1911 Build: Adjustable Sight Installed

1911 Build Index

I drilled and tapped the STI slide today, per BlindHogg's advice, and installed the Wilson BoMar-type adjustable sight. I've posted pictures of the assembled pistol before with the sight, but it was only slotted into place without the elevation adjustment screw.

It went much smoother than I had thought it would. The divot from the larger drill bit helped guide the one that actually drilled the hole. The bit went through the steel with very little effort. The tap cut the threads without breaking off in the hole (ugh, that really sucks). The edges of the leaf of the sight match up perfectly with the edges of the flat on the top of the slide. It was a high pucker factor job because I was working on the most expensive part of the pistol, but I couldn't be much happier with how it turned out.

The front sight is too tall, so it's shooting about 6" low. I ordered a tall front sight blank, so that I wouldn't end up with one that's too short. It's easier to file a tall front sight than it is to add height to one that's too short.

I was only shooting at about 25 feet, but I was able to get a group without much effort. The hardball rounds and the new lead semi-wadcutter ammo that I've been putting together both hit the same spot on the target. I haven't had any functional problems with either the CheckMate/Colt magazine or the CMC ProMag since the first outing.


I've been filing on the ejector of the M&P, and that hasn't been going so well. No matter what I've done, it's still throwing the brass at me. I seem to be shooting it a lot better than I was though.

I tried 15 and 13 pound recoil springs. I had thought that the 13 pound spring moved ejection more to the left, but I shot with the 15 pound spring again today, and I'm not really sure that there's any difference at all, besides maybe the speed of the ejecting brass.