THE STAIRWAY TO HEAVEN
I can recall the first 1911 I ever owned. It was a Kimber with an alloy frame, heavily worked over by who I believed was a competent gunsmith. Suffice to say, this particular feat of gunsmithing was subjective in the same way as modern art: The smith saw this particular “smear of paint on the wall” in a very unique way. And what a dripping smear it was, complete with the ability to reliably jam in artistic and imaginative ways.
When I began with the 1911, having cut my teeth on common polymer pistols, I had no idea there was so much variation in a seemingly established design.
THE MODERN 1911
The 1911 is a modern gun in the sense that it’s common and widely produced, but it’s not at all a uniformed product like the modular AR-15, Sig P320, or Glock variants. Those three designs are wonderful in that they allow for true plug-and-play drop-in parts, and they are only a few steps removed from building LEGOs. The 1911, on the other hand, has almost no ability to swap parts between brands. The fit is sometimes relative to brand, and for many, the fit is to the individual gun.
Why is this? Well, the 1911
