Ruger SR1911 upgrades?

R

rockinrandy

New member
I bought the SR1911 a month ago and have put approximately 1000 rounds through it already. I have noticed some grittiness still in the trigger and am going to have a local gun smith polish everything up. It has gotten better and I love sitting this gun and now know why people fall in love with the 1911 platform.

So my question is, is there anything else I should have him do while he's got my gun and has it apart?
 
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If they interest you, it might be an opportunity to add night sights or hi-visibility sights or checkering on the front strap as long as it is in the shop.
 
I might be interested in the sights as I really didn't think of those. Have to see what options are out there for it. I do use this gun for IDPA and am possibly going to use it for USPSA (but am currently thinking there are better suited guns for this that I currently own)
 
Novak Night Sights

I had Novak tritium night sights installed on mine. I can't remember at the moment whether I sent the whole gun or just the slide, but I do know the turnaround time was just 2-3 weeks. The sights are excellent!
 
Ruger has a nice Novak fiber optic front sight on their website, that's about all else I can think of. Mine is great!


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I'm in for a threaded barrel but "no gunsmith" and 1911 don't really go together. Last time I took a gun to my local 'smith, he kept it for over a year and still didn't do what I asked.

Anybody know of a truly drop-in threaded barrel for a SR1911?
 
I have a CMD and the only things I've done is boost the hammer to smooth it up and install a Colt sear spring. Oh, I did install a small Colt safety. I would like to have a gold bead front sight but so far haven't been able to talk myself into spending the money.
 
357 Terms said:
Not alot of choices for night sights, I looked around and have been thinking about these;



http://www.heinie.com/shop/3007p-ruger-1911-slntpro-straight-eight-night-sight-set/



If anyone finds any others (besides the XS big dots) I would like to see a link.
Click to expand...



I have Heinie's Straight Eight fixed night sights on two of my Kimbers and a Springfield Rang Officer.

Very good sights.

I recommend sending them your slide and having Heinie fit them himself. Good work and quick turnaround.

There are too many hammer-and-punch, hack-and-tap "gunsmiths" floating around for my taste.
 
I did Heinie Straight Eights on mine, very happy with them. I installed the rear myself, but when I installed the front, the blade popped off. Was told I was supposed to sand down the underside of the blade, which I didn't. Was told I'd be charged a replacement fee... but got the slide back with no charge.

Only other big thing I did was stainless grip screws. Eventually, I want to swap out all the accents to stainless... not because I have a problem with MIM parts, but want to make the gun match. The trigger will probably be changed out for a C&S one, as I want to do their Marine Corp hammer kit (want a spur hammer).

I have Magpul grips, but also have three sets of Recover Tactical grips (original, which is stippled; black one that fits their retention holster; FDE one). I like the non-railed profile, but do like being able to run a light at times. Best option I found to accomplish that.
 
Okay, I may be a bit pragmatic but I still love the old saying; if it ain't broke don't fix it.

I understand honing and polishing any internal parts to improve the trigger or action. That's something that you noticed while using it. Anything else you do, is because of suggestions not because you noticed you needed it. Therefore, you may be disappointed with the outcome.

IMHO

PS - I just saw how old this thread was... so it seems appropriate to ask what did you end up doing?
 
PA is right, if you don't need it why do it? In my case the giant winged safety beats on my thumb, the white dot sight was replaced with a plain black one so I could file it down. This sight has a flat face at an angle that makes it impossible to get a sight picture. It needs to be replaced. Ruger could have installed the serrated front sight but they used the cheap one. Better yet they could have sighted the gun in with the great white dot sights that were originally on the gun.
 
With my CMD, I've kept my upgrades down to a minimum and only when necessary. Swapped out the mag release with a SS Ed Brown one that I had laying around. The old one worked fine, but felt very gritty. Swapped out the grips with a set of Hogue's because I wanted the thumb relief due to the shorter Ed Brown mag release. The front sight was replaced by the factory with Ruger's fiber optic version. I liked the function of the old sight, but it broke TWICE on me and I told them that I had no faith at all in the same part. To make it up to me, they installed this one instead. Haven't had a problem since.

sr1911_hogue.jpg
 
While my Ruger 1911 CMD was very reliable and accurate, I also had a problem with the trigger. It was extremely gritty and heavier than it shoukd have been, and the trigger rattled like no tomorrow. I wasnt goig to put money into it as that would have put me in the realm of more expensive 1911's so I sold it with the intentions of getting a higher quality 1911. While the Ruger is a solid well built 1911, it's an entry level gun and it reflects that.
 
"I'm in for a threaded barrel but "no gunsmith" and 1911 don't really go together. Last time I took a gun to my local 'smith, he kept it for over a year and still didn't do what I asked.

Anybody know of a truly drop-in threaded barrel for a SR1911? "

Bought a stormlake threaded for sr 1911 lwt commander and it dropped in snugly.

Had bought one for a SA, and it required a fair amount of fitting.
 
Both of mine have been great guns (the full size 5" model and the all steel Commander sized CMD). I have an extensive history with Colt 1911's stretching back over 50 years now, both in the military and in civilian life and those two Rugers are every bit as good, and better in many areas than my re-worked Colts.

That said, although they're good right out of the box (2" groups or less [@ 25 yds too] and 100% reliability), I'd opt for checkering on the front strap (not stippling), and true night sights of the tritium variety. This last, is vital for a defensive hand gun that will be used in low light conditions. I personally think that Ruger has provided all the other features that one would want: flared mag well, two mags, Novak sights, good trigger, extended controls, checkered mainspring housing, and SS construction...anything beyond that strikes me as "mall ninja" commando stuff...but to each his own; a defensive hand gun is as personal a tool as it is possible to imagine.

Were I to get another one, it would be the light weight model, as carrying either of the other two is a real chore for more than a short range session.

HTH's Rod
 
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