ltwguns.com

I've had as much enjoyment building this pistol as anything I've done in a while. Since I was a kid, I've admired the work of Armand Swenson. They were the coolest looking blasters that I'd ever imagined with their squared trigger guards, ambi safeties, S&W K frame sights and hard chrome finish. I always dreamed that one day, I'd be able to have my own pistol customized by Mr. Swenson. Sadly, that will never happen.

Since I've been 'smithing, I've always told myself that I should revisit that genre of custom 1911s and try my hand at building one. Years went by and I always had other things to do. But, one day all the stars aligned and the right set of circumstances gave me a nudge. I was given a Series '70 slide that was deemed too rough to use, due to exterior damage to the top. My scheming brain immediately seized the idea of "It's already banged up, just bang up the whole top radius and make it uniform, like Swenson used to do" And I was off.

As I gathered parts and made my plan, I realized that as much as I admired Mr. Swenson and wanted to build a period correct pistol, I also wanted this pistol to be one that I'd be enjoy shooting at length. So some course deviations were in order as I really like the feel of a beavertail of some sort and I do prefer to have the hard corners beveled off. I also have a hard time seeing front sights that are of the low angle, quick-draw ramp configuration. So I thought, "How can I rationalize these deviations from the Swenson pattern" to myself and decided that I would design and customize based on the "what-if" principle. That is, what if Mr. Swenson had been able to work another 10 years? How would his work have evolved?

This is what I came up with........ Enjoy!

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shop.HarrisonCustom.com
www.HarrisonCustom.com

The grand essentials to happiness in this life are something to do, something to love and something to hope for.

Well John, the gun is great, of course. That is some fascinatingly fine and dense stippling.
And to my eye, what I know about this "founding father's" work, you have done him right.

But I also really like the sentiment of the project, the respect for and homage to Mr. Swenson, and especially your interesting question: What if he could have worked another ten years, and how would his work have evolved?

John, that is fantastic. Truly magnificent,and a great tribute. Well done.

Get ready for requests John! Love that short beavertail. Reminds me of the Jim Hoag beavertail. Did you manufacture that one from a standard beavertail?

Very nice. Sort of an "Old school meets new skills" and looks good, too.

Never much of a fan of the S&W sights, but on that one it works.

I've never seen stripping done to the top of a slide before......that is too cool. The grip safety is an interesting design.....I like it.

RJM

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Long Live the Supers!

John, great job on reproducing that stippling on top. Looks just like a Swenson!

It sure does look like the real thing. Fantastic job.

Looks really good John!

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"Let us speak courteously, deal fairly, and keep ourselves armed and ready."
T. Roosevelt - San Francisco, CA, May 13, 1903

What a great job !! I think Mr Swenson would have been proud. Thanks for sharing it with us John.

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GO-FOR-IT

Very Nice pistol. Where's Burton when ya need him? I'm sure he will appreciate this rendition.

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"Semper Fi"

Nice freakin' work man!

John you did a great job on the stippling. I love that you also got the ambi-safety and Commander hammer right too!

Armand would be proud!

Fantastic build!

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The Spirit of God hath made me, the breath of the Almighty hath given me life

I’m here...

I’ve been trying to think of some way to properly compliment John and his work on that gun... ‘cause there’s allot more going on there than most realize. I like seeing that “retro” guns continue to be cool and I know the work that it can take to make this one as clean as it is... nicely done John.

While Swenson’s guns are, to say the least, a neat and valuable piece of history this gun is obviously a cut and a half above. The piece combines the look of the “old school” with the refinement of today’s standards and elevated attention to ones craft and detail therein. I can’t wait to get my little paws on it come this Saturday... but in all fairness I’ve got to warn John ’cause he may need a security detail to keep me from taking this one home.

Excellent work John...

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Heirloom Precision
http://www.heirloomprecision.com

When I look at that pistol, I can actually tell how enjoyable it was to build. A beautiful tribute, John!

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damian@adcofirearms.com
http://www.adcofirearms.com

Can't help but just to look and smile! Wonderful job John!

John

What a fantastic piece of work,,,

I look forward to seeing it at SHOT.

Regards

Paul Trent

THAT is all the beavertail I'd ever need...been looking for something like this for a long time to come on the market but all we ever see are the large competition styles that have been around for so long. This would be perfect for a CCW Commander.

I'd add a production version of this exact grip safety to my "wish list" for '08!

Nice pistol.

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Dave
Member NRA

That is amazing!! I want one!! Unfortunately I cannot afford one.

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Scott

Thanks to all for your kind comments!


I made it from a King's #206C, IIRC. I had a Hoag in mind when I started grinding, but it wound up more like a Pachmayr.

I don't think I have any plans for a production beavertail at the moment. Were I to do it, I'd start around a .250 radius, rather than whatever this was. (Not a Wilson)

The hand matting actually turned out coarser than I thought it would. I was afraid that the chrome would subdue what I did there, but it actually enhanced it's depth.
I don't care that much for them from the shooter's viewpoint, but I just couldn't close my eyes and see anything else there. I made my break from Swenson tradition with the improved ramp front sight. I just couldn't see enjoying shooting it with a quick-draw ramp.

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shop.HarrisonCustom.com
www.HarrisonCustom.com

The grand essentials to happiness in this life are something to do, something to love and something to hope for.

Wow, John ... that thing is freaking off-the-charts cool. Your timing is great too based on what appears to be a strong resurgence of interest and nostalgia for Swenson guns. Brilliant! I hope you plan to build at least a few more of these beauties.

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"When the sword is once drawn, the passions of men observe no bounds of moderation." ~Alexander Hamilton

I have to agree with the others...great work, nice sentiment, and I can't wait to see it. John you are truly one of the good guys.

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Heirloom Precision, LLC.
480-804-1911

"If everyone is thinking alike, someone isn't thinking."
- General George Patton Jr

Mr.Harrison,
Hats off from Woodstock . You spoke of doing one and WOW.
Very nice work.

Thanks for everyone's kind comments regarding this pistol!

It was a big hit at the SHOT Show. It was out of the display case for first hand scrutiny over and again. A number of industry luminaries such as Wayne Novak, Ken Hackathorn, Larry Vickers and Richard Heinie all had it out for a look.

It was really interesting and much appreciated to have a long conversation with Wayne about his time with Mr. Swenson, as well as the techniques and methods of customizing used in that shop.

Great fun gun to own and use and I plan to build more of them as time and customer interest dictate.

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shop.HarrisonCustom.com
www.HarrisonCustom.com

The grand essentials to happiness in this life are something to do, something to love and something to hope for.

John as always flawless work. Not to mention really cool to boot.

If it passed those gentlemen's and Mr. Burton's smell test, it has to be good.
That sounds like a hint to me.

I snuck into John's shop to look at the gun and kept trying to slip the gun out in a plain brown Kroger plastic bag, but he caught me. This is a beautiful gun and I would love to have one like it. I have to sell my car first.

I wouldn't mind finding a couple of "Swensights", Mr. Swenson's fixed sight. They are cool!

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"The most effective armor is to keep out of range"-Italian proverb

CHECK OUT MY CUSTOM 1911 BLOG
http://thearsenalofdemocracy.blogspot.com

I was there when Roy Huntington himself checked this out. Apparently Roy has several Swensons, and he deemed this gun a fine tribute.

Great job Mr. Harrison, that gun is really "coloring" what I'm doing with my '67 LW Commander. Does anybody have a pic. of a "Swensight"? I don't recall what they look like.

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"Walk softly and carry a big stick."
Theodore Roosevelt

Outstanding, John.

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CT Brian Custom
'Blending Art With Firepower'