Hi, all.

I recently inherited a Smith & Wesson 1911, model 108285, from my father-in-law who passed away due to complications from Covid a few years ago. A picture of the model can be found here:

https://www.budsgunshop.com/pr...lued/postloginlaunch

https://www.iammo.com/media/ex...lued-108285-d4a.jpeg

I had previously owned a Springfield Armory Mil-Spec 1911 for a short time several years ago, but I’m relatively inexperienced with 1911’s in general. With a little practice, and following a great YouTube video I found, I can detail strip this SW1911 easily and quickly. I do like the fact that this is a “Series 80” pistol with the grip safety-activated firing pin safety. It does not make it any more difficult to detail strip.

A few unique “quirks” that I don’t particularly care for include: the need to remove the rear sight to inspect and replace the firing pin safety plunger, and the need to push out and replace the roll pin anytime I want to remove the external extractor. Those were two design decisions S&W could have done better, but I can't do anything about that.

This 1911 seems to shoot very well, it’s accurate, and easy to control recoil. It’s also a very nice looking 1911 in my opinion. I would, however, like to make a few modifications to the pistol to make it more shootable for me. I am not a gunsmith, so I am hoping I can make these changes myself with little to no “fitting”, but who knows. Maybe I will need to learn a few things. Here’s the list:

• The pistol needs new sights. My eyes are not what they used to be, and I need a wider rear notch and brighter front sight. I use Trijicon HD XR’s on my Glocks and like that sight picture. Luckily, this 1911 has dovetailed front and rear sights, so they are easily replaced. What do you recommend?
  
• The sear/connector/grip safety leaf spring seems a bit leak to me, especially in the grip safety department. Are these all standard size and weight? Would a Wilson Combat replacement work ok?
  
• The extra long trigger is a bit too long for me. If feel like I have too much pressure on the trigger prior to firing just to reach it. I'd like to install a medium-length (or shorter) trigger that allows a bit more curl to my trigger finger. What trigger would you recommend and what's involved in installing it?
  
• Due to my high grip (from shooting Glocks), my firing hand sometimes do not fully engage the grip safety even though it has a “memory bump”. What can be done to try to resolve that? Is shifting my grip the main solution?
  
• Again, due to my high grip, the meat of my left hand thumb tends to press against the thumb safety when it is disengaged and it feels like I cannot fully/firmly disengage it. This pistol has a somewhat extended thumb safety. So I’m thinking I’d like to try either a higher-riding thumb safety, or a non-extended type. What specific thumb safeties do you recommend, and what would it take to install it?
  
• To be safe, I’ll probably want to get a new recoil spring. I plan to shoot standard pressure 230gr ammo, so what weight do you recommend?
  
• This pistol only came with one factory magazine, and it currently does NOT lock the slide back when empty. So I need a couple new magazines. What manufacturers do you recommend?
  
• Oh, one last thing... there's a faint "idiot scratch" on the polished blue slide as well as the frame. Minor but noticeable. Just wasn't put back together properly I guess. Any ideas how to easily address that without a full refinish?
  

I think that’s about it for now. Perhaps in the future I’d like to add an extended magazine well that’s built into the mainspring housing. But that’s later on. Again, I’d ideally like to make these mods as “drop-in” as possible. This is not an HD gun, just a fun gun for the range.

Thank you for your time!

Chris

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Chris17404,

I would sell it and buy what I wanted

quote:

Originally posted by oldbill123:
I would sell it and buy what I wanted

I disagree, especially since it's an heirloom. The things he wants to do with it are pretty standard "1911 things."

A new safety isn't just a drop-in thing, you'll have to fit it to your gun. Probably best for a gunsmith to tackle. I'd suggest just trying to get used to it if you can, and it's the same thing with the grip safety and the idiot scratch. New springs and a shorter trigger are easy fixes, that's just a YouTube disassembly/reassembly thing, take your pick of triggers. Chip McCormick Power Mags are what you want.

What might help you adjust that's a pretty easy swap if it doesn't have it is an arched mainspring housing. Lots of 1911 guys like the look and feel of a flat MSH and it may have one. Arched will give you a much closer approximation of the Glock grip angle and could solve your problems with it.

