Anyone tig 1911 frame rails?

[Ulma Doctor]

Looks pristine, my only caveat would be to not wear it out cleaning it. I have a friend that's a master bullseye shooter that wore out his Les Baer wad gun because he was a bit compulsive about cleaning. Of course I don't think he'd made master in just a few years without that aspect of his character (I've been in the great waiting room of expert for about 10 years now, ha!). But then his gun had a full length guide rod and he had to take the bushing off with the barrel in battery. Made me consider a bushing wrench that's open at the bottom and the handle comes from the top... that's on the list of roundtoits as well.

great idea with the bushing wrench!

i clean the old girl with baby towels and throw away the towels after the cleaning.
i almost never clean without complete disassembly.
i like the MIL-L-46000B LSA WEAPONS OIL ,MEDIUM it's an excellent slippery lubricant and seems to protect nicely.
thanks for the compliment!
mike)

 

[Rbeckett]

Kevin,
I think that extreme caution should be excercised when attempting to weld on a weapon. Guns are exposed to rather abrupt loads that are rated in the thousands of PSI and a weld failure or heat related failure could cause injury or death. I am a retired welder and heavy truck mechanic and I would be very very carefull of attemting to repair such wear. I would be afraid of altering the metals structure when I added filler and cause a weakness in the material. I am not a gun smith or have experience with that type of wear, but it sounds like a very risky repair to undertake, especially if a new part can be had for replacement. I would definately consult the manufacturers authorized repairs list and see if it is an approved repair first. Then I would make certain I understood the exact procedure and had all of the required equipment in place before I attempted the job. I am not trying to discourage, just hopefully prevent an accident or disaster.
Bob

 

[Tom Griffin]

I appreciate your caution Bob, but the rails on a 1911 simply guide the slide as the weapon cycles. They don't have to withstand any of the pressures developed by the gasses in the chamber like the barrel or to some extent the slide. As I pointed out, many 1911 slides are even made from aluminum, so even an unhardened steel rail (as in one that has been welded) will be much stronger. There is no hazard in welding on a 1911 rail other than the possibility of screwing it up, and even that can be repaired by additional welding. Now welding on the receiver of a revolver or any non-semiautomatic firearm is an entirely different story. In that case you had better know what you are doing because once welded, the receiver will need to be re-heat treated to original specs or risk catastrophic failure, i.e. a bomb in your face.

Tom

 

[Johnm]

You can TIG them up. But don't run a continuos bead. Try to keep the heat to a min. The old school guys would braze them back in the day. It works too. All you are trying to do is tighten the fit. Now on my custom 1911's, I send them to Briley in Houston tx and have them install the accurails. It's pricey, but nice.