Fun with .45s – Upgrading Your M1911 Pistol

I suppose the die was cast the moment I was born. For as long as I can remember, I have been fascinated with firearms. When I was just a little kid, I was the one searching the back yards and wooded areas for the perfect pistol-shaped stick. Before we even had toy guns, my buddies and I ran around the neighborhood chasing each other with the gun-sticks yelling, “Bang, bang, I got you!” “No you didn’t.”

Amazingly, none of the neighbors ever thought to call in the local SWAT team. 

As time passed, I graduated to cap guns, both the paper rolls and plastic cartridges as well the plastic replica M-16s and Tommy guns that made the “rat-a-tat-tat” sound when you pulled the trigger. Then it was on to a lever action BB gun from Daisy…not a Red Ryder, but a Model 98 with a Monte Carlo stock. At age 13 I was allowed to have a much more powerful air-rifle, the kind you can pump up to ten times and will accept both .177 caliber lead pellets and BBs. Ironically, the squirrel and sparrow population around the house began to diminish around that same time. Odd. 

When I was around 15 years old, a great uncle let me shoot a .22 LR rifle. I was in heaven. Rimfire .22 rifles and 20 gauge shotguns were staples for teenagers in rural Ohio. The day of my 18th birthday I left high school and drove directly to the gun shop with cash in my pocket. I filled out my first official form and a brand new Ruger 10/22 rifle was all mine along with 200 rounds of CCI Mini-Mag ammo. By the time the sun went down that day, that ammo was depleted.   

The M1911A1

While the .22 rifles and shotguns helped scratch my itch, I wanted to shoot “real guns.” I had bought gun magazines off the rack since I was in my mid-teens and read articles from the masters; Keith, Cooper, Skelton, Venturino, Taffin, Clapp, Ayoob, Spangenberger, and many others. I’d venture to say before I ever touched an M1911A1 that I had read a hundred different articles in numerous magazines about them. 

When I was all of 19 years old, I saved up my nickels and dimes and enrolled in Executive Security International, a bodyguard school in Aspen, Colorado. Though two years shy of being able to purchase my own pistol, I could rent one for the duration of the firearms training portion. Not surprisingly, the rental guns in 1986 were US Government Surplus M1911A1 pistols with the traditional seven-rounds magazines. 

Fortunately, my roommate for the school, a man in his 30s, was also shooting an M1911A1, though his was much more modern than mine. After the first day on the range, my roommate showed me how to disassemble the pistol and take it apart for proper cleaning. Just as importantly, he taught me the proper steps to put it all back together.

A year later I would be a United States Marine going through Infantry School and we were still being issued the M1911A1 at that time. I would end up carrying that classic .45 ACP for two years before being issued the Beretta M9. 

As you might imagine, as with any first love, the M1911A1 has a special place in my heart. Decades flew by and I trained with and carried numerous handguns, but even to this day, I like to get back to my roots and pull out the old .45 ACP. Which brings us to where we are today. 

Fun with .45s 

Over the decades, I have taken several formal and informal gunsmithing classes. I learned how to take down an M1911A1 all the way to the empty frame and slide. Though, I would never consider myself to be a “gunsmith” I do know where all the parts go and how to swap or replace them if need be. 

The trick with the M1911A1 is that while they all might look the same on the outside, on the inside, the dimensions are NOT identical and often aftermarket parts do not simply “drop in.” Also, to make a really sweet running 1911, the parts are hand fit with gentle filing and polishing by an expert hand. Many 1911 parts are designed to be polished and hand-fitted. 

In my gun safe I had two M1911A1 style pistols that were in stock configuration and I got the bug to touch them up a bit. One was a Llama Firearms IX 1911 and the other a Century Arms Centurion 11. 

Llama IX 1911

Llama Firearms was a Spanish manufacturer founded in 1904. The company officially went out of business in the year 2000. For many years, Llama guns were imported into the USA and were generally priced very economically. A whole generation of young gun buyers bought Llama pistols as an inexpensive way to get into the gun culture.

