Idiot mark on 1911

[nuke_em]

[freonr22]

black sharpie???
ttt

[sammy]

Don't even bother. It is a tool, a beautiful tool. The cost of refinishing a frame because of an idiot mark is not worth it. Spend the money on ammo instead.

[toneman]

I always like worn finish on the gun looks... I don't know, kind of nice that way,
Don't feel bad about it, like a nice pair of worn jeans will make you feel more attached.

[Salty]

Black sharpie works ok. Never tried a cold blue pen myself, but that's also an option. The scratch gives the gun some character though.

I have a Big 5 special Marlin 30-30 that looked so perfect when I brought it home that both my wife and I commented on how "fake" it looked. Well, turns out the blueing scratches easy if you aren't super careful during disassembly, the barrel turns dull if you touch it when hot, and the Big 5 / WalMart "hardwood" stock is super soft and dents easy. I've only had it out to the range 3-4 times yet it looks 5 years old. None of my other guns have worn out so fast from a cosmetic standpoint, but somehow with a coat of CLP on the steel and Old English on the stock it looks 100 times better than the day I brought it home.

[Army GI]

Don't even bother. It is a tool, a beautiful tool. The cost of refinishing a frame because of an idiot mark is not worth it. Spend the money on ammo instead.

Indeed. Don't be OCD about your guns. Unless you're a filthy rich, you can't afford it.

[5150Marcelo]

so how does one avoid these marks?

[Black Majik]

so how does one avoid these marks?

Theres a way to install without dragging the slidestop on the slide and frame. A business card underneath the slidestop also helps.

[Splinter]

Easy to fix it to look better. Just use some cold blue, but ignore the washing off with water part. Just use a qtip and reaply a bunch of coats. Works great

[Saigon1965]

Ah the beauty mark of a 1911 -

[IMC87]

1911 was my first pistol, i taught myself how to takedown and put back togther and no mark...i'm so proud of myself

[Teletiger7]

LOL why bother, better to intentionally put the mark there when you first buy it so that you won't care in the future.

[jcruzer619]

I rationalize it to my friends as though it's adding character to the gun, but in reality it's "impact learning" for me to never make that d*#m mistake again.

[kap]

so how does one avoid these marks?

Not too hard.

You just need to hold the slide stop against the slide stop plunger. Hold it about 1/16" off the frame of the gun and push up firmly, but gently to compress the slide stop plunger.

It takes a little bit of practice, but is very simple once you know how.

You could always get a stainless steel one next time.

[5150Marcelo]

Theres a way to install without dragging the slidestop on the slide and frame. A business card underneath the slidestop also helps.

ok, I wasnt too far off. I was thinking maybe a piece of tape or somethingg.