Week 3 June 8th – June 12th

Week 3
June 8th – June 12th
Accurizing the 1911 Pistol
(Class is limited to 6 students)
The goal of this course is to teach you the methods and techniques to accurize the 1911 pistol.
Bill Laughridge began as a gunsmith doing general repair at a small sporting goods store in
Fremont, Nebraska in 1974. He purchased the gun smith business that he had helped build up in
November 1978 and incorporated Cylinder & Slide Inc. at that time. He continued to do general
repair for several more years until he built up the pistolsmithing business. Bill’s break came when a
one-page article on his shop was published by the American Handgunner. IPSC shooting was just
starting to gain popularity and good pistolsmiths were not plentiful at that time. His backlog for
building pistols quickly passed 1 year. He has continued to build Cylinder & Slide through the
years and they now customize mostly concealed carry pistols and revolvers and sell their own line
of custom 1911 pistols and their premium fire control parts for the 1911 and Browning Hi
Power. Cylinder & Slide Inc. now employees 6 pistolsmiths and 7 administrative people. One of
Bill’s greatest honors was to be elected Pistolsmith of the Year in 2005 by the American
Pistolsmiths Guild.
Bill Laughridge
Purpose: To provide a hands-on class which teaches professional Pistolsmithing theory and the
techniques needed to accurize and enhance the 1911 style semi-auto pistol using hand tools.
Scope: To instill knowledge about the history of accurizing the 1911 pistol. To teach modern
techniques of installation and fitting of parts needed to produce an accurate and reliable 1911 pistol.
Some of the subjects to be covered:
1. Safety
a.
Shop work safety rules
Shop work safety rules
2. Slide Tightening
a. Discussion of Advantages and Disadvantages
b. Peening method (demo only)
c. Slide to frame
3. Fitting Thumb Safeties to the Fire Control Group
4. Fitting the Extractor
5. Barrels
a. Fitting a semi-drop-in barrel to the pistol
b. Fitting the barrel bushing for accuracy and reliability
c. Throating the barrel & frame
d. Barrel Crowning
6. Triggers
a. Fitting the trigger to the frame
b. Reduce Trigger Free Play
c. Trigger Pulls
d. Installing C&S Trigger Pull Set
7. Powers Sear Stoning Fixture-How it works
2
3
4
5