Cussin' Bob's Gun: The Barrel is In

Back in January Cussin' Bob bought a Sistema from Bud, with the understanding that I would work it over for him. After debating the merits of different modifications, Bob finally decided that he needed little more than a Wilson barrel, a trigger job, and a good magazine. Bob liked the idea of a sleeper 1911, and decided to keep the gun looking like an old Sistema. I ordered a Wilson Combat drop-in barrel and bushing, along with Nowlin springs, and Pearce rubber grips. I purchased a Wilson magazine for Bob as well.

While I waited on the parts to arrive, I performed a trigger job on Bob's gun, using the forged steel Colt parts. Then I took the pistol to the range to get a fix on how the original barrel shot. The Wilson barrel and other parts arrived today, and I spent the evening fitting Bob's barrel. Drop in parts never drop in. After a bit of work, I got everything assembled with plenty of Ballistol and Tetra grease. I widened the rear sight notch a bit, and I trimmed the sharp edge off the widespur hammer and radiused the GI grip safety.

I hope to find the time to get the pistol to the range tomorrow. The barrel is still pretty tight. After shooting 200 or so rounds, the parts will be mated to each other, and the pistol will be slicker than hog snot. I can hardly wait to get it to the range and see how it does!