1. Trijicon HD or HD XR
2. Why change if it works? Wilson = good.
3. No input
4. Glock angle and 1911 angle are different and there are no known solutions with a functioning grip safety other than shooter training. However, some people "pin" the grip safety to the depressed state, to disable it, as Mr. Browning did not originally design the pistol with a safety there. Their reasoning is that the Army requirement is flawed, therefore, and a grip safety is not truly needed.
5. No input
6. RSA are to 1911 people not unlike the search for the holy grail. Captured, not captured. Short rod, full length rod. Heavy rod. Shok-buff or not. And, of course, weight. If working fine, and little use of pistol so far, why change? If you want to change, buy the Wolff spring package with various weights from 16 to 21 pounds, and see what you like.
7. 1911 magazines are researched to death. Various vendors offer various solutions. Most people offer guidance of the Wilson 47D. Some favor Chip McCormick. Some like Tripp Research. For the S&W, you could just buy what they supply, in years past the Mecgar. Choose a baseplate design that you like. Welded steel vs. removable? 7-round or 8-round? It's all just a simple choice.
8. Other than a very careful "cold blue" pen, with a follow-on wipe removal of excess, no solution. There are black and blue pens. Choose to match your frame.

1. No input. I'm generally happy with factory sights, or some type of night sights.

2. The sear spring needs to be properly tuned to your gun to correspond to your desired trigger pull, recoil spring weight, and trigger mass. It can be adjusted by gently bending the arms in and out. I learned this the hard way when I replaced the trigger, sear spring, recoil spring, and mainspring in my Springfield, and just to test (don't make a habit of this!) I dropped the slide on an empty chamber and the hammer fell to the half-cock notch. Turns out there was enough mass in the long solid trigger I'd installed that when the slide slammed home it would bounce against the sear spring hard enough to allow the sear to move and drop the hammer. The half-cock notch worked as designed, and it probably wouldn't have been an issue anyway with a loaded mag, but I wanted some safety margin built into the gun so I adjusted the springs accordingly. My trigger pull is a bit heavier now, but a lot of the weight is in the initial takeup and the transition to the break only requires a little extra pressure.

3. There are lots of trigger options out there. Just take note of the issue above with the added inertia of a solid trigger there can be issues, and lightening cuts aren't just for looks. While you have it out, polish the bow and make sure it slides cleanly in the frame track. You also will likely need to file/stone the top and the bottom of the trigger shoe to provide adequate clearance in the frame track. You want it to move freely with zero slop up or down.

4. I've never had this issue so I can't speak to it. My suggestion would be to adapt your grip to the gun...you're shooting a 1911, not a Glock.

5. Is your thumb riding on top of the thumb safety after you disengage it, or are you sticking it under it? Proper grip technique for a 1911 has your thumb resting on top of the safety lever...you shouldn't have issues with it getting pressed back on if you do that. If you do decide you want to change the thumb safety out, fitting one isn't that hard. There are tons of videos online, and all it takes is a file. Just go slow and repeatedly test fit until it's just right.

6. I'd say it depends on how your gun is set up and how the rest of the springs interact.

7. No real input here. I hear good things about Chip McCormick and Wilson, but I've been perfectly happy with my factory Springfield mags.

8. The bluing pen suggested above is probably your best option...or maybe just live with it if it's not too bad. I have a tendency to let my OCD get me into trouble and make a small problem into a bigger one if I'm not careful. One thing you can do to prevent this from happening in the future is to cut small divot with a round needle file into the part of the slide stop lever that engages the detent, so you can just press it straight in without having to rotate it next to the frame. Or if you don't want to do the file work, EGW includes that divot in their part straight out of the box.

No indication that it was an heirloom. And I would still sell it and get what I wanted. Some things he dislikes cannot be changed

quote:

Oh, one last thing... there's a faint "idiot scratch" on the polished blue slide as well as the frame … Any ideas how to easily address that without a full refinish?

No. Trying to polish it out will only result in a shiny/wavy (because metal has to be taken off) spot - and because the gun is blued, a bare metal spot - where the scratch was.

quote:

I do like the fact that this is a “Series 80” pistol with the grip safety-activated firing pin safety. It does not make it any more difficult to detail strip.

