Photos of my 80% Frame Gun

[DanR]

Below, I hope, are two photos of my new gun:

Right Side
http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh190/DanRHP9mm/IMG_0273_1.jpg

Left Side

http://i256.photobucket.com/albums/hh190/DanRHP9mm/IMG_0272_1.jpg



I did all the work with just hand files. As required by law I did all the work my self. I hope to get to the range this weekend and I will post my results then. It took me 2 years of off and on again work to get it done. I will, in the future, change out different parts and I may coat the frame in black, thinking about it but not sure. I hope you like it.

OK Tom, where are the pictures? I followed your directions
Now I see that they are here! Thanks!!

[Hill]

Hey! It really LOOKS like a 1911!

Congratulations! I can imagine the extraordinary patience you must have drawn on in order to do that with files and hand work only - Amazing really. I've thought off and on of starting one of these but usually end up deciding that I'd run out of the sort of gas required to stay with it, and I've got a Bridgeport mill, a lathe, a surface grinder, a shaper, and a milldrill to do it with.

Nice job! Is it going to be a bicolor, two-tone, or whatever that's usually called, or is it as yet unfinished?

[OD*]

Now I see that they are here! Thanks!!
You're welcome Sir.

[DanR]

I have both clear and black bake-on coatings that I may use. The finish on the frame was scratched up when I was cutting in the slots for the slide that I would like to "remove". I do not know if the clear will cover them up. I do like the two tone. I guess it will depend on the final parts config and the new grips. The ones on it now look like they have been used for over 50 years. Any new grips will be black.

[Hill]

Dan,

If the scratches are light and don't make any indentation at all you can sand them all in the same direction and clear would likely make a decent result. But if the scratches DO cause dips and rises finishes usually accentuate flaws in the metal rather than cover them and clear is, well, clear. There are light colors including silver in bake-on and teflon bake-on, as well as a couple offered by Durocoat that don't require baking. A clearcoat can help preserve the colors and protect finishes , just like an automotive paint clearcoat.

In any case if a finish DID cover flaws would probably have to be laid on so thick as to look awful. Scratches and such are tedious to remove but in the end you'll be glad you did it.

Must seem like it'll never be done sometimes. You've gotten married, had twins, gone bald, got divorced, had three job changes, and see a doctor for the pains in your hands since you started this gun, eh? :)...JK

[DanR]

Thanks, Hill, for the info on Durocoat. I just checked their websight and found a silver and gray finishes that just may do the job. That is what is so good about these forums, there is someone here that has the information one needs just when they need it.

And, yes, it did seem like the work would never end. And then everything seemed to come together and I had a mated frame and slide in my hands. I know it will take time for me to finish the gun the way I want it but the end is in sight.

By the way, just what do you use to spray on the Durocoat?

[Hill]

Best thing would be one of the little airbrush (or whatever they're called), second a small gravity fed spraygun. The one thing about Duracoat that holds some people back is the need for a compressor, but if you have even a small one they sell a pretty good price airbrush in their website. The one that Harbor Freight carries (don't whack me!) will do the job too.
Brownell's sells Gunkote in spraycans as you probably already know. That seems to work well for a lot of people but I emailed the GunKote maker to see if it is the same stuff and he replied that it was but "I stopped selling it in spraycans over 15 years ago because of problems due to the can propellant" without describing the problems.

One big advantage claimed by Duracoat is that their stuff is more pliable(?) or less brittle than baked finishes which tends to keep it from chipping off.

[DanR]

Hill, I did find a site that sells the sprayer and a can of "compressed air" to spray with. That might be the way I go.

In addition, I took the gun to the range today. Not good. First, ball ammo. If the slide was locked back it would not pick up the round from the mag. If the slide was in the normal position and cycled it would pick up the round, but not the second or third round. Second, hollow points. It would not pick up any of these any way. Looks like I still have to polish the feed ramp some more. So, I did not get a good group to post. But it does shoot and put most of the rounds in the ten ring at 7 yards. I will continue to work on it.

[genin]

Hill, I did find a site that sells the sprayer and a can of "compressed air" to spray with. That might be the way I go.

Stay far away from the compressed airbrush propellant! I tried using that to power an airbrush before. It will work for a short spray, but as the canister decompresses it gets cold and loses pressure. But it won't happen in a predictable fashion and the irregular air bursts will cause spots and ruin whatever finish you're applying. I tried leaving the compressed air can in hot water, which helped for a short time, but the pressure still dropped and the finish would still get ruined.

I ended up forking up the cash for a compressor. Much much better.

[DanR]

Thanks, genin, for the info. I guess I will have to look into a small compressor. Or maybe a small tank I can fill and use. I do have an electric pump to fill car tires and I may be able to use it to fill a tank. But I will start looking.

[genin]

Hi DanR,
One thing I've heard of some people doing is filling up a spare car tire and using that as a source of compressed air. It sounded like a good cheap method. But I ended up getting a compressor instead because I didn't know where to get the proper couplings to fit the airbrush air hose to the coupling on the tire :p