When a MFR makes a 1911, even if they modify things like making the slide a bit beefier, making their barrel out of Stainless instead of regular steel, etc...do they still adhere to making the frame Mil-Spec, that is to say that grips from one maker will fit onto the frame of another, and so forth?To the best of my knowledge and limited experience, all grips of the same frame size are interchangeable. A mil-surp plastic grip from a WWII issue Colt will fit a brand new Smith & Wesson SW1911 will fit a Rock Island Armory entry-level 1911 will fit a Kimber Ultra. The design has been around, almost literally, for a hundred years - there's decades upon decades of aftermarket parts out there, and a manufacturer who introduced a 1911-style design that didn't take standard grips/bushings/etc. would quickly find themselves on the outside looking in.In a nutshell, is there interchangeability for the more *decorative* parts, such as grips?
Here's a picture showing different styles of grips, all interchangeable among government frames:
Simply Gripping
There's a WWI-issue military wood "diamond" grip on the original Colt; a Hogue monogrip rubber grip on the 1991A1; and an aftermarket walnut wood grip on the Gold Cup. All three grips will fit on all three full-size guns, as well as all other 1911-style guns I've come across (S&W SW1911, AutoOrdnance AO1911). I have yet to hear of any 1911 manufacturer coming out with a "traditional" 1911 that didn't mesh with 99% of all aftermarket grips. There are certain manufacturers - Para and STI come to mind - that make double-stack and modified 1911s, but "standard" style 1911s they are not.
Some grips will require a little hand-fitting - the walnut grips on the Gold Cup required some fine sanding before they fit properly. This tends to be more an artifact of the individual grip maker rather than the 1911, though - IIRC, the walnut grips were an eBay special from way back in the bad old days when eBay actually sold gun parts... Once fitted to any one given 1911, aftermarket grips should fit any traditional 1911-style pistol you happen to come across.
I'm sure someone out there will correct me if I'm missing out on certain manufacturers not approved for sale in MA make non-standard 1911s...
That is all.
7 comments:
One big difference, is if the 1911 has an ambidextrous safety, or a "Bobtail" done to the frame the grips will need to be trimmed (or come cut) for those features.
IIRC even double-stack paras will accept standard grips, its just better to get the slim-cut grips so you don't feel like you're holding a baseball bat backwards. Dunno about the STI 2011 guns. But Government Grips will fit all Government and commander 1911s, Officer grips will fit all CCO, Officer ACP, Defender and smaller 1911.
"a manufacturer who introduced a 1911-style design that didn't take standard grips/bushings/etc. would quickly find themselves on the outside looking in."
You mean like the Llama Large-Frame .45? Buddy of mine has one - it sports a Colt Natl Match barrel and bushing (courtesy of the late Shadowmaker, gunsmith and knifemaker extraordinare), but it's NOT a 100% clone - standard grips will NOT fit it. (the holes don't match up, IIRC)
There are others, IIRC - GripsRUs, who made the Masonic grips my 1911 sports, had a list on his eBay store of what 1911s his grips won't fit.
Weerd beat me to the punch on the Governmant/Commander vs Officer's and other small frame versions.
On thing I've noticed is that some grips will "fit", but the factory screws won't properly (hole oversized/under counter-sunk, etc). A careful chaseing of the threads with a tap will often prove helpful. If necessary you can always go with a helicoil and effectively start over. :)
Weerd,
Excellent point - I am not a big fan of the bobtail grip, so I hadn't thought of it. Yeah, that'll require specialized grips.
Ross,
LLAMA!!! That's the one I was trying to think of, actually - thanks!
I knew that the Argentinian Ballester-Molina wasn't an exact match, either - but it was never billed as one.
AMT! I don't think that the AMT 1911 used the same grips either.
In any case, it's easy to see that the non-standard 1911s:
a) Are much less common than standard; and
b) Don't stick around long or get much of a following...
Thanks for the reminders!
The Taurus PT1911 uses a very slightly different grip to fit its frame. RAASCO is one grip maker who makes grips in two patterns, one regular and one for the Taurus.
HTH,sv
That is the only complaint I have about my Para LDA 3" PDA. For some unknown reason, the grip screw spacing is different on these. The grips would fit, as everything is the right size and contour, it is just that the spacing is non-standard.
Yop, I picked up a Llama MAX-something or other back when I was on a tight budget, and it (supposedly) interchanges everything but the grips with some model of 1911. Kinda sloppy action, can't fire it left handed.
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