THere are two possible answers to your first question. No and maybe. If the tolerances between your new slide and old frame are an interference fit( meaning the new slide will not fit onto the old frame) then material can be removed to get a tight fit. There should be no problem with the old lightweight frame and steel slide as to wearing against each other so no need to chrome plate anything.
If there is a lot of clearance then the worst case is a rattler. When you shake the gun there will be a noise of the slide hitting the frame. This exists with military guns where tolerances were "loose" so that parts were interchangeable between all the manufacturers and parts suppliers.
Another concern will be the barrel fit. Again depending on tolerances the barrel may need to be "fit" which should be the most accurate scenario. The other side of the coin if the barrel is loose you loose accuracy.
I don't own a Tisas so I can't give you dimensions.
Most finishes do build up so that has to be taken into consideration before making the decision to have the work done. This work could approach the cost of buying what you want in a new gun.

 

THere are two possible answers to your first question. No and maybe. If the tolerances between your new slide and old frame are an interference fit( meaning the new slide will not fit onto the old frame) then material can be removed to get a tight fit. There should be no problem with the old lightweight frame and steel slide as to wearing against each other so no need to chrome plate anything.
If there is a lot of clearance then the worst case is a rattler. When you shake the gun there will be a noise of the slide hitting the frame. This exists with military guns where tolerances were "loose" so that parts were interchangeable between all the manufacturers and parts suppliers.
Another concern will be the barrel fit. Again depending on tolerances the barrel may need to be "fit" which should be the most accurate scenario. The other side of the coin if the barrel is loose you loose accuracy.
I don't own a Tisas so I can't give you dimensions.
Most finishes do build up so that has to be taken into consideration before making the decision to have the work done. This work could approach the cost of buying what you want in a new gun.

To make my questions a little clearer, I'm taking the slide off my current SR1911 and having it fit (if necessary) to the Tisas frame. What I meant is, if there's enough clearance between the Tisas frame and the Ruger SR1911 slide (after or before fitting), will any part of the new setup need to be Hard Chromed? If it the answer is "no" or "it's not necessary", do the coatings between the two parts matter at all, as long as the parts are well lubed and fitted properly? I'm planning on having a competent gunsmith do the majority of the work; so if parts like the barrel need to be fit or replaced, I'll have that done as well. I know people keep saying that I'd be better off buying a whole new gun. But I've discussed that with others and am pretty set on this. I'll probably ask the smith to do as little to the SR1911 slide as possible; so I can still use the original lightweight frame. The Tisas frame is where I want most of the work done, and I plan on selling it's original slide and spare parts; to recoup some of what I spent.

 

Long story short, somewhere down the line I plan on swapping the frame of my Lightweight Government SR1911 to an SDS Tisas 1911 A1 Service 45 frame. In my previous discussion I asked for some advice about the process, and decided to go through with it. I know I could order a frame online, but that process is a nightmare I'd rather avoid. I'd rather find a Tisas in the wild; my local gun store is filled with them. Finally I plan on having a gunsmith do the work, because it is well beyond my realm of expertise.

My questions are as follows:

1.) Is it necessary to get any part of the gun hard chromed, if it already has enough clearance between the frame/slide rails and is well oiled?

2.) If the answer to my first question is "no it's not necessary", do the coatings between the frame and slide matter at all?

3.) If it's not to much trouble, I'd like to ask someone that owns the particular model of Tisas that I'm using as a donor, if you could give me the inner rail dimensions; so I can compare it to my slides rails.

I know the measurements can fluctuate slightly from gun to to gun though, since it's a mass produced product. I just need a rough estimation to determine how much I'll need to have the newer frame altered to fit my slide.

I asked similar questions at the end of another discussion, but due of the age of the discussion, it went unnoticed

Thanks in advance

109323 gave you some good advice. Unless you have a gunsmith that’s very very inexpensive your going to be putting a bunch of money into this project. Figure out what you want in a 1911 pistol and work towards getting that pistol already built. Finding a gunsmith that is very experienced in the 1911 is not easy. Most all parts in a 1911 need fitting and fine tuning and that takes time.

 

Well like I said before, it's somewhere down the line. But sure, this'll probably be the first place I post when it gets done.