Either you made typo above or you contradicted yourself, because you later explain why they ARE more difficult to disassemble. And to put a fine point on it, what you're describing is the Swartz safety, not a "Series 80" safety. Both make them harder to disassemble.

quote:

Due to my high grip (from shooting Glocks), my firing hand sometimes do not fully engage the grip safety even though it has a “memory bump”. What can be done to try to resolve that? Is shifting my grip the main solution?

You can start with "desensitizing" it, making it so even the slightest pressure deactivates it. See if that helps. But even that doesn't always work. High grip and large hands causes them to lever upwards instead of in.

You can pin it (or have it pinned). You can "Jam" pin it. (where you squeeze a piece of something between the safety and the main spring housing. Though I wouldn't do this on a gun that may be used in a self defense situation, because it can get banged and "jammed" outward and won't fire. I learned that with a match gun. Oops, gun-no-workie)

Even start simple with just wrapping a rubber band around the grip. Or remove the grips, put a strip of tape (even grip tape) on it, then put the grips back on over it. Myself, I never cared for pinning them because I could always feel the beavertail fighting me ever so slightly. I always end up deactivating them, but this can be an issue for resale. Some I don't care, some I get a replacement grip safety and deactivate it.

quote:

Again, due to my high grip, the meat of my left hand thumb tends to press against the thumb safety when it is disengaged and it feels like I cannot fully/firmly disengage it.

You lost me there. lol If the gun is going off, you fully disengaged it.
If you mean you can still press it downward a little, that's not uncommon.

quote:

Originally posted by oldbill123:
No indication that it was an heirloom.

I was going off this:

quote:

Originally posted by Chris17404:
I recently inherited a Smith & Wesson 1911, model 108285, from my father-in-law who passed away...

quote:

Originally posted by oldbill123:
Some things he dislikes cannot be changed

Yes, but most of them can be changed, and easily so. It's a 1911.

Thank you for the feedback and recommendations. Yeah, it's not an heirloom, but I'm definitely not going to sell it. Thank you for correcting my terminology that it's a Swartz safety. Perhaps I did contradict myself a bit. These initial responses definitely make me think I should perhaps keep it the way it is and just get some new mags, or pay an experienced gunsmith to do the mods.

Trigger's an easy swap... mostly. (not knowing your skill level on such things) Some times simple, some times needing fitting and tweaking.

The safety needs fitting. Not terribly hard, but can be nerve racking the first time (or every time if you don't do it often.) A slow sometimes tedious process of file and try, file and try. Again not "hard", but it's not difficult to screw it up and ruin the new part. Then of course you're at the point of "will it match the rest of the gun?" (do you care?) If so you're down the road of swapping the slide stop to make it match. And grip safety? Pins?)

The up side is you can always put the old parts back on if you wanted to.

I use Trijicon HD XR’s on my Glocks and like that sight picture. What do you recommend?

*If you like Trijicon, get Trijicon... if they make a sight to fit the SW dovetails. Caution, some Smiths have sights that just LOOK like Novak but are their own dovetail.

The sear/connector/grip safety leaf spring seems a bit leak to me, especially in the grip safety department. Are these all standard size and weight? Would a Wilson Combat replacement work ok?

*Probably, but you could just bend the right side leaf to apply more tension to the grip safety.

The extra long trigger is a bit too long for me.

*There are "medium" triggers are available. File fitting usually required.

Due to my high grip (from shooting Glocks), my firing hand sometimes do not fully engage the grip safety even though it has a “memory bump”. What can be done to try to resolve that? Is shifting my grip the main solution?

*While it is common to "sensitize" the grip safety so it will disengage with less movement, that could cause a problem with the SW's firing pin block. You do NOT want the trigger to be cleared before the firing pin. A friend had that problem, I cemented a piece of hard rubber to the grip safety for a generous memory bump. Another friend had his welded up into a Super Bump.

*You can pin or block the grip safety but be aware that will also disable the firing pin block. By the way it is neither Series 80 nor Swartz, it is Smith's in-house design.

Again, due to my high grip, the meat of my left hand thumb tends to press against the thumb safety when it is disengaged

*Are you left-handed? Hard to see how you are getting interference there. But yes, the safety lever can be shortened or the safety replaced. File fitting required.

To be safe, I’ll probably want to get a new recoil spring. I plan to shoot standard pressure 230gr ammo, so what weight do you recommend?

