1911 Gov't slide with Officer's frame?

J

jdthaddeus

New member
I am sure this has been thought of before, sometime in the last century....But, has anyone ever made a 1911 with a Gov't model slide and an Officer's size frame?
The point being that it would be easy to conceal, but have the benefits of a full length slide and barrel.
Most people that carry concealed find that a long slide is not the hard part to conceal, but rather a fat gun and a large handle are the hard part to conceal.
So, a 1911 with the Gov't slide and (alloy?) Officer's frame would give you a flat gun, lightweight, with a small handle, easy to conceal but with great shooting performance and ballistics.

So, who has made one already, and who does (or would) make one today? I think the concept would be a big hit among CCW 1911 fans, and I am surprised that it is not already a common design.
 
Don't know about the GM slide on an Officer's frame, but...several custom 'smiths have built pistols utilizing Commander-length slides on Officer's frames...the rationale is that the (slightly) longer Commander slide makes for a more feed-reliable piece, while still retaining "maximum concealability"...I ssem to remember Jim Garthwaite having built one that was reviewd in "Combat Handguns" a while back...FWIW....mikey357
 
The problem is the length of the officer's dustcover. It is too short to reach to the rear of the spring tunnel on a government slide.
The gap is about a 1/4", unacceptable.
I have compensated a few commander/officers slides out to government length.
You can find a pic of one here:

View


Chuck
CHEAP-FAST-GOOD
Pick any two.
 
GM slide on a Commander or OACP; Commander or OACP slide on a GM involve more work than I would want to get into.

However, Commander and OACP slides and frames are compatible in all combinations. Even Colt put some Commander slides on OACP frames and called the result the CCO - the which I don't remember what it stands for, but after they got noticed they have been in demand. Colt, with their usual brilliance, is now making few or none. You could likely assemble one out of Colt parts and have a fair chance of it working. If it didn't it probably wouldn't take much gunsmithing. Or, like mikey357 says, you could go full custom. I've been thinking about it myself. If a Commander slide were to turn up, I'd try it.
 
pistolwrench: I'm curious about why the gap is unacceptable. Is a spring binding thing? Is it concern about crud? If it's a spring thing, could you cure it by installing a full length guide rod? Also, it looks like a commander frame just as short up front. I pulled some out of the vault and started swapping. The full size slide looks good on the commander frame except for that gap. But the lock-up seems...weird. Like it doesn't want to go all the forward smoothly. It seems to stop just short , but then goes forward if I give it a slight push. Thanks.
 
The Commander on an Officer frame is an excellent combination. I have carried one since about 1984 using a Randall Gen Curtis Lemay frame (stainless) from Ranco, the company responsible for selling off the Randall assets, and a blue Colt Commander top end. My current pistol is a stainless Para Ordnance P12 frame with an blue enhanced Colt Commander slide and Briley barrel. The CCO from Colt is the Concealed Carry Officers model. The first one I had built by Colt in 1987 was called the Personal Security Service Special, after my company. Bob Laylock from Dallas was the Colt rep and had them build a prototype for me. I had to come up with the money for 350 of them if I wanted Colt to build the gun. I couldn't, but Colt ended up making the gun in the early 90's as the CCO. Bill Laughridge and I are collaborating on a pistol right now that I hope will see production next year that is in this configuration with some added features. Only a few will be built and they will run as much as $4000. It is going to be neat.
 
Kimber Compacts are Commander slides (actually its Kimber's Pro length slide which is a shade under a true commander's) on an officer model's frame.
 
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