[ILED93]

Attention to detail and the little things says a lot. Someday, I hope to get a box like that.

 

[Wes Lorenz]

I'm lost on what you are doing on this setup. Are you cutting hood length? If cutting the lug slots are you using an offset collet?
I've been butchering metal for 40+ years and am lost. Thanks and I really enjoy your thread and high quality work!

 

[Jason Burton]

I'm lost on what you are doing on this setup. Are you cutting hood length? If cutting the lug slots are you using an offset collet?
I've been butchering metal for 40+ years and am lost. Thanks and I really enjoy your thread and high quality work!

Setting up to cut the spacing for the radial lugs. Thanks!

 

[Jason Burton]

Photo of the day... slide stop and slide stop notch engagement. Gotta’ make sure the contact at the back is square and that there is enough room at the front. Sometimes the notch gets re-cut, sometimes the slide stop, sometimes both.

 

[Jason Burton]

Photo of the day… beavertail blending and shaping before and after on the current Colt “Classic” Government Model project.

 

[pistolwretch]

OUTSTANDING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[Integrity Arms]

OUTSTANDING!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
[/QUOTE\]

Not to mention the welded and recut frame rails as well.. wow.. I need a lot more practice, and a better welder

 

[Jason Burton]

Photo of the day... adding a hard stop to the thumb safety on the current Colt “Classic” Government Model project.

I like using these Colt thumb safeties, they are on all my personal guns, and occasionally a client will request one for their build. Most of the time the detent pocket doesn’t align with the ‘stop’ surface that connects the safety lug to the backing plate. The result is a mushy feeling once the safety has been disengaged... basically the safety will move all the way down where it contacts the stop surface and then be pushed slightly upwards by the detent/detent pocket.

I want the safety to stop here in concert with the safety detent/detent pocket...

... but the stop surface allows the safety to move to here..

Machine a small hole in the stop surface, silver solder in pin, cut to size and insure full contact with the frame window, and blend the safety as needed.

 

[gun_fan111]

Mind - blown!!!

 

[Integrity Arms]

Photo of the day... adding a hard stop to the thumb safety on the current Colt “Classic” Government Model project.

I like using these Colt thumb safeties, they are on all my personal guns, and occasionally a client will request one for their build. Most of the time the detent pocket doesn’t align with the ‘stop’ surface that connects the safety lug to the backing plate. The result is a mushy feeling once the safety has been disengaged... basically the safety will move all the way down where it contacts the stop surface and then be pushed slightly upwards by the detent/detent pocket.

I want the safety to stop here in concert with the safety detent/detent pocket...

... but the stop surface allows the safety to move to here..

Machine a small hole in the stop surface, silver solder in pin, cut to size and insure full contact with the frame window, and blend the safety as needed.

Is this an actual issue with the frame cut out there Jason or the thumb safety? It's obviously a problem on a plethora of Colts as we hear about it and experience it all the time.. I assuming it's a little if both as other Thumbsafeties I've installed in some of these Colts don't experience this problem while others often will.

 

[Jason Burton]

I have seen instances of the window in the frame being overcut and/or the wrong shape but in most instances I would blame this on the thumb safety more than anything else. As such, most aftermarket thumb safeties don't require this remedy.

 

[Jason Burton]

Photo of the day... the best view from the bench, cutting the 30lpi front strap checkering.

 

[Blinv]

Am constantly amazed by the time Jason and other top tier guys spend on this forum educating and entertaining the rest of us. Thanks for taking the time! It says a lot about the man behind the waiting list.

 

[Magnum P.I.]

Very cool thumb safety trick! Your hand checkering is so excellent!

 

[Jason Burton]

Photo of the day... 30lpi front strap checkering from laid out to full depth on the current Colt “Classic” Government Model project gun.

 

[apipeguy]

Always amazed at your work,

 

[340pd]

Jaw dropping amazing.

 

[Jason Burton]

Photo of the day... laying out the 30lpi checkering pattern on the mainspring housing of the current Colt “Classic” Government Model project gun. Once the vertical lines are started the masking tape acts as a visual guide for starting the horizontal lines.

 

[TheCollector]

I'm curious about your visual tape method. I have noticed that when checkering the front strap you appear to use a collar. (tooling, as in post #1015 above) I wonder why you don't use something similar for the MSH. Given the number of those that you hand checker. Perhaps a fixture that is keyed to accept sliding the housing into and index your file to a face like the collar above.

 

[Jason Burton]

I'm curious about your visual tape method. I have noticed that when checkering the front strap you appear to use a collar. (tooling, as in post #1015 above) I wonder why you don't use something similar for the MSH. Given the number of those that you hand checker. Perhaps a fixture that is keyed to accept sliding the housing into and index your file to a face like the collar above.

Yeah for sure that kind of fixture would totally work and in the past I used the square edge of my vise jaws to align the file. I'm actually not sure when I got away from doing that. That said, I think the fixture for the front strap is much more necessary for two reasons:

First is the risk.... messing up a front strap comes at a significantly higher cost than a mainspring housing. Mess up the lines on a front strap and ya' either got to know how to fix it (like straighten out the pattern), cut it off and make a new one, or replace the frame. For the mainspring housing you can just grab another part... hell, I've even discarded completely checkered mainspring housings that I just didn't like the "look" of.

Second is the ease of laying the lines out on a mainspring housing vs. the front strap. The front strap curves around more running into the frame flats and that makes it harder to establish the initial horizontal lines and keep them square to the verticals as you move the file around the corner. The mainspring housing is much more flat... much more easy.