Is it Worth It?

[EMC45]

All you 1911 gurus answer this question. I have all this and some more even. I was thinking of getting an Essex frame and building it up. I would only need a few more parts including the frame and I will have a functioning pistol. So what do you think?http://i298.photobucket.com/albums/mm243/Evansguns/102_2289.jpg

[lead-1]

I believe it is worth it, a friend of mine bought several buckets of 1911 surplus parts at some sort of govt. sale and then bought several aftermarket frames. He then cleaned and sorted the parts while trial fitting the parts till he got sets that were good smooth fits. Over the years I ended up with one of those pistols and it is a sweet shooter. It was used as a bowling pin shooter with 200 grain SWC cast boolits and it has no problem feeding ball, hollow points or SWC's, I say build it.
Here's a pic.

[wiljen]

That slide may be worth more to a collector than as a build piece. Ithaca only made 1911s for 4 years between 1942 and 1945 and made just over 300,000 of them all told. Damn shame you dont have the frame as they are a rare bird amongst 1911s.

[EMC45]

I have it for sale here in the Swap and Sell Wiljen. It will reside there for a few more days then it will move on to another site. That is if I flounder on this idea!

[oldhickory]

I say go for it! 1911s are easy to work on and get shooting well IF you use quality parts. I did just the opposite of what you're doing, I started off with a G.I frame and built a gun around it using Springfield parts from Brownells. It feeds flawlessly and shoots VERY well, (at least better than I can shoot it).

[deltaenterprizes]

There are better frames now a days than Essex, get a steel frame.

[jhrosier]

I bought a frame a few years back and outfitted it with parts from my box-o-parts.
I figured that the parts are still available as "spares" even when they are made into a working gun.
BTW, it wound up shooting pretty good too.
I keep my minty MK IV S70 in the gun safe and shoot the parts gun instead.

Jack

[EMC45]

There are better frames now a days than Essex, get a steel frame.

Essex makes some quality frames. In SS, Parked, and blued.

[TAWILDCATT]

yrs ago FED ORD in cal had alluminum frames for $36. I bought one and put on the parts and it still works fine.it shoots 45 acp SWC 200gr with target accuracy.
I have an AMT longslide so I keep that fed as spare.

[StarMetal]

That slide may be worth more to a collector than as a build piece. Ithaca only made 1911s for 4 years between 1942 and 1945 and made just over 300,000 of them all told. Damn shame you dont have the frame as they are a rare bird amongst 1911s.


36) Ithaca: S/N 856,405 to 900,000 = 1943 ( S/N's 856,101 to 958,100 were duplicated by
Colt, look for "G.H.D." or "W.B." Colt inspection initials.)

37) Ithaca: S/N 900,001 to 914,000 = 1943

38) Ithaca: S/N 914,000 to 916,404 = 1943

39) Ithaca: S/N 1,208,674 to 1,279,673 = 1943

40) Ithaca: S/N 1,441,431 to 1,471,430 = 1943

41) Ithaca: S/N 1,816,642 to 1,890,503 = 1944

42) Ithaca: S/N 2,075,104 to 2,134,403 = 1945

43) Ithaca: S/N 2,619,014 to 2,693,613 = 1945

Joe

[jmsj]

Hello,
It depends on what you want the finished pistol to be able to do.
I have bulit a Commander size .45 using an Essex frame and slide. No problem with rail dimension or pin locations. Most internal parts were the lowest cost "mil-spec" pieces I could find @ the time ( lot of them were Chip McCormick). And this pistol will outshoot the Taurus .45 that I bought complete.
Brownells sells both standard and enhanced frames with oversized rail dimensions.
jmsj

[EMC45]

Both my slides have gone on to another home. This project is done. Or the idea of it at least for now.

[j20owner]

FWIW, I am not seeing one spring that is needed in the above picture. May be more missing, but I've never really taken everything out of the frame.

Ok, just looked again, found something else missing.[smilie=l:

[johnlaw484]

There's something special about building your own 1911. It's a gun you'll treasure, because I did that!
By the time I finished mine had had about $347 in it.