 

The Tisas frame is a candidate for a proper peen and refit. A "30 minute smash and file, done" garage session is not the right way. A good frame rail peening job takes a few hours. I've done two of them now and they are still tight and sleek after ~1000 rounds and show no abnormal wear patterns. It's old school. Naysayers will trash the method - but done right it works. My labor is cheap to me. Brownells sells the slide fitting bars. Measure your slide and get the appropriate bar, a good clean/flat hammer, a vise and frame holder.

 

That's why I was asking for rail dimensions of that particular Tisas' frame; I wanted to know how much space there'd be between it and my slides rails. Which brings me to another question: if my slide just goes on initially with little to no resistance, what else will I need to look for? Of course I know it wouldn't be as simple as that, I'm sure there'd still be some small amount of the frame that would still need to be fit, regardless if it just slipped on. Things I already know to keep an eye out for, are barrel position between both the slide (lockup) and frame (feed ramp), proper link position and the the overall ejector dimensions and position.

 

As you said in your posts your going to have a gunsmith do this work he should be the one to tell you what you need and what its going to cost you.

 

Yes, I'm just trying to get a rough estimation of what may need to be worked on

 

In the Kuhnhausen books, there are reprints of the original Colt/US Ord Dept drawings and specs for frames and slides. As long as the manufacturer adheres to the dimensions and 'tolerances' * of the original, there should be few problems.

Being able to measure accurately the way they are dimensioned, without the proper instruments, might be a problem for the average person.

* tolerance- an allowable amount of variation of a specified quantity, especially in the dimensions of a machine or part:

 

I'm slightly doubtful about Tisas, however I would think Ruger would adhere to those specifications. The only work I might do is cosmetic or something simple like changing a recoil spring and guide rod. I'm not all that comfortable filing or beating parts down myself, so that will all be done by a competent gunsmith. I'm picky about gunsmiths in the first place, because I had a bad experience with a youtube gunsmith (meaning someone that doesn't really know what they're doing so they follow a youtube tutorial). I gave him Cajun Gun Works parts to install and ended up with a CZ that didn't really have a noticeable single action break or reset. I would later trade that CZ for that reason and because the grey coating started to chip off.

 

I gave him Cajun Gun Works parts to install and ended up with a CZ that didn't really have a noticeable single action break or reset.

I think we talked about this in another one of your threads - tell the gunsmith what you want and let them pick the parts that he wants to use to accomplish the task.

You've spent a lot of time being concerned about metallurgy compatibility, and not about parts compatibility.

For instance, I don't know why you would want to go down the path of taking the slide off one gun and put it on another gun frame. The gunsmith may have the same question. If you really want the slide of one gun on another frame, the gunsmith may have a recommendation for what frame to use. They are smart enough to know the metallurgy and will direct you in the right direction.

Buying some odd-ball frame, or some inexpensive beater gun for your frame, may make the job harder for your gunsmith and end up costing you significantly more time and money.

It seems to me, the least expensive and most workable solution would be to keep the lightweight Ruger as is, and just buy another gun with the features you want. Then you'd have two guns that worked, and one would be a lightweight, rather than one and a half/two that may not.

 

How does the Lightweight Commander slide Ruger differ from the non-Lightweight Commander Ruger?

Ruger® SR1911® Commander-Style Centerfire Pistol Models

www.ruger.com

Why don't you just buy a second Ruger Commander?

 

This is certainly doable. It might even end up being simple as putting the Ruger slide on the Tisas frame and calling it a day. Though it is more likely to need fitting.

You are wanting dimensions from a frame that won't be the donor frame. That is not likely to work out as you are hoping in that the dimensions vary widely enough to be too big, too small or just right and everything in-between.

I will give you some examples from my own experiences. I used to have 6 Dam Wesson 1911s. I had 2 ECOs, two CCOs and two bobtail commanders. None of the pairs slides were interchangeable between one another. But I could swap one ECO slide with one CCO slide and the other ECO could be swapped with one of the bobtail slides.

My othe Bobtails frame is actually used with 2 slides but one is an aftermarket slide. It fit part way on the frame but could not even start to slide onto any of the other DW frames. I found a Para that I had could be used so now I have 2 different frames that work with 3 slides. I had to fit the aftermarket slide onto the dw frame. The barrel fit well on that setup. That same slide and barrel is tight slide to frame fit but loose barrel to frame fit when using the Para frame. The Para slide is average on its frame but slightly loose on the dw frame.