I came about the Llama IX 1911 a couple of decades ago through a trade. The circumstances of its acquisition were unremarkable, but I knew 1911s and it seemed a good deal at the time. I did shoot it, but for quite a while, the pistol languished in the gun safe until I finally thought “I need to do something with that gun”.

As you can see, the IX 1911 shares a similar silhouette with the M1911A1, but it has a flat slide and the frame varies ever so slightly from the parent gun. As best as I can figure, this pistol was actually an IX-A model. These were made from 1955-1985.

When the Punisher television show was released in 2017, I looked at that gun and thought, “That looks like something Frank Castle would use.” Remember, the original Marvel Punisher character was a Vietnam-era US Marine veteran. 

If you are a true gun guy, I’d venture to say you have a box of gun parts that you have yet to use…but plan to…some day. The three-vent, drop-in barrel bushing muzzle brake that I installed was just such a part. I can’t recall when I acquired it. Seriously, no memory, but it seemed like it would be a perfect fit for the Llama IX. I decided to refinish the pistol with Duracoat Slightly Darker Black and Snow Gray. The templates came from Duracoat and Freedom Stencils. In order to make the images stand out, I sanded down the plastic grip panels.

 

As the gun was used when I got it and somewhere between 40 and 60 years old, I decided to order a new recoil spring from Brownells. Swapping recoil springs is likely the easiest and one of the best upgrades you can do for an older pistol. You can judge the end results for yourself.

Century Arms Centurion 11 

About a year ago, I reviewed and reported on a “new” pistol from Century Arms, the Centurion 11. This is a Turkish import and very close to an exact clone of the original GI M1911A1 pistols. I was impressed by the Centurion 11, It ran without a flaw and didn’t even need a 200-round break-in period as many of the old style guns required.

The Centurion 11 is a stock model without any bells or whistles, but it’s a good starter 1911. They’re forged steel pistols and are priced below $400. That’s a good deal. However, being a gun guy, I couldn’t just leave it alone. 

I swapped the black polymer grip panels for brown walnut versions from Ed Brown. I discovered when attempting to put in an Ed Brown aftermarket trigger and firing group that the Turks didn’t build the gun exactly to the original Colt dimensions. Those parts would require the expert hand of a pistolsmith, which I am not. 

However, undaunted, I went to Midway USA and ordered some “drop-in” parts from Wilson Combat…a larger manual safety, a beaver tail grip safety and a combat hammer. It was within my skill level to install those parts. 

Also, I went back to the Duracoat catalog and ordered various shades of green to “jungle” the gun up. I should mention that I ordered a few new Ed Brown magazines to use with the project.  

Range Testing

It should go without saying that after you have fiddled with your gun, the first step is a mechanical function check at the bench. The next step is live fire to ensure reliability. 

I have been at this quite a while now, some four decades. I went to my ammo locker and dug through my collection of .45 ACP ammunition. It was like a walk down memory lane. Many loads are not made anymore or have been upgraded with modern packaging. Represented were Black Hills, CorBon, Federal, Hornady, Remington, Speer, and Winchester. 

Parting Shots

Am I going to switch my EDC from a polymer-framed, striker-fire 9mm? No, I am not, but sometimes you just need to go back to your roots and enjoy the experience.  

Specifications: Centurion 11 1911 Pistol

Action: Single-action
Caliber: .45 acp
Capacity: 8+1
Length: 8.6 inches (219mm)
Height: 5.31 inches (135mm)
Width: 1.37 inches (35mm)
Weight: 2.19 pounds / 35.5 ounces (1.00kg)
Barrel Length: 5.01 inches (127.5mm)

 

Paul G. Markel is the founder of Student the Gun University and has been teaching Small Arms & Tactics to military personnel, police officers, and citizens for over three decades. He is the author of numerous books and is a combat decorated United States Marine veteran.