Adding a Red Dot to my Mil Spec 1911

by Alfa Fan 9/25/2023, 10:18 pm

New to this forum but have read lots of posts over the past few years.

I want to mount a red dot (Ultradot) to my Springfield Armory Mil Spec so I can put lots of rounds thru it. I recently retired and moved from NJ to Florida (NJ law says you have to move to Florida when you retire) and am moving to a new community that has a small gun club. In NJ I was involved in local, informal, Bullseye competitions but only competed in the .22 competitions with my High Standard Victor with an Ultradot mounted on a replacement rib. I have always been a fair shooter always scoring in the middle of the groups (average scores of 260-270 in two-handed shooting and 240-250 in one handed shooting). I would like to start an informal league here starting with .22's but would eventually like to move up to center fire and .45. As background, I started shooting with my dad when I was 10 and continued to shoot with him and reload in our basement until he died when I was 17. I didn't shoot a gun again until my kids were in their early teens and we started going to the range with a Ruger 10/22. I got back into shooting again in my mid 50's and have been fairly active in our local gun club.

I want to get more proficient with .45. I have 2 1911's; a Springfield Armory Mil Spec in .45 and a CMP 1911 from 1942 with a Colt frame and an Ithaca slide. I reload so I can put together a good target load. I would think the SA Mil Spec would be the better platform to build a quasi bullseye 1911.

To get to the point, I want to practice more with the 1911 to become more proficient with large caliber pistols. With my older eyes, a red dot is a must. Where do I start to mount a red dot to the slide of my 1911? I will start to accurize later but want to get more rounds downrange. As we all know, the first place to start is with the shooter. Since I've done fairly well with .22 I know the basics of bullseye shooting but want to do it with a 1911 also. My accuracy with any centerfire gun is much worse than with a .22. That means I need to practice more.

My plan is to:
1) Mount a red dot on my 1911
2) put lots of rounds thru it
3) replace the barrel, bushing, bushing, trigger job, etc by a gunsmith
4) destroy the competition!

I am on a budget (my wife is the limiting factor) and in no hurry (time frame of 12-24 months)

What's the best way to mount an Ultradot to my 1911? and eventually build a fairly accurate gun?

Thanks for all of the collective knowledge in this forum.

by **Wobbley** 9/25/2023, 11:26 pm

Buy a Rock River Arms rail. However, I question the selection of the Ultradot. There are better and lighter dots out there.

by JRV 9/26/2023, 7:16 am

I think you have the order of operations backwards.

I would not install a rib or mount a dot before ensuring the pistol is mechanically accurate. A dot and thousands of rounds of ammo will do you no good on a pistol that shoots 6” at 50 yards and barely holds short-line 10-ring.

If you’re calling 8s and shooting Xs with the dot, or vice versa, you might as well save the ammo.

Have the gun accurized at the same time you are having the rail installed. Do steps 3/1 at the same time, then 2, then 4.

Another note—slide mount versus frame mount optics is a big point of personal preference. Before you commit to one system versus the other, talk to your local shooters and try some equipment out.

Heck, call and talk to smiths with good reputations (get names from your local competitors, especially the ones who win) to price out and timeframe building a match .45 off your Mil-Spec—the option you haven’t mentioned (selling the Mil-Spec for a few hundred bucks and putting that towards buying a competitor’s used gun) might be the most cost- and time-efficient.

by Alfa Fan 9/26/2023, 1:41 pm

My local range is the Palm Beach Shooting Center. It's a nice, outdoor county range. I've been to a couple of indoor ranges and no one is shooting bullseye. Most of the pistols are polymer 9mm and it appears most are there to practice self defense. People come over to look at my High Standard with a Ultradot and hair trigger. No one shoots one handed.

I agree that I need to make sure my 1911 can shoot accurately otherwise I'll just be wasting ammo. I'm going with an Ultradot because I've used smaller, lighter dots but prefer a tube type dot. The extra weight is a plus. My High Standard is steady in my hands with the extra weight so I prefer a heavier gun.

I'm using my Mil Spec as a starting platform because it's mine and I'd lie to keep my budget low. I've thought about selling it and getting a SA Loaded or Range Officer if I can find one. It might be a better platform to start with. I know in the future I'll need to replace the barrel and bushing. Any recommendations for a good gunsmith that is proficient in 1911? Right now, I'm asking the forum because there is a lack of reliable, face to face, info in my area. I've asked if there were any local matches and even the older range officers don't know of any. My High Standard is already set up and been shooting well for many years (I added the dot about 20+ years ago) but don't have any idea how to set up a 1911.

by Alfa Fan 9/26/2023, 2:41 pm

Thanks for the PM from SA/DA about 900 matches in Stuart, FL. I am new to the forum and can't reply until I have 5 posts.

I looked at the calendar that was posted on mcsa.cc and saw it's held on the first Saturday of the month. I wasn't sure if membership was required but it says to come early and help set up and a fee of $5/match.

I'd be interested in that. I'll contact Glenn about any questions

by JRV 9/26/2023, 3:19 pm

Check out the guns on the line at the next MCSA 900 and ask those folks face-to-face. There are some extremely well-regarded smiths on this forum. But, you might have some bullseye-capable smiths in your backyard. Just like the MCSA matches, there's probably a small local crew that is "in the know" whom you haven't met yet. Who knows, they might refer you back to some of the folks that post here.

