Accurizing An Army Pistol

Tuning a 1911 pistol for serious Bullseye accuracy is settled science. Good pistols, capable of shooting a perfect slow fire score at 50 yards (all 10 shots within the 3.36" ten ring) started showing up at Camp Perry in the 1930s, such as those accurized by gunsmiths like JD Buchanan of Los Angeles, who built pistols for border patrolman Charles Askins (1937 National Champion) and the LAPD Pistol Team.

The early, pre-war Colt National Match Government Model was a beautiful pistol but it wasn’t all that accurate—at least, at 50 yards it wasn’t. It was "hand-fitted" by Colt, which meant that the slide was carefully mated to the frame, the trigger pull set for a clean break of 4+ pounds and the fixed rear sight notch squared and deepened slightly. Sights were adjusted for a 25-yard six o’clock hold.

The .45 phase of the National Match competition at Camp Perry then was usually a throw of the dice because the 1911 pistols used in the Service Pistol match (which mandated a 1911 .45) were not that good, accuracywise. Ammunition accuracy wasn’t at the level it is now, either. Shooters shot issued .45 "hardball" corrosive ammo, usually left-over from WWIera government stores. In those days (1930s), the Border Patrol, Customs, the LAPD, and Detroit PD ruled the Bullseye ranges at all the big shoots in the U. S.

The weapon of choice was the revolver, using .38 wadcutter rounds. Some competitors had .45 revolvers built that also shot very well. The active-duty military Slide is a Colt GI "hard slide" from the ‘50s. Initially accurized by Jim Hoag, it was rebuilt by Justin Mc Millan, former Fort Benning AMU gunsmith.

Ammo is factory 185 grain Federal jacketed semi-wadcutter, which is now legal for CMP Service Pistol matches. teams didn’t really get serious about marksmanship competition until post-WWII, when they consolidated their best gunsmiths and shooters into national Army, Marine, Navy and Air Force teams. The quest for an accurate 1911 turned into a race, with the military teams leading the way. Guns got better each year, as did the shooters.

Post-war civilian gunsmiths also built some good pistols; among the greats were Jimmy Clark, Bob Chow, Al Dinan, and Jim Hoag. The military guns set the standard though, because of the unlimited supply of match ammo, excellent shooters, and the large amount of dollars that could be expended in building and testing a highly accurate, reliable .45 service pistol. Getting a 1911 to group well at 50 yards isn’t an easy task.

Designed to be a short-range killing machine that will function in any environment, GI-issue pistols were built with generous tolerances that would accept foreign matter and keep firing. Tightfitting guns don’t work too well on a battlefield. A good match pistol in the 1950s through the ‘70s would hold a 2.5" 10-shot group from a machine rest at 50 yards. That was with 185 grain semi-wadcutter jacketed mid-range match ammo.

A "ball gun" (used for Service Pistol matches with 230 grain hardball) would be expected to do 3.0" from a rest. Accuracy standards have gotten better since those days, with

45 wad gun built by Larry Leutenegger when Larry was still working as an Army gunsmith at the AMU. Built on a series 70 frame and slide using a Kart barrel. Pistol has had in excess of 15,000 rounds without any additional work or tuning. It’s probably about time for anew barrel. While not built for a bullseye match, it’ll shoot as well as any accurized Army service pistol.

The Army prefers Caspian frames and slides for building their latest 1911 pistols. .45 match pistols today easily shooting groups of 2" at 50 yards. Some will do better. Any good gunsmith, civilian or military, can build a gun that accurate now. Like everything else, some accurizing techniques commonly used 30-50 years ago aren’t used anymore. A lot of that has to do with how the guns are made today. Some manufacturers’ slides and frames are cast, as opposed to forged, and steel is tougher and harder now.

Most manufacturers have introduced CNC/CAD machinery, which produces a much better (and tighter) slide-to-frame fit. Barrels, slides, and frames can be purchased oversized and are easier to machine and fit to very close tolerances. Welding isn’t used that much anymore. In years past, stock commercial Colt bar- Top is an AMU-accurized M9 in 9mm, used in the Service Pistol matches at Camp Perry and other military and civilian Precision Pistol matches.