*Wolff says 16 lbs. Factory Colts are usually less, around 14, some tight gun builders use 18. I don't know what Smith uses, but the design is pretty forgiving.

This pistol only came with one factory magazine, and it currently does NOT lock the slide back when empty. So I need a couple new magazines. What manufacturers do you recommend?

*I like the CM RPM. The Wilson ETM should be good, probably better than their 47D.

Oh, one last thing... there's a faint "idiot scratch" on the polished blue slide as well as the frame. Minor but noticeable. Just wasn't put back together properly I guess. Any ideas how to easily address that without a full refinish?

*If it is blued CM steel, one or another cold blue will darken the scratch. The pen is handy. If it is blackened stainless, nothing to do but paint it black with a felt tip or such.

My first 1911 was a S&W just like that only in brushed stainless. The idiot scratch was a little easier to account for without the black finish. Forgot what they call that finish but I believe it was proprietary to S&W.

There are two guns I regret selling in my life and that smith was one of them. It wasn’t anything fancy but it just ran and ran and ran. I don’t ever recall having any hiccups with mine.

They are harder to get custom parts / work completed and the S&W Performance Center wouldn’t do it at the time but you can do some little things yourself. I did some light honing to the firing system components, spring replacements etc. But, really, internally, the pistol was finished quite nicely with very smooth factory edges. It’s just loaded with mix and match bulk MIM components to control their manufacturing costs … replace those little bits as you see fit and you’re good.

My first call might be to S&W for warranty work before you did anything to it if you are having issues with it running for you. S&W has always been pretty good to me when I’ve needed them for service.

Some folks like to "fiddle" with guns and others only enjoy shooting them. The first thing to do is to decide which category you are in. IMO, the 1911 design is more "fiddely" than many. That's neither good nor bad, but I do believe it's true.
If you want to "fiddle", I would simply suggest going slow and start with the simple stuff first. Research what you plan to do before starting.
If you want to get it fit you and then shoot as soon as you can, it might be simpler to just take it to a gunsmith that is comfortable with 1911s and leave a list of things you want done. (Not everyone wants to work on 1911s)

Re: recoil spring ....If it is reliable as is, I probably would leave it for now. Re: more magazine....get good quality mags, 1911 don't seem to tolerate cheap mags as a rule. I would also simply replace the magazine spring in your present mag as that is often the cause of the slide not holding open on empty. I like Wolffe Gunsprings. (I like the extra-strength springs)

Take you time and enjoy a nice gun! (and think of your F.I.L, if you liked him when he was alive !! )mike

PS: Re the idiot scratch?? I'd leave it alone...you can always blame someone else!! (It's always going to show, and any "fix" will show more.)

I only have one 1911, also a S&W. I mainly bought it because I think every firearm enthusiast should have 1911 in .45.

I changed the stock mainspring housing with one with an integral mag well, I believe it is an Evolution Gun Works magwell purchased from Dillon Precision. I also recommend Wilson 47D mags. Oh, and I also changed out the stock grip panels to Ergo XT panels also purchased from Dillon. They’re super “grippy”. Other than that, I haven’t changed anything else on the gun.

You got me thinking I should pull mine out of the safe and take it out for a spin again…

Sorry for the loss of you FIL.

I have the same model (108285), bought it new @ 2009 and carried it on duty as an Investigator for a couple of years. I swapped some of the FCG parts out with a C&S kit (trigger, hammer, sear) and installed a different thumb safety (Ed Brown?).

quote:

Originally posted by Chris17404:

The pistol needs new sights. My eyes are not what they used to be, and I need a wider rear notch and brighter front sight. I use Trijicon HD XR’s on my Glocks and like that sight picture. Luckily, this 1911 has dovetailed front and rear sights, so they are easily replaced. What do you recommend?

The sear/connector/grip safety leaf spring seems a bit leak to me, especially in the grip safety department. Are these all standard size and weight? Would a Wilson Combat replacement work ok?

The extra long trigger is a bit too long for me. If feel like I have too much pressure on the trigger prior to firing just to reach it. I'd like to install a medium-length (or shorter) trigger that allows a bit more curl to my trigger finger. What trigger would you recommend and what's involved in installing it?

Due to my high grip (from shooting Glocks), my firing hand sometimes do not fully engage the grip safety even though it has a “memory bump”. What can be done to try to resolve that? Is shifting my grip the main solution?

