ltwguns.com

With a large portion of our work centering on full-house guns this isn’t something you see from us allot. Never the less, it something we’re quite familiar with, having done similar conversions on other Baers, Wilsons, etc, and this particular case seemed photo worthy.



This gun started life for the customer as a plane-Jane Les Baer Stinger with standard blue finish. The gun was bought new and shot for break in and to prove reliable for carry but even though the owner was diligent in his ammo and magazine selection he was never satisfied with the performance of the gun. The gun had continual feeding and ejection problems and for the time being was put aside in favor of a different daily carry piece. Eventually the gun landed in our hands with the request to make the gun run and fit for a carry piece as well as a few additional functional and cosmetic changes.

The owner had us go through the entire gun to remedy any issues and insure it would be up to the task at hand. Fine tuning the barrel fit as well as lapping the frame a slide were two good starting points. As we’ve seen before in Baers fit with Commander length slides, the frame rails and recoil seat location were Government length and not dimensionally correct for the shorter Commander length slide. This was a major factor to the guns previous feeding and ejection issues. A relatively easy fix, with a bit of cutting and trimming to the frame and in addition to some modifications to the barrel throat, feed-ramp, ejector, and extractor we had the gun feeding and ejecting as it should. And while in the shop the owner also requested a few other functional and detail modifications such as a new and more useable thumb safety, flattened and serrated slide top, Professional Grade rear sight with Gold Line front, re-crowned barrel, machined slide stop with serrated bottom, re-dressed beavertail, new trigger, French borders, and a final finish in hard chrome. Finishing the gun out with a set of durable VZ micarta stocks makes the gun complete and ready for carry and the owner is now looking forward to finally putting this gun into his daily carry line up. Enjoy!

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Heirloom Precision
http://www.heirloomprecision.com

Photo-worthy indeed!

Interesting back story, too, as my one and only LB experience mirrored it (and that was with a 5-inch TRS; the gun simply would not run (not even with hardball). But as they say, that's water under the bridge now...

Two questions on this project, the first of which I've been wondering about for sometime: (1) Is the slide stop design intended to be used solely with the 'slingshot' method of releasing the slide?, and (2) Were there any changes to the Wilson magazine(s)?

RE: (1), I can see how this type of slide stop would also work using the thumb-release method, and that the serrated bottom would better facilitate manual activation. Just wondering about the intent/thought behind the design.

RE: (2), FWIW, I exchanged the springs and followers in my OACP-length Wilson magazines with Tripp 'Super 7' kits. Just curious about the case shown here.

TIA!

PS: Wanna sell that 60TK?

I always thought the under-serration on the slide stop lever was just to look cool. Which it does. But maybe there's a higher purpose beyond what my bumpkin eyes see..

I've read loads of experiences similar to this one about the small 1911s LB puts out on M1911.org, wondering what's going on over there. At least this guy is not going to have to worry about his a second more.

Sure is a good lookin' pistola!

Don't know about the owner of this gun, but other than in some sort of emergency situation, I normally only use the slide stop lever to lock the slide to the rear. As such, in the 1911's I've had customized, I've asked the 'smiths to texture the bottom of the slide stop to provide extra traction for that purpose. I'm sure some do it for looks, but for me it serves a function. I release the slide using the overhand (not to be confused with the slingshot) method, or if one hand is out of the fight, I use the sights and a hard edge to rack the slide.

This week when Jason showed me this pistol it brought a few things to mind. One, not everyone can afford a full house custom 1911 from the top flight shops. However, there are alot of folks out there who have semi-custom or production guns that are close to being a very functional and aesthetically pleasing guns. These conversions offer a nice middle between a full house gun and a production gun that has some of the bugs taken out.

Some versions of the "semi-custom" need considerably more work than others but sometimes you find that some of the parts present are still usable and just need to be fit correctly or replaced.

For the law enforcement and every day carry guys this again affords a very functional piece, good ergonomics, durability, and something to be proud of at a reasonable price. I have done a few jobs for guys that I work with. Ted and Jason have done a number of "refurbs" if you will that create an excellent scenario for alot of people. This particular version is a perfect example.

It is sort of like buying a really straight nice '69 Chevelle that needs paint and interior but having to wait to do everything you want to it....ask me how I know.

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Heirloom Precision, LLC.
480-804-1911

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

OK, other than the fact it's called a "slide stop," what are the advantages of the 'slingshot' and 'overhand' methods of releasing the slide? Do those methods cause less wear and tear? Are those methods considered more 'positive?'

I suppose the 'slingshot' and 'overhand' methods ensure full slide travel toward the rear (thus building potential energy for the return trip forward and thereby promoting more positive feeding), but that seems like a stretch to me.

AFAIK, the Browning/Colt 1911 slide stop was 'textured' on its top surface and smooth on bottom pretty much from day one. This would seem to indicate it has dual purposes/functions - stopping and releasing the slide - by design.

