JEM Frames

Does anyone have any experience with JEM frames? I'm looking at building a new wad gun and they have a frame in the configuration I want.

Supposed to be a well made frame. I believe Jerry Keefer liked them, which says a good bit in their favor.

Jerry Keefer personally told me he didn't care for the tolerances of the frame. I have used several and they are as good as the Caspian or any other high-end frame. They all require something different when building. So gunsmith experience is what pays off for each.
Jon

Thank for the feedback. I've built on caspian, Springfield and STI frames so was looking at something different for variety as well as a different dust cover confuguration.

Jon Eulette wrote:Jerry Keefer personally told me he didn't care for the tolerances of the frame. I have used several and they are as good as the Caspian or any other high-end frame. They all require something different when building. So gunsmith experience is what pays off for each.
Jon

Well, hmmph. That prompted a bit of Googling. I did indeed find many threads on a few forums that I remember reading that had JEM frames mentioned and Jerry Keefer’s comments. I did not see any in which he condemned them, but also none that he favored them specifically, mostly he was just being helpful towards someone who had one.

So, I stand corrected, and see how I got confused as time has passed and memory fades.

I did find a couple of posts with him speaking well of STI frames and slides.

Jerry taught a class last year and used the JEM frames. He thought they should've been better.
Jon

Their quality has progressively gone down over the last few years.  As Jon stated, every brand has its own idiosyncrasies and you learn how and what you have to do to make them right.

How about these guys $800 seems pricey but it is a bar stock frame? 

https://www.deeprivercustoms.com/product/1911-frames-slides/

That seems like the  "I really don't want to sell this" price to me...

There are good frames out there for less than half that price.

rich.tullo wrote:How about these guys $800 seems pricey but it is a bar stock frame? 

https://www.deeprivercustoms.com/product/1911-frames-slides/

I was taking the Bob Marvel 1911 build class that was taught at Deep River Customs when they got the first prototype of this frame from the machine shop.  They are CNC machined right here in NC.  The finish quality on the prototype was amazing.

The DRC frame was meant to be superior to the Nighthawk custom frames DRC uses as a base build for their classes and their own custom pistols.  They aren’t competing with import 80% frame suppliers. They are not interested in the race to the bottom.  It is more about them making frames available for their own builds, their class builds, and providing frames to former students.  It is not about setting up a business based around selling frames as a major revenue source.  

Declaring that an item of similar shape at half the cost is of equal substance to the higher cost one just doesn’t hold up.  If it did then that means the SE Asian cast manufacturd 80% frame I bought for $129 is one of the finest value frames available and we should all buy RIA 1911s, because they are cheaper and of equal quality to KC’s finest custom target pistol.

Sure, everyone has their own price points and reasons to stay within them, but make sure you are comparing apples to apples.  STI frame/slide combo is also $800 and they are top quality frames and they sell plenty of them.  Nighthawk Custom frame and slide are $780 and well know for their quality.  This frame is perfectly in line with the price and quality of these other frames.

Declaring that an item of similar shape at half the cost is of equal substance to the higher cost one just doesn’t hold up.  If it did then that means the SE Asian cast manufacturd 80% frame I bought for $129 is one of the finest value frames available and we should all buy RIA 1911s, because they are cheaper and of equal quality to KC’s finest custom target pistol.

First off. I did not mean to cast the maker in a poor light, and if you are associated with DRC and were offended, i appologize. I meant no disrespect, I was simply indicating, as you appear to have confirmed, that they are not trying to make the sales of component frames a major source of revinue for thier company.

Second, my understanding is that the frame alone is 800+. If i was mistaken and this is a prefitted, frame and slide combo, than I agree, 800 is not really out of line. If this is the case, I'd suggest to DRC that they make that fact more clear on thier website.

Third, I most certainlly did NOT say lower cost frames were EQUAL to more expensive articles, and i will take slight offense that you mischaracterized my statement as an endorsement of garbage frames. If you reread my post, I indicated high quality frames are readily available for less than half the $800 price, nothing more.

I build almost exclusively on STI forged frames as I've been very happy with thier frame rail dimensions and parrallellism. These frames sell for 250-350 retail, depending on configuration so I see no need to buy an 800 frame that may truely be marginally better when the 300 frame is widely acknowledged to be pretty darn good.

Again, I meant no offense, and if my reading of the website was in error I appologize. However, I felt my statement was mistakenly characterized as a blanket acceptance of low quality frames and required a response/clarification.

Rob

That was a combo I did not mean to stir up a kerfuffle.

Life needs a little ferfuffle now and then, and if  apologizing for, and clarifying a quick, hip shot Internet post is the worst kerfuffle I have to deal with today it'll be a good day!

I hope the other party feels the same.

I was not upset nor am I affiliated with them, other than the class and a parts source.  They are just good guys that do clean work.

I have had two careers in woodworking and jewelry, both of them hand making every item to the highest quality possible.  You needed a dining room chair? They started at $1200 each and went up from there.

It just hits a trigger point when I see this kind of comparison as I had to deal with it all the time and you have to spend some time educating the customer about it.  I know you did not mean anything offensive by it.  I just gave the similar spiel I would have to any of my customers.

I didn’t know much of your background and that post is actually addressed to a broader audience of folks that may read it in the future and have their first realization that price isn’t everything.

Didn’t mean to set off anyone’s kerfuffle detector!

I forgot to mention that last year, I asked Keith at DRC about getting a lower with a few custom changes and he told me they were only doing full frames with no options, as they just did not have time to devote to made to order gear yet, but they hope to start adding more as time goes on.  

They are a small shop, so adding a complete 1911 frame made just for them is MAJOR step.  I think I remember him saying that the machine shop he works with is also a specialty CNC machining source for several NASCAR teams, so the work produced is top notch stuff.