Again, due to my high grip, the meat of my left hand thumb tends to press against the thumb safety when it is disengaged and it feels like I cannot fully/firmly disengage it. This pistol has a somewhat extended thumb safety. So I’m thinking I’d like to try either a higher-riding thumb safety, or a non-extended type. What specific thumb safeties do you recommend, and what would it take to install it?

To be safe, I’ll probably want to get a new recoil spring. I plan to shoot standard pressure 230gr ammo, so what weight do you recommend?

This pistol only came with one factory magazine, and it currently does NOT lock the slide back when empty. So I need a couple new magazines. What manufacturers do you recommend?

SW1911's are pretty good pistols, but have a few quirks.

The sight dovetails are S&W proprietary. the Trijicon HD's wont fit. There are a few options that will.
I used the XS sights option

https://www.brownells.com/gun-...74272310070302008005

The issue with the sear spring is not a big issue, it takes a standard 1911 sear spring

The Grip safety issue is way bigger than you can imagine unless you are a very competent 1911 armorer. here is why:
-1 the grip safety MUST have a series 70 configuration since it will slip off the FP safety lever if it has the thinner series 80 leg on it
-2 the timing of the release must be perfect. the reason SW1911 grip safeties are set to release the trigger so late is that the same lever that clears the trigger to move also lifts the firing pin safety lever and releases the firing pin to move. If the grip safety is set for an early trigger release, the lever often will not have moved enough to clear the firing pin safety. If this condition occurs, you can place the weapon in a condition where the trigger can drop the hammer on a locked firing pin. causing a misfire.
-3 many SW1911s used a Wilson style grip safety cut, but some were .250 radius (weird) if is is a Wilson cut, the only remaining safety I have found with a series 70 thick leg is the Wilson Combat bulletproof model. If it is a .250, there are several.
Again, do not mess with a SW1911 grip safety unless absolutely necessary.

The thumb safety is a standard configuration part. Any of the quality ones will work. My personal favorite is the Wilson combat model single sided with the smaller "tactical" lever.

Use a standard 16.5lb recoil spring from just about anyone.

I prefer Tripp research Cobra Mags. Better springs, higher feed position and they last forever.
https://www.trippresearchinc.com/8r-45-rg/

That mark in the finish. This is a Gun, it's going to see some rough handling at times. Which means it will get marked up. Get used to it. Because anything you do to that mark will only make it more noticeable.

Safety, as noted the correct hold has your thumb parked solidly on top of the safety and from what I have seen on the Market (Les Baer and Wilson) will leave you with a safety with an identical contour and slightly different serrations. I suggest you learn how to shoot properly with what you have because a new safety won't provide a solution. BTW, yes you can install a GI safety like that used on the original 1911 but those are more difficult to manipulate and usually the primary reason for changing out the safety.

Magazines, it's been a while since I counted but I have between 12 and 16 Wilson Combat 47D magazines. I have never ever had one single malfunction with any of these magazines. BTW I also have 10 of the 9mm Elite Tacticals with the same result of flawless operation. Just make sure you don't get confused and try to to use the 47D with 9mm ammunition, that is a combination that won't function well.

Sights, I like the Novak style sights that Ruger uses on their pistols, nice big white dots. In moderate indoor to evening twilight there is nothing more visible than white. BTW, I have tried fibre optic sights, they aren't worth spit at an indoor range. Unless the range places a lighting panel right above the shooting station, something that does not happen at ranges local to me.

The trigger on these is very easy to swap out and if you shop at Brownell's or Midway you will find a wide variety of triggers available. Personally I like the long but I do have a rather large hand span of a tick more than 9 inches. Get what looks good to you and perhaps you might want to get both a medium and short just to have that option. Triggers are pretty economical and as stated very easy to trade out. I would also suggest you look into a set of "thin" grips to try out, you may find them a better fit for your hand.

The 3 leaf spring in the back is something that you should avoid fiddling with. Correcting mal-adjustments to this specific spring is likely one of the most common repairs on a 1911. If you are going to fiddle with it I would suggest you take the base, clamp it in a vice, and then use an index card and make a tracing of each leaf before you do anything. This will give you a reference point to get back to the original profile.