Schuemann. I tested a Clark and Kart in Dave Sams’ barrel test fixture three weeks ago using various handloads and factory Federal 180gr Hydra-Shoks at 50yards. In the fixture, the Kart AVERAGED less than 1.5†for 10 shots for all 5 loads, and the Clark was a very close second with all loads averaging less than 2â€. Both seemed to really like my 135gr Nosler over AA#9 handload, as the Kart shot it into a sub .75†ragged hole and the Clark just under 1â€. They both shot the Hydra Shoks into less than 1.5â€. Granted, these are shot in a test fixture and weren’t yet installed in the gun or a person’s hands, but they showed just what the barrels can do. IIRC, the Clark barrels start as a Douglas blank, and Fred Kart rolls his own. Bar-Sto makes a great barrel, but when you REALLY look closely, the Karts and Clarks are more refined and better finished (and fit up better, from what I’m told).
If you want to know what I consider ideal in a 10mm, here’s a list of the parts I have gathered for the longslide and 5†Caspians in line at Dave’s shop. They are the same except for length.
- Caspian frame & slide (Colt vertical serrations and GI end cut)
- Kart CP ramped bushing barrel (longslide) and Clark CP ramped bushing barrel (5â€)
- NM numbered bushing (hard & long-lasting)
- Caspian full length guide rod (drilled for take down)
- Caspian FP stop
- C&S fire control parts
- EGW Slide Stop
Recoil spring weight will depend on what you're shooting. I never go below 20# or over 24# for a 10mm. All other small parts are whatever you like best. Personally, I like Bo-Mar sights on a 10mm since the range of loads and shooting scenarios are so extreme. I know this was a lot more than you asked for, but I got going and couldn’t stop. Anyone who knows me knows I’m a talker. Just ask Chip or Al.
Good luck & GOD Bless you and yours.
~Jim Keeney
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"I'd rather die on my feet than keep living on my knees." - Emiliano Zapata, Mexican Revolutionary
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