[Castroyyy]

My sight, light and plate will all be here by Thursday. So I'll get her dialed in and shot over the weekend. I'm hoping I have a good session!
My last range session was trying to sight in a couple 5.7 handguns, while using Sub sonic ammo. It wasn't a good day to say the least.

 

[Tokarev]

I put about 400 rounds through my Girsan today. The only issue was failures to lock open all the time with the Prodigy mags. Atlas continue to work great in this pistol. I haven't really taken a look at why but I assume it is the size/shape of the foot on the slide release that interfaces with the follower. Probably switching to an EGW or similar would be the cure. Or maybe replacing the DuraMag followers with Altas would do the trick?

Total rounds through the gun now is right around 950. The only stoppage I've had to date (not counting the mag issues) was the one failure to go into battery I had a few days ago. The gun has been fed JHP, LSWC, round nose and a few fangible.

I have to say I'm pleasantly surprised with the pistol. It has worked better than I expected and I'm getting to like it a little more each time I shoot it. Once I've got 1500-2000 rounds through it I will give some thought to replacing some parts and changing a few minor things. Mostly just to make it more my own.

As far as wear I'm not seeing anything alarming. The exterior painted surfaces are holding up well. The paint is rubbing off the guide rod and the frame rails but that's to be expected. The leading edge of the slide stop notch has a kind of bright shiny area. The actual notch and where it interfaces with the slide stop looks fine. The slide stop axle has just the one wear spot along its center. I guess the gun is running pretty much 100% on the link alone.

Anyway, just wanted to pass on this info. Have a good evening.

Oh. One more thing. I used the 18# Glock/Shadow Systems spring today for the entire session. The gun doesn't seem to mind this spring at all.

 

[Castroyyy]

You'll have to let me know what you replace, and what actually fits. Like I said, I've got other 1911's, but I specifically picked this one up to tinker with it. That's what I enjoy. Sad to say. I'll be setting mine up this weekend, and hopefully get some rounds through it and see what I think.

My SFX9 is beautiful. And that's why it's a safe queen. I need something that I don't give a crap about beating up!

 

[Tokarev]

Cruised past 1,000 rounds this morning.

 

[Tokarev]

 

[Castroyyy]

Finally had some time to get her setup. I won’t shoot her until later today.

 

[Castroyyy]

I shot about 250 rounds today. The Girsan is a champ. I had a few issues with the prodigy mags. They seem to be a bit loose. The one factory mag I have was flawless. I will look into a new spring weight as it’s much needed. Me and my buddy that shot it both agree that it needs some trigger work. However it did get better at the end. Maybe nothing is needed. The mag release is quite short. But I can deal with it. Again, this witness feels great in my hand. I was quite surprised!!!

 

[Tokarev]

I shot about 250 rounds today. I had a few issues with the prodigy mags. They seem to be a bit loose. The one factory mag I have was flawless.

What issues with the Prodigy mags? As previously mentioned mine don't always lock the slide open but feed fine.

 

[Castroyyy]

They feed fine. But they rattle in the gun. They don’t fit well. I had multiple failure to feed with the 20 round prodigy mags. And we tried at least 4. But the factory mag was flawless I’ll have to pick up a few more.

 

[Douglee25]

Looks good!

 

[Tokarev]

Pic from Instraface of the MJD grip installed on the Girsan.

He says a standard STI trigger dropped in. He had to remove a little material on both sides to get the grip safety to move freely and the Girsan mag release needing fitting so he just swapped it for something else.

 

[Douglee25]

So much for a cheap 2011 after you just added another $300 in parts! 😂

 

[Tokarev]

So much for a cheap 2011 after you just added another $300 in parts! 😂

Still cheap I guess in the realm of 2011s.

The Girsan might not make much sense compared to the Prodigy once a bunch of parts swapping takes place. Pound for pound the Prodigy will still end up being more expensive but it should theoretically hold its value better.

I sure hope Springfield comes out with an aluminum Prodigy. That should be a really nice gun. Maybe not ideal for a big diet of 9mm +P but it will probably last a long long time with USPSA minor power factor reloads.

 

[Tokarev]

I took the frame apart this morning to give everything a good cleaning. From what I can tell, the sear and disconnector are MIM. I also think the slide stop is MIM. Everything else appears to be machined.

Maybe not surprisingly the Girsan grip doesn't seem to have any metal inserts where the bushings and screws attach the grip to the frame. A Prodigy grip test fits onto the Girsan frame fine and would probably make an easy replacement. The Girsan mag release fits fine in the Prodigy grip but the profile is a little different. The Prodigy has a swoop to it kind of like what's seen on the Gen 2 Staccato. The Girsan part is flat like a Gen 1 or 1911 mag. The Girsan trigger fits into the Prodigy grip but is a little snug where the shoe slides into the trigger guard area.

I have a Gen 1 Extreme Shooters grip on the way and will see how it fits on the frame and how well the trigger fits in the grip.

As far as the frame itself, the machining looks good. The surface texture is somewhat pourous. I'm not sure what the finish is. It could be anodized but I assume it is just Cerakoted or otherwise painted.

One thing of note is how tight the tongue and groove joint in the ambi safety is. I had a bugger of a time getting the parts separated. The parts are so tight they can't be readily pressed back together outside the gun. I don't know for sure and didn't really look before taking the gun apart but I don't believe the little finger tab on the right hand lever is long enough to properly retain the safety when the safety is engaged. I'll have to check this when I'm putting the gun back together.

Something else that's different is the hammer and sear pins. The pins have an actual stepped head on them instead of the sort of flared end that we are used to seeing on hammer and sear pins.

The sear spring is thick and black and very soft. It bends easily. I should replace it while the gun is apart. In fact I may as well get a flat trigger from Red Dirt or maybe STI and put that in while everything is in pieces.

Here are a few pics. Note how the lugs on the rail sit a little proud on the frame.

 

[Tokarev]

I have noted the loose mags too and have previously reported that Staccato and squeezed/tuned Check-Mate do not latch into the gun. It could be a mag release issue but I actually think it is a grip issue. The Girsan internal surfaces seem to be a little on the large size and are allowing for mags for rattle around more than they should. That's my guess anyway.

Atlas mags have been perfect for me. Duramags don't lock open but also feed fine. Again, Staccato and Check-Mates squeezed per the Atlas tuning videos won't latch and/or don't latch firm enough to stay in the gun.

 

[Douglee25]

I saw that video today. Interesting report. Curious to see if those issues are widespread.

 

[Tokarev]

Curious to see if those issues are widespread.

I think they will be. I'm certain the grip, internally, is out of spec.

 

[Tokarev]

@Castroyyy

Any updates for us? Is your gun running okay?

 

[Castroyyy]

@Castroyyy

Any updates for us? Is your gun running okay?

Sorry I was out of town. I Was able to grab the factory mags from a distributor of ours. I’ve had zero issues with the gun using those mags. The prodigy 20 round mags get wonky past 10 rounds so I stopped using them. I’ve really had no issues so far using the factory mags.
My buddy did have multiple issues shooting it, but I did not. I chalk that up to grip and experience. Other thana few hiccups with him shooting it’s been a pleasure to shoot.

sorry I forgot round count. I’m at 750 rounds

 

[b.w.]

Thanks for the detailed pictures. Following. I'm interested in picking one up eventually