In addition, if reconstructing the slide stop is meant to deter the end user from resorting to the 'press the button' method of releasing the slide, then it seems the logical thing to do would be to simply invert the profile of its 'button' end. (Why leave it concave, such as in this example?)

Very nice looking pistol; good job........

Art, in my case it's a product of how I was taught to shoot. For most folks it's a matter of preference, but so far in my professional life the instructors that have had the most impact on my shooting development teach the overhand slide rack method. Whether using the slide stop to release the slide is a fine motor skill has been hotly debated for years, but I was taught that it is, and therefore a more sure-handed/positive method of releasing the slide is the overhand technique. I'm not aware of one method resulting in any more wear than the other, so at the end of the day it's all personal preference. I'm pretty sure Leatham, Jarret and some of the gifted shooters on this planet probably use the slide stop to release the slide and in conditions that probably exert more stress on the shooter than the average guy will ever experience.

GB - I hadn't considered the 'fine motor skill' angle. I genuinely appreciate your bringing it up, and I believe the point valid. BTW, whenever I 'rack a slide,' I also use the 'overhand' method. I always thought it much easier than the 'slingshot' approach...

Thanks for kind words guys...

As for the serrations on the under-side of the slide stop... the idea is just to assist getting a better purchase when manually locking back the slide. That’s the same reason the serrations were cut at the angle you see.

Should one want to use the slide stop to release the slide will it still work? Of course... there is still plenty of material left on the top of the slide stop to get a solid purchase with one’s thumb while using that method of releasing the slide during reloading. That’s also one of the reasons to leave it the “concave” shape on the top. Just because you don’t want to or think you may never need use a different method of reloading doesn’t mean you won’t or your pistol need not be capable of it.

Is one method better/more efficient/more positive/cause less or more wear? Basically no. Neither method of reloading, whether it be using the slide stop to release the slide or the over-hand/sling-shot, will cause any more or less wear to the gun, at least not that I have ever seen. Nor have I ever seen one way be more positive than the other, incorrect technique not withstanding. I have been taught both reloading methods by many competent, experienced, and knowledgeable instructors all of whom had at least one valid argument for why they preferred one method over the other. I've come to the conclusion that there is no magic, mystics, or voo-doo involved but rather just good practice. Me personally, I like the over-hand/sling-shot whatever you want to call it method best because it keeps all my movements the same... loading is the same as reloading is the same as un-loading is the same as clearing malfunctions. You get the point.

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Heirloom Precision
http://www.heirloomprecision.com

It was asked elsewhere and it's worth showing here...



This picture illustrates the difference relative to the slide stop pin hole between Government length rails/recoil seat position and Commander length rails/recoil seat position. The gun on the left is an un-modified Colt Government Model and the gun on the right is the pistol pictured above post cutting back the rails/recoil seat.

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Heirloom Precision
http://www.heirloomprecision.com

Nice upgrade on the Baer, Jason.

IMHO, the way the Baer frame rails all reference to Government length is a mistake. You took the right approach by shortening to Commander length for the Commander slide. A lot of people miss that. You did good, WeedWhacker.

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CT Brian Custom
'Blending Art With Firepower'

Thanks for the picture Jason as it's worth a thousand words in showing what you mean.

Very nice upgrade. The slide me read Baer Custom but the firearm was definitely reborn from your shop.

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Elmer Raygoza

very nice re-do... excellent work.

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https://www.graffcustom.com/

Sweet work Jason, as expected! Thanks for illistrating the work done on the frame rails, ive had questions myself and have finally seen it done correctly!

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Kandros Customs Gunworks
www.kandroscustoms.com

My experience with Baers is almost all negative. I owned one that would not run, and have seen quite a few needing rebuilds in Dave Sams' shop. Some wouldn't run, all wouldn't shoot well, and they suffered from the same problems. With the cost of fully building a Colt and rebuilding a semi-custom being not far off, I'd have to say that leaning toward a Colt build or a Caspian/Baer frame & slide (I have a very nice .45 on a Baer frame & slide) build would be more financially feasible in the long run. Your work turned this gun into something worth shooting and looking at, Jason. Well done.

~Jim Keeney

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"I'd rather die on my feet than keep living on my knees." - Emiliano Zapata, Mexican Revolutionary

Nice upgrade indeed! First-class gun and photography. It’s nice for us to get a view of what a talented custom ’smith can add to a semi-custom gun like this to make it truly special.

Does this rail condition exist on most of the Commanche length Baers? I'm looking at a used heavyweight Monolith and don't want to buy into a problem child. And if it gets that far, I will compare rail lengths. Thanks for the great pictures of right and not right.

Wow, very nice. My first .45 was a Baer Commanche many years ago. My wife surprised me as an anniversary gift and I will never sell that gun. Great work as usual.

Chris

My experience with Les Baers, about sixteen of them, has been overwhelmingly positive. However, I do have a couple that I wouldn't mind having Jason performing a bit of a face lift on.

Nice work buddy.