For my first 1911, I bought a used Range Officer and added an EGW drop-in angle bore bushing. That was the extent of the "accurizing." That pistol shoots on call and holds 10-ring at 50 with a pretty standard 185gr JHP load (4.5 BE, 1.205" COAL, 0.469" crimp). Trigger was decent and the sights were usable. Got my first leg points and a metallic sights championship with it.

Trading into (or selling and buying) a Range Officer---and spending the $40 bucks on a bushing if needed---might put you out less net money than the costs of rebarreling the Mil-Spec and getting a proper trigger job. Same for buying or trading into a competitor's pistol. You never know who's retiring from the sport, cashing out for an upgrade, or transitioning to .22 only.

A reasonably accurate pistol with comfortable ergonomics and a good trigger will be easier to shoot well than a laser beam with an unpredictable trigger.

MCSA is not far from my in-laws' place in Hobe Sound. I might see you at a 900 or a bowling pin match next time I'm traveling!

by mbmshooter 9/26/2023, 3:57 pm

Alfa Fan wrote:New to this forum but have read lots of posts over the past few years.

I want to mount a red dot (Ultradot) to my Springfield Armory Mil Spec so I can put lots of rounds thru it. I recently retired and moved from NJ to Florida (NJ law says you have to move to Florida when you retire) and am moving to a new community that has a small gun club. In NJ I was involved in local, informal, Bullseye competitions but only competed in the .22 competitions with my High Standard Victor with an Ultradot mounted on a replacement rib. I have always been a fair shooter always scoring in the middle of the groups (average scores of 260-270 in two-handed shooting and 240-250 in one handed shooting). I would like to start an informal league here starting with .22's but would eventually like to move up to center fire and .45. As background, I started shooting with my dad when I was 10 and continued to shoot with him and reload in our basement until he died when I was 17. I didn't shoot a gun again until my kids were in their early teens and we started going to the range with a Ruger 10/22. I got back into shooting again in my mid 50's and have been fairly active in our local gun club.

I want to get more proficient with .45. I have 2 1911's; a Springfield Armory Mil Spec in .45 and a CMP 1911 from 1942 with a Colt frame and an Ithaca slide. I reload so I can put together a good target load. I would think the SA Mil Spec would be the better platform to build a quasi bullseye 1911.

To get to the point, I want to practice more with the 1911 to become more proficient with large caliber pistols. With my older eyes, a red dot is a must. Where do I start to mount a red dot to the slide of my 1911? I will start to accurize later but want to get more rounds downrange. As we all know, the first place to start is with the shooter. Since I've done fairly well with .22 I know the basics of bullseye shooting but want to do it with a 1911 also. My accuracy with any centerfire gun is much worse than with a .22. That means I need to practice more.

My plan is to:
1) Mount a red dot on my 1911
2) put lots of rounds thru it
3) replace the barrel, bushing, bushing, trigger job, etc by a gunsmith
4) destroy the competition!

I am on a budget (my wife is the limiting factor) and in no hurry (time frame of 12-24 months)

What's the best way to mount an Ultradot to my 1911? and eventually build a fairly accurate gun?

Thanks for all of the collective knowledge in this forum.

There are members here who are far better shooters than I. Having said that I am looking at your desire to "GET MORE PROFICIENT WITH 45s". If you wish to achieve that goal, I would suggest that "putting lots of rounds downrange" is NOT the way to go!
You acknowledge that you need to practice. So...PRACTICE!
Jon Eulette provides some outstanding advice and is a very accomplished competitor. Using his KISS example, make a list of the things you believe need work for you to improve. Ideally, it would be very helpful to have a knowledgeable shooter observe you shooting to give feedback on your stance, grip, possible jerking or flinching, etc.
From your list choose ONE thing on which you will focus and practice during your PRACTICE session. Not just blasting away but truly PRACTICING. As I said, there are more accomplished shooters on this forum but my comments come from wisdom passed on to me by several national champions all but one of whom are now gone.

Mike

by Alfa Fan 9/26/2023, 5:27 pm

Thanks for the advice mbmshooter. I agree that just putting lead downrange is a (fun) waste of time. I used to go to the range every Saturday to practice and have coffee with the guys and Sunday I would go to my other range and shoot 900 matches. Now that I've moved I'm starting all over again after 20 years of comradery. At that time I never thought of moving up to centerfire but now I'm toying with the idea.

I'm hoping to see if I can find enough interest in the new community I'm moving into (in another 6 months) so that we can start a .22 league.

I've been practicing the principles I've learned from .22 but need to transfer those to centerfire. Yes, PRACTICE, not just blasting away.

by Alfa Fan 9/26/2023, 7:06 pm

And a nod to JRV. Bowling pin matches are lots of fun. The last one I attended in my last gun club came down to myself, my son, my daughter-in-law, and my friend Chip. Chip beat me and my son beat his wife so it came down to my friend and my son. They are about accuracy and speed. BTW, my son won!

Hope to see you at a match.

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