Who is the best 1911 pistol smith in the area?

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moose3rl
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Who is the best 1911 pistol smith in the area?

Post by moose3rl » Wed Jul 02, 2014 9:27 am

I have some work I need done to my Colt gold cup. Where do I take it?

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Re: Who is the best 1911 pistol smith in the area?

Post by hatchdog » Wed Jul 02, 2014 9:39 am

At one time Jim Brock of Brocks Gunsmithing was known as a 1911 authority. He is getting old and I don't know what the current status of his work quality is.

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Re: Who is the best 1911 pistol smith in the area?

Post by ron » Wed Jul 02, 2014 11:32 am

Mel Doyle in Plummer Idaho is pretty good but it depends on what you need done. I'd recommend talking to RLHas at Liquid transformations off of Francis between Nevada and Crestline. He's not necessarilly a 1911 "Expert" but he knows how they work and with everything he does he's methodical and careful and won't screw it up, and most likely can make it work better.

I'm always amazed at when I take a problem to him and it's something that he's never dealt with before, he figures it out in no time at all. I'd recommend that you take the gun to him and have him look at it and give you his opinion. He won't try to bullshit you and that's good to know when you're dealing with someone you don't know.
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Re: Who is the best 1911 pistol smith in the area?

Post by moose3rl » Wed Jul 09, 2014 5:10 pm

^

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Coug91
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Re: Who is the best 1911 pistol smith in the area?

Post by Coug91 » Fri Jul 11, 2014 2:59 am

Fortuna Favet Fortibus.

When you run out of valid things to say, there's always insults.

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Re: Who is the best 1911 pistol smith in the area?

Post by ron » Fri Jul 11, 2014 7:50 am

Coug91 wrote:Just bring your checkbook.

http://www.morriscustompistols.com/1911%20work.htm

Mark Morris used to have his shop here in Spokane where he did his gunsmithing and had a couple of small glass display cases out front and sold guns. He was in one of those little buildings on the corner on the right side of the street at W.Northwest Blvd and Maple just before the Safeway as you're heading out to the VA hospital.

Real nice guy who had a big friendly rottweiler and he sold me some 1911 parts for a gun I built with a WWII Ithica slide and an Auto-ord frame. now he's up around Omak somewhere.

He builds guns that are put together with extreme precision and he spends about two weeks or more building each gun and they are a wonder to behold and he has a national reputation as a custom builder. All fine and good, and I'm happy for him that he's successful at what he does, but personally I could never see paying $2000 or more dollars for that degree of perfection. I'm happy with a gun that is just plain accurate and reliable but doesn't have to have absolutely meticulous fit and finish or a famous brand name as long as it shoots good. To me, pretty is as pretty does.

The only gun I'd ever want for that kind of money would be the factory accurized M45A1 Colt that was issued in 2012 to Marine Corps Special Operations Command (MARSOC) and Marine Expeditionary Unit Special Operation Command (MEU[SOC]), as well as members of Force Recon, Special Reaction Teams (SRT).

Those guns are not only accurate and reliable and beautiful in their own business-like utilitarian way, but they have historical significance and it was possible to obtain a civilian version of the gun that is exactly the same as the government Issue gun. Colt only made a limited number and those have already gone up in value so about 3 grand is the cost of one of those guns today.
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Re: Who is the best 1911 pistol smith in the area?

Post by EWU92 » Sun Jul 13, 2014 9:08 pm

ron wrote:
Coug91 wrote:Just bring your checkbook.

http://www.morriscustompistols.com/1911%20work.htm

Mark Morris used to have his shop here in Spokane where he did his gunsmithing and had a couple of small glass display cases out front and sold guns. He was in one of those little buildings on the corner on the right side of the street at W.Northwest Blvd and Maple just before the Safeway as you're heading out to the VA hospital.

Real nice guy who had a big friendly rottweiler and he sold me some 1911 parts for a gun I built with a WWII Ithica slide and an Auto-ord frame. now he's up around Omak somewhere.

He builds guns that are put together with extreme precision and he spends about two weeks or more building each gun and they are a wonder to behold and he has a national reputation as a custom builder. All fine and good, and I'm happy for him that he's successful at what he does, but personally I could never see paying $2000 or more dollars for that degree of perfection. I'm happy with a gun that is just plain accurate and reliable but doesn't have to have absolutely meticulous fit and finish or a famous brand name as long as it shoots good. To me, pretty is as pretty does.

The only gun I'd ever want for that kind of money would be the factory accurized M45A1 Colt that was issued in 2012 to Marine Corps Special Operations Command (MARSOC) and Marine Expeditionary Unit Special Operation Command (MEU[SOC]), as well as members of Force Recon, Special Reaction Teams (SRT).

Those guns are not only accurate and reliable and beautiful in their own business-like utilitarian way, but they have historical significance and it was possible to obtain a civilian version of the gun that is exactly the same as the government Issue gun. Colt only made a limited number and those have already gone up in value so about 3 grand is the cost of one of those guns today.

I took a pistol into that shop and he wouldn't even look @ it, said he only worked on CZ 75 and 1911 platform pistols. Clicked on the link provided by Coug91 and there is now way I would ever pay those prices.
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Re: Who is the best 1911 pistol smith in the area?

Post by Coug91 » Tue Jul 22, 2014 9:16 pm

OP asked for best, not most reasonably priced decent 1911 smith.
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Re: Who is the best 1911 pistol smith in the area?

Post by ron » Fri Jul 25, 2014 8:19 pm

Coug91 wrote:OP asked for best, not most reasonably priced decent 1911 smith.
Morris isn't really a gunsmith, he's a custom gun builder. If there's a wait time to have a gun built by him, there's probably a wait time for a repair, too. And he's pretty far away up in Omak to be considered local. Mel Doyle is closer, only about an hours drive and RLHas is closer yet and I doubt that Morris could do a better repair than either of them.

Mel Doyles Gun Shop 401 Ellis Ln Plummer, ID 83851. Phone: 208-686-1006

RLHas
Firearm Finishing Inc
Address: 1615 E Holyoke Ave, Spokane, WA 99217

Phone:(509) 487-4145
Hours:
Monday 8:00 am – 6:00 pm
Tuesday 8:00 am – 6:00 pm
Wednesday 8:00 am – 6:00 pm
Thursday 8:00 am – 6:00 pm
Friday 8:00 am – 6:00 pm
Saturday 9:00 am – 5:00 pm
Sunday Closed

http://www.firearmfinishinginc.com/
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Re: Who is the best 1911 pistol smith in the area?

Post by LongRifle » Thu Jan 15, 2015 12:21 pm

hatchdog wrote:At one time Jim Brock of Brocks Gunsmithing was known as a 1911 authority. He is getting old and I don't know what the current status of his work quality is.

I have taken mine to Brock's several times and yes he knows his 1911's well, although his work seems to be a little rougher than what is usually acceptable ( new scratches on the slide, new sights not properly lined up). If it is something you can do yourself then Brock's is an excellent place to go for some very knowledgeable help to solve your 1911 problem.
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Re: Who is the best 1911 pistol smith in the area?

Post by scrappy » Sat Jan 17, 2015 10:29 pm

I wish John Gren was still with us. He was a master 1911 smith. I was at his place one day and he showed me that it was possible to tune a 1911 to feed empty brass by filling a mag with empties then racking the slide to chamber and eject all 8. Worked flawlessly.
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Re: Who is the best 1911 pistol smith in the area?

Post by KRD » Sun Jan 18, 2015 7:51 am

Mauser54 on this board...

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