The Army mandates that its active-duty AMU team use an M9 in competition. Bottom pistol is a .45 1911A1 accurized by In the early days, gunsmiths commonly "pinched" and hammered the frame rails on a GI 1911A1 to the slide so that there was minimal movement when the slide was in battery. On some of the older guns I’ve played with, just opening the gun up was a chore. Gunsmiths prided themselves on a "tight fit." Finding the right balance of a snug lock up versus reliability was an art form.

WWII GI frames were the common starting point. The problem with peening/pinching the frame rails to the slide on a standard GI 1911, though, was that taking off too much metal could ruin the frame for any future use. As long as the same slide was used, you’d be fine, but if the slide cracked (a common occurrence if you shot 230 grain rels were welded up and then fitted to the slide, which was a very labor-intensive and slow process.

A good 1911 ‘smith had to be a first-rate machinist as well as have excellent welding skills. the AMU in 1971. The M9 now holds all the Service Pistol records at Camp Perry. 45 (top), accurized by the AMU in 1971. Bottom is a Caspian-framed .45 built by the AMU as a Trophy Pistol a few years back. Both were accurized by the service pistol gunsmiths at the AMU and will shoot to the same high accuracy standards.

45 wad gun frame built by former AMU gunsmith Larry Leutenegger. Frame rails have been peened slightly to the slide rails for a tight fit, then lapped with an abrasive for smooth function. Before peening, the top of the slide is filed perfectly flat; all tolerances are kept to within 0.002". Pistol is a Colt Series 70 frame and slide. While not as pretty as a good checkering job, stippling is functional and easily applied.

Army match guns are shooting machines first and foremost. ball daily, like most military shooters), you’d need anew frame as well as a slide, too. Not a problem on an Army team with unlimited resources but expensive if you’re a civilian. Since most shooters didn’t expend anywhere near the ammo that a military marksman did, a cracked slide didn’t happen often in the civilian shooting world.

With the newer parts made now, you can order an oversized frame with extra metal on the rails, then machine and file off enough to get a perfect fit. There’ll still be plenty of steel left for future accuracy jobs. A barrel back in the early post WWII days was welded and built up with extra material. It was then machined and filed down to size and fitted into the lug recesses.

In addition, some gunsmiths fitted a small pad of steel, welded to the inside of the slide, which pushed down and locked the barrel up tightly when in-battery. I have a Jim Hoag gun that was built this way and it shot very well; the barrel was a standard commercial Colt. No one I know that’s building competitive guns today uses this technique now, but it worked well in the past. Oversized parts make welding up a barrel unnecessary.

Building A Gun Today I sat down with Justin Mc Millan former Fort Benningtrained Army Marksmanship Unit (AMU) armorer and American Custom Gunmakers Guild member, and discussed at length what goes into the accurizing of a modern 1911 series pistol, using my newly tuned pistol as an example. Justin had just rebuilt my old Hoag pistol for me for use in CMP Service Pistol matches. The process he uses is what is done at the AMU when accurizing 1911s.

Something to remember is that a gunsmith with more than five minutes behind a work bench will have developed his own style and techniques that will work for him. Examining Far The frame rails are peened downward slightly to get a tighter fit to the slide. Colt GI National Match replacement slides were made of hardened steel and came oversized for a better fit. This one is a Kensight.

two guns from the same AMU shop, built by different gunsmiths, will exhibit different machining, fitting, and finishing. And this is as it should be. Gunsmithing is an art form as well as being an engineering and machining exercise. The basics of 1911 accuracy work are the same, though. Justin prefers starting with a Caspian frame and slide (Caspian Arms. com, if possible. Both come unfinished and oversized.

Caspian parts have a stellar reputation with civilian gunsmiths and the military teams for quality, close tolerances, and hard steel. The newer guns built by both Marine and Army teams use Caspian components. A gunsmith doesn’t have to expend extra time aligning holes and frame cuts; everything on a Caspian frame is within specs.

