I got the opportunity to attend the Vickers Tactical (taught by Mr. Larry Vickers AKA LAV) 1911 Pistolsmithing class in Naples Florida. The class was hosted by http://www.evergladesammo.com/. Good group of guys and very helpful and accommodating to the class.
The class was a good mix of industry type folks and average Joes that are interested in the 1911. Everyone was competent and open to learning (which made for a very enjoyable class experience).
The students were given a list of parts, tools and slide/frame recommendation. The majority of the students went with a Caspian frame and slide. I on the other hand was able to secure a Wilson Combat Slide/Frame/Barrel kit (SKU 440CFLC). A Special thanks goes out to Mr. John May of WC for helping me out with all of this! The reason I decided on this “kit” was because I wanted to see just how good it was. Could I just drop all the parts into the gun and it would work? Or would I have to fit every single part? More on this later.
Before diving into the WC build, let me first talk about the instructor. I have taken countless Vickers Tactical classes (Pistol, Carbine, Advanced Pistol, Advanced Carbine, Home Defense, LE/Mil CQB, Low Light, Advanced Tactics, etc) so I am very familiar with “LAV” and his teaching style. This class was different though. You could tell from day one that he really enjoys teaching these 1911 pistolsmithing classes (his passion if you will). His knowledge on the gun, how to make it run and tips/tricks acquired over many years was fantastic! He would draw on the white board (freehand) detailed pics of each part, what needed to be done to it and how it interfaced with other parts. All from memory and ZERO NOTES. Very impressive to say the least and this is what separates LAV from other firearms instructors. Many of them can teach you how to shoot. Some might even be able to tell you how the firearm works and what things you can do to make them reliable, but almost no one can tell you how to build a 1911 from the ground up. This is what separates him from the rest.
Back to my WC 1911. For the record, I build guns. I am knowledgeable on the AR15 family of weapons (build them, fix them and consult on them). I am also knowledgeable on doing trigger & reliability work on many of the popular polymer based pistols found today. I point this out to set the stage that I am not a complete moron when it comes to mechanical things. I have also attended Vickers 1911 operators course (where you remove every single part from the 1911 and discuss how things are “supposed” to be). With that said, building a 1911 is NOT for the faint of heart! Every single thing in that gun either does not fit OR needs to be polished, blended, etc in order to work properly! EVERYTHING!!! This class should be renamed the “Glock appreciation” class! I also have to point out (so my classmates don’t kill me), that a lot of the heavy lifting (slide to frame fit, barrel to bushing fit and beaver tail to beavertail lugs fit) was already done for me by WC (which is part of the deal when you buy the above listed kit). I still had to fit or finish the trigger, mag release, safety, barrel lugs, extractor, ejector, slide to frame (rear), beaver tail to frame (blending side contours), polish the insides of the trigger track, sear, disconnector, hammer, etc, etc, etc. So it wasn’t a “walk in the park,” but a lot of the harder parts were already done for me. At one point (while another VSM instructor was having some issues with a certain part), I pointed out that WC had already “done” that part for me. This in turn got me the double “middle finger” salute along with some comments about me sucking something. Not sure why though.
In regards to the work that WC does on their pistols, the word WOW comes to mind. Many times, LAV pointed out that WC does it better and boy did I notice it. While some of the other students were trying to hand file a different angle into a part or round a corner, mine was already done that way from the factory (and no, they didn’t do it as part of the kit, it’s just how their parts come naturally).
As we say in the AR world, “parts ain’t parts” and I now know that this applies to the 1911 world as well and will ONLY be using WC parts in my future 1911 builds. You do get what you pay for!
Because of this class, I can now fit barrels on other firearms. I can instantly look at other 1911 and see the mistakes and or poor craftsmanship. I can look at a 1911 (that isn’t working) and have a good idea about what is causing the problem. All very useful tools that will make me a better gunsmith in the future and for that, I greatly appreciate what LAV has taught me.
For those that love the 1911 and want to learn everything they can about it, go to this class! If you think that the class might be too hard for you (which it might be), just buy a Wilson Combat 1911 and be done with it (you’ll thank me later).
C4
Beginning
LAV talking about slide to frame fit
Cleaning up file marks
Frame Bevel
Frame being sanded
Checking spacing
Fitting lugs
Sanding Lugs
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Originally Posted by David Thomas
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