Category Archives: 10-8 Consulting Courses

Another 1911 Armorer’s Class in the Books

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Here I am blending a grip safety for a student. This is normally far beyond the scope of the class, but this student has been carrying this pistol on duty and I couldn't bear to see the frame cutting into his hand any longer.

Here I am blending a grip safety for a student. This is normally far beyond the scope of the class, but this student has been carrying this pistol on duty and I couldn’t bear to see the frame cutting into his hand any longer.

Last month, we trekked out to the last frontier known as the State of Alaska, to do a 1911 Advanced Armorer’s Course to the fine folks at Anchorage PD. I enlisted the help of Colt 1911/M16 Armorer Instructor Dean Caputo to help me out with getting some of the guns to run correctly. I was pleasantly surprised to discover that though the agency authorizes the carry of 1911s to folks who meet their requirements, the vast majority of the SWAT guys in our class chose to carry something a bit more modern and forgiving of the extreme elements in which these guys work.

As usual, the class began with an overview of the 1911 pistol, its variants, and basics on how to detail strip the pistol to its component parts and put it all back together. Since we had different makes throughout the 24 student class, the varied approaches different manufacturers use to build the guns (e.g. different FP block devices, built in locking devices, etc.,) required many students to modify their approach from what John Browning originally had in his mind.  Continue reading →

The Modified Glock

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Glocks tend to run great out of the box.  They are reliable, and accurate.  I have a friend who shoots a lot of 3 gun and IDPA with a completely stock Glock 17 with the plastic sights, and does it well.  Some folks like to simply change out of the plastic “filler” sights that come stock, for aftermarket sights such as 10-8’s.

I like my Glocks a bit more modified.  Above is a brand new Gen4 G19 that is a recent acquisition.  The gun shot great out of the box, but there are changes that I like to make for my own benefit. Continue reading →

10-8 Consulting’s 1911 Armorer’s Course

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Okay, I admit a little bait and switch. This is what we WON’T be doing in the Armorer’s Course. But we WILL be fitting extractors, safeties, and working on triggers.

After our recent series of articles on the 1911, many folks have gotten the impression that I am down on the 1911 platform, but this is not the case. I have carried a 1911 on the job for better part of 13 years, and dedicated countless hours and dollars to learning about and supporting the 1911 system. I think I speak for Hilton when I say our hope is to ensure potential end users go in with both eyes open should they choose to carry a 1911 on the job, or adopt it for team or agency use.

To this end, we offer the 10-8 Consulting 1911 Armorer’s Course. This is by no means a gunsmithing course, but goes significantly further than our 1911 Operations/Diagnostics curriculum in that it covers the skills necessary to perform basic maintenance and parts replacement. Unlike factory armorer’s courses, this class gives the student a broad spectrum approach to understanding how the 1911 works and will go beyond replacing factory parts. Included in the curriculum is a full overview of the cycle of operation as it pertains to the 1911, pistol and magazine maintenance, a full limited technical inspection worksheet, extractor replacement and tuning (geometry and tension), basic trigger work, and reliability modifications. We also provide an in depth explanation of the 10-8 1911 Function Test Protocol, where it came from, what it means and what it doesn’t mean. Continue reading →