Justin machines the top of the frame perfectly flat and all tolerances of the mating parts are kept If you look closely, you can see a "pad" of steel inside the slide that contacts the barrel hood, pressing down and locking the slide and barrel tightly together. Not a technique that’s used anymore, since parts, including barrels, frames and slides, can be purchased oversized. Gun was initially built in the late ‘70s by Jim Hoag in Los Angeles and was a great pistol for its time.

Most ‘smiths prefer an 11 degree crown. to no more than 0.002", which leaves enough clearance for oil, carbon buildup, expansion from heat, etc. The slide and frame are then lapped with a fine abrasive for smoothness. Justin likes KKM barrels (KK- Mprecision.com, because he’s had such good luck with them, both accuracy-wise and in the fitting process. He’s used Kart and Bar-Sto barrels, which also work well, quality-wise. Bar-Sto has an excellent reputation going back many years for shooting jacketed ammo superbly.

Incidentally, the AMU tests all barrels in a barrel tester, which "shoots" the barrel with proven ammo lots before it’s fitted. It saves time and money that isn’t wasted on building a gun with a bad or average barrel. Super-accurate barrels are put aside for use in the guns of the best shooters. An 11-degree crown is cut on the muzzle. This eliminates any possibility of muzzle edge imperfections that may have gotten through during initial production.

The face of the breech is highly polished and checked to make sure it’s perfectly flat. Extractors are polished and tuned (fitted) to grab the cartridge case properly, with a very slight relief cut underneath that insures easier feeding and chambering. Oversized EGW bushings are used in Justin’s guns. A bushing is machined to 0.001" barrel clearance; proper fit means using a bushing wrench for removal. Fitting of the barrel to the slide is the critical part of 1911 accuracy; not

USAR shooters can still use the 1911 (instead of an M9) if they desire. Most will be shooting a .45 1911 during the Service Pistol event. Soldier with his arms folded behind the firing line is SFC Jim Henderson, U. S. National Pistol Champion. much has changed here. Achieving correct rear lock up is a process of fitting a barrel so that the barrel goes back into battery in exactly the same position each time.

While using oversized, hardened steel parts has made the process somewhat easier and quicker, fitting the barrel hood and underlugs snugly to the slide is still a delicate balance of tight fit versus reliability. The hood and underlugs must be fitted by hand, using a micrometer and files. Building a 1911 pistol for Precision Pistol competition from start to finish takes about 40 hours of labor. That includes installing the sights or Another skill set that a good pistolsmith must have in his bag of tricks.

Far Ball gun shooters can now use 185 grain mid-range ammo instead of full-charge ball, as long as it’s jacketed. Easier on the shooting arm and helps the score, too! rib, tuning the trigger, stippling the frame, and final polishing/finishing. After the basic accuracy work is completed, the pistol goes to the range for reliability and machine rest testing, usually a Ransom Rest. In the AMU, one Soldier is assigned to this work; usually the newest guy in the shop.

Shooting dozens of guns and thousands of rounds of ammo for accuracy and reliability is an excellent way to gain valuable insight into pistol and ammo accuracy, what works, and how to use a Ransom Rest properly. What is most noticeable to the shooter is the trigger.

Again, handfitting and careful stoning is the only way to achieve a perfect, soft (called a "roll-off" pull by competitive shooters), 3.5 lb. pull (or 4 lbs., if it’s a Service Pistol.) A good ‘smith uses a jig so that all surfaces are flat and the cut is clean. Larry Leutenegger, one of the Army’s great Bullseye gunsmiths, uses a microscope to look at the surface of the sear and hammer to ensure proper contact. Techniques like this guarantee a great trigger that will last thousands of rounds.

My Mc Millan-built pistol has now had more than 1,500 rounds through it, all without a hitch. First group after rebuild (gun was originally accurized by Jim Hoag in Los Angeles) was right at 1.6" from the Ransom Rest. The more I shoot it, the better it gets. Trigger breaks at 4.1 pounds with a nice roll. And not only does it shoot tight little groups, it looks pretty good, too. AG