Basically this is an example of the measurements aren't always going to be close just because it is the same brand and model of 1911.

 

...I used to have 6 Dam Wesson 1911s...

@remanaz I see what you did there. 😄

 

As far as I know, both Ruger slides are identical. I already have a carry pistol. Excuse my ignorance in regards to gunsmiths, I had always assumed gunsmiths worked with what was given and asked for additional parts if necessary. Say I provided the parts and told them what I wanted done, they could then tell me what all else would be needed, if anything, to complete the build. But you are right, I'll ask the gunsmith in advance before I buy anything. I just figured going with the Tisas would have been the best option because of the things I mentioned before.

 

Excuse my ignorance in regards to gunsmiths, I had always assumed gunsmiths worked with what was given and asked for additional parts if necessary.

Gunsmith's have their preferred parts, because they do this for a living. They've used parts over the years and figured out which ones work the best. Sure, if they're good, they can probably fix anything, but some parts will interchange with others more easily. You give them odd parts that would require them more work to fit, and your costs will go up, and your wait time will be longer.

Also, be honest, you're fishing around for the answers. The gunsmith already knows those answers. Ask him first before you spend money on parts that aren't going to help your project.

You can tell them you'd like a particular style of sight, safety, trigger, etc., and they can tell you if that item will work or if a similar product from another vendor would give you a similar look/feel and work better for your needs.

 

Me being worried about finish and metallurgy was because I was afraid of galling. And I know someone will say galling is almost a non issue at this point. But in my case, it might be, especially if there isn't sufficient space between my old slide and new frame, even after fitting. I also kept seeing people mention that a hard chrome finish would be the best finish to aid in galling prevention. I had already mentioned that I knew measurements fluctuate between same model guns. I was trying to get some form of reference as to how much I might need to look out for. But I think I'm just going to talk to my gunsmith, when I find one.

 

I know you may not respond, OP, but in my experience galling will not be an issue if the pistol is set up properly and the related parts are properly prepped. I am running a carbon on aluminum pistol as one of my carry guns...1911 CCO. No issues. I have a couple carbon slide on stainless framed 1911 pistols, and an all stainless 1911, all closely fitted...no issues. My son and I built his stainless pistol 1911. It is closely fitted in the slide/frame fit. I ran it through a match and we've shot it a few times...no issues. Stainless slides on carbon frames...same thing...no issues.

 

I'll end this here, because after a rather busy and annoying day, I finally got to talk to some people at my local gun store. They recommended me someone they use for more detailed work than what they typically handle. One of the employees called him for me and told him what I was wanting done with the parts that I'd want to use. He asked to speak to me and what followed soured any future thought of bothering with something like this again. He basically told me that the amount of work that I'd want done, with the parts that I'd want to use, is more trouble than it'd be worth; but in a very sarcastic way. I asked him if there were any parts that he'd personally use over what I wanted to use, he then further tore me a new one about how "it's a $600 gun and the work that I'm wanting done is the equivalent of switching out the engine of a Geo"(guessing he must work in the automotive field as well). Thanks everyone for your replies, but I'm done.

 

I understand your frustration. But it is the truth that you are wanting to make this a $2500+ project for something that will be worth $500 when you are done.

 

Finally I plan on having a gunsmith do the work, because it is well beyond my realm of expertise.

This is the key to your core line of questions. A good GS can do anything you want done with some possible exceptions. Pick wisely.

 

I'm probably going to sell or trade it at this point. This whole experience has made me just want to get rid of it. The next time I'm out, I'll look around for something I like and see where that goes. Hopefully I win the lottery this time. See you when I see you everyone.

 

Don't bail on the forum while waiting for your next purchase. Stick around and learn something while you are here. You will be better prepaired to make an informed purchase and smart modifications if any are needed.

 

After some time to think about it, I'm going to keep the SR1911. Though I will be having some minor stuff done to it, not going to say what exactly; I'd rather avoid the confusion of trying to explain myself. I'll also only be shooting 185gr standard pressure ball out of it. If I go higher I'll have to consider adding something else to my modifications. This thread can be pretty well ignored now, I'm going to edit my original question to reflect it.

 

No need to ignore the thread. Some learning may be taken away. Good luck in your endeavors. If you have questions, you know pics and i fo help. Your descriptions were clear and that was a help.